indysteel
01-05-2009, 07:16 AM
Sorry this is so long, but it's a wee bit involved.
I'm in the process of getting a custom Moots through their local dealer, which happens to be my favorite LBS. The process has been going pretty smoothly, but some things came up over the weekend that have me a little irritated. I don't want to offend the shop, but I also don't want to feel like I'm getting hosed either. I'd really appreciate input from anyone who has gone through this process before.
But first a little background: When I started the process, I debated whether I wanted to buy a Moots, which would require me to work with my LBS (their lone dealer in Indy), or choose a different builder and skip the middle man. I've had some significant fit issues over the past year, however, and have worked with this shop extensively with my current bike. Thus, even though I knew it would cost me more, I decided to go with Moots.
I also debated about whether I wanted to order my components through the shop and have them build the bike for me or have my BF do it instead, with parts purchased (presumably at a lower cost), online. I knew the former would ultimately be more expensive, but I wanted the shop to have a stake in the bike. Since I don't really do a lot of my own wrenching, I feel really uncomfortable when I get something online, try to install it and then go to my shop with problems. While I knew my BF would be able to build the bike at a lower cost, I didn't know then (and really still don't) how long he would be in my life. And if he had any problems with the build, I'd again feel really uncomfortable going back to my shop. This may sound strange, but I do want the shop to make some money off of me. I like them. They've treated me very well and I want them to stay in business. That's within reason, of course.
So, I ultimately gave my shop the greenlight to get some quotes for me, which they got to me over the holiday weekend. The initial quote raised a few concerns for me.
First off, they indicated that the bars I wanted--FSA Compact Wing Pros--don't come in a 38. Instead, the quote included Salsa's Carbon Pocos. Why they picked those, I don't know. The email regarding the quote indicated that the Pocos retail for $270. They also mentioned another Salsa bar, an alloy bar that retails for $60.
Contrary to the my LBS, the FSA's do come in a 38 cm, although they're hard to come by. I'm also not sure why they chose those particular Salsa bars as alternatives, especially the carbon Pocos, which is a very different bar from the FSAs, both in price and design.
Second, they indicated that the wheelbuilder they use doesn't build with the hubs or spokes that I'd would prefer to use. They indicated that they had some other suggesetions for me as far as custom wheels go. I had previously expressed some reservations to my shop about having wheels built for the Moots. I have a perfectly good set of gently used custom wheels at home, and I'd prefer to just transfer them to the new bike, assuming that I decided to build the bike with Campy (I've been debating between Campy and SRAM). So, regardless of what their builder carries, I wasn't sold on new wheels for this bike. That said, I have have some strong opinions when it comes to wheels and know what I want in that regard. It's not really negotiable.
In their email to me, the LBS explained that they charge $200 for a bike build. If you get all your components and parts, including wheels, through the store, however, they charge $100. In my initial respone, I asked about that policy and they explained to me that they like to reward people who buy their components through the shop rather than come in with a box of parts that are either used or were purchased online.
I understand that policy to a certain extent. However, I think there's a big difference between someone who is getting nearly everything (including a $3000 frame) through the shop and someone who comes in with a box of parts that they want installed. I also take issue with the fact that they intend to make me pay more for the build even though their own vendors apparently can't get me the exact components that I want.
I also pointed out to the shop that FSA does make a 38 cm compact Wing Pro and asked them to double check that they can't get one. They got back to me with the good news that another of their vendors has two in stock. They revised the price quote to reflect that. The bad news is that the quote only decreased by $160, while the difference in the retail price of the two bars is closer to $200-$210.
Overall, the quote is not unreasonable. I'm paying a bit of a premium to get the parts through the store rather than online, but if I factor in the price of shipping, it's not a huge amount. The shop has also done a fair amount of research in putting the quote together that has to do with my fit issues, and I think they have earned some profit for that reason. The jacked up price for the FSA bars irritates me, however, and makes me wonder what else I'm paying too much for.
So, here are my specific questions:
Is it kosher to ask for a break down of the quote so that I can determine whether the price of any given component is getting overly jacked up or should I just suck it up? Like I said, the overall price of the quote is reasonable when I factor in shipping.
Is it kosher to at least inquire why the price of the bars seems to be high?
And should I challenge them about the cost of building the bike? Even if their wheelbuilder carried what I wanted, there's still a good chance that I'd forego getting new wheels at this time. I'm otherwise buying about $1800 worth of stuff through them, however, plus the frame. Am I wrong to think that maybe, just maybe, they should still offer me the reduced rate?
The whole point in working with my LBS was to maintain a good relationship with a shop that was vested in my bike. I am sensitive to the fact that their profit margin is generally pretty small and that they're all struggling to compete with online retailers. I don't want to cut my nose to spite my face here. By the same token, I don't want to feel any remorse about the bike or have any built up resentment about how I was treated or what I was charged.
Thanks for your help!
I'm in the process of getting a custom Moots through their local dealer, which happens to be my favorite LBS. The process has been going pretty smoothly, but some things came up over the weekend that have me a little irritated. I don't want to offend the shop, but I also don't want to feel like I'm getting hosed either. I'd really appreciate input from anyone who has gone through this process before.
But first a little background: When I started the process, I debated whether I wanted to buy a Moots, which would require me to work with my LBS (their lone dealer in Indy), or choose a different builder and skip the middle man. I've had some significant fit issues over the past year, however, and have worked with this shop extensively with my current bike. Thus, even though I knew it would cost me more, I decided to go with Moots.
I also debated about whether I wanted to order my components through the shop and have them build the bike for me or have my BF do it instead, with parts purchased (presumably at a lower cost), online. I knew the former would ultimately be more expensive, but I wanted the shop to have a stake in the bike. Since I don't really do a lot of my own wrenching, I feel really uncomfortable when I get something online, try to install it and then go to my shop with problems. While I knew my BF would be able to build the bike at a lower cost, I didn't know then (and really still don't) how long he would be in my life. And if he had any problems with the build, I'd again feel really uncomfortable going back to my shop. This may sound strange, but I do want the shop to make some money off of me. I like them. They've treated me very well and I want them to stay in business. That's within reason, of course.
So, I ultimately gave my shop the greenlight to get some quotes for me, which they got to me over the holiday weekend. The initial quote raised a few concerns for me.
First off, they indicated that the bars I wanted--FSA Compact Wing Pros--don't come in a 38. Instead, the quote included Salsa's Carbon Pocos. Why they picked those, I don't know. The email regarding the quote indicated that the Pocos retail for $270. They also mentioned another Salsa bar, an alloy bar that retails for $60.
Contrary to the my LBS, the FSA's do come in a 38 cm, although they're hard to come by. I'm also not sure why they chose those particular Salsa bars as alternatives, especially the carbon Pocos, which is a very different bar from the FSAs, both in price and design.
Second, they indicated that the wheelbuilder they use doesn't build with the hubs or spokes that I'd would prefer to use. They indicated that they had some other suggesetions for me as far as custom wheels go. I had previously expressed some reservations to my shop about having wheels built for the Moots. I have a perfectly good set of gently used custom wheels at home, and I'd prefer to just transfer them to the new bike, assuming that I decided to build the bike with Campy (I've been debating between Campy and SRAM). So, regardless of what their builder carries, I wasn't sold on new wheels for this bike. That said, I have have some strong opinions when it comes to wheels and know what I want in that regard. It's not really negotiable.
In their email to me, the LBS explained that they charge $200 for a bike build. If you get all your components and parts, including wheels, through the store, however, they charge $100. In my initial respone, I asked about that policy and they explained to me that they like to reward people who buy their components through the shop rather than come in with a box of parts that are either used or were purchased online.
I understand that policy to a certain extent. However, I think there's a big difference between someone who is getting nearly everything (including a $3000 frame) through the shop and someone who comes in with a box of parts that they want installed. I also take issue with the fact that they intend to make me pay more for the build even though their own vendors apparently can't get me the exact components that I want.
I also pointed out to the shop that FSA does make a 38 cm compact Wing Pro and asked them to double check that they can't get one. They got back to me with the good news that another of their vendors has two in stock. They revised the price quote to reflect that. The bad news is that the quote only decreased by $160, while the difference in the retail price of the two bars is closer to $200-$210.
Overall, the quote is not unreasonable. I'm paying a bit of a premium to get the parts through the store rather than online, but if I factor in the price of shipping, it's not a huge amount. The shop has also done a fair amount of research in putting the quote together that has to do with my fit issues, and I think they have earned some profit for that reason. The jacked up price for the FSA bars irritates me, however, and makes me wonder what else I'm paying too much for.
So, here are my specific questions:
Is it kosher to ask for a break down of the quote so that I can determine whether the price of any given component is getting overly jacked up or should I just suck it up? Like I said, the overall price of the quote is reasonable when I factor in shipping.
Is it kosher to at least inquire why the price of the bars seems to be high?
And should I challenge them about the cost of building the bike? Even if their wheelbuilder carried what I wanted, there's still a good chance that I'd forego getting new wheels at this time. I'm otherwise buying about $1800 worth of stuff through them, however, plus the frame. Am I wrong to think that maybe, just maybe, they should still offer me the reduced rate?
The whole point in working with my LBS was to maintain a good relationship with a shop that was vested in my bike. I am sensitive to the fact that their profit margin is generally pretty small and that they're all struggling to compete with online retailers. I don't want to cut my nose to spite my face here. By the same token, I don't want to feel any remorse about the bike or have any built up resentment about how I was treated or what I was charged.
Thanks for your help!