Aluminum and Carbon

[tytbody]

So, I'm reading about so many people bike size regrets and they are talking what the bike is made of.

Please tell me, what does what it's made of have to do with a bike size?

If people go to the Little Bike Shop, they trust the place, they have been riding for years. Why blame the bike shop for selling them an ill fitting bike?

Sounds like when you go to try out a bed in a store, it could be the day your dead tired, Seally posture pedic feels great. Then 5 nights later they are complaining the store sold them a bed that was too hard.

[Roadtrip]

Not sure about the materials part of your comment, but the bike sizing is relying on the "professional" not to push you into buying what's in stock or always assuming that a lady HAS to ride a WSD/Femme bike. A good sales guy will take mesurements ( but not always ) or watch you test ride and ask you questions as well as answer all you questions in a non condescending tone, even if it is a newbie question.

Down the road your never going to achieve comfort on a bike that is too big/small and no amount of fitting is going to solve the issues either. Id rather a shop tell me to go down the road then sell me something that will be collecting dust in less then a year. I would respect that and do as much business with that shop it'd more then make up for the loss of that sale.

As to materials, perhaps it's being too eger for others (customers) to agree with your (sales guy) pov on frame materials. Some believe steel is the ONLY materials frames should be built with and others think carbon fiber is going to break in a slight wind. So yes there are some over jelous sales guys that drink the kool-aid the marketing folks print.

[Crankin]

Ill fitting bikes sold by sleazy shops and material are two separate issues. They are just being discussed in the same thread. The OP questioned some relative merits about different materials (steels, carbon, alu) in her post, in addition to the size/fit issue.
Why do bike shops sell the wrong sized bike?
Because they want to make a sale. It is never the customer's fault. When many people go to an LBS to buy a bike, they don't know what to ask and what to try. They may not be familiar with all of language about components or geometry. Trying out a bike in the parking lot or on a trainer is not enough. You need at least a 10-15 mile ride. Shops tend to do this with women, but it happens to men, too.
A friend of mine just bought a Specialized road bike, after riding a flat bar road bike. We sent her to a shop we knew would have what she needed and is not pushy. Still, if she hadn't been armed with the questions and information myself and DH spent hours going over with her, I am sure she would have been screwed. She got a crash course in components, shifters, gear ratios and it paid off. She has a beautiful bike she loves.

[tytbody]

I still don't get why they blame the shop. I don't believe they are all out just for a sale. They know treating a customer right will get them many years on the sale.
I think people grow more into a need then saying it was the bike shop fault. I happen to like my bike shop and trust the owners. They both ride and I believe that helps. maybe more bike shops need to hire bike riders then just employees.

Never the customers fault... Not sure I can hug that one. They just don't understand the language and want to start. That's not their fault.

[jessmarimba]

Because no self-respecting bike shop should sell the wrong-sized bike to a customer while giving them the impression that it's the correctly sized bike. Period. Now, it's possible to buy the correctly sized bike and be very uncomfortable due to the current adjustments or even the bike's geometry, but a wrong-sized bike is just never going to work. No one should do that to a customer, particularly a customer who is new to cycling.

[jessmarimba]

Oh, and people who go to the LBS haven't necessarily been riding for years. I bought my first bike as an adult as an LBS and went in there knowing NOTHING.

And your mattress example...is why most mattress stores have an exchange/return policy.