No confidence in shop-am I overreacting?

[smilingcat]

I'm sorry to hear of your accident in your race. I wish you speedy recovery and I hope your bike is okay too.

you can't strip that bolt on the crank arm. You would need to be a 500 pound gorilla or use an impact wrench. Regular bike shop would have neither.

I wonder if there is some weakness in the design as well. I've had my crank come loose on SRAM force. I do my own wrenching and I tightened down that bolt super tight. Last time it came loose, I ended up using a very small drop of lock-tight, the kind you can break loose as an added precaution. Granted, I'm no where as strong as a regular sized men, so my super tight may only be so so tight to an average guy.

[Melalvai]

You would need to be a 500 pound gorilla or use an impact wrench. Regular bike shop would have neither.

You mean not all bike shops stock a 500 pound gorilla? I guess we're just lucky.

[ny biker]

If a crank came off my bike three days after I bought it, I would absolutely take the bike back to the shop and make them fix it.

If I had a series of problems with mechanical work done by my LBS, I would talk to the manager about it, and if he did not respond appropriately I would escalate it to the owners. Even if I never return to that shop again, they need to know that their sloppy work is endangering their customers.

The people who run my LBS put a premium on customer service. It's the reason I travel 20 miles to their shop, passing plenty of other shops along the way. A few years back their mechanic broke my front derailleur while adjusting it. It was a Tiagra that never worked right, so there was probably metal fatigue from too many adjustments. But the mechanic apologized and replaced it for free -- with an Ultegra.

[westtexas]

Dogmama - I am very sorry for your troubles. You can come to my shop out here anytime. It may be a small town in BFE west Texas, but they do a good job. I watched them build my bike, so I know it was done right. And I second what everyone said about choose your mechanic, not your shop. Luckily in my case, both are good - although I trust one of the wrenches in the back infinitely more than the others. Luckily all are supervised by a guy who's been in the game longer than I've been alive, so I am always confident with their work.

I have nothing else to add except I understand your frustration and to invite you to west Texas anytime

[pll]

Dogmama: The bad service is alarming. Find a good bike shop and mechanic and please have them reassemble the bike. A bolt in the crank arm might have been lose, but they might have overtightened others and that could be problematic with carbon bikes.

[Dogmama]

Dogmama: The bad service is alarming. Find a good bike shop and mechanic and please have them reassemble the bike. A bolt in the crank arm might have been lose, but they might have overtightened others and that could be problematic with carbon bikes.

Exactly.

Well, it continues. I picked up my bike. No explanations about the crank arm except that they had a "shop meeting." When I got it home, I noticed they made three huge gashes in the stem cap and on the handlebars. I called & they said they'd order another stem cap & want to "look"at the handlebars.

It never ends.

They still owe me a carbon fiber stem. I'm going to take that and the new cap to a different shop. They won't lay another wrench on my bike. Period.

Oh, they did tell me how I can check the screws on the crank before I ride. Did I buy a Walmart bike? Am I dreaming this?

DH and I have spent almost $10K at this shop in the past six months (he bought a bike too.) You'd think the owner would have called me by now with an apology & offer a free tune up or whatever. Nothing but crickets chirping. Unbelievable.

[Dogmama]

DH and I have spent almost $10K at this shop in the past six months (he bought a bike too.) You'd think the owner would have called me by now with an apology & offer a free tune up or whatever. Nothing but crickets chirping. Unbelievable.

Need to add something - not that I expect or want free stuff. I just think it would be a good gesture on his part that would acknowledge the migraines I've had with his shop. But not even a phone call? He was in his office when I went in & I was told he was "in a meeting."

[pll]

No explanations about the crank arm except that they had a "shop meeting." When I got it home, I noticed they made three huge gashes in the stem cap and on the handlebars. I called & they said they'd order another stem cap & want to "look"at the handlebars.

I would be so mad. Post reviews of that bike shop.