Bicycle Mechanics - Overhaul at LBS should include what?

A friend of mine picked up a Specialized Hardrock at a garage sale. Took it to the LBS and they charged him $80 for a new tire/tube and a "tune up". The derailleurs did not get adjusted right; the chain/cassette/chainring was still filthy, and the left shifter was/is broke. I told him to take it back and ask to talk to the owner.

He's reluctant, thinking it's sorta ok. What should he have gotten for that price?
I've just bought parts from them, and those prices seem pretty reasonable (10-15% over NashBar`etc)

A friend of mine picked up a Specialized Hardrock at a garage sale. Took it to the LBS and they charged him $80 for a new tire/tube and a "tune up". The derailleurs did not get adjusted right; the chain/cassette/chainring was still filthy, and the left shifter was/is broke. I told him to take it back and ask to talk to the owner.

He's reluctant, thinking it's sorta ok. What should he have gotten for that price?
I've just bought parts from them, and those prices seem pretty reasonable (10-15% over NashBar`etc)

$80 doenst seem to go far in bike repair in many places these days. My LBS charges $50 for a basic tune up. I think it just includes tuning the gears, greasing stuff, minor wheel truing and other small adjustements. I have never had it done, so I dont know exactly. I know they dont clean the bike for that price. I know one thing, if I did pay to have it done, the bike better shift perfectly.

What kind of tire/tube was put on the bike? That could be an easy $30+ right there. Also, there is likely nothing they can do to fix the shifters. They probably need to be replaced.

It might just be that this bike is in worse condition that you think and cannot be tuned properly.

Tuneup could mean alot of things, each LBS is different. What did the invoice state was done? I would not expect them to clean the bike, unless you specificaly asked them to. Basicaly sounds like you're friend did not ask what a tune up included and did not ask them to do anything specificaly. I would chock it up to not following up with the mechanics at the shop. Look at the invoice see what it states, if it stated adjusted deraileurs and they have not been take it back..If they did all that is on the invoice take it back and specificaly ask them to do things like change the shifter etc....

Hmmn, For $80 (a decent amount of money) I would expect:

Hub & bottom bracket bearings checked and re-packed, if necessary.
Wheels checked and trued as required
Gears checked, aligned as necessary,
Brakes checked & adjusted for proper operation
Bike given a thorough check over for loose or broken parts

However, I would not expect the bike to be cleaned, or any parts replaced unless this was specified ahead of time.

Ideally, the checkover would come with a "health report" and advice on any part that was in need of replacement or close to the end of its life. Better still, a good shop would call during the checkup to ask if you wanted the work doing there and then. However, it is wise to find out what the shop offers before letting them at it.

Cheers,

Ed

a tuneup at my shop consists of adjustments and a light cleaning. nothing is disassembled. for $36.99 we adjust brakes, deraillers, bottom bracket, headset, hubs, and go over all the bolts/etc to make sure they're torqued. we also give the bike a once-over with a rag to clean it of any dust/dirt. anything found wrong with the bike (pitted bearing surfaces, etc) results in a call the customer asking if they want the part replaced.

our overhauls are $129.99 and involve complete disassembly of the bike, inspection of every part, cleansing of parts in our parts cleaner, a frame polish, and of course reassembly and tuning.

during the spring/summer we try not to schedule more than 8 tuneups per day for our head wrench. if someone wants an overhaul that accounts for 6.

Estimate: free/time ??, Put the bike in the stand and look it over for any problems.

Checkover: Price varies on work done/time??, Pretty much done like an estimate except adj. is performed and inexspensive parts replacement. Customer is called for big repair or if the repair looks like it is going to be big $$

Tuneup: $50/hour+, Remove the wheels, adj. hubs, wipe down the brake surface, true wheels, face the brake pads, wipe down the frame(This is not a thorough clean), check seat binder, reinstall the wheels, adj. the brakes, check the BB, check chain, check cranks and pedals for tight, adj. the gears, adj. the headset, check stem bolts and make sure controls are snug and even, test ride. Any parts are extra $$

Overhaul: $200+/5-6 hours, Strip frame of parts and clean and wax, all loose ball parts are overhauled(wheels, headset), If they are cartridge bearings, the bearings are checked and replaced if damaged(ball bearings are free, cartridge are not).Tank everything that can be tanked, then flush, dry and relube. Clean the wheels. Reassemble with new cables and housings, bartape or grips. Do all the stuff listed in a tuneup. Before an overhaul I evaluate the drivetrain and reccomend replacemant if needed.

thanks guys. I looked at the invoice this morning. It said
tire $21.50
tube $3.80

check brakes,
check bottom bracket
check chain
check pedals
check headset
check true
check cables
total $25
clean adjust deraillereurs $20
parts $11 or ( I think hard to read)

Tuneup: true wheels


i thought i was forgetting something....

thanks guys. I looked at the invoice this morning. It said
tire $21.50
tube $3.80

check brakes,
check bottom bracket
check chain
check pedals
check headset
check true
check cables
total $25
clean adjust deraillereurs $20
parts $11 or ( I think hard to read)

I'd take it back and complain about the adjustments not being right and have them corrected. Then I would never go to that shop again, and bad mouth them every chance i got. $80.00 for ten minutes work is awful!!

I'd take it back and complain about the adjustments not being right and have them corrected. Then I would never go to that shop again, and bad mouth them every chance i got. $80.00 for ten minutes work is awful!!

I don't think you can really say something like that unless you are there or know for a fact what happened. I would for sure take the bike back and tell them about any problems. If they don't fix it then feel free to talk smack.

I would agree with kurrenkarm - give the shop another chance to put things straight if you can. Make a list of the things that you think were wrong with the overhaul job and talk it over with them. If it is a good shop they will listen and sort out your troubles. This is my experience - Good luck.

Cheers

Ed

I don't think you can really say something like that unless you are there or know for a fact what happened. I would for sure take the bike back and tell them about any problems. If they don't fix it then feel free to talk smack.

Okay, I suppose you are right. This story just gave me flash backs to my problems with LBS. You should give them a chance to make it right.

Thanks,

ehenz

Okay, I suppose you are right. This story just gave me flash backs to my problems with LBS. You should give them a chance to make it right.

Thanks,

ehenz

There's one LBS that the owner was so rude to me that despite the fact they are the biggest in town and carry things nobody else does I have not spent a dime with them since. I have also made a point of telling people that the owner is a jerk and I won't ever do business there again.

That would be the Bicycle Exchange, in Wichita, KS. The funny thing was that the guy was too busy to let me test ride a bike and 2 days later i spent 700 bucks at another LBS. All things being equal I would prefer to give my money to someone who isn't a rude jerk.

Mike took his bike back since I kept pestering him. He said a mechanic, who looked like he was about twelve, started laughing when he saw the bike. After he looked at the invoice he proceeded to point out that yes the chain was filthy to the point of the links not flexing and the front der cable was corroded to the point it was surprising it worked at all and the front wheel (with the new tire)wasn't even all the way in the dropouts.

He told Mike he'd fix it right, to come back tomorrow, and it was on the house. I'm dying to find out what's gonna happen next.

I get bikes thrown at me all day by the sales people out front some of which don't know a hybrid from a mountain bike. If the docket says service/tune up, it gets looked over and everything tightened up, no new parts unless specified. You really need to have a talk with whoever you're leaving your bike with, and figure out what you want done to it. If in doubt ask to see a mechanic. Talking to people shouldn't cost you anything, and it saves you having to go back and get things redone that could have been done the first go. And I never clean bikes. If you want someone to lookover your machine do yourself a favour and give it a bit of a scrub before handing it over. If it comes in covered in motor oil and dog **** it's not getting any TLC from me.

Hey guys,

Here is the rest of the story about Mike's $80 "tune up and tire". The young mechanic is the owner's brother. Mike talked to the owner and he said it was taken off the work stand and set to the 'done" side of the shop by the new guy before it was finished. They said there was no excuse for letting an unsafe bike out of the shop. The new guy apologized profusely.

The chainring, cassette, and chain were practically new under the goo. (They were guessing it was motorcycle chain lube.) The front der cable was replaced for nothing. They adjusted everything and test rode it. The bike now looks good and works like new. So they probably went a little overboard to make it good.


Mike spent another 30 to get the shifter replaced. (it worked in friction mode but the indexing was shot) and 200 more on toys (jerseys, bibs, pumps, etc.) He's happy and is eyeing $2k road bikes there.

That's good news!! Mistakes happen every now and then, atleast they owned up to their mistake and took care of the customer sounds like they went above and beyond what they had to do.