Southern California - Laguna Hills bike shop destroyed my wheel after taking it to be trued

I'm sooo angry hence this rant. I brought 3 wheels to a LBS to be trued. I just picked them up and noticed that my year old Forte Titan rear wheel now has cracks at 5 of the spoke holes (20 spoke wheel). I would expect that a bike shop which caters to triathletes and road racers should be able to true a wheel without destroying it. I picked the wheels up close to closing time, and just did a cursory inspection at the shop. I only noticed the cracks after I got home and as I was prepping the wheel to mount a tire. I already called the shop and left a message.

Do you think they will cover the cost of a new rim/wheel? Has this ever happened to you? If so, I'd like to hear how you dealt with it and what is reasonable for the shop to cover...

I have no relevant experience to share but that just sucks.... sorry man. :(

Bummer, sorry Idoru.
I hope you didn't sound too angry in your voicemail. If you can, try to keep your most serene, yoga/namaste cooperative mood when dealing with this. Make no threats and give them every opportunity to make it right. If they're a good shop, they will.
Have you bought much from them? If you have a history and have bought a bike from them, that can frequently make all the difference.

And if they don't pull through, write the most scathing Yelp review you can muster and sit on it for a week. S'not easy, but guns also have a cooldown period; a Yelp review with fewer adjectives and emotion can be even more deadly to a business if you can remove any emotion and state the plain facts with as few adjectives as possible. And post your Yelp interview in here too.

I had a little (okay a lot) of trouble with Encinitas Ford down here, and politely asked them to please reconsider their technician's diagnosis. (I'm familiar with engines and knew they were BSing me, but didn't say that). I smiled, I paid, and I wrote a factual review of what they did and what they charged. Two days later, I got a call from the manager and owner offering to pay for the repair that I had done somewhere else. They paid for it, but didn't offer an explanation for their mechanic's lie, so I bumped it from one to two stars and explained why. Yelp is powerful and businesses who fleece customers don't have a long shelf life in the Information Age.

Thanks Calimari, I hear you. Yeah, the voicemail was civil enough. Will give them a chance to set it straight. Nope, no history at all with this shop. We moved into the neighborhood less than a year ago and they are less than a mile away. They have a chance to gain a loyal customer. That's the way I see it. Also, the bike club I frequently ride with have the name of this shop our jersey. I practically advertise for them half the time I ride. Keeping my fingers crossed. Luckily I have a spare rim, so I'm still rolling..

The situation requires more than civility. You don't want to sound at all accusatory, you want them to feel as if you've already forgiven them for ruining your wheel. This is the time when duplicity will produce the best outcome for all concerned and seriously tip the balance in your favor.
Bike shops have to deal with unreasonable & dishonest people all the time, and they have to draw the line somewhere. Right now you're just a stranger who's never bought anything from them before and the only drawback they're facing is ill-will with the club they sponsor. Being patient, friendly and non-accusatory now will corner them into replacing the rim.
But a moment of weakness or anger will give them the escape hatch and they'll cut their losses and write you off as another unreasonable, penny-pinching hothead.

If this rim is really only a year old, it sounds like they rushed and overtorqued the nipples without balancing the spoke tension. It's understandable, because it takes a lot of time & effort to balance the tension; and if this young wheel had been built correctly in the first place, it wouldn't have had a problem already. Some shifty shops will even use that as an escape hatch, hinting that the rim was poorly built in the first place and the stresses were incurred before you even brought it in to them for repair.
Did you buy the wheel from them originally? If so, that will be huge. Have all receipts handy, but don't whip them out until they're needed. If you bought the wheel online and took it to them for fixing, might be best to prepare for a compromise... if it looks like they're shrugging it off because you bought the rim online, maybe ask if they'll split the cost of the rim replacement? If they refuse that, it would be another damning fact you could mention in the Yelp review.

My sweetheart just found out she passed her board! When are we going for a ride?

Congrats to your sweetheart for passing her board. I'm sure your encouragement and support played a great role in making that happen.

Thanks for your hints on how to deal with the shop. I'm over my initial hot-headedness and ready to deal with them in a "more than civil" manner. I have to remind myself that I'm "not really" kissing their asses to get what I want from them, just "playing a part". Because truthfully, I haven't forgiven them yet, and I am hiding my vitriol for when it's really needed (Yelp review - should it come to that)....

Oh, yeah, lets plan a ride for later in the summer. My sweetheart and I have been wanting to ride Mt. Palomar, so let's make plans for that!

I only noticed the cracks after I got home and as I was prepping the wheel to mount a tire. I already called the shop and left a message.


When dealing with small business, I usually give them adequate time to respond and make it right before trashing them on the net.

When dealing with small business, I usually give them adequate time to respond and make it right before trashing them on the net.

I don't see anywhere in this thread where I'm trashing anyone. I haven't even named the small business. Just seeking advice on how best to deal with them. In calling them right away, I've given them a chance to review the service ticket (which I left on the voice mail I sent them). Heck, I won't even call them at 10AM when they open, and give them a few hours to get the message and call me back. Anyway, thanks for your kind advice.

I don't see anywhere in this thread where I'm trashing anyone. I haven't even named the small business. Just seeking advice on how best to deal with them. In calling them right away, I've given them a chance to review the service ticket (which I left on the voice mail I sent them). Heck, I won't even call them at 10AM when they open, and give them a few hours to get the message and call me back. Anyway, thanks for your kind advice.

My bad, I thought is was Laguna Hills Bike Shop, as opposed to a bike shop in Laguna Hills.

However is there anyone here that doesn't know what shop Idoru is referring to?

Always give the shop a chance first to respond then complain if there is no satisfaction. Things happen; mistakes are made. It would have been best not to mention Laguna Hills and Triathletes unless there is a real problem but we all understand being angry about something and not thinking about what is being written...

Well, I got the outcome I was hoping for (a new wheel), without any drama or any ill will.

As for the shop in Laguna, I need to come in and show them the wheel. But when I spoke to them on the phone this morning, they didn't seem at all interested in helping me out in any way. They sent me to Performance Bike (where I purchased the wheel), to check if it is covered under warranty. So I went to the Fountain Valley store where I learned my wheel is actually 8 months out of warranty.

However, the store manager, John, is a very reasonable man who cares about customer service. He did right by me, by giving me a new Titan wheel from the rack, albeit begrudgingly. He didn't have to do it, and went WAY out of his way to make sure I was taken care of. As for the Laguna Hills shop, I hope they at least refund the fee for "truing" my wheel.

Delighted to hear it Idoru!
You have found a great shop, and they deserve your (all of our) business & support.
That Yelp power? It works both ways. These guys deserve a glowing review, and I intend to visit this shop in the very near future and get my Sweetheart a pair of shorts or overpriced eyewear or something to celebrate her board certification. (I can't tell you how pumped I am right now. No more studying, and one major step closer to making our dreams come true!) John's praises deserve to be sung to anyone who will listen.

Oh for sure. I already wrote a Yelp review for Performance (FV), haha.

I'm sure the other shop is great. And when I visited the shop, everyone there was very personable, and I was excited to start doing business with them. I probably will continue to use that shop if needed in a pinch. If I ever want to rent race wheels, they are my go-to shop, for sure. And I'd trust them for any mechanical repair I can't handle on my own. I saw lots of vintage bikes in their repair queue for instance, and that says a lot. On top of that, I hear they are also Campy experts which appeals to me since two of our bikes have Campy.

Here's my biggest takeaway from all this: I need to learn to true my own wheels!

If you and the hausfrau can ever make it down here, my truing stand and tensiometer are at your disposal, as well as the meager knowledge I've gained over the years. Maybe Dr. L and I can take you guys out to dinner.
It's supremely satisfying to bomb down a hill at over 50, nail the brakes, and lean aggressively on wheels built by your own hands from components picked by you. It's not the cheapest way to get wheels under you in the short run, but you save benjamins in the long run.

Here's my biggest takeaway from all this: I need to learn to true my own wheels!

I agree, especially since it looks like you have a few bicycles in your household. I bought a brand new Park Tool pro level truing stand for a song from a guy in San Clemente who had received it as a gift, but then stopped mountain biking because he hurt his back. So keep your eyes on Craigslist.

And you can teach yourself how to true wheels, as there are numerous videos on Youtube. That is how I learnt.The important things are to make sure you understand how wheels work, be very patient, and the most important of all, first do no harm, as you can make the wheels worse than they were if you don't understand why bicycle wheels work as they do.

OP, glad to read that you obtained some satisfaction.

I'm a little late to the party here but I'll throw in my $0.02: several of the people I ride with are loyal customers of a particular LBS. They buy their bikes at this shop and go there for service, etc. Long story short, one rider had them true a wheel for him. Same problem as you: he picked up his bike, and in the middle of the first ride on the tuned-up bike with the recently trued wheel, noticed some cracks in the rim of the wheel which was trued. How many cracks? I can't recall exactly, but at least three good-sized ones. Actually it was moi who spotted them, but I'm not the rider in question.

So the rider went back to the LBS immediately, and complained. They tried to blow him off, saying "things happen, the wheel is not new, blah blah blah." He told them, in essence, "make it right, or I'm done with this LBS, and I'll tell this story to any other rider who will listen."

Now, it should be mentioned, this was after some other questionable mechanical work on that same bike from a different visit to the same LBS: replacing a very worn, stretched chain, and not replacing the equally-very-worn cassette. This LBS was apparently hiring some "mechanics" with a lot of gaps in their knowledge and experience.

Anyway, the LBS caved and gave the rider a new wheel. Unfortunately, not matching. But, better than nothing.

As for me, I don't like this LBS and patronize it only reluctantly.

Moral of the story: everything is negotiable, and you need to stick up for yourself.

As much as people on BF hate PBS, I am becoming a huge fan of the new one here in Ontario. It is walking distance from my job, the sales people / mechanics are the friendliest and have some pretty good stuff and good prices.

Chris mentioned blasting the LBS on Yelp. I would use a YELP/Bikeforums, socalbikeforums,roadbikereivew combo threat!

As much as people on BF hate PBS

Was at their Tustin store on Sunday and overhead the salesperson tell some lady about the different between 700 centimeter tires and 26 centimeter tires. The lady's accent betrayed her as "not from around here" and the ignorant white boy was given a skeptical stare from someone obviously raised on the metric system.

Was at their Tustin store on Sunday and overhead the salesperson tell some lady about the different between 700 centimeter tires and 26 centimeter tires. The lady's accent betrayed her as "not from around here" and the ignorant white boy was given a skeptical stare from someone obviously raised on the metric system.

I think I heard a mech saying same thing at pretty reputable LBS. (Trek & Specialized authorized dealer) When it comes to confusing metric in US, it seems dime a dozen no matter how nice of place you go.

different between 700 centimeter tires and 26 centimeter tires. .

26 centimeter tires?

Another quick update. I went back to the original bike shop to get a refund for the wheel truing that went wrong. Well, I must have excellent road karma, or just have some good luck because they are going to replace the cracked rim! So, out of all my hassle, I got a new wheel from PB, and I will be getting my original wheel repaired! It's been a great week. Now if I could only find more time to ride.......

26 centimeter tires?

You got that and missed the 700 centimeter tires? :D 700c yes, 700 cm, no

You got that and missed the 700 centimeter tires? :D 700c yes, 700 cm, no

I was leaving that for someone else, sharing the wealth.:p

Another quick update. I went back to the original bike shop to get a refund for the wheel truing that went wrong. Well, I must have excellent road karma, or just have some good luck because they are going to replace the cracked rim! So, out of all my hassle, I got a new wheel from PB, and I will be getting my original wheel repaired! It's been a great week. Now if I could only find more time to ride.......

That karma is going to be bad if you fail to tell both stores the whole story.

For what it's worth, I told the original shop (that trued my wheel) that PB replaced the wheel already. I told him it wasn't necessary to replace the rim. He insisted. Should I feel bad when I follow some advice given to me here and it works out well for me in the end? HELL NO!

Oh, another point, just for those who are judging me. I went to PB only after the original bike shop gave me the run around. They told me "go back to where you bought the wheel". So I did, and I didn't have to twist the manager's arm and I didn't threaten anything. I just gave him the facts and he offered a more than adequate solution. It's not like I went into this with the intention of deceiving anyone or trying to get free stuff. In each case, the shop manager did what they felt was right. It's not like I stole anything. My conscience is clear.

For what it's worth, I told the original shop (that trued my wheel) that PB replaced the wheel already. I told him it wasn't necessary to replace the rim. He insisted.

No, I don't think you shouldn't feel bad. But I think the name of this excellent Laguna shop deserves mention in here, and both shops deserve the sweetest Yelp reviews you can muster and your continued business.
They could have done the whole diffusion-of-responsibility thing and stiffed you, but both stepped up to the plate in a big way. Score another happy ending for kindness & patience! :thumb:

Even bike shops have to be careful of their reputation and also liabilities.

Maybe this is where I am old and need to get some patience but this whole Yelp/social media bad-mouth/good-mouth someone or a business based on one experience bothers me.

Disclaimer: I know the shop in question and personally don't do business with them for many reasons. That said, those reasons are personal to me and Ii have many friends who love the shop and go there for everything. They particularly love the owner and would not hesitate going directly to him if there was a problem.

Bike shops as well as other small businesses are struggling; dying as we speak. Soon we will only be left with the Performance Big Box shops and nothing else. If that is what you want, great! 'Cause that is what you are going to get. I personally believe we need to do whatever we can to keep smaller shops around.

Instead of bad mouthing any shop to the world (because frankly I don't know what you did or really how this was handled - its your word only. The Shop is not here to defend itself) and causing them to lose business based on what you perceive to be bad customer service, handle it on your own. You did and you were satisfied... why now do you have to make a big deal about this? You could have easier been very generic in your rant "took a wheel into a shop and it's now cracked..." if that's all you wanted to do.

Anyway, my rant is over. I think social media is the single worse thing to happen to society and so have no patience with what it has made us all become. But that's just me and no doubt your experiences are different. But just please think about you name names next time.

Calamrichis: Since you are not a local the shop's name is not your business... the point is it was not any of all of our business either.

Pamestique, I believe the OP made clear in further posts that the shop did a more than adequate job at making the situation right. Perhaps an edit to the first post to clarify that...? Dunno what you are looking for the guy to do here. You mention yourself not patronizing that shop.

Sorry for the out of area fly by.

Maybe this is where I am old and need to get some patience but this whole Yelp/social media bad-mouth/good-mouth someone or a business based on one experience bothers me.

Disclaimer: I know the shop in question and personally don't do business with them for many reasons. That said, those reasons are personal to me and Ii have many friends who love the shop and go there for everything. They particularly love the owner and would not hesitate going directly to him if there was a problem.

Bike shops as well as other small businesses are struggling; dying as we speak. Soon we will only be left with the Performance Big Box shops and nothing else. If that is what you want, great! 'Cause that is what you are going to get. I personally believe we need to do whatever we can to keep smaller shops around.

Instead of bad mouthing any shop to the world (because frankly I don't know what you did or really how this was handled - its your word only. The Shop is not here to defend itself) and causing them to lose business based on what you perceive to be bad customer service, handle it on your own. You did and you were satisfied... why now do you have to make a big deal about this? You could have easier been very generic in your rant "took a wheel into a shop and it's now cracked..." if that's all you wanted to do.

Anyway, my rant is over. I think social media is the single worse thing to happen to society and so have no patience with what it has made us all become. But that's just me and no doubt your experiences are different. But just please think about you name names next time.

Calamrichis: Since you are not a local the shop's name is not your business... the point is it was not any of all of our business either.
As a consumer, I am glad I have as much information available to me. I work hard for my money and manage my own finances like a business.
Would I go off one one negative review ?, no. But when you see patterns in the reviews, they'res probably something going on that you shouldn't ignore.
In this case, I have a feeling the first LBS caught wind of this discussion and made an attempt to make it right, but only after learning about the bad press.

Pamestique, I believe the OP made clear in further posts that the shop did a more than adequate job at making the situation right. Perhaps an edit to the first post to clarify that...? Dunno what you are looking for the guy to do here. You mention yourself not patronizing that shop.

Sorry for the out of area fly by.
Welcome to Socal...!

Pamestique, I believe the OP made clear in further posts that the shop did a more than adequate job at making the situation right. Perhaps an edit to the first post to clarify that...? Dunno what you are looking for the guy to do here. You mention yourself not patronizing that shop.

Sorry for the out of area fly by.

I get it all worked out but I was just saying before posting in the first place think... also for anyone... watch how we how use social media... let's not trash people or shops especially based on one lone experience. Just saying...

As a consumer, I am glad I have as much information available to me. I work hard for my money and manage my own finances like a business.
Would I go off one one negative review ?, no. But when you see patterns in the reviews, they'res probably something going on that you shouldn't ignore.
In this case, I have a feeling the first LBS caught wind of this discussion and made an attempt to make it right, but only after learning about the bad press.

I don't think we can assume that, and it seems a little cynical. But I agree with you on the rest Genaro. Crooked or lethargic customer service has no place in the Information Age. Sure, some shops are honest and simply get trashed unjustly on the internet, but if you're willing to read the reviews carefully, and check the profiles of the reviewers, you can separate the unreasonable hotheads from the honest, constructive reviews. I'm a fairly active Yelper, and I like to help businesses who put forth an effort or who do it well. I've trashed two places (minimal adjectives, and strictly facts), but both were entirely deserved.

And I go out of my way to support the local, non-franchise shops and praise them to the sky on Yelp & elsewhere because they almost always do a terrific job.
I didn't consider Idoru's initial complaint unwarranted at all. I just hope that potential unreasonable hotheads won't read this thread and see these shops as easy marks though. Every shop has to deal with "If you charge me labor to install this derailleur, I'll complain on the internet!" And I feel for them.

And Pam: I spend a fair amount of time in the Laguna area and in bike shops up there.

I'm a big fan of the 9th commandment. Hopefully no one would risk d@mnation for the sake of skimming a few bucks out of a bike shop.

In this case, I have a feeling the first LBS caught wind of this discussion and made an attempt to make it right, but only after learning about the bad press.

You don't know that at all... you don't know how the poster approached this situation in the first place or how the shop actually responded after the defects were bought to their attention. I suspect they satisfied the customers once the issues were fully addressed not because the customer ranted on an internet website...

The shop has a good reputation. I don't patronize it for other reasons all of which have nothing to do with the conversation only to explain I am impartial to the result...

And Pam: I spend a fair amount of time in the Laguna area and in bike shops up there.

Then you know the shop... not many others around.

Let it be known that the shop is Edge Cyclesports. In my book, they did right by me, and so did Performance Bike. They both deserve your business. Each have their own strengths and weaknesses. What you can't get at one, you can get at the other..

I had suspected that perhaps Edge were clued into this thread and handled it accordingly. But I realized what a cynical view perspective that is. I prefer to think they are as good as their Yelp reviews indicate they are.

In my mind, this issue is resolved. Both stores had a chance to do the right thing based on the situation that was presented to them. Performance replaced what may have been a faulty or defective rim, and Edge is getting a chance to "cover" the the work they did on the original wheel. Both stores showed great customer service.

Last but not least, I am grateful it ended up this way. Thanks again to all those who advised me of the best way to handle this.