corrado33

I know some of you out there have worked at a shop or own a shop, so my question is for you. During the spring stock up when the new bikes are coming in, how long does it take a mechanic to build up a bike to put on the floor? Obviously you want your shop mechanics building lots of bikes, but unlike wal-mart, you actually want them to work well.

I've been told that bikes are shipped to bike shops almost exactly like bikes direct bikes are shipped to people. (Handlebars turned to the side, no pedals installed, wheels off. If that's the case then assembling a bike is extremely simple. Bearings today are often sealed, (especially on decent bikes) so it's not like those have to be taken apart and greased. If this is how bikes are shipped to bike shops, I think I could have a bike assembled and tuned well in probably 20-40 minutes. (Possibly more if the wheels required truing, and even more if the head mechanic was really anal about spoke tension balancing.)

Anybody know how much time a bike assembly generally takes in a reputable bike shop?

noglider 

Different shops take different approaches. I've worked in shops. Some adjust the brakes and gears, and that can take surprisingly long. Some go farther and make sure the bearings are not too tight (and they usually are), remove the tires from the wheels and true the wheels in a truing stand (which often involves adding tension too), grease the seatpost and stem, and lots of other things. It can take an hour to do everything.

fietsbob

Bare frame* Or partially assembled , shipped across the Ocean in a Box?

BITD * The famous Italian steel frames needed the Retailer to finish cutting the BB threads,
and prepping for Headset installation,

cutting the head tube and facing the crown race seat of the fork with thread cutting reaming and facing tools .

that , (with interruptions for walk in customer services ) was several hours..




got a stopwatch?

corrado33

Oh yeah, a bare frame takes ages. I can't imagine that most bike shop bikes are shipped bare frames though. (Unless it's a special request.) Are most bikes shipped like I listed above (mostly assembled, handlebars sideways, pedals/wheels off but in box?)

stumpjumper2076

I imagine until they finish

1WD

My Trek came with a Race Face crank. Would this crank have been installed at the shop, or at the Trek factory?

noglider 

Cranks are installed at the factory.

fietsbob

but Race Face is CDN , some past owner put that on.

not the Trek Hired Contract factory they get components from that other side of the Pacific Rim ..

1WD

I'm in Canada (if that makes a difference), but according to Trek's site even the US models come with this crank.

fietsbob

where.. show me .. never mind , I really dont care ..

LesterOfPuppets

Yep, specced with Raceface Ride cranks which are made in Taiwan, as are all their aluminum cranks. Trek surely has then dropshipped to their Asian assembly plants.

Crabon Raceface cranks are made in BC still.

FrozenK

Race Face has been making stuff in Taiwan for years now. I don't know if they still manufacture stuff in Canada. I also don't know what that has to do with anything. Cranks would be shipped to wherever the bicycle is assembled be it Taiwan, Wisconsin or China. Yes, it is cheaper to spec parts manufactured near the assembly facility, but is not a requirement. Shimano still makes some parts in Japan, they are still species on bikes assembled in Taiwan.

And Trek does spec Race Face cranks on some of their mountainbikes.

LesterOfPuppets

As to the original question, most bike shop bikes are put together in about 15-20 minutes. Then they endure a bunch of test rides, so another 20 minutes is often spent on a bike at purchase time, before it leaves the store.

corrado33

This is what I had suspected. My guess was that the bikes are essentially "thrown" together the first time around, then given a final tuneup before they go out the door. I've often ridden bikes from shops what weren't quite right. I've ridden bikes that didn't shift well, where the cranks hit the kickstand, where the brakes didn't work or squealed, or even bikes where the handlebars weren't aligned with the front wheel. Every time I've purchased a bike the shop always looked it over for 20 minutes or so.

Fastfingaz

OK so now what,,,,,, I was expecting a exciting finish ! so that was just a general Purpose question********** just for GP,,,,

fietsbob

People who make Everything wants lower costs , so get used to it all moving overseas..


Lots of Shimano stuff is fully Automated including putting it in the box ..

Gresp15C

Importing a bike that needs to be completely refurbished before it can be sold, seems like a false economy. You're replacing cheap Chinese labor with expensive American labor, yet retaining the negative brand recognition associated with cheap production. I can see the point of folding the bars and removing the pedals so it can be shipped in a smaller box, but the wheels should be correctly built, and the bearings correctly set up.

andr0id

When I did this, bikes came in the box mostly assembled.

I had to:

Put the front wheel on.
Turn the handlebars and tighten up the stem.
Wrap the bars
put the pedals on
put the seat on at max insert mark
check high and low stops on derailleurs and make sure it you could shift to through all gears
Put on all the damn reflectors that came in a separate package
Put on the pedals
Check the brakes

Took about 30 minutes

We'd double check everything when the bike was sold.

LesterOfPuppets

Reflectors and bar tape? That's harsh!!!

ph0rk

You said put on pedals twice. You must really like pedals.

LesterOfPuppets

That's why it takes 30 mins.

rommer25

When I purchased a bicycle at Performance, They had to assemble one in my size (Fuji Absolute). I was ask to come back in an hour. The bike needed no further adjustment. I rode it for 18 months and when I took it back for a complete cleaning, the tech. told me my crank was loose. Other than that, It was fine.

Lanovran

When bikes are built at my shop, it will take about half an hour to two hours, depending on the complexity of the bike (e.g., hybrid vs. full-suspension MTB, high-end road bike with internal routing and Di2, triathlon bike, etc.). We install and adjust the stem, handlebar, seatpost/saddle, and fork in some cases, true both wheels and adjust the hubs on both, inflate the tires, install/adjust the brakes, install pedals, adjust front and rear shifting, double-check bolts, braze-ons, etc., test ride the bike, make further adjustments as necessary, and install any accessories needed before giving it one last final inspection before it rolls out the door. Some bikes do require that cranks, chains, and rear derailleurs be installed, as well. In any case, it does tend to involve more than simply "throwing it together" out of the box.

cale

I've read four to five an hour. That sounds about right, not that I could do it. But someone with good dexterity could probably hold up that pace for a few hours assembling department/big box store bikes.

GlennR

Mine took 6 hours from opening the box to riding it.





But then, some things you can't rush.