Push

Simple question, is a shock pump a shock pump a shock pump? or is there more to it? I just picked up a 2011 Trek X-Caliber which has a Reba RL dual air on it and figured I should pick up a pump.

any recommendations on which one to pick up? brand? or is it simply a matter of getting one and it doesn't really make too much a difference which one as long as it pumps the shock.

Thanks for any advice, opinions or hazing

and the obligatory picture of the new bike.

electrik

The planet bike one is good enough... the only issue is it's hard to release air slowly and just make sure you use the no-leak valving system properly.

pablosnazzy

nice looking bike you got there. a shock pump is pretty much a shock pump. lezyne makes a really sweet and sexy shock pump, yes it's a bit more expensive, but they make very good stuff.

Dirt Farmer

Your LBS should have provided one for free when you bought the bike. If not, ask for one. They should oblige.

(This all assumes you bought from your LBS)

ed 

''

pablosnazzy

not always, not with all bikes.

samburger

^When buying a $1500 bike, I would think they'd include a Bontrager shock pump or something. Pretty much any bike nice enough to come with an air fork should bring in enough commission to be worth giving away a shock pump for said fork. But to be fair, it's always easy to assume people can afford to be generous.

Cyclist01012

My bike came with tires, should they give me a free floor pump?

samburger

Depends, do your tires make up 1/3 the price of your bike?

Zephyr11

I didn't get a shock pump with my bike either. F100 RLC up front, Float RP23 in back.

I was under the impression that more expensive bikes do not mean the shop makes more money off of them. But then I've never worked in a bike shop. Did I make that up?

samburger

Honestly I don't know how bike shops make money, that's why I noted at the end of #7 that it's always easy to assume people can afford to be generous [but that's not always the case]. But I know my stepdad got a free pump with his bike, granted it was just a *bit* more expensive (07 Stumpy FSR Pro).

I would think it would work the same as car dealerships though, where they buy the bikes at invoice from Trek & mark them up however much they think they can get away with. I always assumed there would be a margin of what constitutes a fair mark-up (15% or so), & as such more expensive bikes would bring in more profit. But again, this is purely speculation based on what little I know of how car dealerships work. I could be absolutely wrong.

Zephyr11

They definitely make most of their money off repairs. That much I know. I dated a bike shop guy for a while, and he told me they made more money off their Hardrocks and Aspects than their Motolites and 5.spots. But I don't know if that's because they sold a lot more cheap bikes, if the percentage of the price the customer paid was greater for the shop on the cheap bikes, if Hardrock owners were more likely to the pay the shop $10 to change a tire than Motolite owners, or if that shop was just weird. Pablo, what's your shop like?

pablosnazzy

we are a strange shop, not like a regular shop. we are a destination, so we make our money mostly on rentals, repairs, and stuff with our logo on it. that said, we are also a local shop and sell lots of bikes, not all just high end. we sell bikes at MSRP or sometimes slightly less.

as far as more expensive bikes making more money...not necessarily....the margins are all about the same, so when dealing with margins, no, but actual dollars, yes, strictly because more expensive bikes means more actual dollars.


back to the original question, some bikes come with shock pumps, some don't, and it had nothing to do with price, it has to do with the bike company. you can drop a few grand on an ibis mojo, it still doesn't come with a shock pump.

samburger

Thanks for the info Pablo

So with that knowledge, I'll recant my statement that they should have provided a shock pump. What I will say, though, is that they should have offered a free bike fitting (adjusting seat position/height, tire pressure, & fork/shock air pressure for you). Takes 10 minutes at most & costs them nothing. But in keeping a humble attitude, I fully understand that some days are longer than others & you don't always have the energy to offer to go out of your way without even being asked to.

ed 

Yeah...so did Samburger...that's how he got all of his madd bike-building skeelz.

samburger

I try, I can't help it if I'm no good at everything I enjoy

ed 

Not the response I was expecting

samburger

I've run out of ways to defend myself against bike mechanic insults. I thought maybe if I cried you would feel sorry for me & give me a Komodo to make me feel better (fully built, you better not send that **** in pieces!)

Push

Thanks, I will check the lezyne out, sweet and sexy is always a good thing...

The bike was adjusted for me, I can bring the bike in any time and use their pump, no pump was offered for free but he did say that he had them for sale and if I wanted one they do have em in stock.

I got a good price on the bike as it was a 2011 and love the bike so far (just took it out today for its maiden voyage), I just like to have things that I need for each of my bikes and since this is the first bike that I have which has an airshock I figured it was a good thing to have.

Thanks for the replies so far guys.

Zephyr11

He didn't even teach me any mechanic stuff! Maybe he thought if I brought my bike to him to fix and he fixed it, I'd......uh......buy him dinner. So now I'm still all like "Crown race...wha...?"

pablosnazzy

yes, there is no reason not to. any bike shop that doesn't set you up on the bike (the most important is shock/fork pressure) when you buy it is a crap shop. doesn't matter how much you spend on the bike, if you are dropping in a store, they should take care of you.

ncfisherman

I'd recommend a Rockshox pump for your fork. As you know, your fork has the hollow lowers and the negative air valve is recessed. The Rockshox pumps have a longer chuck so it is easier to remove from the recessed air valve.