Originally Posted by
gsa103
One of the hardest things for a LBS is dealing with customer expectations. I say this as home mechanic, because I know my expectations are certainly not inline with others on the forum. My normal solution to balky parts is to replace the whole dang thing, because new and shiny! Many people on here will spend many man-hours just trying to keep and old piece running. Let alone those who want NOS parts....
This is even worse with the bikes that someone pulled out of a garage.
I was helping my father-in-law tune up a early 2000's Specialized. The chain was completely stretched, the cassette is probably shot, the front shifter cables are fraying, and the rims & brakes aren't good. You're probably better off buying a new bike than trying to fix it, especially if you had to pay shop labor rates. In the end, I got it shifting the best I could, put new brake pads on it, and called it a day.
That's not an easy situation for a LBS to manage. Do you advise the customer they should buy a new bike? Some people will definitely take offense at that. Recommended that they spend $250+ to address the immediate issues, knowing that in six months they'll likely need to spend another $250+? Or do the minimum job for $150, knowing that it'll likely break again soon?
This is a situation that comes up frequently in all shops but tends to be asked about more and more in the industry forums- People looking for ways to better manage that situation.
This year it was especially difficult because of 2 factors: 1. There just weren't any parts available so many times we couldn't even repair the bike. 2. There weren't any bikes available so many times people couldn't even sell them a new one.
I have found time and time again that we tend to do better with those customers because we just don't sell bikes so all we can do is tell them how much to repair it and let them make their own decision. When asked "do you think it's worth it" I always say, "Only you can judge that one. it's your bike" "What's it worth?" "I have no idea. I don't buy or sell bikes."
we do see many customers who went to the "other" shops and were told their bike wasn't worth fixing and that they could buy a new one for just a little more. To these customers they always found that experience offensive. I know that not a single shop meant it in that way but it does come across that way.