'nother

That was me. The insurance policy of the business I worked for at the time -- a ski rental/repair shop -- in fact did prohibit anyone that had not been certified on the proper adjustment of ski bindings and related equpment from doing so in the shop premises (and also prevented certified people from doing so anywhere other than on the shop premises).

And you're darn right it was to absolve themselves of responsibility. They wanted to shut down as many possible legal routes for someone saying the shop was responsible for contributing to an accident caused by improperly adjusted equipment. That is to say, it was a "lawsuit prevention" policy. It certainly didn't prevent anyone from using their own screwdriver out on the slopes (though the rental agreement did), and probably didn't prevent any actual accidents, either. But we were never in any lawsuits.

With any luck, things are very different in the bike repair biz; the ski industry is pretty lawsuit-happy.

Waldo

^
One of the mechanics at our shop got sued because a customer insisted he brought his bike in in pristine condition and when it was returned it had many scratches (some of which had been there long enough his steel frame had begun to rust) and flaws. Fortunately the case was thrown out as without merit, but I now never underestimate the willingness of Johnny Public to sue anymore.

Guest

Glove slap! Baby, glove slap!

Koffee

Waldo

Finally, somebody got it...

Daily Commute

I don't expect my LBS to lend me tools. Good mechanics can be very possessive of their tools. I've been doing most of my own repairs for only a year or two, but it's painful to watch someone else handle the tools I depend on. I imagine it would be worse for a person who also earned a living off the tools.

If I need a tool, I generally buy it (in which case they give me a quick lesson on how to use it) or pay them to do it. The LBS has done small repairs for me for "free" and given me some small stuff for "free." I put "free" in quotations because I spend enough $$$ there that I pay for everything one way or another.

Why not just buy a chain tool or a multi-tool that you could stick in your seatbag? As someone else said, if it happens once, it could happen again. Be prepared for the next time.

As to "bad attitudes" in bike shops, that hasn't been my experience. The LBS's here all seem to have better service than the average retail place. An LBS with a bad attitude is an LBS that won't be in business long. (But an LBS that gives away its services for free too often also is an LBS that will be out of business too soon.)

midgie

I was just at the insurance office today, to fill out my business insurance application. It does ask if you intend to rent or lend tools or equipment. If I had answered yes, my insurance premium would have gone up.
(I know,cuz I asked) So you can lend tools, but it'll cost you to do so.

mswantak

Seems to me like it's all a matter of 'good form'. It'd be good form for the LBS to have lent the tool at no charge, but bad form for the customer not to have offered payment -- even if they had a reasonable expectation they wouldn't be charged. The wrench may have been a jerk, but the customer was presumptuous, and often that sort of presumption elicits a negative response.

cycleman_21

I only read the first 5 posts and I'm already laughing and feeling for you.I love the fact you gave him his crap tool back WITH the 7 bucks,KUDOS to you.Thats gotta hurt KNOWING you wont EVER visit that shop again,and I'm guessing not many of your friends will either.I like my LBS but sometimes I still wonder

catatonic

It depends. The shops I used to frequent, all had the shop tools, and the customer tools....the customer tools were usually pretty shabby, but they expected them to be beaten up and broken.

Chain tools were their number one most broken tool...it got to the point that I, for bownie points, milled a chaintool body for them (it could use the customer tool's internals, it was the bodies that customers kept mangling anyways) out of some rather good strong carbon steel stock for use as a customer tool, so they wouldn't have to replace that tool so often...go figure a customer walks off with it....

That's the main reason why most won't let people borrow tools, and if they do it's the people they know.

This guy seemd a bit abrasive to say the least...I would have been pretty pissed off if I got that kind of lip. Given if he politely said "I'm not allowed to let customers handle the shop tools, however we have some we can sell you" that would have been a bit better. His comment "actually I would (mind). I can't let you borrow a chaintool" was quite rude.

I'd say not give this shop any more buisiness than you have to in the future. Some shops have rude mechanics, but this is not the acceptable kind of rude. Helpful rude, I say it's a matter of personal preference, but just not helping and being rude is bullcrap.

phantomcow2

my shop is good about this i think. If i need to use something real quick they usually let me but they know me pretty well. With most others, they go in and they dont actually let the customer use the tool, but they do it themselves and usually dont even charge

Guest

Dood, that has to be one of my most favorite Simpsons episodes! It had like 3 different plots going on at once: glove slap, avoiding the duel, and tomacco. Plus the B 52's singing their variation of "Love Shack". I think I peed my pants laughing the first time I saw that episode, I laughed so hard.

Koffee

DocF

I live with my tools. Admittedly, the tools I really need in my day job are few; I can live with a 5.5 mm and 7 mm nutdriver, a Philllips screwdriver and an IBM pattern springhook.

I don't lend tools to anyone, not my co-workers or any of the sons-in-law. I'm not paranoid, I know they're out to get my tools.

That being said, I often do Chinese for my customers. (That is old-time circus talk for unpaid work.) If I were in a bike shop and someone came in with a very minor problem which needed a two minute fix, I would do it as a freebie. Even the most obnoxious LBS in this area will fix a chain in the circumstances described by the original poster.

Just my two cents,
Doc

Waldo

You know it. I have to say that's definitely in my top three. It was on the day I saw this thread, so that helped. I totally forgot about the glove slap part when I saw it the other day, so I was pretty much dying. Oh, how I love the Simpsons.

Guest

They are stoopid good fun.

Glove slap, baby!

Koffee