This is exactly what I would have done ... only I would have done it at one week and one day. I wouldn't have waited till week 4!!

At the end of the first week, when they said it would be ready, I would have called first thing in the morning and asked what time that day I should come by and pick up my bicycle. If I were told that they had been busy and it was next in line, my reply would have been, "OK, I'll be by after work tomorrow."

And then I would have gone in the next day, and proceeded with Siu Blue Wind's conversation.


I've been in a similar situation with a shop that was really close to where I lived. They were a hockey shop in the winter and a bicycle shop in the summer, like most shops, and I took a wheel in to have a couple spokes replaced. Replacing spokes is a "while you wait" job, it's that quick, but they gave me the line that they were busy wrapping up hockey season and that there were several bicycle-related jobs ahead of me, and it would be a week.

My (now-ex) husband went in to pick it up a little over a week later, paid for it, and brought it home. At one glance, I could see that nothing had been done. The spokes were still broken.

I marched right back there with the receipt and told them to fix the wheel right then and there. They gave me 101 different lines about being busy, and they were sorry they'd lost the wheel, and they couldn't possibly do it then because there were hockey customers in the store, blah, blah, blah. So I told them they already had over a week to do it, and so I'd wait in the store till it was done.

15 minutes later I had my wheel.

It's the old story of the squeaky wheel getting the grease. If you call them up every 2 weeks to ask if the bicycle is ready, your bicycle will be last in line. But if you TELL them you are coming by to pick it up on a certain day (within reason, of course), and you actually do show up, chances are your bicycle will move much closer to the front of the line.

I really appreciate all the responses. I realize that while the LBS may be in the wrong for giving a loyal customer the run-around, I'm also slightly in the wrong for not being more assertive about it. My general philosophy is to be easy-going and understanding, so it's difficult for me to come down on people in any way, especially when I can understand the delays (slightly). I'm still very disappointed to have missed out on a whole MONTH of beautiful riding when I only anticipated to rest for a single week.

I'll be calling them tomorrow and putting the pressure on. It's rediculous.

Calling them??? Go get your #@$%in bike.

Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. Fool me three times and I'll start a thread to check with others and get some perspective.

So here's some perspective: They're feckless, unprofessional tards and you're a pushover. Totally unacceptable behaviour from them and totally ballfree behaviour from you.

Sorry, don't want to make you feel stupid but hey maybe a smack in the face will wake you up. The people at that LBS are total asses.

"At least a week" is not unreasonable at the start of the bike season, but 5 weeks and numerous broken promises are. Go to the store, and ask to speak to the manager. Either he promises to have the bike ready immediately, like no later then tomorrow, or get your bike back and take your business elsewhere.
Whether the LBS treated you well in the past is irrelevant. Come on it's almost July.

Tommorrow? Bullocks! "I'm going for breakfast, and to run some errands. I'll be back at one o'clock. I expect the bike to be ready."

The man wanted a complete overhaul. Going in and telling the shop owner that you want the bike ready in 2 hours is unrealistic since they in all likelyhood haven't even touched the bike. With that attitude you might as well just go in and get the bike and move on. Maybe the owner is unaware of the problem, who knows. You only have two options at this point. One, either trying to salvage this mess, or two going in mad and getting your bike back and waisting five weeks. Maybe the owner will try to rectify and appease the customer for the delay and the lies. I mean you can always just say, "Give me my damn bike back now, you guys suck".

Don't mean to be a "know it all", but........... "Waisting" means something about your tum tums, whereas "Wasting" means trying to reduce you tum tums.

My viewpoint would be to walk in when the place is really busy and ask to pick up your bike. When they tell you they have not started on it, repeat loudly, "You mean you have had my bike for over four weeks and have not started on it. Do you treat all your customers this way?" Point to someone looking at a new bike and ask, "Will this person have to wait four weeks to get their new bike setup or repaired?"

If they are not totally embarrassed by the way they treated you, get your bike and never go back. The shop is not worth your business.

Ask for the Look 585 or Cervelo loaner bike...

Seriously though. I'm like you. I'm too nice. So it kills me to see other passive people get trampled on.

Just go back and get your bike and take your biz elsewhere.

For me, the pen is mightier than the sword so afterwards write a well thought out letter to the owner of the bike shop and tell how loyal you have been as a customer, how you feel about the bad customer service and that you will tale yours and your friends business elsewhere. If they are good they'll write or call you back and offer some sort of reperations for jacking you for so long. Or at the very least, apologize.

If they do neither than they are definitely not worth going back to.

You can be forceful but not rude in your letter and still get your point across.

On the other side of the spectrum, if I get very good customer service, I also write to them and let them know.

Good luck!

I hate all LBS, i love ebay!

I'd say you've been more than patient with them, Bud. I'd just show up at the LBS.
"Hi, I'm here to pick up my bike."
"I'm sorry, sir, but it's not ready yet, just give us a few more days, yada, yada, yada."
"My bike, I'm here to pick it up. Please bring it out. Thank you."
(Translation-"End of conversation. Yes, I am being completely unreasonable, and am about to get rude. The fastest way you are going to get rid of me is with my bike in my hands.")

My LBS makes appointments during the summer and you can pick it up the same day you take it in if you get it in early in the morning. I think the wait was about a week and a half in early June.

That's easy. Send the wife or girlfriend to the LBS to pick up your bike, tomorrow.

Hey Stevegor thanks for the spelling correction. That was really relevant. Does the term "pompass ass"
sound familiar?
Hey Bud311, let's us know how this ends up.

No, but pompous ass does.

Only two hapy two oblige, but yoo coold be nyce about it....I was only trying to bring some culture to this forum , I lament the decay in society's understanding of the English language, that's all.

And you leave my ass out of it, 'cos I will kick yours on the bike anyday

[QUOTE=Stacey]No, but pompous ass does. [/QUOTE

]

I went into the shop this afternoon to get my bike back. It was just the owner and a single customer. I walked in and said, "I'm here to pick my bike up. I dropped it off with you guys in around the end of May?" He quickly knew which bike I was there to get, and to my surprise (why?) they still weren't ready to call the work complete on my bike.

When I asked why that could possibly be, he was very apologetic about the series of delays which were partly his fault and partly the industries. He said the main problem was that it was becoming harder to order special parts for older bikes (my bike being an early 1980's Schwinn) especially for 27" tires. He explained that similar bikes were also taking much longer than anticipated to work on.

I asked how all the other work was coming along on the bike and he said it all came along fine, and he's just waiting for the last few parts to come in, and that he'll certainly have it ready when I come in tomorrow.

So anyway, long story short...they were well aware that it was taking them forever to finish my bike, and they appologize for that...and that's that. I think I'll just be glad when I get my bike in good condition again, and next time, I'll check out the next shop.

WTF?!?!? What was so special and obscure that you've had to wait all this time?

Dollars to doughnuts it won't be ready tommorow afternoon either.

At least you know what the hold up is. When you pick up your bike tomorrow, I'd let him know that it would have been nice to at least call you and let you know what the hold up is. Tell him how it really inconvenienced you, that you went there because of their great service and that you are a bit disappointed and put back by the this whole thing. Of couse say it kindly, (they have your bike hostage). Perhaps he may give you a break on the labor.

You will probrably owe more in parts, labor, and storage fees than a brand new Schwin sells for at WalMart.

To update, after my in-store visit yesterday afternoon the shop owner promised to have my bike ready for me by the next day (today). They called this afternoon to apologize that the very last thing they need to do, replace the bearings in the headset, is going to take longer than expected since they don't have the right kind of bearings in the shop, and will need to make a special trip to the dealerships.

He explained how bad he felt for the long wait and offered to open the shop on the Fourth just so I could come in and pick up my bike from him. I told him I've already waited a month, and one more day is all the same, especially on his holiday, so that I'd just come by this Thursday. I'll keep you guys updated.

Sounds to me like you're still getting jerked around. Shouldn't all these parts have been ordered like months ago? (God, I hope I spelled evrything correctly)

Everything but 'evrything'.