What's funny is I didn't crash my bike. I found out a while ago that the bottom bracket shell on my Mark V Pro (53cm) is backwards. The cups thread in on the wrong side, and they loosen as I pedal. The fixed cup only threads in on the non-drive side and both cups thread towards the rear of the bike to loosen (from the top).

I contacted Iro about this and they said that they'd probably be putting my bike under the crash replacement policy, which means I have to pay half the price of a new frame. I in no way have crashed the frame, and it's clearly a build problem. I've already sent in the frame, and they said, they'd "see" about my issue, but that it would, "most likely" be under the crash replacement policy. Below is an excerpt straight from the FAQ section of the Iro website:

1)All IRO CYCLE frames are warranted againts defects in welds and materials for two years. This is subject to the judgement of IRO CYCLE Inc. and applies to the original owner of the frame.

2)"No Matter What" Crash Replacement Policy. Our crash replacements policy is just as it sounds. No Matter what happens to the frame, we will replace it for half of the current retail price.

I bought the frame less than two years ago, and the defect is the fact that the BB was welded on in the wrong direction. I really don't think I owe them any money for replacing my frame. Granted, I did ask for a smaller frame, and said I'd be glad to pay for whatever hassle they had to go through to send me a frame. However, I don't think it'd cost (coincidentally) half the price for a new Pro. Normally, I would have had to wait until at least July, because they didn't have any 53's in stock. But since they had the 50 that i was asking for, I was able to send my frame in right away.

What sucks is I've already had the frame powder-coated, after having to put up with an idiot who powder-coated straight over the factor paint before that (from a different coater, Maas Brothers Powdercoating rules, Leon's Powdercoating SUCKS.) So, I might end up having paid:

-$330 for the original frame and shipping
-Three extra trips to Leon's Powder-Coating because the boss, who was the only one who could give a refund, was never in.
-$100 for the powder-coating
-$50 to ship it back to Iro
-$160 to get it replaced
-$30 to ship it back
-$100 to powder-coat the new frame

bringing the total for my Mark V Pro (frame only) to: $770.

Yay...

Thoughts? Comments?

Contact the better business bureau.

That's simply bizarre. Who did you speak with at IRO? Tony himself?

One thing to keep in mind, although it's totally not related to your problem, is that PC a frame voids the warranty from the vast majority of bike companies.

You've got multiple issues, only one of which is IRO's problem.

You shouldn't have to pay shipping to or fro for warranty issues.

Why did it take you 2 years to ID and try to solve this problem? It should have taken 20 minutes of head scratching during the initial build. Which leads me to the next point...

You wouldn't have this problem if you went to a local bike shop. You'd get over the counter warranty service. That's what they do.

The problem is that I didn't know how to put together a bike when I first got it built. Which is why I did take it to my LBS, but the mechanic who put it together didn't say a word about it. Second, it didn't take me two years, I bought the bike less than two years ago. I only noticed once my BB came loose, which was also the time I decided to learn how to work on my bike myself. Once I tried taking the BB off (after the first mechanic re-tightened it), I had no idea which way to turn in order to take it off. Neither did the other mechanics at my LBS. I had to leave the frame with them so that they could work on it. After they managed to get the cups out, I had to draw little arrows in sharpie on the BB shell so I knew which way they'd turn to loosen.

All I wanna do is ride (a non-broken bike)!

I exchanged a bunch of emails with Nicole. It was Tony who okay'd the frame size change, which is awesome.

I don't totally understand your logic- why not just buy a new frame and sell or keep the old one? If you take out powdercoating and shipping (powdercoating because its a pure luxury, and shipping because, as stated and I agree, you shouldnt have to pay that for warantee issues), you're left with ONE frame at a cost of 330 + 160 = $490. If you kept your current frame and simply bought a new one, you'd have TWO frames at a cost of 330 + ~330 = $660; the net effect is 660 - 490 = $170 for a new frame, in comparison to returning it. You could proably CL/EBay the wacky frame for $170 or more.

I had a similar issue with a lightly damaged old phil wood hubbed wheel I received for near nothing- I paid no shipping to send the part back, but once there, they gave me a replacement option similar to what IRO gave you, and I decided it wasnt worth it.

PS Loctite?

Well, I'm a perfectionist. I have a vision of my "perfect" (cheaper) bike, and I try to build it. To me, the color of the frame isn't optional, that's just how my brain works. I wish I could just ride with any old color etc, etc, but it would forever bother me. =/ While I think that getting a frame is a good idea, I loath having to sell stuff. I'm in the process of getting rid of lots of my junk, and it's a PITA. I might just do what you did with the hub, it depends on what Iro does first, though.

Isn't loctite permanent? What about maintenance(sp?)?

Thanks

Hahaha. How about "get over it"?

i'm surprised you didn't notice the problem until after you powdercoated it, etc... obvious complications

consider that IRO doesn't actually weld their frames; they deal the frame to you w/ their name & specs. by repainting it, it's been stripped of a critical association w/ the company.

i do think IRO is at fault for dealing you a faulty frame though.

For all they know you ****ed up the original frame, re-welded the BB shell on wrong and then had it powdercoated to cover that up. There are too many unknowns in the situation so I'm not surprised they didn't give you a straight-up replacement. Just loctite it and move on with life. Obsessing about a non-issue isn't worth your time.

Please, I don't care that you disagree with the way I spend my money, but there's no reason to be immature about it.

I guess... maybe that's why they said, "we'll see." But seriously, a powdercoat is $100, and the work to cut out the bottom bracket, then go through the trouble of re-welding it... Not to mention that the frame is in perfect condition anyways...

After loctite-ing it, how would I go about removing the BB shells?

Thanks.

Clean the bottom bracket shell threads really well (w/ rubbing alcohol), do the same w/ the bottom bracket cups, use blue loctite and make sure you torque the cups enough when you install them ("really ****ing tight" is a rough figure). Then if you ever need to pull the cups you can just use regular tools and won't have to bust out a torch (as you would with red loctite, etc.). Provided the threads are cleaned properly and torqued enough you shouldn't even need the loctite, but it won't hurt in this case and it'll hopefully give you some confidence back in your setup (your bike isn't ****ed).

Seriously, riders were/are using Italian threaded bottom brackets for decades. It might not be the ideal set but your bottom bracket isn't just magically going to eject itself if you install everything properly. Just don't half-ass the job and you'll be fine.

And as for powdercoating a messed up frame and then trying to return it, I wouldn't be surprised if IRO has already dealt with that situation. There's always some *******/idiot out there trying to pull off a new scam.

yeah, strange that the mechanic didn't say anything.

shapelike - thanks for that perspective. I didn't realize that people might try to scam them like that... That's really poor form. I can see now why they might be so cautious.

maybe the person who powder coated it took the bb off, and then put it on backwards...

You should pay for the new one under warrenty, then sell the old one with a bb lock tite in it

Yeah, cause you know they just snap on and off.

Maybe the BB, but not the BB shell. I didn't have the BB installed when I took it to have it powder-coated.

I have to send the defective frame back.