i use the philwood grease myself. though you could try the ky if you're getting unusually intimate with your saddle.

adjusting the hubs is pretty straight forward. you'll need a 17mm cone wrench.

Taking a bike bought online into a shop to get it built is like buying food at a grocery store and taking it to a restaurant for them to cook.

depending where you are that is just fine and dandy.

Well, they would probably be nicer to you if you brought in a bike you had purchased at the LBS instead of a cheap online bike. ;)

Vey true. IMO a good LBS worth supporting won't let any machine built wheels out of the door without doing this.

No, it's more like buying a bike online, taking it to a bike shop and having them help you put it together.

We don't buy and eat bikes on a daily basis (they're usually a significant purchase for most people), and in your comparison the bikes are bought online - the food is not. And regardless, I put my own food into restaurant food all the time - I like to get veggie meats and put them in Subway veggie delite sandwiches.

I don't understand why a bike shop wouldn't be willing to help anyone who walks through their door. To me, that's just throwing away money, and what business prioritizes losing money? Money is money. If they don't help me, I'll find another shop who will and pay them. Or just go to my local volunteer-run bike workshop and donate a fee.

Shops just dont like Bikesdirect for taking business. It's like newstands against papers going digital and all that. I dont think anyone would be turned down though

^ Completely understandable. But still, the person already has the bike and brings it into a LBS for help. At this point, they can either:

A. Stand firm in their hatred/dislike for online bike shops like BD and treat the customer poorly, thus losing money and sending that person to somewhere else or

B. Get over it, help the person out and make some money.

I'm all about supporting local/small business, but things like Yelp and online shopping are a reality now. Maybe I'm a ******, but as a shopper we have those advantages and I'm probably going to stay away from shops that get mixed reviews.

True true. The shops who accept this newfangled "intranet" and create ways to work with it will be the more successful ones I would think!