I bought a Trek hybrid 7.3FX from the CTC shop at new year, my local shop didn't have the size I wanted, it's been discontinued. I was happy, saved £80 on the original price, arrived in two weeks so no complaint there.
I have since developed a clicking from the crank, so it's gone into my lbs for them to sort it out, it's done about 60 miles max. They suspect the crank has slipped and needs to be repositioned. I shall have to pay for it.
Anyone else had anything similar happen, and what would you do? The prospect of sending it back and then waiting for it etc, didn't bear thinking about, I should get it back on saturday.
Pros & Cons of buying online
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Mrs Tortoise
- Posts: 453
- Joined: 8 Jan 2007, 11:44pm
- Location: Dorchester, Dorset
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Terry T
Ditto Terry T.
Although I always try and buy locally I find these days that I just can't get the stuff I want at the LBSs and have to use the interweb.
Plus, I think that I've only bought one complete bike in the last 7 years (that was only sold via the web), the rest I just buy parts and lash it together myself.
Although I always try and buy locally I find these days that I just can't get the stuff I want at the LBSs and have to use the interweb.
Plus, I think that I've only bought one complete bike in the last 7 years (that was only sold via the web), the rest I just buy parts and lash it together myself.
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thirdcrank
- Posts: 36781
- Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 2:44pm
I think the only time there is a problem with sending back, is where the problem with the goods is either unclear to the purchaser, or is difficult to reproduce.
By this I mean, buy a bike retail mail order and it arrives with, say, scabby paintwork, or a spec., different from the order and you contact them and tell them what is wrong and invite them to do something about it or to reject the goods and claim a refund. If they want it sending back then it is up to them to say how and it is at their expense. If they say get it sorted locally, the repairer is their agent, not the purchaser's. Any quibbling and so long as it was £100-00 + and bought by credit card, it is on to the credit card company which is jointly responsible. So far so good.
If it has gears that don't seem to work properly but you are not sure because the last time you rode a bike it had a Sturmey 3 spd., and you have gone the whole hog and bought a Campag 30 spd., and you thought you had to back pedal to change gear and the brakes don't seem quite right etc., etc., then it is bad news.
The obvious answer is that if you are not confident with the workings of the stuff you are buying, buy from a local shop where you may pay a bit extra for that expertise and you can easily get back for help or satisfaction. The obvious drawback to that is you may well pay that extra only to be patronised and fobbed off if things go wrong.
By this I mean, buy a bike retail mail order and it arrives with, say, scabby paintwork, or a spec., different from the order and you contact them and tell them what is wrong and invite them to do something about it or to reject the goods and claim a refund. If they want it sending back then it is up to them to say how and it is at their expense. If they say get it sorted locally, the repairer is their agent, not the purchaser's. Any quibbling and so long as it was £100-00 + and bought by credit card, it is on to the credit card company which is jointly responsible. So far so good.
If it has gears that don't seem to work properly but you are not sure because the last time you rode a bike it had a Sturmey 3 spd., and you have gone the whole hog and bought a Campag 30 spd., and you thought you had to back pedal to change gear and the brakes don't seem quite right etc., etc., then it is bad news.
The obvious answer is that if you are not confident with the workings of the stuff you are buying, buy from a local shop where you may pay a bit extra for that expertise and you can easily get back for help or satisfaction. The obvious drawback to that is you may well pay that extra only to be patronised and fobbed off if things go wrong.
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rexlerego
Support you local shop
Yes, lots of discount available on the interweb thingy..
One has to consider such things as warranty and service as well..
Is the saving on purchase price worth the risk ?
Often a good discount and quick delivery wins.
BUT.. what if you need service ? Good old fashioned service still exists and can be found at a decent Local Bike Shop.
We must support these shops in order to preserve their/our future.
Stop using the local shops and soon all we have left will be one big TESCO.
Bought myself a new bike last year. I could have saved £100. on the list price with an interweb deal, instead I went to my local shop and paid full price for my Dawes Audax, I'm delighted with the bike.. BUT have had to go back to the shop a few times with a warranty claim and the usual running in problems. My local shop "Bridge Cycles" in Monmouth have delt efficiently with my problems and given excellent service.
Really can't expect the local guy to deal with all problems if someone else has had all the jam !
onward and upward, ride with pride
One has to consider such things as warranty and service as well..
Is the saving on purchase price worth the risk ?
Often a good discount and quick delivery wins.
BUT.. what if you need service ? Good old fashioned service still exists and can be found at a decent Local Bike Shop.
We must support these shops in order to preserve their/our future.
Stop using the local shops and soon all we have left will be one big TESCO.
Bought myself a new bike last year. I could have saved £100. on the list price with an interweb deal, instead I went to my local shop and paid full price for my Dawes Audax, I'm delighted with the bike.. BUT have had to go back to the shop a few times with a warranty claim and the usual running in problems. My local shop "Bridge Cycles" in Monmouth have delt efficiently with my problems and given excellent service.
Really can't expect the local guy to deal with all problems if someone else has had all the jam !
onward and upward, ride with pride
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reohn2
OK so your £80 up on if the LBS had supplied which they couldn't so you have an £80 cushion so to speak with which to play with, anything upto that amount for repairs you're quids in.This isn't the ideal solution Mrs T but in the circumstanses I don't think there is one,so it may be the best way to look at it.
What you could also do is ask where you bought it from if they could meet you halfway on the repairs,its worth a try,explaining how you needed the bike repaired rapid as you count on it for daily transport and couldn't do without it.
What you could also do is ask where you bought it from if they could meet you halfway on the repairs,its worth a try,explaining how you needed the bike repaired rapid as you count on it for daily transport and couldn't do without it.
Much as others have said, I use my LBS. If I need something simple, like a tube or puncture kit, I might stop at Halfraud's, or if there is a sale on I will peruse Ifans, but it's my LBS that will trawl through the suppliers' catalogues to find that little bit I need, or (as recently) order in as a one-off the specific Brooks saddle I wanted.
And I get a cuppa and a chat when I go in.
And I get a cuppa and a chat when I go in.
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Mrs Tortoise
- Posts: 453
- Joined: 8 Jan 2007, 11:44pm
- Location: Dorchester, Dorset
Bike Maintenance
Bike maintenance is something you can expect on any bike. When a bike is new it tends to need a breaking-in where most adjustable parts will go out of alignment. Most bike stores offer a free touch up after the break in period where if you buy online, you need to pay for that touch up.
Most people believe they can just run the bike into the ground and not worry about anything going wrong but as the owners manual says, the bike needs to be inspected before every ride.
If you go to a good bike store and ask them to check if the bike needs anything adjusted, they will do this in two minutes and for free. Once more, why not ask them to show you how to inspect your bike for safety and adjustment - teach a man or woman to fish as the saying goes.
After you got all this wonderful free service from the bike store, how about the ultimate display of solidarity and actually go there to purchase goods to make cycling more pleasant and enjoyable. I actually read somewhere in these forums that a guy went to a store to seek advice and then bought the item online because it saved him a few pounds. Pathetic.
Hopefully their prices are higher then internet only shops and they stay in business for a long time providing more excellent service and advice to novices. It also means they can hire higher quality staff. Eventually, thanks to internet discounting, this kind of devotion to cyclists will die off and all we'll be left with are large internet firms. Cycle education will be left to the government and cycle clubs.
Show the love... buy at recommended retail.
Andrew
PS. I no longer work in bike stores because the meager living it eeks out would not pay the bills for me and mine. That's one less qualified and helpful employee. There are hundreds of us.
Most people believe they can just run the bike into the ground and not worry about anything going wrong but as the owners manual says, the bike needs to be inspected before every ride.
If you go to a good bike store and ask them to check if the bike needs anything adjusted, they will do this in two minutes and for free. Once more, why not ask them to show you how to inspect your bike for safety and adjustment - teach a man or woman to fish as the saying goes.
After you got all this wonderful free service from the bike store, how about the ultimate display of solidarity and actually go there to purchase goods to make cycling more pleasant and enjoyable. I actually read somewhere in these forums that a guy went to a store to seek advice and then bought the item online because it saved him a few pounds. Pathetic.
Hopefully their prices are higher then internet only shops and they stay in business for a long time providing more excellent service and advice to novices. It also means they can hire higher quality staff. Eventually, thanks to internet discounting, this kind of devotion to cyclists will die off and all we'll be left with are large internet firms. Cycle education will be left to the government and cycle clubs.
Show the love... buy at recommended retail.
Andrew
PS. I no longer work in bike stores because the meager living it eeks out would not pay the bills for me and mine. That's one less qualified and helpful employee. There are hundreds of us.
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Mrs Tortoise
- Posts: 453
- Joined: 8 Jan 2007, 11:44pm
- Location: Dorchester, Dorset
I spend quite a bit at the shop already, as I do my other favourite bike shop. However, the model I wanted they couldn't supply in the size I needed, they no longer do it. So I bought a last years model on the net from the CTC shop (hopefully doing some good there too).
I check my bikes before every ride, but I am not a mechanic - I fix people not machines. Having discovered something amiss, which I hadn't encountered before, I took it to the experts and they confirmed what I suspected, the crank had shifted within the frame. I decided to let them do it rather than have a tinker myself, for which I will be billed. It happens but at least I'll know it's safe and not making a funny noise.
I check my bikes before every ride, but I am not a mechanic - I fix people not machines. Having discovered something amiss, which I hadn't encountered before, I took it to the experts and they confirmed what I suspected, the crank had shifted within the frame. I decided to let them do it rather than have a tinker myself, for which I will be billed. It happens but at least I'll know it's safe and not making a funny noise.
Hi Mrs Tortoise,
I read what you first said and wasn't talking about you. The debate was the pros and cons of buying online so I had my say. I have no problem with what you did and I think you handled it admirably. You didn't even complain about the CTC shop who should make sure that you're a satisfied customer. Their site is after all run by a large independent retailer who have proper stores all over the country.
I just wanted to point out - in general - how little people value bike stores and want to pay as little as possible which degrades the industry. What's worse is how bike stores get so desperate for sales that some further devalue products and services by trying to undercut the competition. With the birth of the internet retailer, this is now at epic proportions and bicycle stores are dropping like flies as the ends no longer meet. It really is quite scary how bad the situation is. I would love to name the handful of culprits out there who are destroying the local bike shop but that would be unethical. If you're getting a bargain from a website that is full of bargains then you are buying from the devil himself - please exclude clothing from this as clothing operates on a different plane then bicycles, parts and accessories.
Cheers
Andrew
I read what you first said and wasn't talking about you. The debate was the pros and cons of buying online so I had my say. I have no problem with what you did and I think you handled it admirably. You didn't even complain about the CTC shop who should make sure that you're a satisfied customer. Their site is after all run by a large independent retailer who have proper stores all over the country.
I just wanted to point out - in general - how little people value bike stores and want to pay as little as possible which degrades the industry. What's worse is how bike stores get so desperate for sales that some further devalue products and services by trying to undercut the competition. With the birth of the internet retailer, this is now at epic proportions and bicycle stores are dropping like flies as the ends no longer meet. It really is quite scary how bad the situation is. I would love to name the handful of culprits out there who are destroying the local bike shop but that would be unethical. If you're getting a bargain from a website that is full of bargains then you are buying from the devil himself - please exclude clothing from this as clothing operates on a different plane then bicycles, parts and accessories.
Cheers
Andrew
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Mrs Tortoise
- Posts: 453
- Joined: 8 Jan 2007, 11:44pm
- Location: Dorchester, Dorset
Andrew: it might work the other way round of course in that small, specialist retailers might thrive on the web because they can address a much larger market. My nearest bike shop deals only in MTBs (fairly extreme ones at that!) and the next nearest is racing orientated. If the next one, 25 miles away but more general, had a web site I would use them pretty well all the time. In fact there are lots of small businesses that can only survive on the web. I would certainly like to see more specialised shops so that not only would you know which to go to, they would have a decent stock of what you want and you could become a "regular". After all, the custom builders have done precisely that.
The main problem with large internet only firms, not the small stores doing honest business, is that they are able to buy huge quantities at silly prices and then they often undercut the little guy/gal without giving any benefit to the consumer other then a cheaper price.
The internet is great way for small business to offer extra value to a consumer but it still should only be an extra feature of that business and not a replacement of a physical space.
Has anyone witnessed a good store disappear from their local neighbourhood. It would be great to hear some of the stories of how things are transforming into a one company world. I see it on paper, but I don't have to face it every day.
Welcome to Tesco bikes...
Andrew
The internet is great way for small business to offer extra value to a consumer but it still should only be an extra feature of that business and not a replacement of a physical space.
Has anyone witnessed a good store disappear from their local neighbourhood. It would be great to hear some of the stories of how things are transforming into a one company world. I see it on paper, but I don't have to face it every day.
Welcome to Tesco bikes...
Andrew
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Mrs Tortoise
- Posts: 453
- Joined: 8 Jan 2007, 11:44pm
- Location: Dorchester, Dorset
One of the lbs I patronise had a franchise taken away because he was offering a discount, the manufacturer didn't like it.
On the saga of my Trek, the noise has returned and i have discovered the riding position hurts my knees. So I won't be doing too much cycling with it in the foreseeable future. So maybe buying on line wasn't such a good idea. Ah well back to my Specializeds .....I bought them locally.
On the saga of my Trek, the noise has returned and i have discovered the riding position hurts my knees. So I won't be doing too much cycling with it in the foreseeable future. So maybe buying on line wasn't such a good idea. Ah well back to my Specializeds .....I bought them locally.
Last edited by Mrs Tortoise on 26 Mar 2007, 4:44pm, edited 3 times in total.