Frame damaged on first ride

[pwa]

I would always check the indexing/limits on any bike before riding whether bought online or not.I would also give any bolts a once over to make sure they're secure.
On our last Majorca trip my mate brought his brand new,never ridden,Planet-X Pro-Carbon along.It was delivered a few days before we flew out and he hadn't had the chance to test ride it.The gears were all over the place.OK it could have been due to the bike been thrown about by the Airport staff but as it was in a solid box I'd go for it wasn't set up correctly anyway.It as only an indexing problem so no great issue but had the bike gone to someone with no knowledge then it would have been different!

I can't see the OP having any real case but will stand corrected if the retailer does anything about it.

I know what you’re saying, but the retailer boldly claim on their website that all you have to do when you get your bike is put the pedals on and it’s ready to ride. If they don’t want to set the bike up properly then fine, but they should be honest that it might need a tune up before the first ride.

Those limit screws should certainly have been set right. Not having done that is a failing by the supplier. It is common for newly set-up bikes to go slightly out of adjustment after a ride, requiring a bit of playing around with barrel adjusters to restore cable tension. But the limit screws, once set, do not move. They are only out of adjustment because they were not adjusted in the first place.

[peetee]

Looks like a Shimano chain, not the junk I suggested earlier . Nevertheless, that is undoubtedly the pin used to join the chain in the first instance (notice it’s not recessed like the others) so it is an assembly error and you should push for compensation before you try to fix it yourself. If all else fails and you want to get it on the road ASAP then, as suggested earlier, a quicklink will resolve the issue (and make life a lot easier when you come round to cleaning the chain).

[fastpedaller]

Have a quit ride and see if it's ok.

Bad advice ^^^^

[Brucey]

Looks like a Shimano chain, not the junk I suggested earlier . Nevertheless, that is undoubtedly the pin used to join the chain in the first instance (notice it’s not recessed like the others)…

in the middle of the pin you can see the 'break off' scar. The mark on the sideplate just below the pin, in the pin recess, is presumably from when the pin end was broken off.

[edit; NB the point above is very important; it is pretty much the only evidence of cause and effect here; otherwise there is little to show that the chain damage wasn't caused by the chain coming off rather than the other way round.]

... so it is an assembly error and you should push for compensation before you try to fix it yourself. If all else fails and you want to get it on the road ASAP then, as suggested earlier, a quicklink will resolve the issue (and make life a lot easier when you come round to cleaning the chain).

I agree

cheers

[JohnW]

Have a quit ride and see if it's ok.

If you're going to do that, be very careful.
You know it's not OK.
I agree with fastpedaller - I certainly wouldn't do that!

You'll know whether you've tried to repair/had someone else repair it. At a guess, you haven't had a repair done, so I wouldn't give it a try.
If you give it a try now, when you know there's a problem, and what the problem is, it could affect any comeback you may have.
The trouble is that you can't really ride it down to the LBS (if you have one) for an opinion.
I really, really sympathise with you.

You may find that you have to get the bike repaired by a competent person, touch up the damaged paint, and put it down to bitter experience.
If the frame is alu, you may have gouged the frame when the chain came off, or in releasing it, and that'll be more serious.
Somehow, I'd get it checked out by a "competent person", and take it further with the vendor.

What a rotten situation to be in.
The trouble is, you're on your own with it.

A repair to the chain is a fairly easy task - an everyday matter for the LBS - but have you damaged the frame?

Keep us all up to date with progress, won't you please.

[peetee]

Contact the seller. Explain the problem and ask what they will do to put you right. If they don’t accept they are responsible say you have already taken advice and will be paying for an independent examination and report for which you will expect them to compensate you for the cost as well as putting the bike right.
That should push them into action.
As an independent mechanic I have had cause to do this for customers and they have always won out.

[Jdsk]

Getting redress for faulty goods can be complicated and that's not been helped since the Coalition cut back on local consumer protection departments but if you have a local Citizens Advice, they may be able to help if you don't get satisfaction. Above all, don't delay and don't play about with it.

Excellent advice.

Help also available from Which? Legal Services, and what's included in membership such as unions, and in services such as insurance.

Jonathan

[peetee]

Getting redress for faulty goods can be complicated and that's not been helped since the Coalition cut back on local consumer protection departments but if you have a local Citizens Advice, they may be able to help if you don't get satisfaction. Above all, don't delay and don't play about with it.

Excellent advice.

Help also available from Which? Legal Services, and what's included in membership such as unions, and in services such as insurance.

Jonathan

Yes, good advice, but I don’t think the OP is in need of it just yet. The retailer might be cooperative.

[Jd843]

Update: Retailer is taking the bike back for an inspection. Not sure what that will involve, but it makes me slightly worried that they'll try to say the chain came off due to my error if they can't recreate the problem on a work stand. They'd probably need to actually ride it, up a hill, to make it happen.

But then again, they were quite apologetic in their emails, so maybe the inspection is just standard procedure even if the pictures show exactly what the problem is.

[peetee]

Update: Retailer is taking the bike back for an inspection. Not sure what that will involve, but it makes me slightly worried that they'll try to say the chain came off due to my error if they can't recreate the problem on a work stand. They'd probably need to actually ride it, up a hill, to make it happen.

But then again, they were quite apologetic in their emails, so maybe the inspection is just standard procedure even if the pictures show exactly what the problem is.

That’s a good start.
FWIW, the damage you have shown is highly unlikely to occur from a chain damaged by dropping off a sprocket or chainring and getting jammed. In such a scenario the link plates are what suffers by being bent and scored.

[Jdsk]

Update: Retailer is taking the bike back for an inspection. Not sure what that will involve, but it makes me slightly worried that they'll try to say the chain came off due to my error if they can't recreate the problem on a work stand. They'd probably need to actually ride it, up a hill, to make it happen.

But then again, they were quite apologetic in their emails, so maybe the inspection is just standard procedure even if the pictures show exactly what the problem is.

That’s a good start.

Yes.

Remember to keep a contemporaneous written record of all communications and events.

Jonathan

[Jd843]

Update: it’s taken a month, but I finally got a refund

Now I just need a new bike...

[eileithyia]

Good news.

[pwa]

Update: it’s taken a month, but I finally got a refund

Now I just need a new bike...

Do you have an idea what you might buy?

[Jd843]

Update: it’s taken a month, but I finally got a refund

Now I just need a new bike...

Do you have an idea what you might buy?

I'm looking at a Ribble R872 Disc. Their HQ is not too far from me, so I'll be able to go pick it up (once they've got some in stock, that is!)