Cyclesuperstore - a warning

pete.smyth

Hi,

I just joined and this is my first post because I really want to let people know that the Cyclesuperstore in Tallaght should be avoided at all costs, let me explain.

First of all I will say that when buying the bike the advice I recieved was very good and the staff were very friendly and helpful. However when I had a problem things changed, the rear axel broke after a couple of months and I brought the bike in to be repaired and to have a service.

After a week I returned to collect the repaired bike and when I checked it I found that the axel had not been replaced but a new set of gears had been put on instead (very badly done too) when I moved the pedals backwards the chain came off and jammed, over the next 40 minutes they attemped to repair it 3 more times (which involved spraying degreaser and WD 40 over everything).

I finially had to ask for the manager when Yahn gave me back the bike and I moved the pedals only for the chain to come off again, his reply "that will happen with any bike if you pedal backwards". They were his actual words... when a manager came over and seen that I had been handed a bike which didnt even have the rear wheel secured he tried to help, sadly this ment Yahn had another go at it.

Another week past and I was informed that they didnt have any axels and would need to get one sent over! At this point I asked for a refund as the bike was only a few months old and as they were unable to fix it I would go somewhere else. I was told that " we dont have to do that" when I mentioned tha sale of goods act it made no difference.

In the end I just waited until they were finished and would give the bike back, well now its broke again and I cant face going back to try dealing with the contempt I know I would recieve so I am just going to bin it and buy a new one, somewhere else.

Please avoid the service & repair department in this place for your own sake.

E@gle.

what kind of bike was it and what make was it?

shapez

Gez, talk about throwing away money. I'd go to the ombusman about it and get some legal advise while your at it.

Surely, if they are not going to give you a refund. What about a credit note for a completely new bike??

Ghost Rider

Sounds like one for the Small Claims Court actually:

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/categories/justice/courts-system/small_claims_court

Membrane

pete.smyth wrote:

sadly this ment Yahn had another go at it.

By the sound of it the guy is pretty incompetent.

Another week past and I was informed that they didnt have any axels and would need to get one sent over! At this point I asked for a refund as the bike was only a few months old and as they were unable to fix it I would go somewhere else. I was told that " we dont have to do that" when I mentioned tha sale of goods act it made no difference.

I don't think that it is unreasonable to have to order in parts. This does not mean that they can't fix it, claiming a refund based on that isn't reasonable IMO.

well now its broke again

Is it the same problem? Have you tried complaining to the store manager about the apparent incompetence of the mechanic that you dealt with?

pete.smyth

Membrane, your point about waiting for a part to be ordered is a good one, however would you wait a week for an simple axel? When I asked if they could remove an axel from a bike in stock I got a direct "no".

The manager told me it was a problem with the manufacturer, he refused to accept any responsibility.

I did deal with one member of staff who tried to be helpful but by then it was too late, I dont trust them to repair it as like I said before they gave me back a bike without even screwing the wheel on. When I complaind the manager had the same incompetent go back to work on it.

Truly the worst customer service I have ever had.

Membrane

pete.smyth wrote:

Membrane, your point about waiting for a part to be ordered is a good one, however would you wait a week for an simple axel?

I don't find that unreasonable. I'm used to parts having to be ordered from the UK (other stores, not CSS) and having to wait longer than that.

When I asked if they could remove an axel from a bike in stock I got a direct "no".

What axle are you referring to? For example removing a pedal axle from a stock bike, putting it on your bke, and then refitting it to the stock bike when the part comes in is a lot of extra work.

The manager told me it was a problem with the manufacturer, he refused to accept any responsibility.

The store is responsible, but again I find waiting a week for a part reasonable.

When I complaind the manager had the same incompetent go back to work on it.

I would have complained to the store manager, calmly, about the poor skills of the mechanic and that handing it back to the same mechanic was not acceptable.

cunnins4

hmmm, that sounds pretty shít alright. An axle should be a straight-forward job. Ordering in a part isn't unreasonable on their part though. This may seem a stupid and maybe annoying question, but was it a simple case of it being in the wrong gear when you pedalled backwards? If the chain is on a cog far enough away from where the deraileur is positioned this can often make the chain fall off, or at least get caught up in the mechanism?

They sound like they have been unreasonable though and I'm suprised that such a large bike store acted the bollox with you on such a simple job. The guy fixing the bike sounded quite incompetent, but maybe if you take a fresh approach and state your grievance clearly and calmly and that you simply want your bike in working order you might get a result.

About a year ago I had a problem with AIB, and I contacted the financial regulator and lodged a complaint. I phoned the branch and asked to speak with the branch manager and when I informed him of my complaint my problem was sorted out over lunch(i'd previously been told it would be at least another week, after waiting 8!). If a nice word doesn't work, shove a fire up their asse. They'll move. They always do!

E@gle.

your not entilted to a refund after 28 days, you said you had the bike for a number of months and then the problem arose, could the problem not be wear and tear or damage?? and also what do you mean by the axel on the bike.

im sure the mechanics are fairly good in cyclesuperstore as i know a few guys who have bought some fairly expensive custom built bikes from them and not had any problems

pete.smyth

Membrane in response to your point, I did try explaining to the store manager, perhaps too calmly, that the person he was asking to fix the bike had already failed to do so after several attempts. His response was that he would stand over the work.

At the point I requested they swap the rear wheel from a stock bike onto mine I had already waited a week, had the wrong part replaced (and been charged for it) then waited another week with promises made that I could collect the bike fully repaired, then been told I would have to wait another week.

So after two weeks of the shop having the bike and at least four attempts to fix an axel, they discovered that they had none in stock. When faced with incompetence like that would you trust the shop at all?

I made the mistake of waiting and accepting sub-standard work when I probably should have made more of a fuss. Now that the bike has other problems I just cant face dealing with that kind of treatment again.

pete.smyth

E@gle, I had the bike for 4 months when the axel broke I just thought that it was general wear & tear so as the shop had been helpful during the sale I brought it in for a repair & service, I was not looking for anything for free. I was fully prepared to pay for the work done.

cunnins4, when I explained the problem with the chain to manager he said the same thing (which I had already checked for), he checked it himself and said that yes there was a problem.

kona

pete.smyth wrote:

Hi,

I just joined and this is my first post because I really want to let people know that the Cyclesuperstore in Tallaght should be avoided at all costs, let me explain.

First of all I will say that when buying the bike the advice I recieved was very good and the staff were very friendly and helpful. However when I had a problem things changed, the rear axel broke after a couple of months and I brought the bike in to be repaired and to have a service.

After a week I returned to collect the repaired bike and when I checked it I found that the axel had not been replaced but a new set of gears had been put on instead (very badly done too) when I moved the pedals backwards the chain came off and jammed, over the next 40 minutes they attemped to repair it 3 more times (which involved spraying degreaser and WD 40 over everything).

I finially had to ask for the manager when Yahn gave me back the bike and I moved the pedals only for the chain to come off again, his reply "that will happen with any bike if you pedal backwards". They were his actual words... when a manager came over and seen that I had been handed a bike which didnt even have the rear wheel secured he tried to help, sadly this ment Yahn had another go at it.

Another week past and I was informed that they didnt have any axels and would need to get one sent over! At this point I asked for a refund as the bike was only a few months old and as they were unable to fix it I would go somewhere else. I was told that " we dont have to do that" when I mentioned tha sale of goods act it made no difference.

In the end I just waited until they were finished and would give the bike back, well now its broke again and I cant face going back to try dealing with the contempt I know I would recieve so I am just going to bin it and buy a new one, somewhere else.

Please avoid the service & repair department in this place for your own sake.

for your own sake you should read the act yourself, they are in no way obliged to give you a refund on a bike you used(and prob abused up and down kerbs by the sounds of the problem).
You have to realise stores have rights too, and when you quote acts to staff and are wrong THEY just think your a moron tbh.
sounds odd to replace a gear cassette/ block if its your axle thats gone tbh, the chain coming off sounds like the bike was in the wrong gear or the spacer wasnt in the right position, which is a 5min job, the time they said you have to wait is scadalous.
Yahn may only have been learning...we all have to start somewhere!!! so give him a break..hope thats not his real name btw

pete.smyth

Kona, I know what you mean about mentioning the sale of goods act, but I'm not a very confrontational person and by that stage I had lost faith in them doing anything without some kind of prompt.

btw the bike was not abused, I used it three night a week going to and from a part time job and it was even kept indoors all the time (ten minutes outside where I live I never would have seen it again)

niceonetom

kona wrote:

Yahn may only have been learning...we all have to start somewhere!!! so give him a break..hope thats not his real name btw

i hope it IS his real name. name and shame. if he wants to practice, well he's in a massive room full of bikes belonging to his employer, let him hone his skill on those. or his own?? i wouldn't want some have-a-go spanner monkey practicing on my bike. the whole point of going to a bike shop is to get PROFESSIONAL care. sounds like pete was lucky enough that the incompetence was major enough to be obvious in the shop, the alternative is a catastrophic mechanical failure (wheel loss or jammed drive train possibly) at speed on the way home followed by a lovely trip to casualty.

i agree that a refund is OTT but prompt, competent replacement/repair of parts is the bare minimum a shop should be able to provide.

Hungrycol

A broken rear axel seems fairly serious to me. I'd have to say I've never broken one, bent a few axels in my time but never actually snapped one.

If the manager says it's the manu fault then is it not still under manu warranty? IMO broken axel isn't general wear and tear.

The shop not having a bog standard rear axel in stock does seem strange.

I presume CSS still have the bike because you couldn't ride a broken axel wheel home. If so how long are they saying now to fix it, still a week after having it for a few already?

bazman

Have to say that my experience with CSS to date & with Yahn in particular has been quite the opposite. There is no other cycle store in Dublin to match them IMO.

I think it was reasonable for them to say that they didn't have the part in stock - a week isn't that long to wait.

Read their returns policy:
http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewContent.asp?idpage=13

kona

niceonetom wrote:

.
the alternative is a catastrophic mechanical failure (wheel loss or jammed drive train possibly) at speed on the way home followed by a lovely trip to casualty.

are you for real??? catastrophic mechanical failure...lol:eek:
a jammed derailleur is hardly catastrophic mechanical failure(which incidentally90% of the time is totally the riders fault)
ive seen loads of snapped axles, they are extremely common on not QR/freehub hubs,because the weight isnt spread evenly on the bearings.
Strange they dont have any axles in stock, the op's bike may have a strange size, that they dont carry.
being honest a snapped axle is mostly not manufacturing fault, if it was they would have a recall because all axles will have the same shear and tensile strength, they dont just put random materials in.
talk to anybody who cycles alot, a snapped axle or jammed derailleur aint catasrophic failure, its catastrophic abuse that causes it to fail.

the op broke the axle, and in fairness wasnt looking for a replacement under warranty...which he should get full props for.
its just the shop, was a bit ****ty. ive never dealt with the shop mentioned, but i know people who have and they seem to be fairly cool with stuff.
shop should sort the prob at this stage but not a refund on a broken bike, which was broken due to abuse.

niceonetom

yes, i'm for real lol :eek:

pete.smyth wrote:

...when a manager came over and seen that I had been handed a bike which didnt even have the rear wheel secured he tried to help, sadly this ment Yahn had another go at it.

i think losing a wheel counts as catastrophic, do you disagree?

seamus

niceonetom wrote:

i think losing a wheel counts as catastrophic, do you disagree?

If the wheel was properly secured, a snapped axle shouldn't result in sudden catastrophic failure, though there'll probably be some weird noises and grinding. Each end of the axle would still be gripping onto the frame, and in turn will still be sitting inside the hub. Even if the axle broke right at the frame mount, I doubt there'd be anything more serious than the wheel jamming against the frame and slowing down.

Tbh, while it does sound you got the runaround, perhaps there's more here that we've missed. I can't see any shop going to the expense of replacing a rear mech or cassette without fully investigating what's going on - at which point they'd spot a broken axle.
A snapped axle, while it would be a manufacturer replacement, in this case doesn't fall under the sale of goods and services act because of the amount of time which had passed.
If the rear wheel wasn't properly secured, it would have popped off when you attempted to move the pedals.
If you change gears, then move the pedals backwards, yes it will jam and come off the chainring/cassette.

I don't think it's overly odd that they may not have had the axle in stock. If it was a standard nuts and bolts one, then yeah they should have a spare in stock, but QR axles may be manufacturer specific because they need to be the correct length for the hub.

Binning the bike seems like overkill. Unless you've snapped the frame, there's very little that can't be repaired for a fraction of the cost of a new bike.

FWIW, I've worked in a lot of public-facing jobs and a lot of the time customer dissatisfaction arises because what the customer thinks the problem is, and what the shop/business discovers the problem is, don't match up. The customer often doesn't want to know about what the business did, just whether they fixed the problem that he thought he was having.
From the text of your post, it strikes me that it's possible there's a serious misunderstanding going on.

Itsfixed

seamus wrote:

If the wheel was properly secured, a snapped axle shouldn't result in sudden catastrophic failure, though there'll probably be some weird noises and grinding. Each end of the axle would still be gripping onto the frame, and in turn will still be sitting inside the hub. Even if the axle broke right at the frame mount, I doubt there'd be anything more serious than the wheel jamming against the frame and slowing down.

Tbh, while it does sound you got the runaround, perhaps there's more here that we've missed. I can't see any shop going to the expense of replacing a rear mech or cassette without fully investigating what's going on - at which point they'd spot a broken axle.
A snapped axle, while it would be a manufacturer replacement, in this case doesn't fall under the sale of goods and services act because of the amount of time which had passed.
If the rear wheel was properly secured, it would have popped off when you attempted to move the pedals.
If you change gears, then move the pedals backwards, yes it will jam and come off the chainring/cassette.

I don't think it's overly odd that they may not have had the axle in stock. If it was a standard nuts and bolts one, then yeah they should have a spare in stock, but QR axles may be manufacturer specific because they need to be the correct length for the hub.

Binning the bike seems like overkill. Unless you've snapped the frame, there's very little that can't be repaired for a fraction of the cost of a new bike.

FWIW, I've worked in a lot of public-facing jobs and a lot of the time customer dissatisfaction arises because what the customer thinks the problem is, and what the shop/business discovers the problem is, don't match up. The customer often doesn't want to know about what the business did, just whether they fixed the problem that he thought he was having.
From the text of your post, it strikes me that it's possible there's a serious misunderstanding going on.

I think this whole analysis is absolutely spot-on.

coggs

:rolleyes: I had a old training roadbike fitted with a complete new group set recently in the superstore , and have to say it was a perfect job ,runs perfect . Over the year i have left in countless repairs . ie wheels, gears , mountain bike service and have got nothing but a professional service from both work shop staff and managment . Enda S

kona

niceonetom wrote:

yes, i'm for real lol :eek:



i think losing a wheel counts as catastrophic, do you disagree?

totally disagree :cool:
a snapped axle wont make the wheel just fall off, you would be long off the bike before that happens, unless your a total idiot , seamus is spot on with his assesment, is the op a bike mechanic....no...are you??? hopefully not, if you are tell me where you work so i can start a thread or somthing bout it and tell people to avoid the shop like a plague:p
Funnily the only person mentioned in this whole thread who is actually qualified to fix a bike is the bloke being torn apart.
i dont believe you have to be a total asshole to buy a bike, but some people really make me think about that assesment day in day out, anybody who has ever worked in a bike shop will understand.
i mean everybody stripped /built bikes 20years ago(and incidentily bike technology and engineering has stagnated for 20yrs)
everybody is a engineer but cant but their forks on the bike the right way or balance a set of v-brakes.......
and a bike under e300 with all the 'bits' on it is NOT the same as a bike with all the 'bits' on it for e1400 ive heard that more than once

kenmc

kona wrote:

no i dont :cool:
a snapped axle wont make the wheel just fall off, you would be long off the bike before that happens, unless your a total idiot ,

If you read the OPs first post it says that the rear wheel was not secured to the frame - on a bike which was being handed back as fixed. Definitely not safe for riding.
Thats where the 'losing the wheel' came from, not from the fact that the axle was broken. I'd call it pretty catastrophic if you lose your wheel.

Quigs Snr

I dunno, personally I find Cyclesuperstore to be superb really. I often swing by when I am passing by and they have always been helpful, professional and competent. This certainley would not put me off going in there.

I do have to wonder though, there must be more to this than the OP is saying. I have had the guys in there carry out some pretty hairy tasks for me that other bike shops refused to touch and I found their mechanics to be great.... That or the bike in question was a one off lemon with some truly horrendous and out of the ordinary issues.

blorg

You can have mixed results from shops, just look at threads on Cycleogical. I've had both very good service indeed and the brush off from them.

OP- maybe the best course of action for you here, especially as you don't see it as a warranty issue but a chargeable repair, would be simply to take the bike to another bike shop and get them to repair it?

niceonetom

kenmc wrote:

If you read the OPs first post it says that the rear wheel was not secured to the frame - on a bike which was being handed back as fixed. Definitely not safe for riding.
Thats where the 'losing the wheel' came from, not from the fact that the axle was broken. I'd call it pretty catastrophic if you lose your wheel.

thank you, that's just the point i was making.

the op gave me the distinct impression that the mechanic's skill didn't stretch to QR wheels. i didn't realise we needed to be certified mechanics to find that worrying?

kona, take it easy, dude, sounds like cyclesuperstore has it's share of fans here too

kona

kenmc wrote:

If you read the OPs first post it says that the rear wheel was not secured to the frame - on a bike which was being handed back as fixed. Definitely not safe for riding.
Thats where the 'losing the wheel' came from, not from the fact that the axle was broken. I'd call it pretty catastrophic if you lose your wheel.

i still fail to see catastrophic failure ....i read it as the wheel still moved laterally, due to the axle not being fixed(this is what the thread is about??) which is what they do when they snap even if the q/r skewer or the bolt....(still dunno what hub were talking bout) is loose....the back wheel will still more than likely stay in the frame, provided the bikes wheels are in constant contact with the ground, due to the compressive force the rider exerts, it will however want to move laterally, but you'd notice before it came off:) .
besides that isnt catastrophic failure...no part has failed, maybe just catastrophic stupidity/ignorance:D .
ive never shopped in cyclesuperstore, im just pissed off at how many threads there are on this specific forum moaning about service.
cycling must have the highest percentage of moaning/complaint threads:mad: .

pete.smyth

Kona, your right I am not a bike mechanic (dont think I even hinted I was), thats why I left in in to be repaired, ok?

As I have said a few times before the sales staff were very good but as for repairs.. well they really didnt give a crap

If you think its good customer service to return a bike as repaired without checking if the wheel is on then let me know what bike shop you work in so I can tell people to avoid the place like a plague.

The catastrophic failure here was the shops failure to do what they said.

kona

pete.smyth wrote:

Kona, your right I am not a bike mechanic (dont think I even hinted I was), thats why I left in in to be repaired, ok?



The catastrophic failure here was the shops failure to do what they said.

nope you, didnt, but if you arnt i dont think it is fair to accuse sombody of being a ****e mechanic, if you aint one yourself okay???
they have plenty of bikes to be building/fixing, tbh, if your bike is toward the cheaper end of things, he prob wanted it out of his way asap, so he could work on somthing decent which didnt piss him off everytime he went to fix it.

so you wanted a refund because the bolt was loose???wtf
and if the manager or the mechanic couldnt sort this in max 5min, id definatly be pissed off and worried!!!
yes this thread is about the catastrophic failure of a shop not a part.

just because you throw big words in doesnt scare people, and tbh just makes you look like a muppet who doesnt have a clue bout bikes:) (pete this aint at you), find out what a catastrophic failure is before using it in a sentence

Ghost Rider

If they failed to fix your bike, then I don't see why not!

kona wrote:

i dont think it is fair to accuse sombody of being a ****e mechanic, if you aint one yourself okay???

seamus

Ghost Rider wrote:

If they failed to fix your bike, then I don't see why not!

As I pointed out, failing to fix what the customer thinks the problem is, and failing to fix the actual problem are two entirely different things.

Based on the OP's story, I don't think we have enough information to write the guy off as a crap mechanic.