turky lurkey

I just bought a 130/120 trail bike online from a local shop. I picked it up a couple days ago and it had Maxxis Assegai tires front and rear. The spec sheet said it would have Aggressor tires which are supposedly much faster rolling.

To be honest the 29 x 2.5 Assegai tires seem ridiculous for the bike. But then again I’m used to riding a hardtail with Ardent Race. I asked the bike shop nicely if they could help me out and let me trade the unused rear tire for something more appropriate for the bikes application, they said no. They also said they can’t sell me another tire at a discount. They pointed to the fine print on the spec sheet that says parts are subject to change without notice.

I get that, but shouldn’t the change at least be semi appropriate for the bike?

I don’t think anybody ever says a 2.5 Assegai is a good rear for a light trail bike.

Am I unreasonable to be irritated that I just spent 3300 and they won’t help me get an appropriate rear tire?

Chris Pringle

Congrats on getting a new bike! It is not an easy task these days.

Regarding the Maxxis Assegai tires, you personally may not like them, but not everyone races on their bikes. These tires may be slower but apparently have outstanding grip in all sorts of conditions. Many may like that attribute. Is your bike advertised as a racing XC/trail bike or something along those lines?

Also, it is not your LBS’ fault that the manufacturer changed specs without notice. They absolutely have no control over that. Due to the sky high demand in the bicycle industry, there is a great shortage of everything at the moment: bikes, components, consumables, etc. Bike shops have to make do with the limited inventory they have at hand. They are, understandably, not giving discounts so easily anymore because they don’t need to or simply they can’t to stay afloat. It may be annoying to you as a customer, especially after a big purchase. But, if you think about it, it really puts in perspective the dire situation bike shops are in right now. They’ve got people waiting in line wanting to buy bikes and not enough inventory anywhere to be able to deliver. They have to make it up with whatever they can sell. Frustrating!

If you can’t stand the tires the bike came with, how about buying the ones you like and removing the unused ones and selling them online? You may lose a little bit but they will help cover for a good portion of the tires you want to enjoy the entire riding season.

prj71

"They pointed to the fine print on the spec sheet that says parts are subject to change without notice"

Kinda answers your question.

More than likely with all of the shortages in the bike supply industry they didn't have access to any aggressor tires to put on it. So they just put on what they could find.

A.) Whatever tire you may want is probably obtainable on e-bay or pink bike.
B.) You should be able to sell your tires at either of those sites.


https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fro...or+29&_sacat=0

https://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/lis...4&wheelsize=10

turky lurkey

Okay, thanks for responding.

I’m stoked on the bike. I’m going to change my attitude and just appreciate the bike.

Kapusta

Fine print says you pay for one thing and then we give you something else.

Sorry, but it is f-ing bull***** for the shop you bought it at to not at least sell you a different option for the rear at cost.

I understand needing to make some changes due to limited stocks, but these tires are not even remotely similar.

turky lurkey

Thank you! I know it’s only tires but they aren’t even close to what I expected. I maxed out my play money budget for awhile buying the bike and I don’t have time to waste screwing around trying to sell them on eBay.

That said I am going to try to stop letting it bother me, because it’s pointless. I won’t be shopping at that store again though.

Kapusta

I think you have a good attitude about this. They did what they did, and had the fine print to cover their s$$es. If there are any remedies here, they are not worth going into over a tire.

I think your best bet is to buy yourself (from someplace else) your preferred rear tire. See how you like the one you have in the front. If you like it then you can use the takeoff as a replacement when this one wears out Or sell it. It is a very good and in-demand tire, so you should not have problems finding a buyer.

From everything I have read, the Assagai is not one I would want to run on the rear of most low/mid travel bikes (or any bike that is going to be pedaled a whole lot... but that is just me). But even worse (IMO) would be running an Aggressor in the front. I run one on the rear of my bike and like it fine for that but I would never put it in the front

What bike is it?

turky lurkey

It’s an Ibis Ripley AF NGX

Kapusta

Ha! When you mentioned the travel and the price I was wondering if it was that bike

I would call Ibis and see if they can be of assistance. Their CS is reportedly top notch.

turky lurkey

I appreciate your responses. For some reason having a stranger on the internet sympathize helped!

The bike is beautiful hopefully the weather cooperates enough for a little ride this weekend. I’m not going to call Ibis, even though I thought about it. The fact that they are getting 2021 models out is more than commendable.


I vented about the tires here, but it was really the whole bike shop “experience” that was disappointing. I have never bought a bike from a shop before and do all my own mechanic work so I was kind of excited to try the route of having support from a local shop.

I picked the bike up on short notice as soon as they called that it was ready so I didn’t have time to pick up my pedals from home. I figured they would probably have some they could throw on for a few minutes to help me get the bike set up. When I told them I didn’t need to buy pedals they just handed me the bike. They did ask me if I wanted help setting up the suspension. All they they did was approximately pump up the fork and shock per Fox’s starting point recommendations. They had the rebound adjusted 100% wide open and they sent me out. When I sat on the bike at home the rear shock sag was at like 40% and Ibis recommends about 25%. Whatever though, I’ll sort it out. My venting came out about the tires but there was more to it than that. Maybe I expected too much, but I didn’t find any benefit from buying local. Except I do have to acknowledge that they had a bike in stock, which is worth a lot!

veganbikes

It's because they don't want a tire sitting around the shop that they didn't purchase?

Bike specs change sometimes and especially now they are changing getting all huffy and puffy over it and then over the fact many shops don't want to add inventory they didn't purchase and may not want to stock or sell, is I don't need to take back someones tire because the manufacturer decided to change spec maybe because they had to to get bikes out to the masses of people who want bikes right now. Plus I don't need a tire I may not sell when I am having problems staying afloat because I cannot get bikes at the moment and it is also winter and we have had major shortages for a while.

If you want to have issue with the manufacturer for something they do go for it, but the local shop does not have any responsibility to change out parts at cost or for free because the manufacturer did what they said they might do.

DMC707

I had to familiarize myself withthat tire by reading a review. They do seem like a tire more suited for a big travel gravity focused bike. They sound like my former favorite tire, the Kenda Nevegal

im in a tire dilemma now myself. Im building a Yeti SB100 , and got a killer deal on some Enve 735 wheels (burlier enduro weight wheels). - I want some tires that are light enough to offset the 200 extra grams of wheelset weighti have, but dont want to give up too much traction.
I am likely going for the Ardent Race or Schwalbe Racing Ralphs to facilitate this. But i still have some old stock Nevegals and some standard Ardents in inventory , so i have been thinking about tire selection a lot lately also.

i kinda blew the budget on the Enves and Yeti frameset, — hence the thought of just using the Nevegals for a while again, even though they are absurdly overkill for a 120 “downcountry” bike

turky lurkey

I really like the Ardent Race. I’ve used it as a rear tire (2.35) on my hardtail all over the Colorado front range and also quite a bit in Hawaii. They work well for rides with mixed terrain, like if you want to ride from your house to the trails, or do loops that include pavement, gravel, and dirt. I like fast rolling tires though and would rather beat my friends to the top of the mountain rather than to the bottom. I’m going to give the 2.5 Assegai’s a try though. In the spring I might try something like Recon/Ardent Race combo.

Kapusta

First of all, who said anything about changing the tire for free? I said "at cost". Just add the tire to your next order. What is it costing you other than a few minutes of your time?

Second, if you - as a dealer for a company - are going to in no way help mitigate an issue with the company whose product you carry (I am assuming this was an Ibis dealer with an agreement with Ibis).... why should anyone bother involving you in the process and having you skim off the profit of the sale? What value are you adding to the process, here? Seriously, how hard is it to put a call in to Ibis?

Third, the "specs may change" clause is there to protect a company from getting hassled over minor issues that do not significantly change the product. It not like they changed the tire to a similar one (Like a Recon or a Nobby Nic). They changed it from a very fast rolling tire to one that is notoriously very, very slow, and frankly a bad match for the bike. The website STILL says Aggressor for the spec. Sure, they CAN use it to charge you for one thing and give you something completely different, but it is a crappy thing to do without checking first or offering some remedy, and doing that very often is going to hurt your reputation (which is what LBSs and small brands like Ibis rely on). If your shop is OK with that, have at. You would probably not get much of my business.

So yes, the issue may be with Ibis, but for a dealer who is presumably making some money off this sale to just wipe their hands of it and offer zero assistance (even selling another tire at cost) is pretty lame IMO.

Then again, the OP does not really seem too put off by this or he would just give Ibis a call.

veganbikes

To quote myself:
The specs may change clause are for situations like this when specs need to change. We don't know why Ibis changed the specs but they did. Just because you or someone else doesn't like that they had to change or what they changed it to is not a really good reason to whine. A Nobby Nic is a Schwalbe tire so they should go through a massive process to change all their OEM tires for the rear because they couldn't put the tire on they said may change. Good plan. Maybe they should give you a quick call anytime they cannot get something and have you weigh in and come up with a convoluted plan to just use a different tire from a different manufacturer real quick because the choice they made for whatever reason displeases you. They put a mountain bike tire on a mountain bike it may not be the perfect one for the bike but in a time when parts are really hard to get and bikes are in massive demand a little slower tire was probably not something they were worried about.

Why should the shop have to change out a tire that the manufacturer said may change and did change? Why should they have to take a tire they don't sell and have to store it and try and sell it and then make zero money or even lose money to purchase another tire to install on a bike? If it were a warranty that is one thing but this is not a warranty. There is nothing wrong with the tire it is just not one that your nor the OP likes. It happens. It may suck but you can get another tire you can even go out and get a Nobby Nic yourself and run non brand matching tires, you are free to do so but it is not something Ibis or the local shop needs to do.

Just take a chill pill and relax, go out and ride the tire and have fun in the dirt. If you are a bit slower but still had fun then did that slower tire really matter

Kapusta

Ibis specs Schwalbe tires on many bikes. In fact, they spec the 29" 2.6" Nobby Nic on some bikes.

Actually, yes, if they are going to make a significant change - which this is - and anyone who works in a bike shop should know it is - they should give a heads up. There may have been other options. I am doubtful that Assegais are the ONLY 29er tire they had access to.

Nope. They already carry Schwalbe. And Maxxis carries faster rolling tires than the Assegai as well. There are at least a dozen options between these two companies that could fit the bill.

This is not "whatever reason". This is a d@mn good reason. Nobody with an understanding of mountain biking or tires would think an Assegai is a reasonable substitution for an Aggressor. It is not even remotely close. That is like substituting a knobby gravel tire for a racing slick.

Do you know anything about these tires? The Assegai is not "a little slower" than an Aggressor. It is a lot slower. You seem to think a tire is a tire is a tire (I really hope you don't sell this stuff). Well if it does not matter what kind of tire comes on a bike, why specify it to begin with?

What part of "sell a tire at cost" is getting lost, here? The shop does not need to take the tire back, or risk losing anything. Just sell him one more suitable for dealer cost. That would give the discount the OP was asking about. The shop is not stuck with a tire, and they are not losing money. Why do you keep going on about that?

Any WHY should they? They just sold the guy a $3300 bike. A little extra work that is not going to cost them anything in order to stand by a product they sell seems like a no-brainer when you are in a business that lives or dies on the reputation of your customer service.

And heck, they might not have even had to do that. A call to Ibis might have straightened it out. This may have simply been a mix up (the Assegai is offered as a different option for the Ripley). But the shop did not even care enough to find out.

That may be the lamest defense of of crappy CS I have ever read.

Sure. In the end, I would be chill about it and make due.... and likely never give them my business again. It would be no skin off my back. Just go somewhere else or buy online and cut out that useless middleman LBS altogether.

From the way you are phrasing things, I am getting that you work at a shop. Gotta say, if I owned or worked at a bike shop, I would NEVER be online saying what you are saying. I would not go anywhere near a shop that espoused the business philosophy you are presenting here.

Kapusta

Now that I think about this..... it may be the shop that screwed up your order. The Assegais are an OPTION for the Ripley. They may have accidentally ordered you the wrong option.

veganbikes

Cool they spec that tire on some bikes, now they have to go to Schwalbe and order more for this bike during a time when getting this stuff is hard. They changed out the tire it happened. A shop shouldn't need to answer for every change that is made from the manufacturer. Changes happen.

In terms of cost I get cost. So you are saying the customer should purchase another tire on top of the tire they got with the bike and the shop shouldn't take it back? I doubt a customer would go for that but if so yeah that is an option the shop would still lose a bit but not a ton. Most of the time in situations when a customer wants a different tire they want us to take the old tire back, having been in situations regarding tires quite a lot though usually not over spec changes to tires usually a customer wants a different tire than what was listed as spec'd for varied reasons. It is very rare they say I just want a second set of tires that are unused and I didn't want on the bike to keep.

The tire is not a tire but it is a change that happened. We still don't know why the change was made but it was made. We also don't know what happened at the shop with the incident because we only have one side of that story. Maybe the shop did call, maybe the customer didn't like the answer. We don't know that.

The tire is different but again we don't know why it was changed and we really don't know much more than what a single person has typed on the internet.

Obviously yes tread is different but these are Agressors and Assegai tires (again not sure which version that the OP has) but purely from a data stand point they have similar data (of course the wider tire will be heavier and yes the Assegai has a more downhill oriented tread) and to someone in a factory doing the buying who is probably under a lot of pressure right now to get parts en masse and get bikes out the door, it is probably maybe a poor choice but data wise is similar enough to say yeah get those. Plus they are Greg Minnar's favorite tire and he is a winner (granted yes in Downhill which is different from trail riding but people still love race stuff it does drive a part of the industry)


However we probably will never know the full story on it.

The take a chill pill was not a defense of anything it was just a you seem tense and need to relax, maybe I am wrong it is hard to judge emotion on the internet much of the time but the earlier stuff gave rise to my suspicion you might need to relax a little. Ride your bike and enjoy life!

I don't subscribe to the old blindly following things adage that people have propagated over the years. I like to look at the full picture and then decide, in some cases the customer is right and in some cases the customer isn't.

Kapusta

One thing that might make this situation different - and in hindsight I should have pointed this out at the start - as it explains why I feel the tire issue is not OK - is that Ibis offers a lot of customization with their bikes. These are not all predetermined builds like you see with most large brands. When you order, there are basic builds, but then you have the option to change several individual parts (some for an up-charge, others not) Several models offer different forks and shocks. All offer several wheelset options. And all MTBs also offer two different tire options.

So, when you put in an order, Ibis knows what build is going where. This is a part of the appeal of Ibis, IMO.

This is why I think that particularly in this case, some communication about the availability of listed options should be expected. It is also why I would not rule out the shop being the one that may have bungled this. Ibis STILL has the Aggressor listed as an option for your build.

Veganbikes makes a good point that we don’t know what actually happened. My response is based on the assumption that the story as told is true. This is what my reaction would be to those circumstances. It is also true that we will never know what the communication was between Ibis and the Shop..... but really, that should not be the customer’s problem. It is the shop’s job to straighten that out. I suggested calling Ibis because that was not happening, here.

As far as the difference between the tires in question.... specs and pics don’t tell you the whole story. People in the know will know the difference. Ibis absolutely knows the difference. The issue may be that the shop does not, and that would be kinda sad for a shop dealing in high end bikes to not understand these differences.

But yeah, we don’t really know what happened.