AlmostTrick

Some buyers wouldn't want it at any price, and some wouldn't care about the lack of factory mounts one bit. The $200 would more than cover any drop in value.

TimothyH

If we let dishonest people get away with stuff like this then they are going to do it to the next guy.

The new owners of Wabi knew exactly what they were doing when they sent that frame. They were trying to rip off the OP. I would say they succeeded.


-Tim-

AlmostTrick

Did they? I know Richard assembled the bikes, but I don't know if the new owners do. Could be they're just shipping out sealed cartons and didn't even know about it.

But if they did know, then I agree, shame on them for not disclosing it up front. List it as "no water bottle mounts" with a discount and I'm sure they'd sell.

And since the OP got a reasonable discount I think it unfair and incorrect to say he was ripped off.

teejaywhy

Oh snap! There goes your 5 posts on the 2nd account, maybe you should register a third one?

jadocs

No way I would take a partial refund. I would expect a proper replacement. Jerry rigging a bottle cage to the downtube?... or using some aftermarket clamp ...no way.

mstateglfr 

Is it really 200 reasons though? So a reason is worth a single dollar? Seems more like 1 reason worth $200 and not 200 worth $1.


I kid, I kid...but kinda not really.

AlmostTrick

Ok, it was only meant as a silly, somewhat common play on words.

The OP said he's happy with his decision, and I'm happy for him.

tlc8439

I have no intention of selling it rn haha i just got it. I usually use my stuff till they break.

tlc8439

Yea, sadly, they prolly knew i was a newb and assumed that i wouldnt know a thing to the point that i wouldnt notice such a simple defect like that.

I know the owner is changed, but regardless the shop owner must have a great knowledge about bike. It makes no sense that they would miss stuff like that. I too do think that they deliberately sent this one out to me. That’s why i was upset even more.

tlc8439

Thanks, hopefully no one else has to go through what I had to go through. I wonder what Zach Gallardo would say about this whole situation.

tlc8439

nope, I have 2 accounts and it's been 24 hrs since then. so I have 10 posts now. I don't get this 5 posts per day probation..gosh..

tlc8439

I think my probation will be over as of tomorrow, I will upload the photo then.

HerrKaLeun

Just get a custom full size frame bag for $150 and put a 3l hydration bag in. Add a longer hose and mouthpiece you attach to handlebar to drink while riding.

tlc8439

Hi guys

Here is the photo.
I bought 2 hose clamps and used a rubber wire organizer thingy with adhesive bottom that i got for free from home depot.
so it protects the paint and gives more grip to the clamps.

it’s not perfect, but all black/silver color scheme kinda helped out.
until i find a better solution, ill stick with this for now.
Thank you all

02Giant 

Won't matter when you are banned for having two accounts...

wabi_damon

I work with Wabi and just wanted to respond to this thread and to the OP. There were some things stated or assumed that are mischaracterized.


1. Yes, we sent a frame out without water bottle braze ons. It was a miss on our end. Somehow, a frame left the factory without the braze ons and our builder missed it during the build. Frankly, missing braze-ons never happens so our builder wasn't look for it. However, we weren't trying to fool the customer or pass off a defective bike. We'd never do that. We are a small company that wouldn't do that to our customers.


As soon as the customer let us know, we tried to resolve the issue. I am sorry to hear the customer thinks that was our intent.


2. We offered to swap the bike out. We didn't ask the customer to strip the bike and send the frame back. We just asked the buyer to repack it in the original box (which they had). That required removing the front wheel and the handlebars (as our bikes come almost fully assembled). The customer felt that was too much trouble so we offered to have them drop it off at a local bike shop so the shop could pack and ship it--all at our cost. Given the customer was concerned about not having a bike during that time, we then offered to ship another bike while that one was returned. Admittedly, we could have offered that option upfront, but we were trying to find a solution that worked for the customer.


3. We also offered a $150 discount PLUS procuring bottle mount alternatives (including cages) for them as another option. We felt that it was a fair alternative. We didn't push them one way or the other and were happy to exchange the bike.


The customer initially wanted the bike swap, but then decided ultimately asked us for the $150 refund and the cash value of the bottle mount alternatives. We offered $200 to cover that cost.


I just wanted to make sure everyone heard both sides here. Also, I feel like we are not getting credit for all the assistance that we provided the customer in their purchase. There were 30+ emails back and forth helping the customer decide on size, components, etc. The customer even commended us on our customer service throughout the process.

So, yes, we had a miss, but we believe we tried to make good. Maybe we could have a done better job, but we were trying to find a solution that worked for the customer.

As for the other customer that had a bad experience, I can't speak to that particular situation as I don't have the details. I am sorry you had a bad experience, but I don't think we were trying to rip you off. It may have been a combination of inventory shortages (which happens with small companies) and a bike fit challenge that made for a bad situation. I am happy to discuss the issue with you.


Damon

HerrKaLeun

Great response and shows the company really tried to correct the error and keep OP happy.

downhillmaster

It’s always refreshing when some apparent facts show up late in a thread

tlc8439

What are you implying?

Everything Damon has said are exactly the same as what I initially explained on what was happening and what they offered and what i finally decided to do. Whether sending out the defect was intentional or not was my assumption based on gathered information, which was clearly indicated as my opinion/assumption. (This assumption was even brought up by others before me, if you read all posts carefully) Other than that everything i said are exactly the same.

Something about your post sounds like i twisted the facts or something...

tlc8439

Hey Damon,

Thank you for your reply.

You are right, and that’s exactly how I described about everything on my every posts. They were though simpler, but no context was altered or twisted. If you felt the need of adding details then by all means more powers to you. Though, starting a new post with “some things stated that are mischaracterized” & “people need to hear both sides” implies that my posts aren’t truthful or may contain lies. Especially when everything you said are just about the same as what I said.

I didn’t use the word “strip down”. Someone else did, I always used the term disassemble, which was in fact, needed be done to send the bike back until you offered me to drop off the bike at a LBS as a sec offer (which was also posted previously). I believe that if you made it sound like I wasn’t being all that truthful, to a point someone says your reply is a new fact, then you have to indicate such details as to who said what.

Also you did kinda asked me to disassemble and send the frame back. “Repack the bike” sounded unclear to me b/c I already fully assembled it, also since it was my first time, I had to have you clarify the process and you did say receiving the frame only is better. There is a difference b/t just saying we asked the buyer to repack, and “you can send us the whole bike or the frame w/o the wheels. The latter is probably better as it’s easier…you’ll need a chain tool to pop the chain off” (from our chat)

Your number 3 paragraph was posted by me previously.

As you can tell from the post dates and time, I was chatting with you as I was getting helped by forum, so it was reasonable for me to ask for further help since the first offer because your first offer and this whole issue was defined as not substantial, ridiculous, or unacceptable by a group of people, who have more exp than me.

The reason why there were so many emails was b/c almost everything was a chat for me, but it was email for you. If I knew my every message was being delivered to you by email by email, I would’ve sent it as a big 1 paragraph, I was simply talking to you in a chatting/texting manner because your website offers a chat system.

As for “Also, I feel like we are not getting credit for all the assistance that we provided”. This kinda upsets me, because I wasn’t just getting an assistance, you were mostly helping me from your mistake. Even then, I worked with you in a very nice manner to resolve the issue and I still reported to everyone objectively about what was happened, and someone even gave props to you that you were being cooperative. (Go check almostrick’s post)

As for the assumption, (whether it was sent on purpose or not) It wasn’t just me who had such thought, it’s safe to say it’s a normal response u can expect from customers’ point of view when such thing was over looked at by a professional. Also you never questioned the legitimacy of my claim, when this never ever happened in history of Wabi. However, if it was a genuine mistake as you said, then I apologize for my assumption.

I just got to read your reply, and it kinda bothered me because it seemed like you were more concerned about your reputation since your explanation was basically same as mine. I was happy with how it ended (as others also have described about me) Hopefully, this ends it all.

I still love my wabi bike and I think you did great as I told you many times before.
Thank you

downhillmaster

You created an account to ask for advice.
The 1st three people that responded stated that the discount they offered seemed fair.
The 4th person however said they should offer you more and at that point you got the answer you were obviously looking for all the time and jumped right in and stated that maybe you weren’t wise enough and you were going to ask for more.
You were wise enough to ignore the 1st three responders though.
Then you went on to create a second account and bashed Wabi in your ensuing posts.
Either way, the bottom line is that your very first post was wrong as you stated they only offered to let you return the frame(this is what caused a lot of negative opinion of the company btw)and we now know they just asked that the bike be packed correctly and when you balked at that they offered to let you bring the whole bike to a local shop and have them pack and ship it at no cost.
That along with the alternate offer of $150 plus bottle cage workaround is fantastic customer service. Not to mention they offered to get you another bike while you waited.
All this after 30 back and forth emails to make sure you got exactly what you wanted. Good job bashing them with a little help from internet strangers

tlc8439

Hey downhill master,

You are clearly misinformed or didn’t read all posts. Lots of straw man fallacy / ad hominem going on towards me. Read all my posts and and wabi’s reply, and check the time. Me talking to forum and talking Damon was happening in real time simultaneously. This whole issue took about 5 hours to resolve because I was talking to forum while I was working + talking to Wabi.

I initially accepted 150 discount, as Damon clearly states as a fact in his reply. “The 4th person however said they should offer you more and at that point you got the answer you were obviously looking for ALL THE TIME” if this were to be true, I would’ve never told Damon anything and waited till I wanted to hear comes up. What you claim wasn’t obviously the case according to Wabi himself.

Plus it wasn’t only that person, after that many agreed that the 2nd offer seemed more reasonable, some even pointed out that the first offer was nonsense. It’s almost as if you’d personally always settle with worse offer no matter happens to you. Wouldn’t you want to talk to the seller again if good amount of people were telling you otherwise? This is perfectly normal. Don’t judge others solely based on your personal preference. I never came up with amount anyways. They are in business, what I ended up taking was reasonable for them also to a point they aren’t minus on sales.

No, the reason for creating a 2nd account wasn’t to bash Wabi, but because of “5 posts per day probation” for new accounts, since I created my first account on the same day.

Not only that’s a straw man, but my 2nd account’s first post wasn’t even about anything negative on Wabi, it was about their 2nd offer and asking for others’ opinion. You seem to forget the fact that I was the victim to begin with. I could’ve easily complained about the seller at the beginning and that would have still been justified, but I didn’t. People were constantly reminding me that I was at no fault whatsoever, because obvi I didn’t know any better.

Read my reply to Damon about returning frame. He did told me returning the frame only with taking off chain with chain breaker and wheels is better option for him when I asked for specific instruction if I have to return frame only or not. (Though he never forced me to, don’t get this wrong. But taking that specific part completely out of the context as if it never happened makes a huge difference to viewers just like how it affected you.)

I did also post about his 2nd option bringing the whole bike to a LBS (that they’d send a bike next day). Some people advised me to still return but some people still advised me to take the discount and install mounts myself. I even explained I decided to go take the discount nonetheless. Did you even read my posts at all?

“That along with the alternate offer of $150 plus bottle cage workaround is fantastic customer service.” Yes, I agree, that’s why I initially accepted that offer like Damon confirmed.

As for 30 emails, I already explained up there. It was a chat for me, but it was an email for him, obviously it will make a huge difference if every text-like message is being sent as a single email.

Good job not reading properly and jumping onto bashing someone. Still I hope you’d never have to experience something similar as a consumer, have a good one.

alcjphil

Cut and paste from the original post:

"2.Exchange
-Return the frame only
-$50 store credit
-return and shipping fee will be on them
-will take about 10 days to receive my new frame"

No wonder some people didn't realize that the offer was for returning the whole bike

AlmostTrick

I don't believe either party really did anything wrong here. Sure, there was some misunderstanding in this thread, but Wabi made good with options for restitution, and OP is happy with his final choice. Maybe everyone can go for a bike ride now.

downhillmaster

Cool story bro.
You were never a victim though and stating that you were one is most telling.
Either way, I’m happy that you went from unwise(your words)consumer to satisfied customer in 5 hours