downhillmaster

Nothing is guaranteed to be flawless.
Quite often new bikes will have small imperfections in paint finish, welds, etc...
Just like a new car.
Regardless of price.
I realize the issue with your hub is not the same category but your repeated use of the term flawless and reference to how much you paid definitely indicates you have the wrong level of expectation in general.

Kimmo 

If you really were a top flight pro, you'd know those issues you describe can be entirely precluded by pre-stressing spokes and cables, yo

eduskator

Reviving one of my old thread!

So the creaking came back recently after intense usage of the bike (no riding during the winter ) and I realized that the hub was NOT faulty. I have tried removing the cassette and putting grease on contact areas with the hub, but it's not working. I narrowed down the causes to the following, since the creaking disappears when I put another rear wheel on the bike:

1) Loose spoke(s)
2) Faulty cassette (I read the two first set of gears that are combined could creak sometimes? Has anyone ever had a similar problem?)

Any thoughts?

My gut feeling tells me it's a spoke. I have ordered a new cassette just in case. I will give it a try before bringing my rear wheel in for a checkup.

softreset

I covered our service writer at the shop I worked at for a few years (Giant, Trek, Felt) and:

• All labor costs associated for a warranty repair was covered by our shop, if the bike was bought from the shop. We did occasionally assess a $15 "bike cleaning fee" if you brought your bike to us and it was absolutely filthy. But we disclosed that cost up front and gave everyone the option to hose their bike down in the back of the shop before checking it in (for free).
• All labor costs for a warranty repair for a bike not bought from the shop (regardless of age and price) was billed at $25/hour with a one-hour minimum charge. The normally hour rate was $50/hour for service when applicable.
• The shop received zero compensation from those three manufacturers (listed above) for warranty work performed, even if we sold the bike. I'm not aware of any manufacturer that reimburses shops for labor performed on a warranty repair.

I asked the service writer at the shop (before replying) who has been there for 7 years about your situation and his response:

"If we determined that the problem was a result of negligence in assembly and post-build testing, we would cover all labor associated with the work for a bike we sold. If the part failed after it left the shop, even 24-hours later, we would evaluate the nature of the failure/problem and determine the best course of action that makes sense for both parties. Minor tweaks/fixes that come as a result of a new bike breaking in have the labor covered. One scenario that would void our free labor is if the customer attempted to self-resolve a problem and instead made it worse. It's usually pretty obvious when that happens as we thoroughly document (with photos) post-service areas and take detailed notes regarding torque values or other relevant values and keep it on file with the serial number with our asset tracking system. I can think of several issues that cause a month old bike to make noises that we would gladly cover on a new bike purchase because it's basic fix. That same service would fall under our $25/hour + parts from us because the bike wasn't bought here. I'm still required to account for my staff's time. I can count on one hand where the shop who sold the bike was willing to cover our $25/hour rate for the customer. I've never received a call from a customer who bought a bike from us asking for us to cover labor costs for a warranty repair at another shop."

Sy Reene

For Giant at least, the wording in their warranty is below. There is no mention of any work only being covered at the same shop as purchased from

Unless otherwise provided, the sole remedy under the above warranty, or any implied warranty, is limited to the replacement of defective parts with those of equal or greater value at the sole discretion of Giant. Unless within the free 60-day repair labor period, you will be responsible for labor costs associated with warranty replacements.

softreset

Source - https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/termsconditions

13.1.1.3

Free 60-Day Repair Labor. If your bicycle is found to be defective in materials, workmanship, or assembly within 60 days of purchase, it will be repaired for you without charge for labor or materials. To receive this service, simply bring your bicycle to the Authorized Giant Dealer from where it was delivered and picked-up by you.

Sy Reene

Yes, but that page is for website purchases (see screenshot below), not from the authorized retailers. Not saying the OP's was or wasn't -- no idea.

I took the wording from this page.. and click on the "What is your Warranty Policy" box: https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/contact

jnesss

here's my experience with a new giant. something popped in my rear hub, make a clicking noise with every full wheel rotation. after some back and forth with their mechanic, he tried to feed me bs like this was ok. I left with a new wheel and hub (swapped from a floor model). no more noises.

eduskator

I'd like to do that for sure, I asked them to get me a new wheel, but even if they wanted (which they did not), they didn't have any floor models and/or wheels in their backstore given the shortage of bicycles caused by the pandemic. I unfortunately need to keep it and fix it. I believe I'll need to get it completely respoked, and pay for it.

eduskator

So I received and installed my new cassette yesterday. Not sure if it was a good idea or not, but I also pressure washed the spokes where they connect to the hub in case dirt or particles could be the cause of the creaking. I removed the freehub body after and inspected everything to make sure no water had penetrated.

Will see over the weekend after 100-200kms if my problem is solved or if I need to investigate further. If not, I'll drop my wheel at a LBS to get it rebuilt.