Kai Winters

I work at a shop as a wrench and our policy is to give the customer his old parts...such as stem, handlebars, etc. when we change/upgrade them. Chains that are stretched, worn cassettes, freewheels, etc. go in the scrap barrel. I've had a customer ask for a chain back here and there. I always ask why, just curious, and they usually say they are going to use them for a project...bracelet, art project, etc...always a cool use and much better than going in the scrap barrel.
Fortunately I don't remember ever having heard a complaint about a part being replaced with an inferior part...basically stolen IMO...I've worked in 3 shops for near 30 years so I'm very pleased to state this.
We have replaced a high quality part with a lesser quality part generally due to that is all that's available or the customer can't afford or won't spend the money on the exact replacement but the part needed replacing for failure of some sort and in general we ask if they want the old part back.
It really sucks to not trust a shop you bring your bike to.

zandoval 

If not by accident then all I can say is...

Rats!!!

SpedFast

You don't cuss much, do ya?

pdlamb

"Jiminy cricket" gives you so many more consonants to indicate your disgust than "rats."

McCycle

The same works in reverse. After finally giving up motorcycles by way of selling my last one and not being able to replace it, then deciding I was better off without one anyway - one of the few things a partner will nearly always agree on - my interest in bicycles has rekindled tenfold.

phughes

Motorcycle parts, in broad daylight, outside, not a business, not a bicycle, not a bike repair shop, not a person paid to perform repairs or service on your bike, as in bicycle. Verdict: NOT RELEVANT

SpedFast

Considering the topic starter, I think it's very relevant. Maybe because I can relate to his experience. You must be having a bad day, is it the weather? Oh excuse me, that's off topic and not relevant.

McCycle

Human nature, it's all around us.

I trust other humans no farther than I can throw them. "Locks keep honest folk honest" and all that.

Btw, it's not paranoia if they're really out to get you, and your bike parts.

Living in a U District years ago, the area was mad about bikes, and stories of bike thefts were legendary.

Dudes I rode with had one stolen right out from the entrance hallway inside one of those grand old houses, foot chase ensued, thief got away.

High end MTB's.

In one case just a few alleys down, someone with a very secure garage and very xpensive MTB inside had his garage roof ripped open in the night, big enough to get a bike out. The cost of the roof damage probably exceeded the cost of the bike.

I always wondered how you got on a list for a hit like that?

I mean how many people know you have a $2500 Klein, besides the bike shop that sold it to you.

So the world is made of good people and bad people, and it's the same all over, in bike shops, out of bike shops, here.

McCycle

I've never seen winter come on this fast.

2-4" of snow last night + 60 mph wind gusts, then 2-4" more tomorrow night, then 9º Monday night.

McCycle

This was 2 days ago, had a feeling it might be a last ride for a while.


Basking in the fall colors just two days ago, the leaves are still on everything and have just started turning colors. Untimely snow can wreak havoc on trees and shrubs.

phughes

I'm having a great day, but his post really isn't relevant. I'm glad you got something out of it, but it doesn't relate to people in a business swapping parts whilst repairing your bike. Just making an observation. Have a nice day.

saddlesores

dearest mods,

indyfabz

Someone gets it. It’s why I’ve updated my iggy list.

McCycle

Are posts about topic relevancy in any way informative to anyone.

How can one person decide what's relevant or not for others?

phughes

It isn't that your post isn't something people may want to consider when out and bout, it is just that is is not the same type of situation that the OP was talking about. Don't get all bet out of shape over the fact people don't see the relevancy. When someone pays a business to perform service, they expect their bike to be returned with their own parts. You are trusting the shop with your property.

Now, if you had sent your motorcycle to a shop to have them perform a repair, and while doing so they swapped your engine guards for a cheaper set of engine guards, it would be more relevant. It's about being able to trust the shop working on your bike. Of course I believe that the vast majority of bike shops are trustworthy, and what the OP experienced is an anomaly, but still, that is what the thread is about.

The OP didn't park his bike at a bike fest, and find someone was trying to swap their Selle Anatomica with the his vastly more superior Brooks B17...

But other than that, welcome to the forum, you will find it a great resource, and yes, many threads get derailed, and most do drift, but that doesn't mean people won't acknowledge it. I ride a motorcycle too, in fact my motorcycles get used more than my cars, but we are talking bicycles here.

stardognine

There you go. I saw some crazy stuff on YouTube before, about that place. Not somewhere I'd want to tour alone. 😋😉

saddlesores

i think he's still in england (based on another poster's find of the bike shop label), getting this bike set up for a souf' american tour. he did say somewhere he's in a developing country, but that may have been alleged british humour.

in his other thread, OP talks about taking the bike plus parts, picking up some more in the US, and then having a shop in bogota do the handlebar and component switch.

BikeLite

Inventory your bike with a list and video. When the lbs does this again, press charges.

axolotl

I toured in Colombia 4 years ago. I had no problems at all. None of the touring cyclists I met reported any issues, either. Beautiful country with friendly people. The cycling was not easy, however, due to terrain & altitude in the Zona Cafetera, the region I toured in. I had visited Bogota and the region north of it a few years earlier, no biking except for a day ride on a rental one day. No problems on that trip, either. There are a few parts of Colombia I would probably avoid, however.

MNBikeCommuter

"Rats" IS a four-letter word...

ClydeClydeson

I worked in multiple shops and never saw anything like this happen. Not saying it has never happened, but it is certainly not common.

I have, however, been accused and seen others accused of stealing parts and accessories due to misunderstandings or misrememberings - either the customer thought they left an accessory on their bike that they did not (always tried to remove and hand everything back before we put the bike in the big pile awaiting repair) or they left it at home, or a worn or broken part was thrown away instead of returned or offered to the client. I have not met the LBS employee who sees a worn (or even partially worn) chain or brake lever or tire and licks their lips and whispers 'SCORE!' under their breath.

ClydeClydeson

Part ii - correction

There was more than one occasion where the shop I was working at (me? someone else?) DID remove an accessory to complete the repair and forgot to put it back on, which was where the 'give every accessory back to the customer before they leave the bike' police came from. The item I can recall this happening with was under-saddle bags that made the seatpost impossible to clamp in the repair stand, so was put aside while the work was done. I think it may have happened with a computer or two as well.

rekmeyata

I used to have a shop in town that stole parts all the time, from myself and others. The first time it happened to me I took my bike in to swap headsets, they took off the Stronglight Comp headset, I told them I wanted it back so they put it in a bag and I took it home and stuck in storage, 5 years or so later I took the bag out to use the headset for a project and turned out they put in a cheap Tioga headset. I heard other complaints from other riders since I discovered my problem.

Miele Man

Almost as bad, or perhaps worse, is when a shop damages your bike a LOT. I was riding through Toronto Canada and noticed that my driveside crankarm was a bit too close to the frame. I stopped at a shop and asked them to adjust the crankarm by putting a thing shim between the bottom bracket cup and the frame. They said they'd do it and to come back in an hour. I came back only to find that instead of putting in a shim they simply HAMMERED the chainstay until there was more clearance for the chainringI

A Columbus SL frameset with Dura Ace AX components. I was NOT a happed camper and grabbed my bike and left without paying them a cent.


I sure do wish I could remember the name of that shop.

Many decades ago I had a shop remove a freewheel and chain and install new ones. I told them I wanted to old ones for another bike. When I went to get my bike I discovered that they'd removed the freeewheel with the hammer and punch method and had wrecked the slots completely. It was a Suntour freewheel. The chain looked like it had been removed with two screw drivers - one through each link and the chain twisted until it broke apart. needless to say that chain was useless.

Cheers

rekmeyata

All you did was leave the shop without paying? I would have called the police for them purposely damaging the bike's frame, and then took them to small claims court to get compensated for the damaged frame. When I would have gone to court I would taken another bike ship mechanic with me to explain to the judge how that was a bad thing to do and it ruined the frame. Sorry, but I would not have put up with just not paying them and leaving.