ikedawilliams
Speeding Up
- Oct 15, 2010
- 669
- 11
Yet another miserable LBS experience today. As a reference, I am in Futako Shinchi and after bad experiences at Y's Road and Giant in Futako Tamagawa and Starf*ckers near the where the 246 hits the river on the Kawasaki side, I went to Bike Room Sin on my way home in the afternoon. I asked for a quote on installing an integrated headset and a Campagnolo BB which I had, into a new frame. They could not give me a quote then, and requested that I wheel all the stuff down there first. I can understand wanting to know all the details before giving a quote, but I hate that feeling of being put over a barrel - once a bike or car mechanic have their hands on my stuff, it is so much easier for them to pretty much charge whatever they want.
They quoted me the following:
Headset installation - 2,500. I didn't have a head set press and figured I needed one, and this was my main reason for asking for paid assistance.
Fork Cut - 1,800. I figured if they had a guide or something, this would be money well spent since I would be free-handing with a hacksaw.
BB and crankset installation - 3,500. I didn't have the Campag tool for the BB cups nor the torque wrench for the cranks, so said go for it.
I hate being ripped off, and the total was 7,800, which I was not happy about, but figured, if they could sort it out for that, it would be okay - not really any other options in walking distance from my place. They said they could do it in 30 minutes, while I waited, so I was kind of excited about it at that point.
Once they got my bike behind the counter there was a lot of air being sucked through teeth etc. The Campag Record headset was not fitting into the bike. The guy (owner of the shop I take it) got the calipers out and was humming and hawing.... I asked what the issue was and he said that the hole for the integrated headset was showing 41.1mm, and the headset measured 41.8mm. I had never tried installing a headset before, but on my previous bike I knew it was really stuck in there, and saw on YouTube that special tools were used for installing and removing them, due to the tight fit. I just assumed he would use a head set press to squeeze it in there. I do know though that 0.2mm is a huge difference from ordering a seat tube for a different bike, and 0.7?, well, if I had known that was the difference, would have said forget about it right then and there. The thing is, I didn't really understand there was such a discrepancy. I asked him to ''challenge'' to get it in there. He said he wanted to try and asked that I sign some form saying if the headset got crushed or the headtube burst, he would not be at fault. I signed. He did not try too hard, and must have finally realized that it was not going to work and decided to stop the insanity.
He could install the BB and crank, but even that it was not easy for him.
He suggested that I check Richey's or some other maker's website to check the specs on their headset measurements to find one that would fit. He originally wanted me to order one though him, but was doubtful that he would be able to get the size I needed, and I would need to wait about 5 days once ordered, and I would need to pay suggested retail price... just sounds stupid, right?
When I left, I was feeling sorry for taking so much of his time, and upset about choosing what I was lead to believe was a bad frame. Then I got on-line and within a minute of looking at headsets, learned that although they are all 1 & 1/8'', the diameter of the integrated headset is usually 41.0mm, but Campag has a different standard, opting for 42.0mm. WTF? Seriously? Like is it that hard to just come up with some kind of universal standard? So, now I have a Record headset that I have no use for, and need to order a Crane Creek 40 Series or something of the like, to be able to get my bike together. Even more mysterious than Campag not following the norm, is that the owner of the high end road / mountain bike repair shop had no idea that 41.1mm was about right, and the Campag part was causing the trouble. So frustrating!
They quoted me the following:
Headset installation - 2,500. I didn't have a head set press and figured I needed one, and this was my main reason for asking for paid assistance.
Fork Cut - 1,800. I figured if they had a guide or something, this would be money well spent since I would be free-handing with a hacksaw.
BB and crankset installation - 3,500. I didn't have the Campag tool for the BB cups nor the torque wrench for the cranks, so said go for it.
I hate being ripped off, and the total was 7,800, which I was not happy about, but figured, if they could sort it out for that, it would be okay - not really any other options in walking distance from my place. They said they could do it in 30 minutes, while I waited, so I was kind of excited about it at that point.
Once they got my bike behind the counter there was a lot of air being sucked through teeth etc. The Campag Record headset was not fitting into the bike. The guy (owner of the shop I take it) got the calipers out and was humming and hawing.... I asked what the issue was and he said that the hole for the integrated headset was showing 41.1mm, and the headset measured 41.8mm. I had never tried installing a headset before, but on my previous bike I knew it was really stuck in there, and saw on YouTube that special tools were used for installing and removing them, due to the tight fit. I just assumed he would use a head set press to squeeze it in there. I do know though that 0.2mm is a huge difference from ordering a seat tube for a different bike, and 0.7?, well, if I had known that was the difference, would have said forget about it right then and there. The thing is, I didn't really understand there was such a discrepancy. I asked him to ''challenge'' to get it in there. He said he wanted to try and asked that I sign some form saying if the headset got crushed or the headtube burst, he would not be at fault. I signed. He did not try too hard, and must have finally realized that it was not going to work and decided to stop the insanity.
He could install the BB and crank, but even that it was not easy for him.
He suggested that I check Richey's or some other maker's website to check the specs on their headset measurements to find one that would fit. He originally wanted me to order one though him, but was doubtful that he would be able to get the size I needed, and I would need to wait about 5 days once ordered, and I would need to pay suggested retail price... just sounds stupid, right?
When I left, I was feeling sorry for taking so much of his time, and upset about choosing what I was lead to believe was a bad frame. Then I got on-line and within a minute of looking at headsets, learned that although they are all 1 & 1/8'', the diameter of the integrated headset is usually 41.0mm, but Campag has a different standard, opting for 42.0mm. WTF? Seriously? Like is it that hard to just come up with some kind of universal standard? So, now I have a Record headset that I have no use for, and need to order a Crane Creek 40 Series or something of the like, to be able to get my bike together. Even more mysterious than Campag not following the norm, is that the owner of the high end road / mountain bike repair shop had no idea that 41.1mm was about right, and the Campag part was causing the trouble. So frustrating!