Working on bike yourself - thing of the past?

[Dukester]

So I went to the LBS this afternoon for a 14mm cone wrench. My old one had
apparently been kidnapped by another member of the household (who shall
remain nameless) for a "project at work"...my guess is it was bent or lost
somehow being used for opening a paint can or something along those lines.
I went in the store scanning the tools on the back wall, when a teen asked
me if I needed help. "I need a 14 mm cone wrench", which prompted a look of
"Are you insane?...". He said "You mean to buy?". After affirming this he
said "It's a very unusual request. I'm not sure we've ever sold them. I
won't say we haven't but I can't remember ever selling one." I told him I
was an unusual guy, which he ignored, but he said "I guess it's encouraging
to know there are some people who still work on their bikes. Most people
would bring any hub problems in to have them worked on." , which I found 1)
irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he wasn't old enough to find something
like bikes being worked on at home "encouraging", and 2) hubs are the one of
the easiest parts of the bike to work on!?

Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop twilight
zone?

Cheers!
Dukester

 

[SMS]

Dukester wrote:

> Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop twilight
> zone?

Most smaller shops don't stock a lot of tools for sale, I guess they are
slow sellers.

REI has a good tool selection, as does Performance.

 

[Bill]

Dukester wrote:
> So I went to the LBS this afternoon for a 14mm cone wrench. My old one had
> apparently been kidnapped by another member of the household (who shall
> remain nameless) for a "project at work"...my guess is it was bent or lost
> somehow being used for opening a paint can or something along those lines.
> I went in the store scanning the tools on the back wall, when a teen asked
> me if I needed help. "I need a 14 mm cone wrench", which prompted a look of
> "Are you insane?...". He said "You mean to buy?". After affirming this he
> said "It's a very unusual request. I'm not sure we've ever sold them. I
> won't say we haven't but I can't remember ever selling one." I told him I
> was an unusual guy, which he ignored, but he said "I guess it's encouraging
> to know there are some people who still work on their bikes. Most people
> would bring any hub problems in to have them worked on." , which I found 1)
> irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he wasn't old enough to find something
> like bikes being worked on at home "encouraging", and 2) hubs are the one of
> the easiest parts of the bike to work on!?
>
> Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop twilight
> zone?
>
> Cheers!
> Dukester
>
>
I have been working on my own stuff since I was about 6 and only let
someone else touch my car or bike when really expensive tools are needed
or I am just too darn busy making money to care. Doing my own tinkering
relaxes me, but I am at the level where I am building a custom Chevy
automatic overdrive for a friend of mine out of parts from a TH350,
TH400, and a newer 'R4 overdrive. And people think a mere hub is
intimidating? I will admit that a lot of this is due to the fact that I
can't stand not knowing how something works, so I will learn as I go.
Fixing and tweaking is almost as much fun as riding. Truing a wheel may
be frustrating or impossible to some, but for me it is relaxing to try
for less than 1mm run out on a full 360 degree revolution.
Bill (grease under the nails) Baka

 

[Peter Cole]

Dukester wrote:
> So I went to the LBS this afternoon for a 14mm cone wrench.

> he said "I guess it's encouraging
> to know there are some people who still work on their bikes. Most people
> would bring any hub problems in to have them worked on." , which I found 1)
> irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he wasn't old enough to find something
> like bikes being worked on at home "encouraging", and 2) hubs are the one of
> the easiest parts of the bike to work on!?
>
> Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop twilight
> zone?

Many of the people I ride with take a bike to the LBS to have the
shifting adjusted, I don't know if it's always been that way.

There are some safety issues. Even a simple task like removing a chain
to clean could lead to a disaster if it wasn't re-installed correctly.
There are also special considerations for some of the lightweight stuff
that's now becoming common, so the average Joe could get in trouble just
adjusting a handlebar or seatpost.

A lot of components seem to be less serviceable without special tools or
knowledge -- brifters, special/low count spoked wheels, cartridge hubs, etc.

It seems that for a lot of people, learning to patch a tube would be a
major accomplishment. I don't suppose the day is too far off when the
LBS will stop selling patch kits.

 

[Bob Burns]

Dukester wrote:
> So I went to the LBS this afternoon for a 14mm cone wrench. My old one had
> apparently been kidnapped by another member of the household (who shall
> remain nameless) for a "project at work"...my guess is it was bent or lost
> somehow being used for opening a paint can or something along those lines.
> I went in the store scanning the tools on the back wall, when a teen asked
> me if I needed help. "I need a 14 mm cone wrench", which prompted a look of
> "Are you insane?...". He said "You mean to buy?". After affirming this he
> said "It's a very unusual request. I'm not sure we've ever sold them. I
> won't say we haven't but I can't remember ever selling one." I told him I
> was an unusual guy, which he ignored, but he said "I guess it's encouraging
> to know there are some people who still work on their bikes. Most people
> would bring any hub problems in to have them worked on." , which I found 1)
> irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he wasn't old enough to find something
> like bikes being worked on at home "encouraging", and 2) hubs are the one of
> the easiest parts of the bike to work on!?
>
> Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop twilight
> zone?
>
> Cheers!
> Dukester
>
>
I had the same experience trying to buy a 15mm pedal wrench. My LBS
finally ordered me one after I printed out a picture of one from the
Park web site. There are very few tools in the stores anymore.

--
-------------------------------------------------------
"Every day is Saturday when you're retired."

Bob Burns
Mill Hall PA
(email is a spamtrap)

 

[Earl Bollinger]

"Dukester" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> So I went to the LBS this afternoon for a 14mm cone wrench. My old one
> had apparently been kidnapped by another member of the household (who
> shall remain nameless) for a "project at work"...my guess is it was bent
> or lost somehow being used for opening a paint can or something along
> those lines. I went in the store scanning the tools on the back wall, when
> a teen asked me if I needed help. "I need a 14 mm cone wrench", which
> prompted a look of "Are you insane?...". He said "You mean to buy?".
> After affirming this he said "It's a very unusual request. I'm not sure
> we've ever sold them. I won't say we haven't but I can't remember ever
> selling one." I told him I was an unusual guy, which he ignored, but he
> said "I guess it's encouraging to know there are some people who still
> work on their bikes. Most people would bring any hub problems in to have
> them worked on." , which I found 1) irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he
> wasn't old enough to find something like bikes being worked on at home
> "encouraging", and 2) hubs are the one of the easiest parts of the bike to
> work on!?
>
> Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop
> twilight zone?
>
> Cheers!
> Dukester
>

Well I pretty much do all my own work, leaving only the tricky things that
require special expensive hard to get tools (that you may only use once in
your lifetime) for the LBS.
Yeah I can see where it sure looks that way currently.
I see a lot of people bring in their bikes to get a flat fixed, along with
the horror stories about how where and when it happened. Sheesh.
I know of one co-worker, who got a flat and had to walk his bike more than
three miles back home, then later take it in to the LBS to get it fixed.
I asked him why didn't he fix it himself. he replied that the LBS would fix
a flat for him for free, if he ever needed it. It makes you wonder for sure.
On many organized rides, i see a lot of riders get flats and wait for the
SAG wagon or support person to come fix it for them too. Sheesh.

But in today's age, it seems everyone wants to have a pro-racing bike, with
all the latest pro-race components. So we now have all these ultra-light
parts that can be damaged, break easily or wear out super fast. So unless
you really know what you are doing and own a good torque wrench too, it
means you pretty much have to go to the LBS for everything. I don't know
anymore as I see people breaking things that no one used to break before. So
maybe it is a new marketing strategy that all the companies are in on to get
more money after the sale. The classic obsolescence marketing game seems to
be going full speed today.

 

[[email protected]]

Dukester wrote:
>
> Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop twilight
> zone?

I teach some bicycling classes as a League Certified Instructor. One
part of the Road 1 course is to teach flat repair. IME, there are
many, many cyclists who would need 45 minutes to repair a flat.

Another part of that course is doing a "quick check" of bike
mechanicals. In doing so, I often find brakes badly adjusted, wheels
out of true, etc. It's common for the student to have no idea how to
adjust these things.

To be fair, the Road 1 class draws mostly relative beginners - but I've
had cyclists with many years of experience ask me to do classes on bike
repair. Based on that, my guess is 90% of cyclists don't own cone
wrenches.

- Frank Krygowski

 

[[email protected]]

Dukester wrote:
> So I went to the LBS this afternoon for a 14mm cone wrench. My old one had
> apparently been kidnapped by another member of the household (who shall
> remain nameless) for a "project at work"...my guess is it was bent or lost
> somehow being used for opening a paint can or something along those lines.
> I went in the store scanning the tools on the back wall, when a teen asked
> me if I needed help. "I need a 14 mm cone wrench", which prompted a look of
> "Are you insane?...". He said "You mean to buy?". After affirming this he
> said "It's a very unusual request. I'm not sure we've ever sold them. I
> won't say we haven't but I can't remember ever selling one." I told him I
> was an unusual guy, which he ignored, but he said "I guess it's encouraging
> to know there are some people who still work on their bikes. Most people
> would bring any hub problems in to have them worked on." , which I found 1)
> irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he wasn't old enough to find something
> like bikes being worked on at home "encouraging", and 2) hubs are the one of
> the easiest parts of the bike to work on!?
>
> Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop twilight
> zone?
>
> Cheers!
> Dukester

Obvioulsy a bike shop sees the folks who have bike shops do their work!
Everybody else is either at home fixing their bike or out riding!

Joseph

 

[recycled-one]

"Dukester" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> "I need a 14 mm cone wrench", which prompted a look of "Are you
> insane?...". He said "You mean to buy?". After affirming this he said
> "It's a very unusual request. I'm not sure we've ever sold them. I won't
> say we haven't but I can't remember ever selling one." I told him I was
> an unusual guy, which he ignored, but he said "I guess it's encouraging to
> know there are some people who still work on their bikes. Most people
> would bring any hub problems in to have them worked on." , which I found
> 1) irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he wasn't old enough to find
> something like bikes being worked on at home "encouraging", and 2) hubs
> are the one of the easiest parts of the bike to work on!?
>
> Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop
> twilight zone?

Having 3 left thumbs I leave the mechanical side to the LBS. I tried a few
small jobs but I'm guessing it just isn't my thing.

 

[Tom The Great]

On Sat, 8 Jul 2006 22:19:22 -0500, "Dukester"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop twilight

The story you mentioned seems like walking into a doctors office
asking for medical instruments to remove a wart. Sure you can do it
yourself, but do you think they are in the business of lending/selling
medical instruments?

Look online for your tools.

As for the work being easy, yes you are right, my LBS offers a
hub/crank rebuild and lube service for a very reason price.

later,

tom

 

[Helmut Springer]

Tom The Great <[email protected]> wrote:
> The story you mentioned seems like walking into a doctors office
> asking for medical instruments to remove a wart.

You're pretty new to cycling I assume? Bike shops carry bike tools,
far longer than online shops exists.

--
MfG/Best regards
helmut springer

 

[di]

"Peter Cole" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Dukester wrote:
>
> It seems that for a lot of people, learning to patch a tube would be a
> major accomplishment. I don't suppose the day is too far off when the LBS
> will stop selling patch kits.


Don't worry, Walmart has much better patch kits at a lower price.

 

[Dukester]

"Tom The Great" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Sat, 8 Jul 2006 22:19:22 -0500, "Dukester"
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop
>>twilight
>
> The story you mentioned seems like walking into a doctors office
> asking for medical instruments to remove a wart. Sure you can do it
> yourself, but do you think they are in the business of lending/selling
> medical instruments?

I'm not sure I agree. I'm all for supporting my local businesses and the
bike shop, but other than buying a new Team Discovery Trek, I'm not sure how
I would do that. As I was leaving, I thought I would check out the jerseys.
There was _one_ pretty cool looking PI jersey in a Small. I asked if they
had any more in a larger size. "Nope, just that one." That was it, one
jersey. No shorts, no shoes, okay, a few pairs of socks, and a couple of
$165 helmets.

 

[nash]

Dukester wrote:
> So I went to the LBS this afternoon for a 14mm cone wrench. My old one had
> apparently been kidnapped by another member of the household (who shall
> remain nameless) for a "project at work"...my guess is it was bent or lost
> somehow being used for opening a paint can or something along those lines.
> I went in the store scanning the tools on the back wall, when a teen asked
> me if I needed help. "I need a 14 mm cone wrench", which prompted a look of
> "Are you insane?...". He said "You mean to buy?". After affirming this he
> said "It's a very unusual request. I'm not sure we've ever sold them. I
> won't say we haven't but I can't remember ever selling one." I told him I
> was an unusual guy, which he ignored, but he said "I guess it's encouraging
> to know there are some people who still work on their bikes. Most people
> would bring any hub problems in to have them worked on." , which I found 1)
> irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he wasn't old enough to find something
> like bikes being worked on at home "encouraging", and 2) hubs are the one of
> the easiest parts of the bike to work on!?
>
> Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop twilight
> zone?
>
> Cheers!
> Dukester

Cannot speak to the hub repair because I have not done one in 15 years.
lucky me. but I asked a LBS to install two sets of brake pads and he
said it costs $6/pair. what a rip.
did it myself. more satisfaction

 

[Bill]

di wrote:
> "Peter Cole" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>> Dukester wrote:
>>
>> It seems that for a lot of people, learning to patch a tube would be a
>> major accomplishment. I don't suppose the day is too far off when the LBS
>> will stop selling patch kits.
>
>
> Don't worry, Walmart has much better patch kits at a lower price.
>
>
I can agree with that. I got a kit called "Monkey grip" or something
like that and there are all kinds of pre cut patches and about a 6"
square sheet rolled into the can to patch almost anything. One well used
tube has been patched about 6 times and the patches never give out. Each
new flat is a new road hazard or thorn from field short cuts. Soon I may
be running more patch than original tube.
Bill Baka

 

[Werehatrack]

On Sat, 8 Jul 2006 22:19:22 -0500, "Dukester"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>..."I need a 14 mm cone wrench", which prompted a look of
>"Are you insane?...". He said "You mean to buy?". After affirming this he
>said "It's a very unusual request. I'm not sure we've ever sold them. I
>won't say we haven't but I can't remember ever selling one." I told him I
>was an unusual guy, which he ignored, but he said "I guess it's encouraging
>to know there are some people who still work on their bikes. Most people
>would bring any hub problems in to have them worked on." , which I found 1)
>irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he wasn't old enough to find something
>like bikes being worked on at home "encouraging", and 2) hubs are the one of
>the easiest parts of the bike to work on!?
>
>Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop twilight
>zone?

Of the bike shops in this area, all but one stock at least a small
selection of tools for sale, and many carry a fairly extensive amount.

I'd say your experience was indicative of either a strange local
market, or an atypical shop.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

 

[Werehatrack]

On 9 Jul 2006 07:14:17 -0700, [email protected] wrote:

>
>Dukester wrote:
>>
>> Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop twilight
>> zone?
>
>I teach some bicycling classes as a League Certified Instructor. One
>part of the Road 1 course is to teach flat repair. IME, there are
>many, many cyclists who would need 45 minutes to repair a flat.

Agreed, but the more telling thing IMO is the number of folks I've
seen pushing a flat along the nearby bike path because they didn't
have a patch kit...and who, when offered access to my patches, levers
and pump, admitted that they couldn't have fixed it themselves anyway
for lack of knowing how.

>Another part of that course is doing a "quick check" of bike
>mechanicals. In doing so, I often find brakes badly adjusted, wheels
>out of true, etc. It's common for the student to have no idea how to
>adjust these things.

Hoo, boy, yes. I see both fairly new bikes and resurrected garage
wall props running around here with one pad dragging, or the wheel
pumping the caliper back and forth, or the front der cable hanging
loose on an indexed setup...among other things that are one-glance
obvious. If queried, the usual response is "Yeah, I've been meaning
to take it in and get it fixed, but my neighbor got charged more than
I paid for this bike when he took hios in to get fixed." I try to
point them at the nearby public library and its decent selection of
DIY books...but I from the blank stares I get when I mention the word
"book", you'd think I was speaking Swahili with a Bronx accent.

>To be fair, the Road 1 class draws mostly relative beginners - but I've
>had cyclists with many years of experience ask me to do classes on bike
>repair. Based on that, my guess is 90% of cyclists don't own cone
>wrenches.

Probably true; IMO, if anything, it's an underestimate. Most
apparently don't even know what a cone wrench is, let alone how and
when to use it.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

 

[Mike Kruger]

"Werehatrack" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Sat, 8 Jul 2006 22:19:22 -0500, "Dukester"
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>..."I need a 14 mm cone wrench", which prompted a look of
>>"Are you insane?...". He said "You mean to buy?". After affirming this
>>he
>>said "It's a very unusual request. I'm not sure we've ever sold them. I
>>won't say we haven't but I can't remember ever selling one." I told him I
>>was an unusual guy, which he ignored, but he said "I guess it's
>>encouraging
>>to know there are some people who still work on their bikes. Most people
>>would bring any hub problems in to have them worked on." , which I found
>>1)
>>irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he wasn't old enough to find something
>>like bikes being worked on at home "encouraging", and 2) hubs are the one
>>of
>>the easiest parts of the bike to work on!?
>>
>>Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop
>>twilight
>>zone?
>
> Of the bike shops in this area, all but one stock at least a small
> selection of tools for sale, and many carry a fairly extensive amount.
>
> I'd say your experience was indicative of either a strange local
> market, or an atypical shop.

The shops I actually frequent all have tools, and people in the shop who
will advise you. There clearly are clueless bike shops, but I live in a
large city and there's no reason to stop in one of these twice. There are a
lot of bad restaurants here, but I don't eat at them twice, either.

Remember, to the extent that there are a lot of people who ride bicycles,
there's more wrenching to be done. It's in the shop's interest to help
people do simple maintenance. Then, when people either get stuck [or they
have more money than time] they will go back to the same shop.

My favorite shop even runs the Park Tool maintenance classes in the doldrum
time (February). While these bring in a bit of revenue to the shop, what I
mostly got out of it is like the old prayer:
God, grant me the serenity to fix what I can
The money to let somebody else fix what I can't
And the wisdom to know the difference.

 

[greggery peccary]

"Peter Cole" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Dukester wrote:
> > So I went to the LBS this afternoon for a 14mm cone wrench.
>
> > he said "I guess it's encouraging
> > to know there are some people who still work on their bikes. Most
people
> > would bring any hub problems in to have them worked on." , which I found
1)
> > irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he wasn't old enough to find something
> > like bikes being worked on at home "encouraging", and 2) hubs are the
one of
> > the easiest parts of the bike to work on!?
> >
> > Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop
twilight
> > zone?
>
> Many of the people I ride with take a bike to the LBS to have the
> shifting adjusted, I don't know if it's always been that way.
>
> There are some safety issues. Even a simple task like removing a chain
> to clean could lead to a disaster if it wasn't re-installed correctly.
> There are also special considerations for some of the lightweight stuff
> that's now becoming common, so the average Joe could get in trouble just
> adjusting a handlebar or seatpost.
>
> A lot of components seem to be less serviceable without special tools or
> knowledge -- brifters, special/low count spoked wheels, cartridge hubs,
etc.
>
> It seems that for a lot of people, learning to patch a tube would be a
> major accomplishment. I don't suppose the day is too far off when the
> LBS will stop selling patch kits.

so far the techs at the LBS are helpful, but only so far as to tell me they
cant figure it out either! i'll fix my own whenever possible.

 

[trino]

There are probably still people out there that would pay for someone to
shift gears for them too. LBS just hasn't thought of it yet. ; o


"greggery peccary" <.@.> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Peter Cole" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>> Dukester wrote:
>> > So I went to the LBS this afternoon for a 14mm cone wrench.
>>
>> > he said "I guess it's encouraging
>> > to know there are some people who still work on their bikes. Most
> people
>> > would bring any hub problems in to have them worked on." , which I
>> > found
> 1)
>> > irritating and 2) odd. Because 1) he wasn't old enough to find
>> > something
>> > like bikes being worked on at home "encouraging", and 2) hubs are the
> one of
>> > the easiest parts of the bike to work on!?
>> >
>> > Is this is a typical experience anymore or am I living in bike shop
> twilight
>> > zone?
>>
>> Many of the people I ride with take a bike to the LBS to have the
>> shifting adjusted, I don't know if it's always been that way.
>>
>> There are some safety issues. Even a simple task like removing a chain
>> to clean could lead to a disaster if it wasn't re-installed correctly.
>> There are also special considerations for some of the lightweight stuff
>> that's now becoming common, so the average Joe could get in trouble just
>> adjusting a handlebar or seatpost.
>>
>> A lot of components seem to be less serviceable without special tools or
>> knowledge -- brifters, special/low count spoked wheels, cartridge hubs,
> etc.
>>
>> It seems that for a lot of people, learning to patch a tube would be a
>> major accomplishment. I don't suppose the day is too far off when the
>> LBS will stop selling patch kits.
>
> so far the techs at the LBS are helpful, but only so far as to tell me
> they
> cant figure it out either! i'll fix my own whenever possible.
>
>