DO NOT buy a bike from Carsington Water

jeannie-jelly

I know nothing aout moutain bikes apart from I wanted to buy one to go out on at the weekend and get to work on in the week...

this is a cautionery tale...

...After several trips to Carsington Water, Derbyshire, last Saturday, I decided to buy one of their Dawes Tamarak bikes to get to work and back on. I took the bike home after the self styled "bike mechanic", Pete, had supposedly checked it over. On Sunday morning, I got my first pucture and, while trying to repair it, noticed that, instead of rim tape, the inside of the rim had been sealed with yellow electricians insulation tape...nice, even I know that's not right...checked over indeed!...

...After much trying and several exploded inner tubes I decided to take the wheel back to Carsington as clearly the yellow insulation tape was the problem. Pete the "bike mechanic" told me that he didn't know how the yellow insulation tape had gotten on the wheel and assured me that he would fix the problem. Unfortunately for me, I had only taken the wheel back to the shop rather than the whole bike. Pete gave me the wheel back and told me it was fine as he had now put rim tape on it. When I got home I checked the pressure before putting the wheel on my bike. It was 14 psi so I inflated it to the recommended min pressure of 30 psi (shown on the wall of the tyre). The tyre popped out of the rim and the inner tube exploded at about 20 psi. My dad, who was with me at the time remarked that in 50 years of cycling he'd "never ever seen a tyre do that".

Upon closer inspection, Pete the "bike mechanic" hadn't even removed the yellow insulation tape from inside the rim, he'd just put the rim tape on top of it! At my wits end (Carsington is a 50 mile round trip for me) I took the wheel to a mountain bike shop where they laughed and told me the reason for all the explosions and punctures was that either "the rim is too small or the tyre is too big" which was why, at normal 30psi pressure, the inner tube was forcing its way out from the side of the tyre and exploding!!

Now, I don't claim to be any kind of expert on moutain (or any other kind of) bikes, but a "bike mechanic" who can't see that a tyre that you can put on a wheel rim without using a tyre iron, or chalk, or anything other than your fingers without a struggle is an IDIOT!. I am incandescent with rage as I now have to make another 50 mile trip to take the bloody bike back and thrown it at them. Is eveybody incompetent nowadays?

I feel better now I've said all that, but seriously, dont't give them your money...

rutheginger

thats a shame, if i were u i would get Pete fired or summit!! he sounds like a right dumbarse

nicklouse

sorry not sure i belive the second shop either.

what rim and what tyre.

cant say i have used a tyre lever in years.

supersonic

Not sure how the rim tape would make the tube want to pop out of the rim. It sounds like whoever is pumping it up hasn't seated the tyre and tube properly.

The Spiderman

I used electrical insulation tape as a rim tape on my commuter/hack/road bike the other week as a stop gap,and its still there 3 weeks later,with no problems,so not sure thatin itself is the route of your problem.

Can you give us some some details on rim dimensions,tyre and tube size on your bike and make of tyres?

Like Nick,I never use levers to fit a tyre.If you can get them on by hand there is less chance of pinching the tube.

Rockhopper

I also havent used tyre levers for years, infact I have the opposite problem with my current tyres, they are quite dificult to keep on the rim while I try and get the tube in!

Also nothing wrong with electrical tape as a rim tape, also been using that for years but I wouldn't expect it on a new bike.

We need more info about the tyres and rims and inner tubes you are using (like sizes etc).

jeannie-jelly

Thanks for all the replies. I was so angry last night that I just needed to get it all of my chest, I've calmed down now though! Just incase anyone's interested, I believe that the rim said somethig like 19x556 on it and the tyre was 26x2.0 and also had 556 on it. The problem seemed to be not the yellow insulation tape rather the fact the tyre didn't fit tightly onto the rim (you could get your fingers between the tyre and the rim quite easily) and as soon as the inner tube was inflated to anything like minimum pressure, it pushed the tyre out of the rim resulting in the inner tube either forcing the tyre off the rim completely or bursting while attempting to push it off the rim. What most annoyed me was when I took the wheel back yesterday, mechanic Pete only inflated the tyre to 15 PSI (the min pressure shown on the tyre was 30) possibly as he knew full well that any more pressure would cause the tyre to come off and therefore make more work for him. Being as I don't know about wheels and tyres and all that jazz, I have to trust what other (supposedly more knowledgeable) people tell me is the problem. All I really know is that I had the bike for a week and rode it for a grand total of 5 minutes before it got it's first puncture and that all subsequent attempts to inflate the inner tube ended in explosions.

I have taken the bike back to Carsington and gotten my money back. They didn't seem all that interested in what was wrong, they just wanted me out of the shop so they did the refund quick smart and I will never darken their doors again. So, I've got about £200 to spend on a bike that I can ride at the weekend (no serious off roading or anything just down on the trails near my house) and that I can go to work on now and then. Any ideas on where I can buy this bike from would be much appreciated.

Thanks. Jeannie

Big Red S

jeannie-jelly wrote:

...After several trips to Carsington Water, Derbyshire, last Saturday, I decided to buy one of their Dawes Tamarak bikes to get to work and back on. I took the bike home after the self styled "bike mechanic", Pete, had supposedly checked it over. On Sunday morning, I got my first pucture and, while trying to repair it, noticed that, instead of rim tape, the inside of the rim had been sealed with yellow electricians insulation tape...nice, even I know that's not right...checked over indeed!...

I don't think I've ever checked which rim tape was used when I've checked over a bike.
And if it was a brand new bike (you don't say), the bike shop would have had nothing at all to do with what rim tape was used.

...After much trying and several exploded inner tubes I decided to take the wheel back to Carsington as clearly the yellow insulation tape was the problem. Pete the "bike mechanic" told me that he didn't know how the yellow insulation tape had gotten on the wheel and assured me that he would fix the problem. Unfortunately for me, I had only taken the wheel back to the shop rather than the whole bike. Pete gave me the wheel back and told me it was fine as he had now put rim tape on it. When I got home I checked the pressure before putting the wheel on my bike. It was 14 psi so I inflated it to the recommended min pressure of 30 psi (shown on the wall of the tyre). The tyre popped out of the rim and the inner tube exploded at about 20 psi. My dad, who was with me at the time remarked that in 50 years of cycling he'd "never ever seen a tyre do that".

If the tyre bead's not sat in the hook correctly (which is entirely likely if you've been handling it while it's flat), it's not unusual for it to pop out. And, if you carry on pumping, for it to explode.

Upon closer inspection, Pete the "bike mechanic" hadn't even removed the yellow insulation tape from inside the rim, he'd just put the rim tape on top of it! At my wits end (Carsington is a 50 mile round trip for me) I took the wheel to a mountain bike shop where they laughed and told me the reason for all the explosions and punctures was that either "the rim is too small or the tyre is too big" which was why, at normal 30psi pressure, the inner tube was forcing its way out from the side of the tyre and exploding!!

That I doubt. Which rim is it and which tyre?
Partly because if it was the wrong size the same problems would have happened the first time round.

Now, I don't claim to be any kind of expert on moutain (or any other kind of) bikes, but a "bike mechanic" who can't see that a tyre that you can put on a wheel rim without using a tyre iron, or chalk, or anything other than your fingers without a struggle is an IDIOT!.

There are plenty of tyre/rim combinations that go together quite happily without a struggle or tyre levers.

Rockhopper

Where abouts do you live? I'm just off j28 M1, i'd be glad to take a look at it for you.

supersonic

I think a refund has been obtained. I don't think the shop is at fault here though. The puncture was unlucky, but the subsequent problems seem to stem from incorrect fitting of tyre.

nicklouse

rockhopperwmb wrote:

Where abouts do you live? I'm just off j28 M1, i'd be glad to take a look at it for you.

if you read it has been returned and a full refund given.

jeannie-jelly

rockhopperwmb wrote:

Where abouts do you live? I'm just off j28 M1, i'd be glad to take a look at it for you.

I am also just off J28 M1 but unfortunately the bikes already gone back to Carsington forever! Thanks though, that's really nice of you!

Also, I conceed the point about tyre irons! This was based on a conversation with someone who exclusively rode racer type bikes with the super thin tyres and maybe they're different or something?

From what I could see the the tyre would stay on the rim when it was inflated to about 15 PSI anything about that and it pushed the tyre off the rim. It would appear that the tyre was only inflated to around that pressure when I bought the bike which would posibly explain the almost instantaneous puncture. 4 different people tried to repair the tyre with the same results so maybe it was faulty or in some other way just plain wrong. I just don't know.

supersonic

I honestly think you have been unlucky. Some tyre/rim fits are looser than others, and with a little air in the tube the tyre needs to be checked that it has seated properly, and the tube has stayed put. Then proceed cautiously. When on properly, the increase in pressure is going to lock the tyre on against the rim hook.

jeannie-jelly

supersonic wrote:

I honestly think you have been unlucky. Some tyre/rim fits are looser than others, and with a little air in the tube the tyre needs to be checked that it has seated properly, and the tube has stayed put. Then proceed cautiously. When on properly, the increase in pressure is going to lock the tyre on against the rim hook.

I really don't know. All I know is that when 4 different people try to fit the tyre (none of them were me btw, I haven't got a clue how to change a tyre) and tell you that it can't be done, including a man who works in a bike shop and a man in Halfords who presumably change tyres all the time, then it makes you suspect that something is fundamentally not right. As I say, I freely admit that I don't know what I'm talking about in this area so I have to trust what other people tell me.

Whatever the problem was I've got my money back anyway so all's well that ends well.

Father Faff

Perhaps a Dawes Tamarak is not a good bike to buy!? I understand you can get good value bikes from Decathlon and Carrera (the latter at Halfords) so maybe try one of those makes.

howsmyriding27

it may sound a silly question to some but what is rim tape and what is it used for?????

supersonic

It goes around the inside of the rim to cover up the spoke heads to stop them piercing the tube. In UST tyres, and tubless convertors, they form an airtight seal.