Acceptable fork wear?

thaibog

Hi Guys..

Back again with a question for you tech heads. I have an opinion but I would like to fire this over to you.
I bought a Kona Shred 2-4 for my son from evans and it was delivered on the 30th June.
I gave him the bike on the 14th of July but he didnt start riding it because he thought it too big untill we sold his old giant XTC jnr from underneath him on the 20th.
He finally started riding it proper a few days after.
After just a few days riding i noticed the adonising wearing off the right stanchion ( see picture attached taken on the 28th)
Once I came back from working away I started trying to contact evans cycles and said this wasnt good and could they please get back to me.
After many " have you forgotten me" emails they finally started to reply last week. They said they where going to contact Kona and get back to me.
the final email went like this

I have heard from Kona today regarding your bike, here is the reply

"The forks are black anodisation which makes it look a lot worse than it actually is. With these forks, just as with any other forks, it is extremely important to clean and lubricate the dust seals before each ride"

Now do you think this is acceptable?

My Reply went like this

"Hi Dan

I am sorry. That isn’t good enough. That picture I sent was after 2 days. I know that fork seals need cleaning as I can service fox and rockshox forks with my eyes closed.
Can you please pass this back and tell them that's not good enough.
I bought the bike from you not Kona.
That is not the reply I expect. I remind you that I sent these first pictures in mid July less than a week after I gave him the bike.
Either you change the forks or you can have the bike back and I buy it from someone else and get cash back on my credit card.
Sorry to be so blunt but I am not wasting any more time on this.
regards "

the anodisation is now wearing on the left side and the right is fully polished after a month ( my kids have been on holiday for two weeks of this month so its been in the garage)

I personally cannot believe that I had a reply like that after sending 10 emails and trying to phone numerous times only to be promised a call back that never came.
I have never bought a bike from Evans but I have had no complaint when I have bought components.
Anyone else suffered any problems either from Kona, Evans or with the spinner grind 2 fork?
When you buy a £ 450 bike for an 8 year old you expect quality. If it was an apollo or an asda special i wouldnt worry but to be quite honest I cannot quite believe the lack of interest that I have at the moment.
Give me your thoughts guys
Regards
Mad Andy
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v707/ ... y%20bikes/

Daz555

Nonsense. If the coating does not survive the normal up and down action of a fork then they should not be putting that coating on their forks.

thaibog

aye..thats what I thought after 6 hours..if you look at the next lot of pics on my photobucket you can see what it looks like now. I told them weeks ago that i have tried to clean down the seals but I will not be popping off the wiper seal and cleaning under it because its a bike thats done less than 100 miles and I shouldnt have to. My bottom line is that the anodising is mixed with butter and should have lasted longer than 6 hours
cheers for your reply

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v707/ ... y%20bikes/

tomtomthepipersson

I think Kona have specced a cheap and nasty fork and are now making excuses. It shouldn't wear like that after so little use - or at all really. If you do a Google search for that fork it seems your problem isn't a one-off.

But, that does't excuse poor customer service from Evans.


(And unless you want the world trawling through your holiday snaps i'd amend your second photobucket link)

thaibog

cheers for your reply...my pohotobucket is an open book mate...but thanks anyways I have made a bike folder..{8o>

nicklouse

i would return it and ask for a replacement as that is what i would expect to see on a bike that was a few years old not week. It aint fit for purpose.

re Evans read this http://www.bikeradar.com/forum/viewtopi ... highlight=

leaflite

Are they suntour forks? Ive had the same problem with suntours in the past. However, the damage doesn't seem to effect the performance of the fork in any way.

thaibog

they are spinner grinds..and we had some gunge come out of the top last weekend so that isnt great

Anonymous

That is definitely out of line.
On one of the close up photos, it also looks like the fork seal area has metal shavings scattered around it!

thaibog

yeehaamcgee wrote:

That is definitely out of line.
On one of the close up photos, it also looks like the fork seal area has metal shavings scattered around it!

hi mate i think thats just dust as my son and I clean with GT85

Anonymous

it's very metallic looking dust.

thaibog

I agree it is..could be the anodising...a lot was scraped off in a very short space of time. i did grease the wiper seal with some pace fork grease. Nothing seems to have worked. As soon as I pop that wiper seal off I believe that invalidates the warranty. Thats why I have been pestering evans cycles.
:roll:

thaibog

Hi James,
I have sent your reply back to Kona and am awaiting a reply now, I will update as soon as possible.
Thank you
Dan.

I dont believe he has researched the sale of goods act 1979. And my name is Andy..
the amount of my time this is taking up is obscene but I am starting to get a bee in my bonnet now

supersonic

Evans will do what Kona will do/advise as it is on Evans to prove the fork is not faulty hence they liase with the manufacturer for advice (and they probably go back to spinner...). Within the first 6 months. As long as you are dealing with the retailer then this is normal. However a suitable remedy should be found in reasonable time, and this is not reasonable it seems.

thaibog

thanks for your reply super..

I did contact them after the first couple of days. I had the bike for 2 weeks before i gave it to him when school broke up for being a good lad.
Its taken 3 weeks for them to actually action my complaint after the guy who was dealing with it went on holiday.
My final act is to get the money back on my credit card but I have not done that for years and its a bit of a drawn out process that I neither have the energy or time to do.
Life is complicated enough without further adding to my workload.
it's a real pity as I spent a lot of time researching what would be best for him and after the giant xtc jnr that it replaced I had very high expectations.
Compared to Specialized and Scott .,Kona have given me a very poor answer.
If I was to return it what would be your reccomendation my friend?
If you look at the pics you will see the size of my son.
He is just getting used to small jumps but follows me about on small agressive XC courses.
many thanks in advance for your opinion

supersonic

3 weeks is way too long, you certainly have a good cause for complaint. I imagine the fork will be deemed faulty (eventually) and they will offer to replace it. But you have grounds for extra compensation too.

Is the Shred the 24 inch wheeled version?

thaibog

Yes it is. It's the kona shred 2-4 2011
They have just offered to pick it up and refund me.
Such a shame really .
He loves the bike.
It's probably the best 24" kids bike you can buy.
Shame about the fork.

supersonic

Sort of a result, but if they'd have put a new fork on within a week then I think much less hassle will have ensued! Odd behaviour from such a large retailer.

24" wheeled bikes are rather thin on the ground, and generally poorly specced compared to the 26" versions which is a pity.

I'd be tempted to look at the Carrera Blast from Halfords:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... 65602#dtab

A good spec for the money, and will give you scope to upgrade if needs be. In fact the spec matches many £350 bikes.

thaibog

thanks I will look at that

regards