boardman comp hybrid accident

boardmancomp555

Hi new 2 this forum, had a cycle accident in Sept 2011 on my Boardman Comp Hybrid purchased from Halfords.
The metal gromit that holds handle grip on come off which made the handle grip come off causing me to lose control and come off my bike, injuries: Broken wrist, metal plate put in wrist, then with the bare handle bar showing it penetrated my groin area which I needed a emergency operation and I was in hospital for 3 days and I was lucky not to hit any vital organs, when the nurse had put her finger in my groin it went right up to her knuckle OOF!! Very Lucky

2 weeks Previously the Metal Gromit holding the handle grip on had come off whilst I cycling up hill, which I lost control of the bike and nearly ended up under a car. Went to Halfords they fitted another gromit and a new handle grip, 2 weeks later same thing happened and I had my accident.

Has anyone had experience of this on the Boardman comp??? If so please let me know or any shoddy workman ship by Halfords, Thanks Tony

jonny_trousers

Yikes! Sounds awful. At least you have some kind of record that Halfords were supposed to have fixed an issue that had already caused you to have an accident. Will you be suing for damages (you should)?

EKE_38BPM

OUCH!!!

Halfords have a reputation (deservedly so in many cases) of not being very good at putting bikes together. I once asked for a part in Halfords and the monkey building bikes said "I don't know nuffink about bikes, I only build them!". That told me all I need to know about the people they have working there.

As JT said, its good that you have a record of them failing to fix an issue and you should definitely get some legal types on your case. You should definitely seek compensation as they are to blame for your accident and the injuries.

boardmancomp555

cheers 4 your reply , yes am suing halfords its just a slow progress no record of the lad changing the groment and handle grip 2 weeks before, which manger went nuts at the lad 4 not loggining wot happened, its lookin good tho
they repaired bike after accident, it was a mess back wheel was a figure 8 buckled good style am nearly 16st so a lot of weight on a light bike they fixed it for free and ave got the receicpt new wheel, tyre, innertube service,they even put side bars on handle grips so grommets dont come off so it doesnt happen again fingers crossed it hasent

jonny_trousers

boardmancomp555 wrote:

cheers 4 your reply , yes am suing halfords its just a slow progress no record of the lad changing the groment and handle grip 2 weeks before, which manger went nuts at the lad 4 not loggining wot happened, its lookin good tho
they repaired bike after accident, it was a mess back wheel was a figure 8 buckled good style am nearly 16st so a lot of weight on a light bike they fixed it for free and ave got the receicpt new wheel, tyre, innertube service,they even put side bars on handle grips so grommets dont come off so it doesnt happen again fingers crossed it hasent

Mate, I admire your positive attitude, but you are chuffed with Halfords for repairing a bike that, because of them, caused you massive injuries and could have killed you? - apart from anything it sounds like an admission of guilt on Halfords' part to me. I really don't like the litigation culture we are drifting towards in this country, but it really sounds like you deserve compensation for your injuries. Have a chat with a decent solicitor; they'll let you know whether you have a claim or not.

dee4life2005

I had something similar on mine boardman performance hybrid comp.

Crossing a narrow bridge on the cyclepath and the silver boardman retainer clamp thing and end cap came off the grip and the grip itself slid about an inch causing me to loose control and catch the handlebar on the bridge hand-rail. Cue the front wheel being kicked 90 degrees and me being forced into the bar end.

Thankfully I was going quite slow because the bridge is narrow - but I did get a very nasty bruise on top of my leg only a couple of inches away from my sensitive bits and my wrist hurt like hell for a couple of days - wasn't broken thankfully.

dee4life2005

Oh and I also got a puncture after only 1.5 miles riding it home from Halfords.

They had apparently "built" the bike ... but the brakes were grinding a little, and the tyres were only inflated to about 55 psi, despite the sidewall saying 70 psi minimum and 120 psi max. First minor bump I went over I nipped the tyre causing an instant blow-out.

EKE_38BPM

I don't mean to be a pedant, but can you guys more clearly explain which part is failing/slipping/breaking?

Is it the bar end cap. like this?
If so (and I am in no way saying either of you are to blame), I can't really see how that coming loose could cause the handlebar grip to slip off so suddenly, unless the factory fitting the handlebar grips used a lubricant to slide the grips onto the bars (and then rely on the bar end caps to hold it in place), rather than a glue which acts as a lubricant when wet but then sets to stick the grip to the bar (so that the bar end cap is more cosmetic than integral).

Again, sorry to come across as a pedant.

davis

EKE_38BPM wrote:

Again, sorry to come across as a pedant.

I did wonder what they were talking about too. I don't doubt it's a true story, but I don't quite understand the description of the failure either.

dee4life2005

On mine it was the bar end cap and the metal clamp with a hex nut next to this that also came off. I can take a pic if it helps.

The grips aren't stuck down and they can be moved /rotated pretty easily - guessing this isnt normal then ?

EKE_38BPM

davis wrote:

EKE_38BPM wrote:

Again, sorry to come across as a pedant.

I did wonder what they were talking about too. I don't doubt it's a true story, but I don't quite understand the description of the failure either.

Glad it wasn't just me.

boardmancomp555

the gromit is nothing like yor pic sorry ! is is only 5 mm in width and locks on to handle bar ,trying to show pic of gromit says pixel to high how u change photo settings plz

cyclingprop

Problem wouldnt happen with drop bars?

boardmancomp555

here is the gromit

boardmancomp555

handle grip comes of sorry u didnt belive me

boardmancomp555

this wot holds handle grip on which is stupid on a light fast bike

dee4life2005

Yep thats exactly what failed / fell off on mine, causing the grip to partially slide off the bar causing me to lose control.

boardmancomp555

for u none believers nice wound of handle bar end

EKE_38BPM

Do you mean the black bits on these grips?

They should be inboard (near the brake levers). If this isn't what you mean, I'm baffed!

dee4life2005

The boardmans have the "gromits" as pictured above on both ends of the grips ...

boardmancomp555

nice plate in wrist its titanium £50 per srew am worth £8oo more now

EKE_38BPM

Ignore my previous post. I'm really slow when using this stupid iPad.
I don't disbelieve you, I've just never heard of this problem before and was finding it hard to visualise.
BTW, the part I posted in my first post is the same as your failed part, but your one is tightened with an Allen bolt.

I feel like I'm coming across as a right git.

dee4life2005

Ouch, that looks nasty. Glad i was only going about 5mph when mine gave way otherwise i'd probably be in a similar situation judging my the nice bruise i have.

boardmancomp555

dee4life2005 wrote:

I had something similar on mine boardman performance hybrid comp.

Crossing a narrow bridge on the cyclepath and the silver boardman retainer clamp thing and end cap came off the grip and the grip itself slid about an inch causing me to loose control and catch the handlebar on the bridge hand-rail. Cue the front wheel being kicked 90 degrees and me being forced into the bar end.

Thankfully I was going quite slow because the bridge is narrow - but I did get a very nasty bruise on top of my leg only a couple of inches away from my sensitive bits and my wrist hurt like hell for a couple of days - wasn't broken
did you report it 2 halfords? i was goin prity fast wen had accident as i always do! cycle for fitness not to commute handle grips should not b on the bike its made for speed

EKE_38BPM

Internal Ti parts?! Now THATS bike bling!

You should get together with D4L2K to talk to a legal type as it seems to me to be more of a design flaw than just a error at your Halfrauds.

apreading

Yep - they are inboard on my Boardman Hybrid - although I dont think it would make much difference whether they were inboard or outboard if they arent done up tight.

I cant work out how you would be pulling sideways with any force when going uphill though - surely you would be pulling the grips upwards and if loose they might slip and rotate but not slide completely off? Again, I dont doubt you but something strange to have that much sideways force. Dee4Life's only slipped but I guess the panic from this unnerving sensation caused loss of control which caused the accident.

Unfortunately you learnt the hard way - to check that Halfords have put the bike together right. I am afraid they have a history of not doing up cranks that fall off and now this. I advise to make damn sure everything is tight or get an LBS to check it before riding the supposedly fixed bike - even if you think they wouldnt dare get it wrong in these circumstances!

boardmancomp555

this is halfords way of making sure grommit doesnt come of again

boardmancomp555

i do cycling 4 fitness and stamina not 2 commute am 16 st been the gym most of my life am 44 years old, and depends how u go up a hill, u can take it easy as 95% most people do or fly up a hill which i do which puts more strain on handle grips its happened twice , checking allen key every time i went out, halfords put bars on now which i would advise 2 anyone with a boardman hybrid with gromits on the end they are not safe if u use your bike for speed they are dangerous, didnt put me off the bike tho ! still use it daily now, me friend who was with me at the time of accident has been put of cycling hasent been since

boardmancomp555

the boardman has grommits both ends of the handle grip , if end gromit comes off the handle grip which is not glued on will slide off its made out of solid plastic which slides on handle bar with the rubber handle grip over the top, its a bad design for a light bike designed 4 speed

boardmancomp555

cyclingprop wrote:

Problem wouldnt happen with drop bars?

you always get 1 dont ye :evil:

jonny_trousers

Hmm, I wonder if the bloke at Halfords knew things were looking bad for them which is why he claimed the repair was never logged (got any evidence of you putting it in?) and quickly fobbed you off with a full repair. It may well be too late for you, but I would have a chat with a decent solicitor pronto.

The Boardman/Halfords association still surprises me. Time and time again Boardman bikes win major awards, yet the name is becoming synonymous with very poor build quality. I'm sure it makes Mr Boardman a lot of money out of it, however.