Serving.....what's involved?

ianbar

I have been thinking my bike could do with a little tune up so concidering takin her down to my lbs for a service,generally what's involved and rough cost?

NewTTer

You throw the ball in the air, then hit it, the idea is to clear the net on your side but land it in the marked box on your opponents side

ianbar

that would have been funnier if i had just written the title....but well done all the same

ianbar

oh hek just realised! ruddy reductive texting on iPhone!

Gizmodo

This is taken from my LBS web site:

Green Service £30

General visual inspection of cycle Brake check inspection and adjustment Gear check indexing and chain lubrication Skewer check quick release tightened Wheel & Tyre check - correct pressure, signs of wear or damage Pedal check - tightened and greased Bolt check - including crank bolts All bikes are returned clean

Polka dot Service £50 - The above plus:

Drive chain - full inspection, lubrication and adjustment Bottom Bracket - inspect for wear (including re-threading if necessary) Wheel Check - remove, check and lubricate bearings/hubs (if necessary), check spoke tension and true Frame - check for wear and damage Headset - check and tighten Cables - check for wear and damage, replace if necessary

Yellow Service £75 - All of the above plus:

Fork Check - remove, check, lubricate and re-fit Headset - remove, check, lubricate and re-fit Replace cables and outers

Pigtail

Look at some bike shops and their different levels of service, for example Edinburgh bike's pricing menu here.

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/comms/site_about/bike-repairs-servicing.htm#servicing

Of course the big caveat is the price of parts, that are not included. A colleague has a £2k bike with Campagnolo gearing and claims his last service was £270. I'd be reluctant to pay that to service my car!

I've bought some tools and am really enjoying doing things myself, but I recognise it isn't for everyone.

crescent

Have you thought about doing it yourself? For the price of a service you could probably buy a few tools and and carry out some routine checks and adjustments. There are a number of good articles online on this subject and many of the checks carried out during a service are fairly straightforward. It's a great way to get to know your bike as well, very handy if you have a mechanical when you're out and about.
It's not for everyone certainly but if you're handy at all then it is a good way to go.

Cheers

simon_masterson

Crescent wrote:

Have you thought about doing it yourself? For the price of a service you could probably buy a few tools and and carry out some routine checks and adjustments. There are a number of good articles online on this subject and many of the checks carried out during a service are fairly straightforward. It's a great way to get to know your bike as well, very handy if you have a mechanical when you're out and about.
It's not for everyone certainly but if you're handy at all then it is a good way to go.

Cheers

This!!!

That 'Green Service' almost makes me angry. £30 to do what you ought to be doing anyway!? No way. That's as bad as paying them to fix a puncture. If you aren't doing every single one of those tasks routinely, you shouldn't be riding your bike.

It would be better if you could pay them £30 for their supervision whilst you do those jobs yourself, but that would be a rip-off. The only other reason I can think of for having it on the price list is so that they can say "DO IT YOURSELF, YOU IDIOT!" to anyone who asks for it, before beating them around the head with a large wet fish.

The only services out of those that I think justify payment are anything involving wheel truing, bottom brackets and headsets, and those are all things that in time you will be able to do yourself.

I realise that I am one of those lucky enough to know someone with several decades of cycling experience - although that applies to a lot of cyclists, particularly those in cycling clubs - but if there's one thing I've learned it's that these jobs are not actually very complicated; even headset installation. A huge amount of your money is going on labour and the mechanic's expertise. Unless the structural integrity of the frame is in question, chances are you could and should do it yourself. If you're willing to spend £2k on a bike and it is within your means to do so, you should know how to service it, and you have no excuse not to own the tools, either!

Calpol

Gizmodo wrote:

This is taken from my LBS web site:

Green Service £30

General visual inspection of cycle Brake check inspection and adjustment Gear check indexing and chain lubrication Skewer check quick release tightened Wheel & Tyre check - correct pressure, signs of wear or damage Pedal check - tightened and greased Bolt check - including crank bolts All bikes are returned clean

Polka dot Service £50 - The above plus:

Drive chain - full inspection, lubrication and adjustment Bottom Bracket - inspect for wear (including re-threading if necessary) Wheel Check - remove, check and lubricate bearings/hubs (if necessary), check spoke tension and true Frame - check for wear and damage Headset - check and tighten Cables - check for wear and damage, replace if necessary

Yellow Service £75 - All of the above plus:

Fork Check - remove, check, lubricate and re-fit Headset - remove, check, lubricate and re-fit Replace cables and outers

That Green Service really is the proverbial 'money for old rope'. Personally I like tinkering with my bikes and have progressed from only being able to mend punctures to being able to replace chains, strip down drivetrain and rebuild within a few months. I actually find it quite relaxing to be be fettling it after each ride. So like others have said, have a go yourself. The only things I can't do are true wheels and replace the BB or headset. That said if I had the tools I would probably have a go at that too.

simon_masterson

Calpol wrote:

Gizmodo wrote:

and rebuild within a few months.

Blimey, that's impressive!

slowbike

Simon Masterson wrote:

That 'Green Service' almost makes me angry. £30 to do what you ought to be doing anyway!? No way. That's as bad as paying them to fix a puncture. If you aren't doing every single one of those tasks routinely, you shouldn't be riding your bike.

kinda agree with your take on the £30 service - it does look like it's a "nominal" fee for a check and clean of the bike.

I took my bike in for a basic service last month - not because I couldn't do the jobs - but because I didn't have time to do the work.
They checked and regreased everything that needed it, replaced the chain and cassette and replaced the rear gear cable that had frayed... brake blocks were fine - I don't use brakes!
By the time I'd faffed about ordering the bits and getting messy trying to do it myself it was easier and quicker just to get them to do it.

simon_masterson

Slowbike wrote:

Simon Masterson wrote:

That 'Green Service' almost makes me angry. £30 to do what you ought to be doing anyway!? No way. That's as bad as paying them to fix a puncture. If you aren't doing every single one of those tasks routinely, you shouldn't be riding your bike.

kinda agree with your take on the £30 service - it does look like it's a "nominal" fee for a check and clean of the bike.

I took my bike in for a basic service last month - not because I couldn't do the jobs - but because I didn't have time to do the work.
They checked and regreased everything that needed it, replaced the chain and cassette and replaced the rear gear cable that had frayed... brake blocks were fine - I don't use brakes!
By the time I'd faffed about ordering the bits and getting messy trying to do it myself it was easier and quicker just to get them to do it.

Yes, that's fair enough. A few months ago I killed my freewheel (completely; not just worn) and needed the bike for the end of the week so I could ride it to a Scout event, and because it's my main bike. I don't own a freewheel tool. I know someone who does, but there wasn't time to take the bike round, so I put it in for repair. In the end I paid just over £30 all told; parts (including a new chain) included, so they didn't exactly rob me!!

NITR8s

Gizmodo wrote:

This is taken from my LBS web site:

Green Service £30

General visual inspection of cycle Brake check inspection and adjustment Gear check indexing and chain lubrication Skewer check quick release tightened Wheel & Tyre check - correct pressure, signs of wear or damage Pedal check - tightened and greased Bolt check - including crank bolts All bikes are returned clean

Polka dot Service £50 - The above plus:

Drive chain - full inspection, lubrication and adjustment Bottom Bracket - inspect for wear (including re-threading if necessary) Wheel Check - remove, check and lubricate bearings/hubs (if necessary), check spoke tension and true Frame - check for wear and damage Headset - check and tighten Cables - check for wear and damage, replace if necessary

Yellow Service £75 - All of the above plus:

Fork Check - remove, check, lubricate and re-fit Headset - remove, check, lubricate and re-fit Replace cables and outers

So essentially if you bike is ok for the yellow service you are paying £75.00 for them to change the cables and just look at the bike. Complete rip off if you ask me.

mamba80

www.parktool.com will cover every job your likely to come across.

Back to those service descriptions - many of them like "pedal tighten and grease & Cables - check for wear and damage, replace if necessary" are pretty meaningless - like how would you know if they did them or not?
Bikes are really simple, tools are cheap and as for not having the time, well, in most cases, by the time you get the bike to shop and then collect it again - hang around waiting to be seen etc - you could do it all your self and know it was done properly.

ianbar

i have been trying to learn how all everything works, i had been doing a build to teach myself that. i was intending to take her in after my sportive on sunday but instead i will try checking her myself of friday when i prep her for the ride.

slowbike

NITR8s wrote:

So essentially if you bike is ok for the yellow service you are paying £75.00 for them to change the cables and just look at the bike. Complete rip off if you ask me.

It's only a "rip off" if you're not capable of doing it yourself ...

As for the term "rip off" ...
How much do you think it costs to have someone in an LBS standing there waiting for bikes to check/service?

Then you've got the space required to do a service - this is dead space if they're not servicing - but still needs to be paid for in rent/rates + heat & lighting.

And you've got the tools to enable you to service the bikes - these may wear out/break/go missing from time to time - and you want to make sure you've got the right one so you don't damage the clients bike!

How long does it take to do the servicing? Remember - if they're servicing it then they are liable for mistakes they make - so there will be an insurance risk element as well as a slightly extended time to ensure they've done everything they should do and done it right ...

On top of that you've got profit - the owner/proprietor needs to earn a living - in an LBS they're not doing this in their spare time - its a business - so even if you have got some oik out from school on minimum wage doing the donkey work then you've got to think about covering overheads in that margin to enable the business to continue ...

Whilst a lot of us are quite capable of doing the service at significantly less cost than the LBS I believe you're not attaching a value to the time/tools/space required for you to do the work.
Of course it is eventually cheaper to do the work yourself and I would always recommend a rider learns the basics of maintenance - especially simple stuff like changing a tube/tyre! - but at the end of the day, if you're new to riding, have an expensive ride or just don't have the time then the LBS can provide a suitable service at reasonable cost - and it seems there is a market for such checks.

Speaking to one LBS owner they have ppl bring wheels in to change the tube because they had a puncture at the weekend and rather than change it themselves it was easiest to get a lift home ... that smacks to me of an example of "all the gear and no idea" riders who buy £2k bikes for no other reason than they have cash to burn - I can't really complain as its "idiots" (they're not idiots - they're the ones with 2k to burn - not me!) like that who help keep LBS's in business ...

slowbike

ianbar wrote:

i have been trying to learn how all everything works, i had been doing a build to teach myself that. i was intending to take her in after my sportive on sunday but instead i will try checking her myself of friday when i prep her for the ride.

Ok - quick questions - how long have you had the bike and roughly how many miles has it done (on it's current chain/cassette)? You may need to measure the chain for stretch as they do wear out.
Have you noticed any niggling issues with the bike recently? Is it squeaking more than normal?
I assume you're ok at changing a tube and pumping up to pressure ... have you checked the tyres over for damage/debris?

A good clean, degrease, re-lube then polish is part of my basic prep.
If the gears need adjusting then I tend to do that as and when it occurs.
Brake pads are easy to check - just see how much meat they've got left on them - if low then replace.
Check the rims on the wheels - they often have a wear indicator - if you've changed your brake pads a few times then the rims may be low - but they're usually ok.

I've not got into re-greasing hubs or bottom brackets yet - don't know if it needs it - but as the crank turns ok and wheels feel fine then I'll leave it for now!
Nothing else seems to rattle so it shouldn't need tightening ..

Last thing I do before a big ride is ensure I've got all the kit I expect to have ... especially if you keep it in a saddlebag on the bike as you probably don't check it often and sods law says bits will go missing!

ianbar

i have had the bike about a year now, ad there are a few niggles. she certainly isn't shifting correctly but havnt fettled at all yet to narrow the issue down.there is some noise coming i think from the front, don't know if thats headset/bearing issue? milage well probably up to 2000 now don't know if thats a lot for wear to occur?
yeah I'm fine with brake and tyre checks and they seem fine to me.

thegreatdivide

At the end of October I’m getting my bike stripped, rebuilt and a full service done on the Super Record groupset for £90. I’m happy to pay this for such a detailed service.

slowbike

ianbar wrote:

i have had the bike about a year now, ad there are a few niggles. she certainly isn't shifting correctly but havnt fettled at all yet to narrow the issue down.there is some noise coming i think from the front, don't know if thats headset/bearing issue? milage well probably up to 2000 now don't know if thats a lot for wear to occur?
yeah I'm fine with brake and tyre checks and they seem fine to me.

Shifting - may just need the barrel adjustments - might be more though (I'm no expert!)
Noise coming from the front - front bearing ? Take the front wheel off and just spin it and hold onto the axle (not the quick release!) if it's grumbling a lot then the bearings need attention ...
With the front wheel in, apply the front brake and push the bike forward - it shouldn't rock - if it does then something in the headtube needs adjustment - in my case it was just the bar needing adjustment ..
Mileage up to 2k - prob need new chain & cassette by now - mine after 1700 needed that - but it depends how you've looked after it...

ianbar

thank you for that advice, i do think i could do with a new cassette thankfully i have one that is on another wheel for use on the turbo so will probably swap that over. i will have a look and try those moves out. thanks again