Back to the LBS after 650 miles...

AdamJ

So the CAADX 2014 Sora I got for winter just two months ago has had to be taken back to the shop for 3 reasons:

1: Rear bearings are very rough, when spun by hand on the QR it feels horrible and doesnt roll too well
2: Chain snapped - it had one different link from the rest ( i think a powerlink?) and i think this failed
3: the front chainring rubs a bit against the deraileiur in the highest gear


I assumed no.3 was just an indexing issue which i couldnt fix too easily so left it at that, nothing major. However I am most concerned at the bearings going so quickly. the rubber cone came off very easily and the inside was filled with gunk which i removed and packed with grease to see if that helped, as i dont have the tools to open it fully.
Having the chain snap when plodding along a flat road at 15mph was a bit concerning.

When i took it in (evans cycles) they seemed to suggest i was at fault, probably to avoid fixing it under warranty - such as saying my degreaser has destroyed the bearings and asked if i had changed the chainring/crank since i got it. Also picked up on my new brake pads which were close to the rim - how i like it - as if that could have been a factor. The main point was to check my chain for stretch and wear (i have ridden another bike for over 1,500 miles before needing to change chain/cassette).
Is it something different between cross bikes in particular to road bikes im unaware of? I was hoping to do a 1,000 mile tour this coming year with some wide slick tyres but this has knocked my confidence in the bike a little.

Im going to stand my ground here but i could do with another perspective - what are they likely to come back with and how do i make sure they can fix these faults or help me out in any way without taking me for a ride?

ugo.santalucia

The thing is at budget level you can't expect components to last forever and if you use your bike off road, components wear, especially bearings and chains. I think you are being unrealistic.
If I was them, I would index your FD and fix your chain, but the bearing is tear and wear

AdamJ

Yeah I completely understand - but I have been riding on roads and paved cycle lanes! I have experienced about 2 hours riding in the rain but other than that been pretty lucky as my car is too tempting when the weather turns ugly

meanredspider

ugo.santalucia wrote:

but the bearing is tear and wear

Why do you think that, Ugo?

ugo.santalucia

meanredspider wrote:

ugo.santalucia wrote:

but the bearing is tear and wear

Why do you think that, Ugo?

It's a budget setup and bearings are budget too... I don't think these days the average wheel set fitted as standard on a sub 1K bike is worth more than 20 quid at trade price.

tgotb

Depends totally on what sort of riding you've been doing, and what sort of cleaning/maintenance.

My road and TT bikes will go hundreds and hundreds of miles without so much as a cable adjustment, but the bearings on my CX bikes can be full of mud after a single race (which, even including course inspections and warmup is probably less than 10 miles per bike). I'm not sure I've ever used a CX chain for more than a few hundred miles, and even then I'm taking it off the bike and cleaning it very thoroughly indeed after every muddy ride.

ravey1981

I would agree with Ugo, chain and indexing are a simple job so they should really do that, they might charge for a power link but fair enough, chains do snap after all.

You could service the hub yourself, its just a cup and cone type hub as far as the internet tells me. Pull apart, clean, regrease, put back together again. The tutorial below is for shimano hubs, I believe the c4 is a rebranded formula hub but the process will be very similar if not the same. Mending bikes is fun, don't pay for it to be done unless its something that needs specialist knowledge or tools.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opommUR ... freload=10

meanredspider

ugo.santalucia wrote:

It's a budget setup and bearings are budget too... I don't think these days the average wheel set fitted as standard on a sub 1K bike is worth more than 20 quid at trade price.

I suppose - but 650 miles seems very poor by anybody's standards.

ugo.santalucia

meanredspider wrote:

ugo.santalucia wrote:

It's a budget setup and bearings are budget too... I don't think these days the average wheel set fitted as standard on a sub 1K bike is worth more than 20 quid at trade price.

I suppose - but 650 miles seems very poor by anybody's standards.

Rough doesn't mean it doesn't work... they are agricultural bearings and will keep rolling... if you want smooth cup and cone bearings you have to go all the way to Ultegra as even 105 sometimes don't last at all.

AdamJ

I would give it a go fixing myself but thought I would test the warranty

Stupid question - it's an 8 speed chain, I don't "need" a special link do I? Would prefer to have a standard complete chain, I have no intention of racing cross in the near future

ugo.santalucia

8 speed chains cost 6-7 pounds... I bought some at CRC last year... not worth fixing, just get a new one

veronese68

Nothing wrong with a split link, get a couple of KMC ones and carry a spare in case your chain brakes on a ride.

AdamJ

Great stuff thankyou

slowbike

Just a quick q. The rear wheel bearings - spinning on the quick release?
You don't spin the wheel on the quick release - you hold the threaded bit that sits in the frame - the quick release just clamps the frame to the hub.
I'm hoping I just misunderstood what you wrote.

AdamJ

Yeah that's what I meant

slowbike

Good!

Bearings - I took my front wheel back after 1 month and had it swapped for a new one. I had undone the hub first and found very wet sludge inside - no (or very little) grease - so it had got very wet during my January commutes. Specialized/LBS swapped the wheel without fuss.

These mass produced cheap wheels are not always built correctly and it can take a little while to show up where they've gone wrong - within 2 months you don't have to prove that it was faulty at point of sale, it is assumed to be. Beyond 6 months (iirc!) then the balance of probability flips and you'd then have to "prove" that it was a manufacturing fault.
Normally I'd suggest bearings are a wear and tear item, but 2 months, 650 miles - its not a lot, especially if you haven't been out in rubbish weather or jetwashing the bike/bearings.
Bearings do need servicing, but not that soon - the LBS should replace the wheel under warranty - and it's their responsibility, not the bike manufacturer.

AdamJ

Turns out after a severe lack of contact from Evans cycles they finally gt the bike back to me. Having try to accuse me of basically poor maintenance it turns out the chain was not stretched and they fitted it back with a new link. They didn't Ben bother with the front chainring, just said ta something to deal with which I'm sure won't be a problem. As for the rear wheel they blamed my degreaser for drying out the hub, but serviced it (not 100%) but good enough, and gave me it back free of charge.

ugo.santalucia

AdamJ wrote:

As for the rear wheel they blamed my degreaser for drying out the hub

Do you use a degreaser at all?

AdamJ

I used a bio friendly one from wiggle 2 or 3 times on the cassette and chain, it's not bothered my other bike though. Can't remember the name it was from wiggle