LBS Gear Setup Damage to Frame - Options

Marvinman

So I will try to be brief but:

- I took a brand new frameset and groupset to a local LBS to be built up - they supplied various parts and were happy they had everything they needed. They could not supply the frameset, supplied various parts anyway (rear mech/chain/cables etc...) and were very happy to work in this way;

- After collecting it the chain has repeatedly dropped causing pretty ugly paint damage in and around the BB. First time up I thought it was a simple dropped chain - second time of being stranded with chain trapped between the frame and chainset I took it back;

- LBS is saying I could get the paint fixed for a charge by a third party. They have changed the (previously new) gear cables and say they cannot now make the chain drop off. LBS has now said they think it is to do with compatibility of chainset (FSA) with the shimano setup. I have checked with FSA who have said that there should be no compatibility issue and various review sites all confirm that it is compatible with my Shimano setup - to me it sounds like an excuse;

Is it unreasonable to expect that the LBS should pick up the cost of repairing the damage. Appreciate I will need to show it is a setup issue but if their poor initial setup has caused this problem should they simply just wash their hands of it?

burnthesheep

Did they supply all of the following and did all of the following match?
-both mechs
-gear change cables and sheathing
-cassette
-crankset
-chain

Also, did they ever recommend something you didn't go with? Like they recommended chain X but you said to use chain Y?

What I'm getting at is if you went with everything they said, and then they did the work, I would expect them to work out the repair.

Why? For a bike not used off road or in cyclocross or something rough, a dropped chain should NEVER be a part of having a brand new and modern road bike.

Did it drop while changing gears?

Marvinman

LBS was happy all parts matched and would work together. I followed their recommendations and none of the parts identified as being faulty. chain dropped on each occasion whilst changing gears on the road.

Seems like they are happy to try and find various other people to blame. Initially shifters could be faulty, then not shifters but chainset, then not chainset and changed cables/adjusted setup and fit chain catcher.

I've satisfied myself they are at fault. Whether they do anything about it remains to be seen, but the new summer bike at circa £7K I was planning to buy from them is being sourced elsewhere if that attitude remains.

fenix

Bikes will get scratched in use. A dab of touch up paint on the BB should really suffice but I'd not lose sleep over some scratches that you can't see when you're riding.

crankycrank

This is a tough one to determine for me. Ideally you should have brought the bike back for an adjustment after the first chain drop as the shop can claim you continued to use it while not working properly. Of course it should have been set up properly to begin with but it's also normal for bikes to sometimes need a few tweeks after putting a few miles in. A good shop would fix the problem for you but I'm not sure they are liable. You could mention the fact that you're planning on buying another bike there to "encourage" them to fix it but if they don't go elsewhere. Really you should learn how to do the adjustments yourself. Not that difficult and may save you plenty of headaches in the future plus there are tons of videos and how-to websites explaining how to fix/maintain just about anything on your bike.

Marvinman

Thanks for replies:

- Whether bikes get scratched up naturally doesn't really excuse a faulty setup which causes damage;

- I know how to adjust gearing and set up my bikes; that's not really the point. This goes above and beyond with the chain jamming solid between the frame and chainset whilst riding resulting in the need to remove the whole crankset and refit. First chain drop was considered unfortunate, the second identified a more serious issue. The attitude of blaming anything other than their workmanship is the most unfortunate part.

Anyway I've now decided what I'm going to do going forwards on this.

Monty Dog

I'm going to hazard a bit of 'user error' on behalf of the OP by forcing shifts under load which would explain how the chain got jammed - you need to back-off the pressure on the pedals and all the gear mechs, ramps and pins on the chainrings to do their work - pressing down on the pedals whilst shifting simply pulls the chain off the chainring. Fortunately the damage isn't permanent - get some touch-up paint and a stick-on chainstay protector and put it down to experience.

svetty

Marvinman wrote:

....After collecting it the chain has repeatedly dropped ........

Marvinman wrote:

.... I know how to adjust gearing and set up my bikes......

So after it happened once or twice you didn't think to use your expertise to rectify the issue to prevent 'repeated' occurrences' ?

:roll: :roll:

dj58

After this happened once, I would have checked the high and low limit adjustments and fitted a chain catcher to stop that happening in the future.

gary1960

As someone has said put it down to experience. Its frustrating to see damage but the first dropped chain would cause me to review what happened. My dropped chain incidents have invariably been user error, incorrect choice of gears causing poor chain line springs to mind.
Regards
Gary