Cracked Paint

[Keith]

Hi All

Bit of a newbie so hope this isn't a silly question.

I am in my 30's and haven't really cycled since I was a teenager, and in an effort to keep fit when I can't get to the gym and also for a bit of recreation, the wife and I both went out last week and bought ourselves a Raleigh mountain bike each.

To cut a long story short, when I was putting them together, I was tightening the seat on the wife's bike and the paint around the top of the seat tube cracked and some flaked off - maybe a half cm tall piece which went about half way round the tube. This happened before the seat was fully tightened (it still rotated) so I didn't overtighten it, and it didn't happen when I put mine together.

The frame is aluminium (I think!) so not going to rust, but I am concerned more paint could flake off now it has an edge as it were.

Is it worth taking it back to the shop and complaining about? Are they likely to change it for something that could be classed as cosmetic? Or should I just stick some tape around it?

Thanks in advance

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Hi there. Do you actually mean cracked or do you mean scratched.

Cracked paint work is 'usually' a sign of metal strain / damage and should be taken seriously. If you thik the paint is cracking take the bike back as the chances are it is NOT cosmetic.

OTOH - Scuffed or scratched paintwork is a pain but is indicative of nothing more than an accident.

 

[mickle]

Warranty! Take it back.

 

[youngoldbloke]

Was the seat pin very loose when you were adjusting the saddle? It should be a good, not easy, sliding fit, with no sign of sideways movement. It is possible that the seat pin/s were the wrong diameter (too small) for the frame/s, and the inevitable overtightening resulted in paint flaking as the tube flexed more than it should. (It happened to me some years ago, when I bought a mail order MTB for one of my young sons). +1 - take them back - it shouldn't happen.

 

[accountantpete]

I agree - take it back as it may be indicative of a poor paint job.

I use hammeright to cover paint flakes and prevent them from developing further - gently sand down 1/4 " of the good paintwork around the flake and then apply the hammeright over the sanded area and the flake.

 

[Keith]

Hi everyone, and thanks for all the replies.

What actually happened was some paint cracked and flaked away.

Seat going into tube seemed about right - not too tight, not too loose. It was fairly tight but still able to rotate the seat (although was stiff) when I noticed it. Tightened a little bit more before seat was firm and wouldn't rotate.

I am going to take it back I think as although it could just be bad paint work and cosmetic, it is brand new and like you all say, shouldn't have happened. It also needs some adjustments to the gears, but I will post this in another thread so as not to go off-topic.

 

[mickle]

Might I also say that British Standard legislation which allows a retailer sell an unassembled bike to an unqualified newbie is a cocking shambles.

It takes Spandex or me 45 to 60 minutes to PDI a bike.

 

[Keith]

They offered to assemble it but after a discussion about how difficult it was I decided I could do it myself. Only "assembly" required was handlebars, pedals, seat and front wheel on. To be honest, anyone who is competant with an allen key and spanner could do it.

I agree about the adjustments though to brakes, gears etc. which are a little baffling it has to be said, but the shop told me to take it back it we got stuck or needed anything sorting and they would sort it out for us no problem at all, so that is what I am going to do with the gear problem we are having.

 

[mickle]

It obviously wasn't given a pre-delivery inspection and then replaced in the box because they would have adjusted the gears and discovered the flaky paint. Some of the set-up problems I had with the fleet of Raleighs I inherited when I started this job included; wheels which required re-dishing, drop-outs which required cold setting, bent hangers and a total nightmare with a whole batch of tyres blowing off the rims. If the drop-outs aren't parallel the rear wheel axle will eventually fail. And you'll keep on breaking axles until the drop-outs are sorted.

I'm not having a go Keith, I just think that it's outrageous that shops are allowed to sell a bike without a full PDI.