Perfect end to a perfect day

[abo]

Well, I know I should have moaned at them sooner...

The latest chapter is that I finally managed to get the gears aligned, but while up on my home-made stand I noticed the rear wheel seemed a bit loose. I was sure I'd done it up right when I had the wheel off the other day so I got a 15mm spanner, put it on the nut and yes, they were done up tight.

The cones are loose and the wheel is rocking about like mad. I've done 105 recorded mile plus a few short (less than half a mile) trips to the shop. Definately less than 125 miles.

So it is currently back in Halfords. Until Saturday, waiting on a straightforward job. That is the soonest they say they can do it, despite telling my tale of woe to the store manager. Not happy obviously, so I phoned their 'customer service' number who said they would phone the store but weren't hopeful they would be able to speed it up as the time I was given really would be the earliest it could be done as jobs have to take their place at the back of the queue.

Too busy building bikes for new customers to sort out an existing one it seems, who'd have thunk it?

The girl on the phone said I would be called back today. If this doesn't happen, or the response is anything other than 'it will be fixed tomorrow' I'll be writing an actual physical letter to their CE David Wild telling him what has happened and requesting a full refund on everything bike-related I have bought from Halfords (I'll let them off the helmet though).

I know people have advised this before but I gotta fess up the bike was a present; ok I chose it but someone else paid for it and I couldn't be arsed with dragging them down the shop with their card to sort out refunds etc. but right now I'm just pissed off with the fact that almost every time I want to ride the bike I've got to either adjust something (ok I know they need adjusting...) or something is broken.

I wouldn't care, when it is working I actually really, really enjoy riding it

Oh, and if the guy from Stockton Wheelers is reading this, your thumbs up on Oxbridge Avenue when I hung back and gave you a nice wide pass cheered me up on my drive back from Halfrauds

 

[abo]

Oh and guess what? No call back, just as expected... Letter to CEO in the morning for sure.

 

[Globalti]

Why don't you just learn to fix the bike yourself? A monkey in a shop with all the distractions of customers, phone calls, music, colleagues etc. is never going to do a good job; it needs time to understand the problem, fix it then take steps to ensure it doesn't happen again.

Read Zen and the Art or Motorcycle Maintenance and you'll understand about the importance of quality work. You do not get Quality from a Halfrauds mechanic.

Once you've bought the tools and learned how to fix the bike you will never suffer the frustration of waiting for somebody else and you will be able to repair the bike if anything happens out on the road.

 

[BrumJim]

Get an LBS to do it for you, and get Halfords to pay for the work?

 

[Globalti]

This is a typical problem with a nutted axle. The locknut has not been tightened sufficiently onto the cone and the cone has unscrewed enough to allow the wheel to wobble.

The simple answer is to remove the wheel, remove the main nuts and sit down quietly with a set of cone spanners and learn how to adjust the cones. The only difficulty is that often, when you tighten the thin locknut the adjustment of the cone is affected and the bearings end up too tight or too loose. With time, patience and a little experimentation you will soon learn to position the cone in such a way that tightening the locknut brings everything into the perfect adjustment. With a new bike of the quality that has nutted axles this means that you shouldn't be able to feel any movement at the bearings and you should be able to feel just the beginnings of the slight roughness of the bearing races as you rotate the axle but there shouldn't be any resistance beyond the viscosity of the grease.

Once you have tightened that locknut up VERY tight you can replace the wheel, replace the axle nuts and tighten them progressively from both sides without fear of disturbing the adjustment of the bearing cones. Correctly adjusted and greased, cup and cone bearings will last for thousands of miles.

 

[abo]

Well... I am learning to fix the bike. There is no doubt in my mind I could fix this particular problem as with anything else that goes wrong (I know its a different discipline but six years for a motor racing team = some spanner skills) but the point is I shouldn't be having to sort the cones out yet, not with the duration and type of riding I've been doing. I popped into my LBS on the way down to dropping it off at Halfords and they were 'WTF, that shouldn't have happened!'

How can I put this without soundling like a nob: The point is, I *want* to make the trouble for Halfords. Their product/service/attitude is poor and they need to know it.

I wrote a formal letter to their Chief Exec this morning stating what had happened (three bikes in six weeks, crap quality etc.) what I'd bought from them (Apollo and Carrera bikes, new tyres, helmet and various other accessories) and what I feel Halfords should do to rectify the problem (full refund for the Apollo and all related purchases, or 'a no-cost upgrade to another make of bike (the make and model to be agreed under discussion').

TBH I just want the money so I can go elsewhere. I've not problem with getting the tools out, but I'd prefer to be working on something which isn't just falling to pieces underneath me...

 

[abo]

This is a typical problem with a nutted axle. The locknut has not been tightened sufficiently onto the cone and the cone has unscrewed enough to allow the wheel to wobble.

The simple answer is to remove the wheel, remove the main nuts and sit down quietly with a set of cone spanners and learn how to adjust the cones. The only difficulty is that often, when you tighten the thin locknut the adjustment of the cone is affected and the bearings end up too tight or too loose. With time, patience and a little experimentation you will soon learn to position the cone in such a way that tightening the locknut brings everything into the perfect adjustment. With a new bike of the quality that has nutted axles this means that you shouldn't be able to feel any movement at the bearings and you should be able to feel just the beginnings of the slight roughness of the bearing races as you rotate the axle but there shouldn't be any resistance beyond the viscosity of the grease.

Once you have tightened that locknut up VERY tight you can replace the wheel, replace the axle nuts and tighten them progressively from both sides without fear of disturbing the adjustment of the bearing cones. Correctly adjusted and greased, cup and cone bearings will last for thousands of miles.

Thanks for this, I can sort of visualise what you are saying about the locknut, lining it all up pre-tightening so it goes in nice and sweet, and doing each side a bit at a time is just like doing a cylinder head I guess, so that it gets tightened down evenly and doesn't go lop-sided.

Actually that spawns a question: you say do them up VERY tight; are there suggested torque settings for tightening various things on a bike?

 

[Globalti]

Yes, there's "tight" and there's "feck-off tight", an old English engineering term.

(In truth yes, there are torque settings but an experienced engineer has a feel for the elasticity of materials and shouldn't over-tighten things)

 

[abo]

LOL! Ok I get what you're saying

 

[Andy500]

This is a typical problem with a nutted axle. The locknut has not been tightened sufficiently onto the cone and the cone has unscrewed enough to allow the wheel to wobble.

The simple answer is to remove the wheel, remove the main nuts and sit down quietly with a set of cone spanners and learn how to adjust the cones. The only difficulty is that often, when you tighten the thin locknut the adjustment of the cone is affected and the bearings end up too tight or too loose. With time, patience and a little experimentation you will soon learn to position the cone in such a way that tightening the locknut brings everything into the perfect adjustment. With a new bike of the quality that has nutted axles this means that you shouldn't be able to feel any movement at the bearings and you should be able to feel just the beginnings of the slight roughness of the bearing races as you rotate the axle but there shouldn't be any resistance beyond the viscosity of the grease.

Once you have tightened that locknut up VERY tight you can replace the wheel, replace the axle nuts and tighten them progressively from both sides without fear of disturbing the adjustment of the bearing cones. Correctly adjusted and greased, cup and cone bearings will last for thousands of miles.

What a beautiful description

. Perfect explanation of how to do the job

.