Taking over the bike shop...

[CharlesF]

What I enjoy about @Andy in Germany is the threads and posts are positive and uplifting; you’re helping more than your physical clients😁

 

[Andy in Germany]

I've been drawing again: I need to make a new plan for the workshop because it was thrown together and the current layout wastes a lot of space. It also encourages people to claim different parts of the room and dump bikes or other items in different corners.

The basic idea is to keep the workbenches around two sides of the room so there's more space for moving bikes into and out of the workshop, while moving my desk next to my repair stand on the window end of the workshop.

I'm also aiming to make the store lockable and organise it better so people coming in for the first time can find what they need quickly, we've improved this: it no longer takes half an hour to find a spare part, but we need to improve it more so it's more professional.

 

[Andy in Germany]

(Cross posting from the "What have you fettled today?" thread; I thought you may appreciate a glimpse into my slightly loony workplace...)

Back to work today, quite how I managed to get this job is still a bit startling to me, but I'm not complaining.

I did complain about the first bike though. It was a Victoria city bike called a Baden Baden and it looked in good condition; I don't know if Victoria are known in the UK; they make mid to upper middle range city bikes so I thought this wouldn't be too much trouble. The list of "Extras" included changing the brake blocks front and rear, pumping up the tyres and turning the rear tyre because it was on backwards.

Blocks changed the front V-Brake was looking lopsided, a turn of the wheel revealed that the wheel had so much buckle it could be a pair of boots. It took a long time and some swearing until I managed to get it to submit to laws of physics so I could reset the brakes.

Then I pumped up the tyre; the inner tube exploded. B*gg*r. Dropped wheel, looked for new inner tube with the same valve, checked wheel and tyre, fitted tube, pumped, bang. On inspection both had popped on a seam on the inside of the tube. I recall this has happened before so it could be the trouble was the batch of inner tunes, which could be quite old for all I know.

Okay then, different tubes, but that would mean a different valve type, so I'd have to change the back wheel to match; not the end of the world as I needed to swap the tyre. Found a pair of car valve tubes, and to be on the safe side, some rim tape. Mount tube, mount tyre, wheel back on.

Go to back tyre; it's a Sram hub gear because nothing can be simple with this bike. Unscrew bolts, drop innards of Sram on floor, retrieve, put in tray.

Colleague calls from the till, a customer has a question she can't answer. to till and back.

Remove tyre from wheel, swap inner tube, wheel back in droppers, pulling to tension chain with some difficulty, phone rings, It's my colleague at the till again: another customer has a question.

Wheel back on floor, go and sort customer out, back to wheel. Beginning to feel like Basil Fawlty.

Wheel back in droppers, tension, tighten, chain inexplicably slack, repeat. Works second time.

Set brakes, set gears, wonder of wonders I haven't lost any of the bits and they work first time. Time for test ride.

On cue it starts to rain, very heavily.

Test ride delayed to Monday, in the meantime fix an elderly Diamondback which goes surprisingly well. Knowing where all the tools are is a great help. Admittedly I knew some of them were at my apartment, but that's entirely my own fault for not ordering replacements for my tools...

It was a good holiday, but I'm glad to be back...

 

[Elybazza61]

(Cross posting from the "What have you fettled today?" thread; I thought you may appreciate a glimpse into my slightly loony workplace...)

Back to work today, quite how I managed to get this job is still a bit startling to me, but I'm not complaining.

I did complain about the first bike though. It was a Victoria city bike called a Baden Baden and it looked in good condition; I don't know if Victoria are known in the UK; they make mid to upper middle range city bikes so I thought this wouldn't be too much trouble. The list of "Extras" included changing the brake blocks front and rear, pumping up the tyres and turning the rear tyre because it was on backwards.

Blocks changed the front V-Brake was looking lopsided, a turn of the wheel revealed that the wheel had so much buckle it could be a pair of boots. It took a long time and some swearing until I managed to get it to submit to laws of physics so I could reset the brakes.

Then I pumped up the tyre; the inner tube exploded. B*gg*r. Dropped wheel, looked for new inner tube with the same valve, checked wheel and tyre, fitted tube, pumped, bang. On inspection both had popped on a seam on the inside of the tube. I recall this has happened before so it could be the trouble was the batch of inner tunes, which could be quite old for all I know.

Okay then, different tubes, but that would mean a different valve type, so I'd have to change the back wheel to match; not the end of the world as I needed to swap the tyre. Found a pair of car valve tubes, and to be on the safe side, some rim tape. Mount tube, mount tyre, wheel back on.

Go to back tyre; it's a Sram hub gear because nothing can be simple with this bike. Unscrew bolts, drop innards of Sram on floor, retrieve, put in tray.

Colleague calls from the till, a customer has a question she can't answer. to till and back.

Remove tyre from wheel, swap inner tube, wheel back in droppers, pulling to tension chain with some difficulty, phone rings, It's my colleague at the till again: another customer has a question.

Wheel back on floor, go and sort customer out, back to wheel. Beginning to feel like Basil Fawlty.

Wheel back in droppers, tension, tighten, chain inexplicably slack, repeat. Works second time.

Set brakes, set gears, wonder of wonders I haven't lost any of the bits and they work first time. Time for test ride.

On cue it starts to rain, very heavily.

Test ride delayed to Monday, in the meantime fix an elderly Diamondback which goes surprisingly well. Knowing where all the tools are is a great help. Admittedly I knew some of them were at my apartment, but that's entirely my own fault for not ordering replacements for my tools...

It was a good holiday, but I'm glad to be back...

That first bike sounds familiar

Hopefully that SRAM hub and shifter are still working.

 

[Andy in Germany]

That first bike sounds familiar

Hopefully that SRAM hub and shifter are still working.

Test ride tomorrow; I'll find out then.

At the moment dodgy SRAM hubs are being sent to the back of the queue, when I've got a lot of bikes ready for sale and things have calmed down a bit I'll allocate a day to sit down with them and a couple of Youtube videos to get proficient in their maintenance.

 

[Andy in Germany]

This is one of those "What do I do with this?" moments...

I've just taken a BB of a bike, it's an older cartridge type and it's loose so needs replacing. Obviously I'd rather use a salvaged unit than order a new one so I pull out the BB box. Here it is:

I'm not sure what to do with this. As you can see all the cups are mixed up, not paired with the BB units, and of course they're all different sizes. I found a BB with a cartridge and spindle the correct length, one cup that is tight, and a couple that are a bit loose.

Question is, is it really worth keeping this lot? I'm loathe to throw them away but at the moment it seems a bit pointless to keep them unless I can get someone to go through the lot and reunite the cones with the cartridges. Part of me thinks it would be simpler to chuck them and tell the salvage team to make sure the BB's are at least bagged, and build up a new store.

 

[HobbesOnTour]

Management time

Question is, is it really worth keeping this lot? I'm loathe to throw them away but at the moment it seems a bit pointless to keep them unless I can get someone to go through the lot and reunite the cones with the cartridges.

Do you have a better use of your time? You probably do.
Does someone else have time to spare?
Maybe pass it back to the salvage team then instigate the new "bag the BB" system?

But I'd probably do this.....

tell the salvage team to make sure the BB's are at least bagged, and build up a new store.

Use the box as an example to demonstrate the problem then ask for solutions. If no-one comes up with the "BB in a bag" then suggest it yourself.
Everyone is involved and it's a solid (although single) sign of a change.

If no good home is available for the old ones celebrate the solving of a problem and the finding of a solution with a "grand disposal".

 

[Andy in Germany]

Management time


Do you have a better use of your time? You probably do.
Does someone else have time to spare?
Maybe pass it back to the salvage team then instigate the new "bag the BB" system?

But I'd probably do this.....

Use the box as an example to demonstrate the problem then ask for solutions. If no-one comes up with the "BB in a bag" then suggest it yourself.
Everyone is involved and it's a solid (although single) sign of a change.

If no good home is available for the old ones celebrate the solving of a problem and the finding of a solution with a "grand disposal".

If you pass by here @HobbesOnTour I hope you have time for a coffee; we think the same way.

I'll see the salvage team (current membership: 1) and have a chat: I'm willing to bet he'll think of the idea himself with a little "help".

Meanwhile the bike in question will be put in the "under repair" bay alonside the MTB with hydraulic brakes I'm avoiding.

 

[HobbesOnTour]

If you pass by here @HobbesOnTour I hope you have time for a coffee; we think the same way.

Thanks, @Andy in Germany . I've often thought some of my inputs have peed you off - maybe the coffee is for over my head?

I won't be passing by too soon (too darn cold up there!) but there'll be killings if I don't visit Germany at some stage so hang on in there - I've a bike in need of TLC

As always, the best of luck to you.

 

[Gunk]

Question is, is it really worth keeping this lot? I'm loathe to throw them away but at the moment it seems a bit pointless to keep them unless I can get someone to go through the lot and reunite the cones with the cartridges.

You’re obviously time poor, faffing about with a load of mixed spares is a complete waste of your time.

If a BB is worn out, fit and charge the customer for a brand new one.

 

[Jameshow]

I'm not sure if your set up but do you not have a volunteer to match up the BB and check the bearings?

 

[Andy in Germany]

I'm not sure if your set up but do you not have a volunteer to match up the BB and check the bearings?

I hadn't thought of it that way before because my clients technically have to come or they would have their benefits reduced, but in terms of skill level, I guess they are effectively "volunteers"; certainly the remaining client is mainly tidying up now.

I'm aloso increasingly sending bikes I judge not worth repairing back to the other centre in the next town to be pulled apart, now that the sorting system is working rather better than before. It's remarkable what turning up regularly to collect parts has done for morale there, as well as encouraging the team and getting them tools.

 

[Andy in Germany]

You’re obviously time poor, faffing about with a load of mixed spares is a complete waste of your time.

If a BB is worn out, fit and charge the customer for a brand new one.

I've sorted the complete sets and the rest are on the way to the Can Factory. I'm learning that our organisation will if anything have to be more careful than a "normal" shop; for example BB's will need to be divided into type and if possible barrel length, so that we only have to check the spindles to know what we have; otherwise we're going to waste a lot of time digging.

 

[Andy in Germany]

I'm currently working out where most of the time is lost so we can be more productive. At the moment the main issues are:

1: Inexperience on my part and the clients. I can do basic repairs on the most common bikes but when something new comes up like the SRAM Klickbox last week, it slows me down while I work out exactly how to deal with them. This will improve as I come across new problems and learn new methods, but it means I need to be strategic about which bikes I select to repair so that I have a steady supply of bikes for sale.

2: Missing parts. This is improving as I sort out the stores. Next week we'll hopefully know if we can stay in the current location or if we need to move to a new one, which in turn will mean we know if we can invest in things like shelves. At the moment everything is still fairly provisional, so although most parts are accessible there's still a lot of time wasted searching.

3: Missing and defective tools. This will also be largely dealt with if I can organise the workshop better but it's still a time sink; I've got my regular tools sorted out but more specialised tools are in a mess of drawers and boxes, and a mix of bought and donated items in varying states of quality and repair. That issue will take longer because of cost; the main goal is to keep communicating it up the management levels so they are aware of it.

4: The need to work elsewhere in the organisation. There's some discussion about how many hours I can work in the bike repairs and how much I should e working elsewhere, with other clients in the general sorting, and in necessary covering the tills et c. From experience I can work five hours solidly on bikes before my concentration lapses, leaving three hours potentially for other things, so I'm hoping I'll be able to limit it to that for the time being. (I'll probably say six and two as a negotiating starting point).

As an aside I could get that last point to work in my favour because we've opened a Bistro and I'd like to get some experience on that for my long term goals, so I'll push that a bit when we discuss it...

 

[DRM]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Toyota_Way
Have a read through the above, it’s a bit long winded but ultimately it could really help to organise your workshop, especially the 5 S side of things, which is what you’ve made a start on already, namely

• Sort: Sort out unneeded items
• Straighten: Have a place for everything
• Shine: Keep the area clean
• Standardize: Create rules and standard operating procedures
• Sustain: Maintain the system and continue to improve it.
  I think that it will ultimately help you and your clients as it’s a way of helping them to be more organised too, but from what I’ve read already you’re on the right track with this and I wish you all the best with the bike workshop.