How to work with a bike shop – will they teach me why my brake adjustment didn’t work

[rcannon100]

Which shops have their service areas up front where the customers come into the shop – and which shops have their service areas way in the back or downstairs??

A good shop has good service. Their assets, their capital, is their customers. There is no way to beat Amazon selling tubes. You beat Amazon by providing service.

So yes….. good wrenches will work with you and show you.

Just bring them lots of this: Wrenches love this:

And yes – I will plug my team’s shop. Bikenetic is FANTASTIC and the wrenches have many a time smacked me upsidethehead and shown me how to adjust a brake or a cable or a headtube. They get sick of me being in the store.

[streetsmarts]

Thanks!

[rcannon100]

You can also volunteer with Phoenix Bikes. Tuesday night is volunteer night. Two hours of bike building. Refurbishing um “vintage” bikes. No concerns about messing up a $2000 Bianche. Hone your skills and help Phoenix. There will be an experienced wrench there of whom you can ask questions.

I will say that Phoenix’s inventory right now is full (anyone need a great dual suspension mountain bike??) So last Tuesday night I just helped sort tools.

[streetsmarts]

Thanks so much. I am going to the “tear a bike apart” (!) All the Cycle Ladies workshop next week at Phoenix. I do live in Petworth now, so The Bike House coop (Petworth, starting in April) or Gearing Up are places I might look into – since they’re closer.

FYI I sent you a PM on here too.

[Birru]

@rcannon100 171612 wrote:

And yes – I will plug my team’s shop. Bikenetic is FANTASTIC and the wrenches have many a time smacked me upsidethehead and shown me how to adjust a brake or a cable or a headtube. They get sick of me being in the store.

I keep buying pie and they haven’t locked the doors on me yet.

[Harry Meatmotor]

from the perspective of a wrench: most of us don’t mind showing a customer how to walk thru simple things on a bike. brake adjustments would generally fall into the “simple” category. But bear in mind there’s kind of two ways that I will show folks how to do something.

The first is the “It’s okay, it’s only a bike” method. Often customers see the service side of a bike shop like the service side of a car dealership. I like to break down that barrier, if it helps the customer feel more confident as a bike owner/operator (hell, I want all of my customers to love their bike more than their car!). So, if a customer wants to know “how we adjust brakes,” I’ll show them in a way that tries to gloss over the idiosyncrasies and focuses on the simplicity of a bike in general. Bikes (for the most part) are beautifully simple machines, and I love when a customer has a small “eureka moment” when learning that a bike is not a thing that is better or worse than their capabilities as a home-mechanic, but rather, that they learn that the bike is something with which to be engaged. You don’t work ON a bike, you work WITH a bike. I’m trying to build trust that bike mechanics aren’t grumpy wizards, and we’re not the same as auto technicians in a lot of respects.

The second method is the “You can do this!” method. Here, I’ll focus on pitfalls and idiosyncrasies a little more because I don’t want a customer trying to adjust their brakes to completely fubar something because I gave them false hope that it’s stupid easy to fix anything on a bike. And that everything a shop wrench does is entirely replicable at home, for cheap/free and in a way that makes bike shops eventually die. I’ll often tell customers looking to do more home wrenching, “it’s one thing to fix something on a bike. It’s something else entirely to do so while making money.” Home wrenching is perfectly fine by me, but when it takes someone 3 hours to adjust a front derailleur and it still doesn’t shift well, one should start to question the value of their own time. ‘Cause, that fder adj. would usually only cost $15-20 at a shop. And, it’s the kind of job I’d generally be happy to do on the spot and show the customer that “it’s okay, it’s only a bike!” I might even do it for free if it helps convince a customer that bike shops are here for a good reason.

[Harry Meatmotor]

Oh! and we love beer and pie.

[ChampionTier]

@Harry Meatmotor 171641 wrote:

….the bike is something with which to be engaged. You don’t work ON a bike, you work WITH a bike.

Your post reminds me of a quote from Rollins (which I think was borrowed from Aristotle, I get confused)…”That which you work against will always work against you. That which you work with you will come to resemble”.

[anomad]

A good shop example. I was in a shop once when a young dude came in and dropped off a wheel with a flat tire to have it fixed. The mechanic/owner said “hey ‘kid’, when are you going to let me show you how to patch tubes so you can fix this yourself instead of buying a new tube and paying me to install it?” Did they go out of business for being so generous? No. They grew the shop so successfully it was purchased by a chain.

[streetsmarts]

OK I’m changing the question to be more broad:
Where did you learn your wrenching skills?
Paid class
Learned as a kid
YouTube
Friends
Bike Coop

Just curious (esp. for those who are not professional wrenches).

Thanks

[ShawnoftheDread]

I want to know why Bob’s adjusting his headtube.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Birru]

Got my “skills” from:

• Lurking here and on BikeForums
• The YouTube rabbithole
• Zinn & the Art of Road Bike Maintenance
• Asking everyone at Bikenetic lots of stupid Qs
• Park Tool’s tutorials

I usually try to tackle maintenance jobs at least once so I: 1) know how to do them; 2) know if they’re a huge PITA that I’d rather pay someone to do in the future. I also tend to skip tasks that require expensive, specialized tools.

[reji]

@Birru 172772 wrote:

• Asking everyone at Bikenetic lots of stupid Qs

^this. And lots of trial and error. Lots. I would try something, fail, then take it in and ask the pros to fix what I did wrong. It’s a good learning experience. Bringing some refreshing beverages is a good way to thank the pros, too.

[Birru]

@reji 172773 wrote:

Bringing some refreshing beverages is a good way to thank the pros, too.

Reminds me I only recently discovered Dominion Wine & Beer has a bar and sells 32oz can “crowlers.”

[Greenbelt]

I think Laura Murray is running a Park Tool School series of classes starting this Sunday evening. (Laura is Laurie’s head mechanic/service mgr). I will look for a link. It costs, though.

Here’s class for anyone inclined — I think there is a space or two available. Plus I agree with the hang around the shop method if you can’t afford a class — but be sure to bring snacks or beverages occasionally, and be sure to step out of the repair area if it’s busy (or, like, Summer).

Park Tool SchoolJan 21, 6:00pm – Mar 4, 8:00pmProteus Bicycles
9217 Baltimore Ave
College Park, MD 20740 MapUp your home maintenance game!

Join us this winter at Proteus Bicycles for Park Tool School– a bicycle repair and maintenance course designed specifically for the home mechanic. We will provide hands-on instruction for brake and shifting adjustments, wheel repair, bearing adjustments, plus other topics and pro-tips that will keep your bike running smoothly. The 7 week course will meet on Sunday nights from 6PM to 8PM beginning on January 20th. Laura, our service manager, will be teaching the course, so register early (space is limited) and get ready to get your hands dirty! (Don’t worry, gloves are provided.)

The cost of the course is $350.00 and includes a copy of the Park Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair and Maintenance, as well as 10% off all tools purchased during the course. Email Laura at laura @ proteusbicycles.com with any questions!
Sign up at http://www.proteusbicycles.com/classes-and-workshops/

Don’t like groups? Email Laura to discuss private lessons

[Author]

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