The other day a client brought in brand new $4500 bike that she had purchased from “another shop”.
Now, I’m not going to try and figure out why she decided to go out of state and purchase her fancy new uber light carbon rig. I gave up on trying to understand the mind of man or, in this case women, when I started in this business 15 years ago. But I’m sure it had something to do with it being 1/2 price.
I’ve been known to have an eye for detail and spot poor workmanship by mechanics. Now, I’m not overly anal, I just like things to be tight and look professional especially when it comes to building bikes, i.e., the right housing length or bar tape being perfectly finished.
Anyway, she stoped in for few reasons. The first of many things I noticed on her new bike was the stem and saddle. The stem was a 60cm with a 17* rise and her saddle was jammed all the way forward on the rails. She was curious why her hands and arms were going numb. Hummm. People are funny…they are willing to suffer and make due for the sake of saving a few bucks.
I clamped her bike in the stand to install a new computer and a couple of cages. I noticed that the derailleur cables were longer than the curb feelers your father put on his 65′ caddy to keep your mom from denting up those sweet rims.
As she watched me, curiously, removing the Teflon sticker (you know the one – these should always be removed for the sake of aesthetics) the brake rotated due to inadequate torque on the fastener. After this I preceded to adjust the brake blocks as well, all while she felt quite embarrassed by the lack of “PRO” that was evident by whomever built her bike. This attention to detail is what I would expect from a 18 year old working in a big box on a Tuffy, not some shop selling “PRO” bikes.
My point is, what happened to the craftsmanship that goes along with being a bike mechanic? Taking the time for the little details, like picking out the right end cap and crimping it just so, or removing that the rather large “pie plate” spoke protector that comes on your Ksyriums.
Is the art of being a bicycle mechanic slowly being lost?
