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Socoder -> Off Topic -> Halfords have great technicians
Sat, 02 Dec 2017, 12:33
jm2bits

Halfords have great technicians


So.. my bike has been squeaky recently.. time to pull out and regrease my bottom bracket.

The bottom bracket was replaced in May by a great technician at my local store. Since then, I haven't even had the crank arms off..



Wonderful, mashed teeth.

Apparently that was "probably" down when pulling the crank arms off... I don't see how pulling the crank arms off can create a very distinctive pattern of damage that looks exactly like someone slipping with the tool a few times during installation.. but I guess I am an unlucky guy.

Also.. I was told it was probably just wear and tear from 6 months of riding every day... haha.

The weird thing is, when I actually removed it - the bracket wasn't even that tight! God knows how he managed to shred the teeth that badly.. I guess it takes special kind of technician to do that.

In the end I spoke to the manager, who pulled over another technician (who seemed to be switched on) and offered to replace it for me. But that was only after I explicitly called them out on their poor excuses.

Its funny having non-technical people telling you complete rubbish about stuff they clearly have no idea about. (I didn't tell them I was a marine engineer for 5 years.. haha)

Also, when I first got the bike, I rode it for 5 minutes out of the shop and heard an awful grating noise... the rear break cable had gotten trapped between the calliper and disk! Took it back and asked them to check the breaks hadn't been damaged... they held the bike up, span the rear wheel, pulled the break lever and the wheel stopped... Job done.

Rant over.

Just thought I'd share my Halfords experience with everyone. They will try and sell you on their bike care plan (which I fell for, because I couldn't be bothered with the maintenance myself) - but soon realised you are better off doing it yourself. Youtube has loads of great videos too, and all the tools you need to do almost anything will set you back about 75 quid.
Sat, 02 Dec 2017, 13:14
jm2bits
 		Oh yeah, and while I was waiting I watched one of the technicians drop their torque wrench onto the concrete floor... good way to look after your precision equipment
Sat, 02 Dec 2017, 13:14
steve_ancell
 		That is the result of removing the bearing retainer, more than likely with a hammer and screwdriver instead of the correct tool. It's just plain savage!