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Not happy
Last week, at the end of a ride, I noticed a broken spoke on my rear wheel. I was unable to get to my usual bike shop so I put it in for repair at a well know bike shop asking them to check the wheel and tighten up any other spokes needing adjustment. Picked it up midweek but didnt inspect the work and went for a ride yesterday starting at Duckholes track. I was 10 minutes into the ride when disaster struck; i elected to change gear from middle to large ring which was followed by alarming noises. Drawing to an immediate halt I was faced with a scene of carnage; the Sram XO rear derailleur had basically exploded and was lying back on the trail as were the twisted jockey wheels. On closer inspection, two spokes were also broken and twisted. My mate Phil and I couldnt fathom out what had happened as it had happened on a flat part of the trail with no rocks, sticks etc. After considering the matter, our conclusion was that the most likely explanation was that a spoke had broken and then got caught as the derailleur changed position causing havoc; seems like too much of a coincidence to me that spoke/s broke 10m after getting the wheel back. however, there is no way of proving the theory; not been impressed with this bike shop's service in past and suffice to say that I will not be using again !
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Hey Donal
I should probably keep my nose out of this, these things rarely end well
Changing the to the large front ring will tighten the chain and put greater pressure on the rear mech and hanger, but I can't see how it would pressure a spoke into failing unless the mech broke and ended up in the spokes. Perhaps the rear mech or hanger gave up? Was the chain crossed up (what gear was selected on the back)? Had it been shortened recently (i.e. is it too short)?
Without knowing exactly what happened it's probably not a good idea to be rubbishing a shop on-line, I have always heard good things about XXX. I would at least wait until you have spoken with them, perhaps you have?
Had the same thing happen to me at Dirtworks last year - probably coincedence you'd just had a repair. Was your chain std length or had you removed any links?
that there is a chance that it could be some random failure of the hanger or derailleur and as you say Ladytoast, it then ended up in the spokes. I have edited to remove the shop title as you are right probably not fair without evidence. However, I had checked the chain length recently and it was fine; the chain was about 10 months old and had never been shortened; the section of track i changed gear on was flat and I wasnt putting any particular overstressing on the drivetrain as i changed. So if it was a gear failure, I can't figure out why then and there. So, obviously pretty pissed as a few hundred dollars now required. Still wont use the shop again.
Donal, Your experience sounds similar to what happened to my road bike a couple of months ago. Changing up to the big ring on the front created a lot of bad noise and everything locked up at the back as the bike slid to a stop in a plume of tyre smoke. This was on a fast bit of road and I just put it down to a slightly out of adjustment rear setup, or maybe a bad shift on the front causing the chain to jump. Severely bent the derailleur and chain. Broke or bent all the spokes adjacent to the rear cluster as the chain wrapped itself around everything and went into the wheel.
I don't use that store anymore either as I was never impressed by their service, over-inflated prices, and their range of bikes/parts/accessories was too limited. No big deal, but customers rightly vote with their feet. Democracy at work.
I've seen this a few times, tragically for some....
If the chain is too short and it is in the big cog at the back, when you shift onto the large chain ring at the front the the only thing that is going to give is the derailleur. More often than not, it twists forward and into the spokes.
(Why is goes into the spokes and not 'away' is one of life's big mysteries)
The thing that catches a lot of people when checking chain length is allowing for the rearward movement of the axle as the suspension compresses. What may have seemed ok at rest is too tight when sag is taken up, or you hit a bump. This varies by suspension design, but single pivot and other designs that use chain tension for anti-bob have more rearward movement by design.
My method of chain length checking: Wrap the chain onto the big ring on the front and big cog on the rear. Stretch tight, add 2 links and cut off there. If you want to be really sure, disconnect or de-pressurise your shock, and re-check under full compression of the rear suspension.
Whether this is what happened for Donal, who knows but if you think your chain 'might' be too short, check cos it can be an eye-watering expense to fix it.
W.
I think one of those unfortunate some might have been me whisperer
I had this happen on a new bike bought at LBS ( who shall remain anonymous ) and I know your not really supposed to use both large cogs at the same time.. but you really should be able to select both large gears without the broken mechanicals.
After a couple rides on the new bike I had the chain jam and distort ( links locked together ) and went back to the LBS, explaining to them that the chain was too short when it left their shop, their reaction was to make me feel like a moron for using both large cogs ( hey it can happen by accident ) and then accuse me of breaking the chain then shortening it thus trying to hit them up for a free repair??
I got a buckle in my back wheel about 18 months ago.
my bike was only 8 months old, as you do it is a mountain bike dual suspension and ready to go.
I bought the bike in the city and did not want to drive to the city to get a buckle fixed, so for 20 dollars I thought I would go to the local bike shop.
I was told the wheel was built wrong as the spokes on the cassette side were looser than the spokes on the brake side. “But I have a set of rims that would fit your bike cost $800.00 a really good deal.”
As the wheel / bike were under warrantee I went to the bike shop in Sydney.
I said (the wheel is built wrong as above). I was met with laughter which surprised me.
The shop in the city fixed the wheel free of charge.
My wheel is perfect but my question is. Is the spokes on a MTB meant to be looser on the cassette side?
Certainly shouldn't be looser, although they will be at a lesser angle to accommodate the width of the cassette on the hub.
They are the same on both sides. I only have 24 spokes however.
I took my wheel in there after hitting a tree with the bike on my bike rack (dont ask). Took it in there and they said it was a gonna but would replace the rim and spokes. Ok I thought. Mmm, the guy convinced me to get a much stronger rim ( which is about 3 times heavier) which they had in stock, and had to wait for over three weeks to get it back as they had issues with their supplier of spokes. The wheel needs to be trued again after a couple of months but scared to take it back as I may never get it back in a reasonable time. And yes they are a bit pricey.
They are friendly though and we do take our bikes through some heavy stuff.
Non-drive side spokes will usually have less tension than drive side.
i'm actually putting a deposit on a set of new wheels this week from said shop. I have no issues with the place and trust thier mechanical skills completely as i've stood and watched them work on my bike with great skill. I'd actually say they had a great deal of interesting and rare spares that you cant find in many other shops around town. No problems here mate!