Sunday, April 13, 2008

Worst Bike Shop in Norway?

Spinn Sykkelshop?

You be the judge. About two years ago I purchased a mid-level Bianchi mountain bike from the Stavanger Spinn. It was the previous year's model, so I received a very good price, although the seat was nowhere near long enough and I had to pay extra for the right post. A year later I picked up an extra wheelset from the same shop so I could run studded tires on one set, and regular tires on the other.

Early this year, I broke the deraileur hanger "just riding along"--- as in I didn't crash. It took over two month and no word on the replacement. I had called, emailed, called again, stopped by the store, but nobody could tell me what the status was for the order. FinallyI took the entire bike in. It was quickly repaired, even though I only asked for the hanger--- I can fix a bike easily enough myself. I was handed a repair bill of about $80US-- and they replaced some cable housings and who knows what else. All I wanted was the $10 part. But oh well--- it saved me the trouble of fixing it myself.

Yesterday I finally managed to go out of a regular bike ride--- not just a quick commute. The shifting was way off. Today I took a closer look at it, and I found a stuck link. This was odd, considering the chain was brand new--- maybe a week before the hanger broke. I replaced the stock chain with an SRAM, since they are easier to remove with their power link. Today, I could not find the power link anywhere, so I finally broke the chain where the link was stuck. As I was cleaning it, I realized there was no power link (or quick disconnect, or whatever SRAM calls them). I thought that was the whole point in buying SRAM.

Tomorrow I will return to the shop. It will be very interesting to see how this is handled. I am entirely unimpressed with Spinn. Funny how we are planning to buy a kid trailer and a mountain bike for my wife in the very near future. Bike Brothers, anyone?

8 comments:

Sten said...

I recall thinking that the one close to the mall (can't remeber its name) and spinn were equally bad..... come to think of it, that was probaly when I started doing most of my bike stuff myself!

filtersweep said...

The one closest to the mall is Bike Bros. Maybe there is no hope. I was in yet another shop downtown, and every carbon fiber seatpost had a zig zag pattern etched into the finish from being wrestled into place.'

Apparently, good help is hard to find.

remy said...

what do you know about track/fixed gear cycling in oslo? i'm joining my wife there in the fall and am looking for bike shops, fellow riders, and possibly a velodrome?

thanks!

filtersweep said...

I believe there is a track in Halden, which is loosely a suburb of Oslo. Other than that, I have never seen another fixed gear rider in Norway-- although I turned a friend on to riding fixed (but I have only seen his bike--- haven't actually seen him riding it yet).

I commute fixed when it is above freezing, and use a mtn bike with studded tires on ice. I generally buy parts back in the US or order them from the UK. If you live in Holmenkollen, you won't be riding fixed--- but downtown Oslo is quite flat. I'm sure you will find someone riding fixed--- but people here tend to be much more practical about riding than in the US, for example. Good luck with your move.

Hilary said...

do you have any recommendations for a place in Oslo where I could rent a bike for an 8 day tour? I am trying to decide if it is cheaper to bring my bike with me from the US or rent one upon getting to Norway.

Nayera said...
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Nayera said...
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Nayera said...

Hello, I know your post was back in 2008 and I'm not sure if you will read this, yet I was wondering if there are any online shops to buy a bicycle from in Norway that you are aware of?

Thanks :)