servicing costs

i for one am amazed at the prices charged by the big named bike shops,evans want £75 to service forks ,another £29.95 to take the forks off the bike and put them back on,and £27,50 to bleed one brake! :shock:

diy cost me £15 to do my forks and £10 kit off ebay to bleed both brakes,i also done my sons brakes too.

so i guess you're paying for their skill and time :?

i am no expert,but even if i was rich i wouldnt pay them extorsionate prices.all the knowledge i gained about bikes was hands on and the internet and youtube etc.


one more thing my2001 zzr1100 fork seals were replaced at a dealers before i bought the bike,the receipt says £103 including parts labour so thats less than mountain bike forks then :shock: ridiculous! :x

your thoughts?

Servicing costs are expensive. One of the many reasons i do all my own stuff. Halfords have a good system - £20 for a 'care plan' which covers a years worth of labour but you have to buy parts with them (mostly).

As for shocks and forks, i just buy second hand working ones for similar price when mine do go!

Same's true of any service indsutry really, seems expensive if you can do it yourself. Car maintenance has got to be even worse.

Best to invest in decent tools and select products which you can service yourself. Check if there are on-line service guides before you buy.

Most places ship the forks/shoxs off to somewhere else as it' cheaper for them and probably quicker and better in the end.
To many different models with different gizmos now.
The cost to get someone up to speed to the level required for warranty is also probably not worth it.
I know my LBS recently stopped doing them and ships them to TFTuned/Windwave/whoever now.

They do also need to pay the staff, the heating, lighting and probably rent for the building.
DIY doesn't need to pay for that.
or mates

My Rocky Mountain Vertex has £700 Fox forks on it, I pay to get them sent to Mojo to get serviced. Cost £100 a year but worth it in my opinion, they extend the warranty by another year each time it is done. Everything else I do myself. A healthy collection of bike specific tools and willing to learn how to use them properly helps. My Mrs moans if I spend too much on bike bits but when it comes to tools she understands. One day I may have my own backyard bike repair shop / mancave / hangout so she goes along with it.

Shop service fees are mostly labour charges. They have to make money too.