mrlynch Posted September 17, 2011 Report Share Posted September 17, 2011 So I've got a new freewheel and I decided I would fit it last night. Went in the garage looked for my freewheel tool which had disappeared, turns out my brother took it with him when he moved out and he told me he couldn't find it, and it was f**cked anyway. So I thought ah what the he'll I'll just go and get another one from halfords since they're open later. So I there had a look for the tool, with no luck, but I'm sure I had seen them there before so I asked the lad if they had one, to which his face seemed to drop, so I gave him a bit of a description and he had a look and tells me, we don't have one, he doesn't think they have ever had such a tool and he's never even seen one in the halfords repairs tool box before. He then proceeds to tell me that my freewheel will not be reusable if I remove it, but if I really had to, I should just use a screwdriver and a hammer. He was clearly clueless in my opinion. Some pretty crap mechanical advice eh? This is why halfords is always my last resort, for anything. Not to mention the prices anyone else experienced the same kind of shoddy service that I have? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Dunstan Posted September 17, 2011 Report Share Posted September 17, 2011 Standard. You'll find a few good stores, but nearly every store you go in you'll hear the staff getting educated by the customers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Rainbird Posted September 17, 2011 Report Share Posted September 17, 2011 Most of the cheap complete bikes Halfords get in use freewheels that have no actual removal system, so a hammer & screwdriver (though usually crimping in a vice) can do the job for those. 99% of Halfords employees don't have a clue about decent bike kit, let alone trials parts, so it's to be expected. Unless you know someone that works there and that they're a decent mechanic then it's not worth considering them for advice on the most part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamie_Trials Posted September 17, 2011 Report Share Posted September 17, 2011 Yeah Halfords are useless, I went to replace a starnut. He was questioning on if it's the right size when I was telling him it is. Got home fits, what a surprise Another time I went to get my Hope pro 2 fixed, had to travel to 3 different Halfords then eventually they said they will need it for 2 days to see whats wrong, they then gave me a quote of £100 so I took it some and did it myself for just short of £50. Halfords, if they say it's wrong, it's probably right... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thispartisrequired Posted September 17, 2011 Report Share Posted September 17, 2011 In the Hellfrauds local to me I saw an employee measuring a (clearly 700c) wheel with a tape measure. Then when he was reliably informed by the customer that it was 700c he informed them it was a tyre size, not a wheel size. I was practically crawling over the counter to give him a sense-backhand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Gething Posted September 17, 2011 Report Share Posted September 17, 2011 Hellfrauds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Gibbs Posted September 17, 2011 Report Share Posted September 17, 2011 99% are a waste of time! I bought a bmx from there for my sister i rode it home the headset was loose, the front brake wasnt set up 1 pad was about 1mm from the rim the other was about 9-10mm! The right crank and pedal was loose and the front wheel came undone by hand!! After the guy asured me it had been safety checked! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knottyloxx Posted September 18, 2011 Report Share Posted September 18, 2011 ill second that one guys!! useless tools (excuse the pun) lol i went in for a bottom bracket tool, and the guys like....whats one of them!! WTF!! Theyre all tescos employees, can u blame them, really? come straight out of school and they want to get a job that's "productive" and has career prospects, maybe they want to be an engineer!! YEA RIGHT!!ill second that one guys!! useless tools (excuse the pun) lol i went in for a bottom bracket tool, and the guys like....whats one of them!! WTF!! Theyre all tescos employees, can u blame them, really? come straight out of school and they want to get a job that's "productive" and has career prospects, maybe they want to be an engineer!! YEA RIGHT!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete.M Posted September 18, 2011 Report Share Posted September 18, 2011 I tried to get a job at Halfords Bike Hut earlier this year. It annoyed me how the interview concentrated on my ability to sell things/services like the Halfords care plan and not on my knowledge of bike mechanics. I reckon they just employed someone who could 'sell' better than me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Rainbird Posted September 18, 2011 Report Share Posted September 18, 2011 That's why when I went down to grab a shift a week for beer money I refused to do anything other than mechanics. I know for a fact I can fix bikes to a decent standard, so I refuse to be on the shop floor. I wouldn't trust most of the staff to fit a set of handlebars, let alone service a decent bike. Whilst I go out of my way to make sure everything I do is done to the best possible standard I can't say the same for everyone (/anyone) else... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Gibbs Posted September 18, 2011 Report Share Posted September 18, 2011 If i cant do it myself i take it to my LBS. There at least i know the mechanic there he's top notch and also a trials rider so he knows his shit. Shame the latest owner is an arse, the guy before was an utter legend!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrlynch Posted September 18, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2011 I think the general conclusion here is that 99.9% of halfords are shit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss-Higgy Posted September 18, 2011 Report Share Posted September 18, 2011 Obv im lucky the halfords in blackpool two employees are clued up and used to ride trials, but made an enquiry about the chainstay length of a 24 at leisure lakes bikes and got told it was 12inch??? Asked for a a correct measurement and gave instructions on how to measure it and got 15inch back.. My mod is just about 15inch so i don't think ill be buying off them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghostrider88 Posted September 18, 2011 Report Share Posted September 18, 2011 Obv im lucky the halfords in blackpool two employees are clued up and used to ride trials, but made an enquiry about the chainstay length of a 24 at leisure lakes bikes and got told it was 12inch??? Asked for a a correct measurement and gave instructions on how to measure it and got 15inch back.. My mod is just about 15inch so i don't think ill be buying off them. You have veeeery long mod in that case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezgonzo Posted September 18, 2011 Report Share Posted September 18, 2011 15" chainstays is about right for a 24", to be fair your lbs is'ant going to be asked questions like that on a daily basis if @ all , so some times you need to educate them alittle inorder to get the answer you require. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isitafox Posted September 18, 2011 Report Share Posted September 18, 2011 So I've got a new freewheel and I decided I would fit it last night. Went in the garage looked for my freewheel tool which had disappeared, turns out my brother took it with him when he moved out and he told me he couldn't find it, and it was f**cked anyway. So I thought ah what the he'll I'll just go and get another one from halfords since they're open later. So I there had a look for the tool, with no luck, but I'm sure I had seen them there before so I asked the lad if they had one, to which his face seemed to drop, so I gave him a bit of a description and he had a look and tells me, we don't have one, he doesn't think they have ever had such a tool and he's never even seen one in the halfords repairs tool box before. He then proceeds to tell me that my freewheel will not be reusable if I remove it, but if I really had to, I should just use a screwdriver and a hammer. He was clearly clueless in my opinion. Some pretty crap mechanical advice eh? This is why halfords is always my last resort, for anything. Not to mention the prices anyone else experienced the same kind of shoddy service that I have? I had the same problem when I needed one, went to the Stockport branch and asked for one only to be told by the lad there (who was actually pretty clued up to be fair) that the manager wouldn't even let them have one for repairs let alone sell them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrlynch Posted September 18, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2011 I had the same problem when I needed one, went to the Stockport branch and asked for one only to be told by the lad there (who was actually pretty clued up to be fair) that the manager wouldn't even let them have one for repairs let alone sell them! What! The lad I spoke to had a look through the toolbox for one but turned his back to me obviously so I couldn't see and then pretended to look through then telling me they didn't even have one for repairs. He clearly didn't even know what the tool looked like Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ogre Posted September 18, 2011 Report Share Posted September 18, 2011 we offer a very decent service at my halfords, i'm quite happy with the way it's run, but our bikehut manager is a proper fan of bikes and he loves it enough to do what he can for customers, it's a good ethic and i enjoy it. but there are some clueless c**ts that work there too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lozallen Posted September 19, 2011 Report Share Posted September 19, 2011 we offer a very decent service at my halfords, i'm quite happy with the way it's run, but our bikehut manager is a proper fan of bikes and he loves it enough to do what he can for customers, it's a good ethic and i enjoy it. but there are some clueless cnuts that work there too. x2 i ran a bikehut for 5 years but now run a store any my only policy on hireing was that they 1.rode and 2.wernt a dribbler. it worked well, we done and they still do same day builds and repairs(parts pending). my way of thinking is that as long as you dont hired a cnut then you can teach them how to sell. i was up a rocknroll bikes buying all the bits in needed to build a bike a few months back and they asked if i would be ok building it. my responce was "yeah, i work at halfords" bring on the abuse lol. and to the guy up a few posts "i refuse to sell" you wouldnt work for me very long i can tell you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Rainbird Posted September 19, 2011 Report Share Posted September 19, 2011 and to the guy up a few posts "i refuse to sell" you wouldnt work for me very long i can tell you If that one was aimed in my direction then I guess I should expand on the point a little. If I was told that I had to convince people that Trax bikes were worth £250, or that I was required to give most of the bikes sold in the stores more hype than they deserve then I'd be happy not to work for you. I want to keep people interested in cycling, which servicing/fixing bikes does and selling them heaps of absolute crap does the exact opposite of. When it comes to selling bikes (which as most stores show, nearly anyone can do) and fixing bikes (which the vast majority can't) you need to put competent staff in the right places. Forcing people to buy overpriced shit they really don't need just to meet a quota is wrong, whichever way you look at it, so ignoring that side of things; If someone brings a bike in to Halfords to get it repaired then they don't have the tools/knowledge themselves, so are looking for a decent level of service especially when they're paying fair chunks of money for it. To leave that to incompetent, undertrained monkeys isn't an option. The extent of my 'interview' or whatever was seeing that they needed someone to do a mechanic shift and walking in. They asked if I knew my way around a bike, one of the other members of staff that I knew told them I'd been building/riding bikes for the past 8 years and that was it. No questions, no training, nothing. As a way to suck money from people Halfords do a great job, but they could do it so much better and gain many more happy customers if they pulled their finger out just a little and fixed a few rather nasty flaws in the way they choose staff. You said that your acceptance conditions were that an applicant had to ride and not be an obvious retard? One look at this forum shows that not everyone who rides has much if any technical knowledge and not everyone picks that up through building a few bikes. The mere state of some of the bikes that get bought from the chain shows that there are dozens of Bikehut staff about that don't have a clue how to safely build and set up a bike. Don't get me started on their selection of managers... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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