Causes for spokes coming off? 2-week old Magnum Metro+

[eqptxjimmy]

Hey guys,

Had this bike for about two weeks, so far I've rode it for 150 miles and haven't had any complications. Yesterday, I was making a left turn on the street. I rode up to the red light, when it turned green I accelerated on the turn and than pedaled mid turn. As I pedaled, I felt the chain immediately seize up. I took the bike off the road and upon closer inspection I noticed the rear derailleur was bent, but had no idea how it happened.

I took the bike back to the shop from where I bought it. They did an inspection and that's when they found the loose spoke and it probably ended up getting caught in the chain. Unfortunately this is not covered by warranty and I have to pay for the repairs, which sucks because I just bought it two weeks ago.

My question is how would this have happened and how would I prevent it from happening again?

Thanks! -Jimmy

 

[Nova Haibike]

It is not the spoke that caused the derailleur damage. If you look, you will see there is another spoke that also has damage (at 9 o'clock in the first image). Generally speaking, it is the derailleur going into the spokes that is the problem. Spokes do not just come loose, at least not spokes in a properly built and tensioned wheel.

While the bike is equipped with a derailleur guard, it is not a guarantee that the derailleur and/or hanger will never get bent, it only helps. The hanger looks bent to me, and possibly the derailleur as well. If I was that shop, I would cover it as a matter of goodwill; it could easily have been an adjustment they missed (such as not checking the hanger alignment during assembly). But i cannot see what else my or may not be damaged, or provide a better diagnosis based on just the three photos.

 

[eqptxjimmy]

It is not the spoke that caused the derailleur damage. If you look, you will see there is another spoke that also has damage (at 9 o'clock in the first image). Generally speaking, it is the derailleur going into the spokes that is the problem. Spokes do not just come loose, at least not spokes in a properly built and tensioned wheel.

While the bike is equipped with a derailleur guard, it is not a guarantee that the derailleur and/or hanger will never get bent, it only helps. The hanger looks bent to me, and possibly the derailleur as well. If I was that shop, I would cover it as a matter of goodwill; it could easily have been an adjustment they missed (such as not checking the hanger alignment during assembly). But i cannot see what else my or may not be damaged, or provide a better diagnosis based on just the three photos.

Thanks! I appreciate you taking the time. I'm not too experienced and this is my first real bike, so I sort of have to agree with whatever they tell me. I don't think the dealer noticed the spoke at 9 o'clock, I'll send him the information and hopefully he can cover it as matter of goodwill or at least have it adjusted and aligned correctly so this does not happen again.

 

[rich c]

I think it's still plausible that the broken spoke may have caused the damage. If it broke at the nipple, it could have rotated back, wedged in that bent spoke, and then the end got hung up between the derailleur sprocket hanger and the derailleur sprocket. Do you see any paint scratched inside the chain stays? Just guess work of course. On a two week old bike, I would insist on a wheel tune up. It used to be common practice to check the spokes after a break-in, but must not be now with machine built wheels. I agree with Nova, not good practice from the dealer. My confidence would be shaken a little with them now.

 

[eqptxjimmy]

I think it's still plausible that the broken spoke may have caused the damage. If it broke at the nipple, it could have rotated back, wedged in that bent spoke, and then the end got hung up between the derailleur sprocket hanger and the derailleur sprocket. Do you see any paint scratched inside the chain stays? Just guess work of course. On a two week old bike, I would insist on a wheel tune up. It used to be common practice to check the spokes after a break-in, but must not be now with machine built wheels. I agree with Nova, not good practice from the dealer. My confidence would be shaken a little with them now.

Yes, definitely. That's the only thing that sucks about all of this is losing confidence in the bike and dealer. I commute to work with this bike 26 miles each way, having it break down a long the way is not something I want in the back of my mind all the time. I actually called Magnum Bikes and told them about my situation and they pretty much told me to take a hike since the spoke isn't covered under warranty. Depressing as it's only been two weeks!

 

[AlanDB]

That is very disappointing, from both the manufacturer and the bike shop.

 

[rich c]

Yes, definitely. That's the only thing that sucks about all of this is losing confidence in the bike and dealer. I commute to work with this bike 26 miles each way, having it break down a long the way is not something I want in the back of my mind all the time. I actually called Magnum Bikes and told them about my situation and they pretty much told me to take a hike since the spoke isn't covered under warranty. Depressing as it's only been two weeks!

Don't feel left out. I broke two spokes on a Sunseeker Fat-Tad tadpole recumbent trike after about 6 months. The on-line seller advertises a one year tire to tire warranty. I called to ask them to ship me a couple of spokes and I would install them. They told me spokes aren't covered. I suggested they change the name of their warranty then. Not a big deal to get a couple from the LBS, but they sure chose an odd description for their warranty after you read the fine print or call them.

 

[DDBB]

Not a bad idea to check your spokes regularly and learn how to tension them properly but I agree 100% that on a two week old ebike, this should have been covered at no charge

 

[Deleted member 4210]

Hey guys,

Had this bike for about two weeks, so far I've rode it for 150 miles and haven't had any complications. Yesterday, I was making a left turn on the street. I rode up to the red light, when it turned green I accelerated on the turn and than pedaled mid turn. As I pedaled, I felt the chain immediately seize up. I took the bike off the road and upon closer inspection I noticed the rear derailleur was bent, but had no idea how it happened.

I took the bike back to the shop from where I bought it. They did an inspection and that's when they found the loose spoke and it probably ended up getting caught in the chain. Unfortunately this is not covered by warranty and I have to pay for the repairs, which sucks because I just bought it two weeks ago.

My question is how would this have happened and how would I prevent it from happening again?

Thanks! -Jimmy

hmmmnnn - it was very highly unlikely to be just a 'bad spoke'. That doesn't 'just' happen like that. What more likely occurred, is neither the factory, nor the dealer, took the time to properly set the limit screws to prevent the derailleur from going too far inboard, which means the derailleur probably caught one of the spokes, and then it cascaded into a series of unfortunate consequences. More likely what occurred, is you could have easily shifted into gear 1, not realized that the derailleur went too far in, and it caught one of the spokes, then repeated again, got more bent, etc. until your 'lock up'. The inside of the derailleur bracket (closest to the spokes) also looks bent inward and pulled (i.e. maybe the part that perhaps got caught on initial contact with the spokes, rather than a spoke failing and doing the damage first ?) Very hard to say from these very limited picture images, but I would be more inclined to agree with Nova on this one. With ebikes and especially rear hub motors, it doesn't hurt to learn some basic derailleur maintenance, and that surely would include learning how to properly set the high and low limit screws on the derailleur. (and not just rely on the bike shop to do it for you.) Its very easy to check first in the lowest gear, and then in the highest, making sure the derailleur cannot go past the cogs on either end. For reference, here's a great and super simple video on the derailleur, and the setting of these limit screws, by Arts Cyclery.

 

[Kurt in CT]

Jimmy, sorry to hear! I have a magnum Peak. 6 months. No issues. And both LBS (in CT) and mag HQ have been supportive on incidental stuff.

 

[Figs]

Sounds to me like the bike was not set up properly by the dealer. If it were me I would force the issue with the dealer. With my Magnum the dealer had a 30 day return policy. If something like what you describe happened I would have returned it.

Unless you ran over something that flew up into the drivetrain, it is improper assembly by the dealer. IMHO

 

[Susan W]

I think it's unprofessional of the shop to not fix this problem after only 2 weeks. That's called "standing behind your product". And even worse for Magnum.
I have a Metro+. Every time I rolled my bike into a bike rack, my light would get bashed. If I was you, I'd move the light to behind the forks so it's protected. Mine broke so I called Magnum, who disappointingly said it wasn't covered. I said it was a design flaw. No luck. Now, I have a regular light on my handlebar.
This could be a result of the covid recession, but they missed their opportunity to gain a loyal customer.