DIY or Bike Shop?

[High Plains Rider]

I'm about 80% sure that I'm going to purchase the Radrover, however I want to test ride one first. I'll be going to Scottsdale, AZ in February and plan to rent one for a few hours at Phatride USA. This will be my final test before I pull the trigger on a purchase. The folks at Phatride said that they would assemble the bike for $190. My LBS also said that they would assemble the bike for me. I'm not exactly "all thumbs" on my work bench, but I don't consider myself mechanically inclined either. Should I do it myself or let the pros handle it?

 

[AguassissiM]

It is not that difficult to do it yourself, besides you have lots of time to see some videos on how to put it together. Have a look here.

If you were closer I would help you just for the pure enjoyment of it.

 

[AHicks]

I'm a very active DIY'er, so take what I say with that in mind. I would suggest that you attempt it yourself. Absolute worst case is you totally screw it up - and you have to take it to the LBS and give them 190. to fix your screw up.

On the other hand, you may find you were able to assemble the bike easily. There's not much too them, and there's not just an instruction manual, but also Youtube videos to walk you through the process. If those are still not enough help, a question posed here, where there are a LOT of people that have been through what you will be doing, just might (very likely WILL) be able to answer your question.

So I say go for it. You'll likely have better insight into how everything works, and the satisfaction knowing you did it yourself - even if it takes a couple of tries! Plus, I think you'll be far less shy about attempting your own repairs down the road. Just keep it mind you can't destroy it. You'll always have the LBS to bail you out in worst case scenarios. -Al

 

[mbritt]

The YouTube videos make the whole process painless. After you put it together you’ll be glad you didn’t pay $200 for someone else to do it because it was so easy. And you can start getting to know your bike. After that success, I watched videos on how to adjust the derailleur and then decided to replace the freewheel myself so I could get experience taking the back wheel off for when I get a flat. I don’t have a garage or workbench and I’ve usually let bike shops do my work in the past.

 

[mrgold35]

I have two Radrovers and a Radcity Step-Thru. It will be checking PSI, putting on handlebars, pedals, inserting the seat, connecting the front light, letting the battery charge to 100% before your first ride, and adjusting the brakes. You might have to do some fine tuning like adjusting the angle of the handlebars, double-checking nuts/bots/screws, double-checking spokes, and maybe derailleur. I think I spent more time adding accessories compared to putting the ebike together (rear rack, handlebar extender for phone and light, Luna Cycle triangle bag, Mr. Tuffy liner+Stans, lizard skin frame protection, 1859 Northwest thumb throttle).

The biggest issue I've had with my Rovers (not with the RadCity) was damage during shipping. I've had disks out of true, bent derailleur with the chain rubbing against the rear tire, and damaged pedal crank that wouldn't stay TQ. DYI is a good way to get to know your new ebike and any potential warranty issues.

 

[larry-new]

Diy, with the assembly video. Use your LBS for accessories...you want them to be there when you need them. Get a set of t-handle metric hex wrenches from Harbor Freight...makes adjustments easy. Buy the blue Park spoke wrench from your LBS.

 

[DragNLady]

I'm about 80% sure that I'm going to purchase the Radrover, however I want to test ride one first. I'll be going to Scottsdale, AZ in February and plan to rent one for a few hours at Phatride USA. This will be my final test before I pull the trigger on a purchase. The folks at Phatride said that they would assemble the bike for $190. My LBS also said that they would assemble the bike for me. I'm not exactly "all thumbs" on my work bench, but I don't consider myself mechanically inclined either. Should I do it myself or let the pros handle it?

I went to Phat Bikes in Scottsdale last week and test rode one. They told me that they would charge $150. to put it together and include liners and goop. They told my girlfriend who went in yesterday, that they would do it for $100., including liner and goop! DON'T pay $190. to have it assembled, it is fairly easy to do!

 

[DDBB]

Have a good looking gal bring the bike in and have it assembled for half price.. Sounds like a good plan

 

[fnkyhd]

The biggest issue I've had with my Rovers (not with the RadCity) was damage during shipping. I've had disks out of true, bent derailleur with the chain rubbing against the rear tire, and damaged pedal crank that wouldn't stay TQ. DYI is a good way to get to know your new ebike and any potential warranty issues.[/QUOTE]

how did you determine your discs were out of true?

 

[mrgold35]

The biggest issue I've had with my Rovers (not with the RadCity) was damage during shipping. I've had disks out of true, bent derailleur with the chain rubbing against the rear tire, and damaged pedal crank that wouldn't stay TQ. DYI is a good way to get to know your new ebike and any potential warranty issues.

how did you determine your discs were out of true?[/QUOTE]

It was a combo of loose spokes and damage during shipping. Rad Power Bikes has made a lot of improvement with the shipping boxes for my 2018 Radcity compared to my 2016 Rover.

I couldn't get the brakes set to my liking because the brakes disk would wobble too much between the pads. I had to set the pads far enough apart to keep them from rubbing. I did try (and it helped a little) to use an adjustable wrench on the disk and bend a touch back in place. It was easier for me to adjust the brakes once I upgraded to TRP Sypkes calipers.

 

[ebikemom]

I vote for professional assembly, especially since there are safety issues involved and they will catch any damaged parts, etc..

 

[High Plains Rider]

Thanks for all the good feedback. Another reason I'm considering the LBS is to give them some business. I feel bad not buying a bike from them, but they have nothing that can come close to the Radrover in price. I feel like I want to support their business so they'll be around in the future. Maybe I'm just too empathetic with small business owners.

 

[AHicks]

Assemble it yourself, and take it to them for a "tune up" that would allow them a look-see at the bike to make sure it's right? That still gives you the satisfaction (and confidence maybe) of having done it yourself. If they spot something out of whack, their explanation of what was wrong could be viewed as a teaching moment....

 

[mrgold35]

The only bad thing about bike shops sometimes is they charge A LOT for labor compared to DYI at home. I've seen prices between $100-$190 to put an ebike together. Flat repair can be $25-$75 depending on just adding sealant goo, patch(es), or tube replacement. Once you see how its done, you might be kicking yourself for at-least not trying to put together 50%-90% on your own first.

I started out with just an old tire pump and tools from my car that also fit my bikes. After +2 years, I have enough experience (and help from this forum, YouTube, and internet) to know what direction to go for trouble-shooting, routine maintenance, repairs, cleanings, and modifications. Also added specialized tools I can carry with me for 99% of needed repairs at very small cost. The best thing about it is the learning experience has been a lot fun and just as relaxing fixing/maintaining my ebike as riding them.

Good thing about DYI is you know instantly if something is out of whack and you can fix before it becomes an issue.

 

[DDBB]

My LBS removed a defective tire from my wife's Gazelle, installed a Kenda cross tire and trued the wheel all for $20. I don't know whether or not to tip the owner. It's a one man bike shop but he doesn't appear to be doing great financially. We have bought a bunch of accessories for our acoustic bikes from him and had him fix the bottom bracket issue on my bike, deraileur adjustments etc. all at unbelievable low prices.

 

[AHicks]

I have a guy like that I deal with on occasion. He's maintaining a shop in town, which can't be cheap, and is shy when charging for his services. Often he has a part in stock that I'm grateful to find locally (right now!), and that part is so cheap I'm embarrassed it took him 10 minutes to find it! He is tipped regularly when I deal with him. Kinda like the awesome hardware stores of 30-40 years ago (remember wood floors?), you don't find guys like that often. I want him to know I appeceiate his presence (even though he doesn't sell e-bikes). -Al

 

[Jonathan Buntain]

190 sounds more like what it costs to build a bike as opposed to assembling one. A build involves installing everything onto a blank frame. Cranks, gearing, brakes, running cables, adjusting, etc. Your Radrover should be about a 15 minute job if experienced and maybe 45 if learning from scratch. As others have said, everything you have to learn to put it together you will undoubtedly have to do again at some point in its ownership. FWIW, I worked in a bike shop in college and do most of my own work but there are things like wheel truing that I get Velofix for.
Great timing, Rad just put up their black friday deals. $300 off the rover friday and monday. It's the only time they really deal, I got mine a year ago and have 2900 great miles on it.
https://www.radpowerbikes.com/pages/black-friday-cyber-monday

 

[Stromer2work]

$190? dang. What are they charging for a shop hour of uncertified labor? I mean an auto mechanic technically requires training and cert, but a bicycle mechanic requires nothing.

I've never seen a Rad come out of the box, but no ebike i've seen (and i have many) has taken more than an hour ... and that's generous. Some bicycles I've purchased have taken much longer than the ebikes I have been buying.

 

[mrgold35]

I've never seen a Rad come out of the box, but no ebike i've seen (and i have many) has taken more than an hour ... and that's generous. Some bicycles I've purchased have taken much longer than the ebikes I have been buying.

It took me longer to open the box, remove all the protective wrap, snip all the zip-ties, lay out the parts, and clean up the mess compared to putting the parts on my Radcity. Extra stuff like double-checking nuts/bolts/screws/spokes, wiring harness connections, and charging the battery added additional time (only the spokes were loose).

 

[larry-new]

A bicycle differs from a car in that something out of whack effects a safe ride much more immediately, from spokes to brake levers to cables to gears... I'm not happy until the bike runs like a fine mechanical watch.

I started learning to fix bikes because my auto fixing skills were so terrible that I vowed to learn something completely and thoroughly.
There is a satisfaction knowing that every bolt and bearing has been checked for tightness and proper play. Hundreds of books are available to help. Bikes are light and generally won't hurt you when you dive in to check something.