how long should a Raleigh bike last?

vicki_b

my partner bought a Raleigh bike to go to and from work on...admittedly it was quite a cheap one but with the credit added it came to around £250...that was in October 2008 and now its fit for the skip!not a day goes by when somethings not falling off it or jamming!

to be honest the problems started a couple of weeks after we bought it such as pedal falling off, crank needing replacing etc etc...my partners friend mends bikes otherwise we would've spent a lot on it.
i have complained to Choice catalogue in the beginning but they said it wasn't their concern and to contact Raleigh
so now we're stuck with a useless bike and still about £100 to pay on it and my partner will still have to buy another bike to go to work on!!

if any of you say that a bike is only supposed to be kept for 18months then fair enough but i thought Raleigh bikes were built to last longer at least!

neilmcl

Bicycles only last as long as you look after them. Does your partner regularly maintain the bike, do you ever take it for a service?

drsquirrel

How much was it overall?

£250 is quite cheap for a bike that you expect to last for some time, even £400. Having a more expensive bike doesn't mean you can service it less either.

If the pedal is loose, it will ruin the thread - how many times did you check this?
Do you take it to a shop for a service? or yourself? (ie. can you prove a service history).


Gears jamming? Happens to me... that means you just need to adjust the gearing - this is even common from new if you don't have pre-stretched cables, and over time gunk can get into the lines which makes the changing sticky.

Crank? Do you use chain lube or WD40? wd40 is bad, 3-in-1 is not suitable either (although better than nothing). If you don't keep the chain clean and lubricated it will wear the teeth down on the crank and the rear cassette, replacing the chain but leaving a worn cassette will just do the reverse.

WD = Water Displacement.


Bike shops don't tend to cost too much more (at least for bikes, accessories is another matter though) and most these days (even Halfrauds!) do a free service 60 days after etc.



I want to add - just because it's Raleigh it doesn't mean it's good quality. Yes, their high end road bikes, and the old classics are good - but these days the Raleigh cheapies are poor (and again, a higher quality bike still needs the same amount of maintenance).

davetrousers

As the bike came from a catalogue who assembled it?

miniemma

Was it kept inside or outside?

neilmcl

davetrousers wrote: »

As the bike came from a catalogue who assembled it?

Which would of included attaching the pedals in the first place.

Empty_pockets

New Raleigh bikes are rubbish, 18 months is a good one!

lincroft1710

Raleigh bikes used to last for decades even with minimal maintenance. On a different tack I have a 23 yr old Sharp 14" portable colour TV still going strong and a 20 yr old Kelvinator fridge freezer still working when I gave it away. With all the advances in technology etc etc, can manufacturers not make a product which does not disintegrate 2 days after purchase!!