Sy Reene

Doesn't it depend? If the LBS is an authorized seller of X brand of wheels, LBS has sold as new, and buyer has a receipt; isn't the buyer covered by warranty?

HerrKaLeun

Support your LBS, no matter what!

Buyer A goes to LBS and buys a new bike. LBS upsells A to new wheels and charges regular rate for the new wheels. Buyer A doesn't receive a credit or money for the odl wheels, but LBS offers to "dispose of them".

LBS sells those wheels to OP, 100% profit!

I'd just return them and take my money elsewhere. but it seems the "support your LBS" crowd here tries to partially blame the OP.

Wheels installed in a bike are not new anymore. ridden or not.

02Giant 

It is likely the LBS isn't a Dealer for Roval Wheels. They were OE on a bike the shop sold.

MattTheHat 

I've talked to the manager of the bicycle store. They have agreed to take the wheels back. Curiously, they "believe" they have a set of the wheels in stock in sealed boxes. I'm not sure why these weren't offered to start with or why the accessories weren't robbed when I returned to the store.

If they have new wheels when I take the others back tomorrow I'll simply exchange them. If not, I'll ask for a refund.


-Matt

Dave Mayer

I build my own wheels, and for my cronies. I've built 3 sets in September.

I do not release my wheels to others unless I've put at least 100k on them, in varied conditions, including some gravel service. So for me, a set of wheels that has some miles on them are worth more than wheels fresh off of the truing stand.

As far as out of the box wheels, apart from Campagnolo and Fulcrum, all new wheels have required some adjusting after the first ride. In general, the cheaper the wheel, the more work is required. The shakeout ride identifies problems with the wheel components, and build.

MikeyMK

My front forks are take-offs (Rockshox Revelation Solo Air) and were described as 'Used', but to be fair, the head tube had been cut for the bike they'd been fitted to. Still plenty of spacers and still plenty long enough for my bike (9ins), but i guess that's a bit different.
Still, i felt they qualified as 'New Other' at least, and probably would've sold them as such, myself.

However you look at it however, you were sold a product as 'brand new', unconditionally, with accessories - you were given shop-soiled items without accessories at the very best.

livedarklions

In the social media era, any business that didn't try to make this right is playing with fire.

And yeah, a small claims summons is an occupational hazard for a small business. They really don't like them.

MattTheHat 

Just got back from the local bike store. The rims were swapped out for new ones. Not in box, but they still had the protective caps and foam buffers and the manual and all the accessories, extree end caps and skewers were in a sealed package along with the instructions.

Thanks for all the input.


-Matt

TiHabanero

Does Roval require registering them? Look at the manual as it may affect your warranty.

CliffordK

Most of my purchasing is online, including some new-take-off, new-pull, and bulk packaged OEM products.

For the most part I'm happy to get a discount.

I'm not sure I'd be too overly worried about the fine details between the two new & new-take-off. However, it would have been nice to get the plugs included for free.

I can't think of any warranty claim against a bicycle wheel, although that may be just me. Most problems seem to be related to long-term wear or abuse.

Whew, seeing prices $750 to $800 online. Perhaps more. Not particularly cheap. I suppose I'd much prefer the $750 ones.

I suppose it depends a bit on where on the continuum you paid.

Still, for a $800 wheelset... I don't know if I'd quibble about $3 in spares.

Troul 

i've had bontagers fail & use the warranty. Not high dollar, but not free either. Waiting on the lbs to "process" the claim was the worst part.

masont

Yes. You have a receipt showing you bought a brand new pair of wheels. You have the wheels. You have a warranty, and you are the original owner. Source: I work for a Specialized dealer and have for years.

masont

So you returned a pair of new wheels and walked out with a different pair of the exact same wheels? I'd have gotten the skewers/plugs/caps for sure, but I'm not sure what good those foam buffers and little plastic caps are going to do for you.

livedarklions

Wait a second, who's providing the warranty, the bike shop, the wheel manufacturer, or the manufacturer of the bike it originally came on? That's going to depend on the policies of the two companies, the store, or possibly state law. As you no doubt know, the store warranty likely is much shorter than the manufacturer, so your answer is not really reliable.

MattTheHat 

masont

Neat thing is that Specialized's warranty policy doesn't care how reliable you think the right answer is. You can go read it here.

https://rovalcomponents.com/pages/warranty

If you buy a new product from an authorized dealer and have proof of purchase, Specialized's warranty applies. If you don't believe me or their website, give them a call and ask them.

masont

The other new wheelset you bought will have a lifetime warranty too.

The shop should have told you they were takeoffs in the interest of full disclosure, and they should have bent over backwards to get you the plugs/skewers that came with a non-takeoff set. I just can't figure out why you care so much that they had a cassette and tires mounted on them.

MattTheHat 

I emailed Roval directly several days ago now asking if the warranty applied to take-offs. As of yet they have not replied. My main concern was the warranty. From reading Roval's warranty statement, I didn't have one on the take-offs, since I'm not the original purchaser. I emailed them to ask for clarification and got not reply. Additionally, the local bike store never offered to get the missing parts.

The reason I care that the wheels were take-offs, as I've stated several times, is the warranty issue. I may never need the warranty. Who knows.

-Matt

Doctor Morbius

I would have done the same. Glad it worked out for you.

masont

If you're not the original owner, who is? You bought them brand new from an authorized dealer. If that isn't an original owner, what is?

Troul 

everyone knows that the original owners is the first person to lick the seat prior to being occupied for the first time. Everyone after the fact is just looking to sample the last person's buttcrack sweat.

livedarklions

He emailed the company for the clarification,, and they haven't given him one, but guy on the internet who says he works at a Specialized dealer has told him, so he definitely should be reassured, right?

Without the clarification, the original purchaser might be the person who bought the bike. Guess what? Most of us have had bad experiences with unreasonable readings of warranties
I wouldn't want to risk the hassle either.

I've also noticed that companies are more likely to honor a warranty when the dealership goes to bat for them. Given the petty deception, should he really count on this LBS to do that?

TiHabanero

MasonT you must have a very good relationship with SBC. I worked for a SBC dealer for 30 years and ran into this exact situation with a set of Roval wheels around 2008. The original purchaser was the person who bought the bike, not the person who bought the wheels as take offs. They would not warranty the rear wheel because of this. Last worked there in 2012, but did not run into a warranty claim with Rovals after 2008 because the shop stopped selling them.

Edit: I believe they changed the warranty policy since then as second and third owners of wheels did not receive any warranty coverage at that time. As for take off wheels, not sure if second or third owner would apply now any more than it did then as the wheels were not sold as wheels, but as OEM on a bike. You may want to talk with SBC about this just so that it is clear should the situation arise in the future.

masont

But the person who bought the bike didn't buy the wheels. The OP bought brand new product from an authorized dealer. That is explicitly spelled out in Specialized's warranty policy. You don't have to listen to some rando like me on the internet, you can read it here for yourself. https://rovalcomponents.com/pages/warranty

That's not an unreasonable reading of the warranty. That's an explicit reading of the warranty. I'm curious how you read the warranty to exclude new product purchased from an authorized dealer. Actually that's not true. I'm not. Please feel free to not enlighten me.

masont

Thanks. It must have changed. I do have a very good relationship with Specialized, and their warranty department has always treated us very well. I did speak to Specialized about this, for what it's worth. I will note that I'm assuming the OP bought a wheelset that Roval sells aftermarket. If he bought an OEM only wheel with Roval hubs, then I wouldn't expect the warranty that the inline wheels carry, but he wouldn't have been able to exchange those for one that came with a box.