Hey folks out there in WW land.
I've run into quite a problem and need the advice of others who have had similar issues.
I recently bought a Dedacciai Strada frame from an online shop in Quebec ( I live in Nova Scotia) Canada.
Upon recieving the frame on a Monday afternoon. I built it up Monday evening. I finally had the chance to ride it Tuesday after work. Well, within about two Kilometers, it was pretty obvious that something was wrong. The bike was almost impossible to keep in a straight line and was quite difficult to make go forward. I was concerned needless to say, but also quite realistic. I figured OK,, new frame, different angles, I hadn't ridden in two weeks. It might just be me. So I proceeded to suffer through one hell of an awful ride. I got home and noticed that the rear wheel was nowhere near centered between the chainstays. It was perfect between the seatstay, or I would have noticed upon installing the brakes. Again, I was concerened but realistic. I tried a second set of wheels. It still looked the same. So, off for another awful ride I went just to make sure it wasn't the wheels fault the first time out. Nope, still pulled to the side and felt so slow that I thought I'd die my time I got home.
Ok, I figured. The frame is quite literally 100k's old. No problem, I'll just send it back for warranty. So,, I took it apart, took a measurement of the dropout and noticed that the dropouts were nowhere near 130mm. This is odd because rear road hubs are spaced at 130mm. My cheap calipers have it at closer to 131.5mm. My really nice tape measure has it closer to 133mm. Ok I figured, that sorts it. I'll just get a replacement.
So, I E-mailed the shop I purchased it from bcik.ca and informed them of the issue. They responded rather quickly saying "send us pics". So, I took pictures showing the wide spacing. Of course, you can't photograph an awful feeling bike, that's something you have to ride.
The next day I get a message say that they talked to the distributer and there's no warranty for it. All Dedacciai frames are made that way and nobody else has complained, so no warranty. I am however, free to contact Dedacciai Strada about it.
So,, I took more pictures and with the assistance of a park alignment tool, showed how the dropouts weren't square to each other. This still wasn't good enough. Again, it's not under warranty. Oh,, and I rode it, so I can't send it back for a refund.
I then contacted Dedacciai directly about it. They initially responded quickly saying that they'd look into it. And nothing since. This was a week ago. I sent them 10 pictures last night all clearly showing the issues with the frame and even posted them on their facebook page for the world to see. Still no response.
What bothers me the most is that Cycles Marinoni (dedacciai's distributer in Canada) wouldn't even consider that the frame might be defective. They dismissed it without even so much as offering to look at it. I used to work in the bike industry and I've never, ever once heard of a distributer not even offering to look at it. They just repeatedly dismiss me saying "no warranty". I've filed a complaint with Pay-pal. But I don't see how I could possibly win it. I've tried the better business bureau, but unfortunately, they can't do anything in Quebec.
I'm at a loss right now as to what to do. I've literally had $1,200 stolen from me with no just way of recovering it. Basically, in this case, the defendany also happens to be the judge and jury.
Any suggestions anyone has would be a great help.
Sincerely.
Dave.

Did you only contact bcyc.ca or Marinoni?

Marinoni's customer service is second to none... Give them a call to see if they can help you with the frame or provide a good solution for your problem.

Rob

To be honest. Whereas BCIK and Marinoni have the same address. I didn't see much point.lol

What do you mean by same address? As far as I know, they are separate entities. Contact Marinoni here: http://www.marinoni.qc.ca/Html/ContactUs.html

Rob

By same address I mean when I ordered my frame from bcik, the sending address was marinoni's. It was addressed to me from Marinoni. I will however try contacting them just to be safe. I do appreciate this info. Every little bit helps at this point.
Thanks.

Marinoni is probably the importer... I beleive they use these frames on their Marinoni-branded bikes. Yes, definitely worth contacting them. Top notch customer service, run by the Marinoni family (Pepe, Simone, Paul, etc...) They stand by their products, and while they don't make these frames, they will try to help you.

Rob

I really appreciate the advice. I remember in my shop days talking to Guiseppe or his wife on the phone. Two wonderful people. (Even if I couldn't understand most of what they said)
I sent them a message detailing my issues and an appology for going public with this before contacting them directly. I waited until a week of dealing with bcik and deacciai before trying the social media route.

they are not the same. Haven't you heard of drop ship ?? Most Marinoni dealers don't keep that much in stock. since bcik.ca is a web based store they drop ship directly from Marinoni.

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you do realize that 1.5mm is nothing right. Alot of frames from different companies are not all 130mm. there is always that +/- % in the tolerances especially with carbon fibre. I'm not saying that your frame is not defective, but no company will give you a new frame based on that. If the frame is not straight then they have to give you a new one no questions asked.

I know many people here riding nerissimo , super scuro, etc... and they all love their bikes with no problems. I even measured a super scuro with calipers and it was actually 132mm wide spacing in the back. 130 or 132 is no problem. when you close the quick release it takes up the gap. by the way the new campagnolo wheels have a 131mm spacing. I don't hear anyone complaining that it doesn't fit their 130mm rear frames...

Contact Marinoni directly, ask for Paolo which is the son of Giuseppe and the one in charge(boss). Explain him the problems your having with the handling of the frame etc... Don't make a fuss about the rear spacing as that is not a problem if the frame is straight.

I'm sure he will ask you to send him the frame so that his techs can take a look at it.

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I totally agree. The rear spacing wouldn't be an issue for me provided that my wheel didn't sit uneven in the drops. If it sat straight and the bike rode correctly, I'd have never noticed.

By all means if the drops are uneven call Marinoni asap.

they have a toll free number on their website. ask for the owner Paolo.

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I appreciate the advice. Marinoni has been contacted and were super helpfull. It would appear that the shop I dealt with only told them about the rear wheel spacing and not that it was crooked.
I've recieved an RA# and permission to send it back.
That's all I could have asked for from the begining.
Now, if they look at it and don't see an issue. I'll go right to the hospital and get a fitness test!
Thank you to everyone in WW land for your advice.

Glad to hear that Marinoni's customer service matched my expectation.... They're really top notch! Good luck with your problem....

Rob

Glad to see this will be resolved. I had no doubt that they would give you a return number.

either they refund you or send you a new frame back after verifying that the frame is straight lol

let us know how that goes.

good luck

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