Bangkok bikefitter reviews please

[hermespan]

At Bike Zone in Amarin Plaza a service is being offered of two hour bike fittings. I would like to hear from satisfied, dissatisfied and semi-satisfied customers (unless of course everyone loves it hates it - extremely unlikely!) THB2500 struck me as higher than a physician charges but maybe it is worth it? I can't readily see the value in a folding bike fitting however, as options are so limited.

[moonoi]

He's very good, I got a free fitting when I got a Cervelo S5 from them a couple of years ago, although I have since refined the position somewhat myself since then and switched to a different bike. The original fitting did help me with getting rid of knee pain I was suffering (cleats in the wrong position).

But why would you want to have a bike fitting for a folding bike anyway, easy enough to setup yourself.

[hermespan]

Knee problems clearly caused by folding bike. Andrew the bike fitter got back to ne quickly that he doesn't fit folding bikes due to their adjustment abd modification limitations.

[moonoi]

I used to ride a Dr.Hon (a VISC P18) folding bike and for my height (187cm) had to buy a longer seatpost to get the position correct, manufactured by a Taiwan company called LitePro. I believe they also do aftermarket parts for Brompton as well, not sure if those can be used with your Flamingo though.

If so, you may also have to source via eBay, as I'm not sure local bike shops will carry such items. In case you do decide to try, duty is 10% on parts, plus the 7% vat, Thai customs will include the price of shipping when calculating duty.

[hermespan]

I have never geard if any other nation's gov't charging duty on shipping. The idea of duty is trade profectionism. How does financially penalizing a foreign shipping service protect Thai shippers? Has anyone tried contesting this practice? Sounds like a bizarre interpretation by Customs officers of Thai law.

[StreetCowboy]

I have never geard if any other nation's gov't charging duty on shipping. The idea of duty is trade profectionism. How does financially penalizing a foreign shipping service protect Thai shippers? Has anyone tried contesting this practice? Sounds like a bizarre interpretation by Customs officers of Thai law.

The duty is on the value of the item in Thailand. That includes the added value of bringing it from a foreign country to Thailand. You pay duty on the shipping regardless of whether the shipper is Thai or foreign.

SC

[bobfish]

Countries who are signatories to the WTO agreement - including Thailand since 2000 - conform to the GATT methodology.

Duty is usually paid on the CIF = Cost, Insurance,Freight.

From the Customs Dept Thailand website:

"Today, almost all Customs administrations of the current WTO members value imported goods in terms of the provisions of the WTO Agreement on Customs Valuation. This Agreement establishes a Customs valuation system that primarily bases the Customs value on the transaction value of imported goods, which is the price actually paid or payable for the goods when sold for export to the country of importation, plus, certain adjustments of costs and charges."

Sorry to get off topic.

[chiangmaiexpat]

Back to the topic. Can someone explain why one should pay a non-trivial sum for a service, which anyone could quite easily do themselves in 10-15 min given a measuring tape and an online fitting calculator? Am I missing something?

Cheers, CM-Expat

[bobfish]

Back to the topic. Can someone explain why one should pay a non-trivial sum for a service, which anyone could quite easily do themselves in 10-15 min given a measuring tape and an online fitting calculator? Am I missing something?

Cheers, CM-Expat

CM-X,

I'm sure your methodology can give a good enough idea of the basics such as a suitable frame sizing and maybe seat height/ stem' n' crank lengths etc. And that's what the majority of us have been doing for years. However, there is a measurable improvement in performance and injury prevention [let's call that comfort ] when having a more precisely tailored fitting. Not for everyone, I know - [and I've been getting away with it for years!!] - but if you're pushing your physical cycling efforts past the recreational point, it's probably worth the time and cost. Particularly if you are a built a little asymmetrically, harbouring old injuries and getting on in years.

You can get a Retul 3D [google it!] fitting in Chiang Mai. The Slow Twitch Institute has a lot more info. It's light years beyond a measuring tape and Mk1 eyeball and certainly not smoke and mirrors; most big bike companies are getting into the game with their own fitting machines which should bring the cost down and make fittings more accessable.

But you're correct, it's not a trivial sum to pay but may be well worth it. Do some research for yourself to see if it's for you or not.

[chiangmaiexpat]

I'm sure your methodology can give a good enough idea of the basics such as a suitable frame sizing and maybe seat height/ stem' n' crank lengths etc. And that's what the majority of us have been doing for years. However, there is a measurable improvement in performance and injury prevention [let's call that comfort ] when having a more precisely tailored fitting. Not for everyone, I know - [and I've been getting away with it for years!!] - but if you're pushing your physical cycling efforts past the recreational point, it's probably worth the time and cost. Particularly if you are a built a little asymmetrically, harbouring old injuries and getting on in years.

You can get a Retul 3D [google it!] fitting in Chiang Mai. The Slow Twitch Institute has a lot more info. It's light years beyond a measuring tape and Mk1 eyeball and certainly not smoke and mirrors; most big bike companies are getting into the game with their own fitting machines which should bring the cost down and make fittings more accessable.

But you're correct, it's not a trivial sum to pay but may be well worth it. Do some research for yourself to see if it's for you or not.

Thanks for the explanation, bobfish. Would you say that this applies to mountain bikes as well, or is it a primarily a thing that benefits road cyclists?

CM-Expat

[moonoi]

Thanks for the explanation, bobfish. Would you say that this applies to mountain bikes as well, or is it a primarily a thing that benefits road cyclists?

CM-Expat

As with everything, it depends what you ride.

Personally, with mountain biking, I think if you ride XC then probably you would get a benefit. But for Trail/Enduro/DH etc, given you're moving around so much anyway, then its unlikely to have much impact, so I wouldn't bother unless there is a specific problem you are having that you can't resolve yourself.

[bobfish]

Thanks for the explanation, bobfish. Would you say that this applies to mountain bikes as well, or is it a primarily a thing that benefits road cyclists?

CM-Expat

As with everything, it depends what you ride.

Personally, with mountain biking, I think if you ride XC then probably you would get a benefit. But for Trail/Enduro/DH etc, given you're moving around so much anyway, then its unlikely to have much impact, so I wouldn't bother unless there is a specific problem you are having that you can't resolve yourself.

I think you're probably on the money moonoi!

Very geared up [sorry!] for road - so keep that tape measure handy CM-X

Edited June 12, 2014 by bobfish