03-18-2018, 03:13 AM
I have done a little with Cycle Gear brick and mortar stores from time to time over the years. Generally I have found the best thing to do is call first and see if they have what you are looking for in stock to look at/try on. More often than not, I have found "they can order" what I was looking for, but dont have it in stock. The call first thing has saved me wasted time driving there and back.
These days, I buy almost all my gear from Revzilla.com . I have ordered and returned gear that did not fit or was not quite right for me once I had it in hand, numerous times with no hassle, including prepaid return shipping labels emailed to me. They ship for for free over $39.99, and give painless full refunds with no re-stocking fees. I have never seen any retailer that is as fast as they are in issuing a refund once they have a return in hand either. They will also price match other legitimate online retailers, provided they can go online and verify. I have gotten a painless price match a few times as well. I keep using them because customer service is the best I have ever experienced, and their "Gear Geeks" usually know their stuff as well.
The only thing I do not buy online is helmets, and there are several reasons. From what I have seen, most helmets carry a 5 year warranty, but then you have to read the warranty to see if it is 5 years from date of purchase, or 5 years from date of manufacture. I like Shoei, and their warranty is 5 years from date of purchase or 7 years from date of manufacture, whichever comes first. I think this is because most helmet brands are now made overseas. That adds a lengthy amount of time to ship by boat in a container before it gets to the U.S., then clear Customs, then ship to a dealer or a warehouse. After that, who knows how long it will sit on a dealer shelf, or in a warehouse. Online dealers have no way to tell the buyer what the date of manufacture is on for an online helmet purchase. So, in addition to wanting to check fit, and look for cosmetic defects, I also want to check the date of manufacture for a prospective helmet purchase at a brick and mortar store before plunking down the cash to buy it. From what I have seen, there is always a date of manufacture sticker on the energy absorbing Styrofoam liner, that is between the helmet shell and the soft textile liner. I recently found a brand new premium brand helmet offered for sale that had a 2013 date of manufacture, as a case in point. Granted, Revzilla would still do a full refund and prepaid return on a helmet for this or any other reason, but helmets are something I would rather get right the first time.
These days, I buy almost all my gear from Revzilla.com . I have ordered and returned gear that did not fit or was not quite right for me once I had it in hand, numerous times with no hassle, including prepaid return shipping labels emailed to me. They ship for for free over $39.99, and give painless full refunds with no re-stocking fees. I have never seen any retailer that is as fast as they are in issuing a refund once they have a return in hand either. They will also price match other legitimate online retailers, provided they can go online and verify. I have gotten a painless price match a few times as well. I keep using them because customer service is the best I have ever experienced, and their "Gear Geeks" usually know their stuff as well.
The only thing I do not buy online is helmets, and there are several reasons. From what I have seen, most helmets carry a 5 year warranty, but then you have to read the warranty to see if it is 5 years from date of purchase, or 5 years from date of manufacture. I like Shoei, and their warranty is 5 years from date of purchase or 7 years from date of manufacture, whichever comes first. I think this is because most helmet brands are now made overseas. That adds a lengthy amount of time to ship by boat in a container before it gets to the U.S., then clear Customs, then ship to a dealer or a warehouse. After that, who knows how long it will sit on a dealer shelf, or in a warehouse. Online dealers have no way to tell the buyer what the date of manufacture is on for an online helmet purchase. So, in addition to wanting to check fit, and look for cosmetic defects, I also want to check the date of manufacture for a prospective helmet purchase at a brick and mortar store before plunking down the cash to buy it. From what I have seen, there is always a date of manufacture sticker on the energy absorbing Styrofoam liner, that is between the helmet shell and the soft textile liner. I recently found a brand new premium brand helmet offered for sale that had a 2013 date of manufacture, as a case in point. Granted, Revzilla would still do a full refund and prepaid return on a helmet for this or any other reason, but helmets are something I would rather get right the first time.