Sherpa Shimmy resolved with superb warranty response by Thorn Cycles

[Danneaux]

Hi All,

I am very pleased to announce my Sherpa's shimmy problem has been resolved, thanks to Robin Thorn, Andy Blance, and Thorn the company. On learning more about the nature of the problem they shipped at their expense a replacement fork and Thorn EX rear rack to try, in hopes they would address the shimmy problem. I tried yet another tire change, and after these efforts, Thorn generously offered me a choice of solutions.

I have chosen their offer of a replacement bicycle in the form of a Nomad Mk2 with Rohloff. They have generously offered to build the basic bike to similar spec free of charge and with urgency, and will even take care to send it clearly labeled as a warranty replacement in hopes it will help with Customs duties.

Best of all -- and very reassuring to me -- they will take the extra step before packing of having Andy personally test it with the maximum luggage allowance as stated, so I can be truly reassured it is sound and fit for duty in field conditions.

Once it arrives, I will pack the Sherpa in the box for return so they can examine it to better understand what is wrong. I'm keen to find out, too, and very much hope something will be revealed. Perhaps, as can happen with any product, there was some unseen flaw in construction or materials that caused the problem. I've never experienced or heard of anything like it, so it is a rare event and an anomaly.

Robin topped his efforts with a thanks for my patience and an apology for inconvenience, and the result is both outstanding and very much appreciated.

Thank you, Robin Thorn and Andy Blance.

I am looking forward to working with Andy to spec the build and to receiving the bike. I will, of course, be starting a new Gallery entry titled, "Danneaux's Nomad" so you can follow my personalization of the bike and our travels together. Adventure awaits!

Thanks very much to each of you who have followed and weighed in with your helpful suggestions and opinions. It is a wonderful example of how a Forum can bring collective expertise to bear on problems greater than ourselves and build a sense of community in the process. I'm grateful for your help!

All the best,

Dan

[jags]

WoW that's fantastic news Dan .
well done Thorn outstanding service .
really look forward to seening the nomad special ,and a rohloff hub  wow dan this is going to be a dream machine.
dan i really think you were the unluckest thorn owner on the planet, but these things happen the frame has to be faulty and it would be interesting to see if andy blance can figure exactly what went wrong .
are the frames put together in asia maybe it was a tea break frame
anyway well done thorn on  replacing the bike it was the right thing to do. DAN enjoy 

[JimK]

Great to hear about the top notch response from the Thorn crew! And I hope it solves the problem perfectly.... not least, because it's a Nomad MkII that I ride! I will be especially fascinated to hear how you find the Nomad versus the Sherpa, Dan. Not too many folks get to compare them, especially with the rigorous testing you put the bikes through!

This shimmy business is fascinating. I am thinking about ways to explore it more. One idea I have is to somehow mount a vertical pole on the bike, like maybe a pair of 1x4 fixed on the sides of the rear rack and then bolted together up high, with some line stretch from the top to the front and back of the rack, so the whole arrangement is decently stable and rigid. Then put some small weight up there like 8 feet high, maybe five pounds. This should really screw up the way the bike corners. With enough weight up high enough, surely the handling of the bike could be destroyed utterly. How do things start to fall apart on the way to that utter doom?

Yeah, that is one of my long time engineering practices, to break things!

[ians]

That's really good news.

ian

[Andre Jute]

Superb news, Dan. Despite your travails with what can only be a rogue Sherpa -- a problem that can strike any manufacturer -- this outcome fully justifies your decision to order from Thorn in the first instance. Congratulations too to Thorn for find a Solomonic solution to what seemed only days ago to be an insuperable problem.

Also glad to hear you'll be joining the Rohloff elite...

Andre Jute

[triaesthete]

Wow!Whoa!...woe.....WAHEY!

Top marks to Thorn for biting the bullet and top marks to Dan for patience and thoroughness.

The proverbial happy ending I hope.
Ian

[il padrone]

Great news Dan, that you have a resolution. You will not be disappointed with the Nomad I reckon.

But I'm intrigued by your Sherpa problems. Was this the first time you tried to tour with it fully loaded? If you'd done other tours surely the shimmy would have been apparent then.

And you're still on leave? What are you planning to do with the rest of your leave? It's a bit of a loss to miss out on the tour you'd planned.

Great delights await you anyway. Discovering the features and secrets of a new bike is always wonderful. Have a great time with the Nomad.

[NZPeterG]

It's good to hear, that your getting a replacement bike from the team @ Thorn (good work guy's)
I have new part's and wheels sitting about my home, just waiting on my new Thorn Nomad MK2.
Looking forward to some hard touring in NZ and the World.

Pete
 

[julk]

Dan,
wonderful news about the replacement bike.

Welcome (in advance) to the world of Rohloff!
Julian.

[JWestland]

Great news and great service from Thorn!

I hope we get an update on what was wrong, quite curious now...could just have been a dodgy weld, it happens, no manufacturing process can be 100% perfect, or a rough shipper (don't get me started in couriers, the amount of stuff they broke due to rough handling in a technical support job I worked at was unreal....)

JimK you're not getting anywhere near my bikes!

[Relayer]

Fantastic news Dan, and all at Thorn have excelled themselves here ... )thinking we should look into nominating them for some sort of customer service award, if such a thing were possible online).

I can't wait to see pics of the new machine, and also your impressions of Rohloff ... so much to look forward to ... happy days indeed.   

[peter jenkins]

Hi Dan et al,

I've been following this thread with some interest and it's good to see the happy outcome.

I must see if I can induce a shimmy in my Club Tour........

Cheers,

pj

[joesoap]

Danneaux, didn't you sat in your first post that,
"This is essentially what happened to my Miyata 1000LT *after* my Great Basin tour in 2010,"? Did that bike develop a shimmy as well? I'm intrigued. Also, are Thorn paying the extra cost of the higher spec Nomad, or are you paying the difference? If the former, I do think I feel a shimmy developing in my steed.....

[jags]

the sherpa has bigger tubes better spec thats the reason he changed  his bike in the first place if i'm not mistaken.

[joesoap]

why don't you let the man answer himself? Legions have traversed the globe on his former model of steed. I am trying to ascertain if there is a common denominator to his shimmy problem.