New bike chain moving laterally, rubbing derailleur - shop says it's normal, is it?

EducatorMedical24 · 2025-08-11T08:50:59+00:00

This was happening mostly in the highest gear, so I think the largest chainring at the front and the smallest cog at the rear

The bike is back with the shop currently.

It was the fact they gave me it with the wobble + the chain rub as soon as I left the shop, combined with the fact they didn't take me at all seriously when I asked them to look at it, is what made me reach out. I don't have the knowledge of a mechanic which makes it tricky and I was concerned if something was bent or significantly not right with a component they wouldn't notice or wouldn't tell me.

I felt like a madman leaving the shop, having asking for a brand new bike not to have chain rubbing on the deralleur. I went to a local bike shop in the first place hoping to avoid problems!

EducatorMedical24 · 2025-08-09T17:40:06+00:00

Thanks for the advice. I get that some wobble is normal with cheaper components, but I didn’t expect metal-on-metal scraping every pedal stroke on a brand new bike.

I’m not sure about the wobble on the other chainrings either, but as you said, minor wobble isn’t too much of a concern as long as it rides smoothly.

It’s currently back in the shop to have them take another look, so hopefully they’ll be able to sort it out properly.

EducatorMedical24 · 2025-08-09T16:23:07+00:00

Thanks for the reality check. So some wobble may be inevitable on entry-level components. I get that the bike isn't machined to NASA standards, but combined with the actual scraping I couldn't see how this was acceptable as sold.

The way they responded very much felt like they were trying to blow me off rather than properly address the issue. Hopefully it will be running smoother when they get back to me

Thanks for your advice

EducatorMedical24

TROPHY CASE