Chappelli Cycles Reviews 209

Seamless order, great communication - loving my new bike!

I have owned a Modern 3-speed (2017) for 9 months now and so far I have had 3 warranty claims. I ride this bike 4-5 days a week on an urban commute and several of the parts are clearly not meant for regular use. 2 spokes snapped under no particular load or stress. The shifter broke after 5 months. Last month my crank arm broke off when pulling away at a busy junction. The more parts get replaced, the more confidence I have in my Chappelli bike.

That was fun. Back from my first test ride. Chapelli, you've done a fantastic job. I picked up a 61cm, vintage 3-speed in a box and spent a sunny afternoon on a rug doing the basic assembly. If you haven't changed a front wheel, adjusted brake, steering wheel and seat; Find a bike shop that will do this and spend some money to personalise your bike setup. If the shop is good, it should cost between $50-100.

I picked up a "vintage 3-Speed" unassembled in a box. The first thing I noticed was how light it was. I specifically chose the vintage over the modern because it has as seperate gear change control not on the steering wheel grip. I took my time reading the build manual and spent a sunny afternoon on a rug assembling. Here's some observations.

Assembly
A lot of time and care has been taken to pack the bike in the box. Leave the wrapping on the bike until you have added the seat, wheel, adjusted the brakes, added the neck. It will save scratches. When you remove the plastic covering, be careful to cut the tape making sure the tip of the scissors point away from the frame.

If you haven't modified the saddle, adjusted the handle-bars, removed the front wheel and adjusting the front brakes before, 'do yourself a favour' and pay to have the bike assembled. Read the manual a few times to visualise the build.

There is no mention of applying a small amount grease to the pedals. Also beware the RIGHT pedal is "Righty-Tighty, Loosy-Lefty". The LEFT pedal is "Lefty-Tighty, Righty-Loosey". Opposites. This isn't a problem if you've taken pedals off before, but newbies beware. Finger tight to begin with, then adjust. Practice undoing some old pedals to work out the torque. Once again your bike professional will use a torque wrench to do this. If you are on a carbon-fibre bike, using a torque wrench is mandatory.

The inclusion of the tools is a good idea. I used the supplied allen (HEX) keys but used a trusty 15mm Sidchrome open-face spanner to tighten the front wheels and pedals. I tightened and adjusted the handle bars, seat with the supplied allen key. Keep the tools on you when you ride (yeah, I've learned the hard way about this) for any emergencies.

Ride
On my test ride the quality of the build was obvious. The ride was smooth and steering true on a 10 kilometer course of flat with one hill. I needed to makea minor adjustment to the steering. I was initially surprised by the geometry. The dimensions of the vintage, from seat to steering wheel is a fraction shorter my previous bike. Noticable but not a problem. I chose the internal Sturmey-Archer 3-speed. An adequate change from my previous 15 speed. The range works a charm on the hills.

Comments
a) For bike-hackers like myself the build instructions were adequate. For bike newbies assembling their bike for the first time a series of YOUTUBE videos would help them make the decision to self assemble or try a bike shop.

b) It would be good for Chappelli to have automatic registration in AUS to BikeIndex (or the best Australian equivalent) This could be added either as a service or cost a nominal amount to help improve the rate of stolen bike recoveries.

@peterrenshaw

Chappelli Vintage! Ok I got the last one and got a great price. Came quick and am really happy with it. A few minor issues a broken nipple on front wheel and bent spoke on back but both easily fixed. It also came with a 46 tooth front ring which I found to high for me but I'm big and have a few hills to negotiate, easily changed. Will be keeping eye on Chappelli and happy to recommend. Thanks.

Delivered quickly and bike looks really nice.

Instruction manual is confusing and too difficult for someone with no experience with bikes to build. I attempted it but struggled with the handle and brake components. Had to take it to a bike mechanic who is charging more than half of what I paid for the bike. Add the usual helmet, lock and water bottle extension costs and all of a sudden a cheap budget bike has become expensive.

Great Service and Great Bike

I purchased my bike and chose the pickup assembled option and it was ready within 2hrs, I would recommend Chapelli Cycles to anyone.

I'm completely happy with my bike and am looking forward to riding it for as long as possible.

Thanks

I’ve bought two bikes from Chappelli over three years. Their designs speak for themselves. What you see in the photos is what you get; no surprises or disappointment. Service has always been friendly with questions answered quickly. Quality of bikes themselves are good.

Vintage 3 speed

Loving the bike.
Easy online purchase, bike was as described, packaged ok and the delivery was super fast.

The bike came in a few parts which were easily assembled. I didn't need to look at the instructions as I have done maintenance on a number of bikes.
I’ve been riding it to keep fit or go down to the local coffee shop. The gear changes are easy and smooth. I wanted a 3 speed over a 15+ speed as I am not concerned with speed, but more to do with comfort and fitness.
As I haven't ridden for a while, I changed the seat to a more comfortable gel seat. Maybe I may change it back again in time.
Love the colour and the look of the bike.
Great commuter - would highly recommend Chappelli Cycles.

Yes, well worth it, great bike. Have gone on some extensive rides with the 8 speed internal hub, looking forward to stepping up as a commuter.

Bike not packaged properly, for the minimal amount of assembled that you claim I need to do there is a lot I need to get sorted by my local bike shop. Not happy....

Loving the Vintage 3 Speed bike by Chappelli.
Very easy online purchase, bike was as described, packaged carefully, and very fast delivery! I had my bike delivered to (way) outer Perth WA, and it was still super fast delivery.
The bike came in a few parts and only needed a few things assembled, if you are familiar with bikes you don’t need assistance, Im a 43yr old woman and it took me 1.5hrs - including fiddling with brake and seat height adjustments, and then cutting up all the boxes to fit into the recycle bin :-)
I’ve been riding it daily to the train station and so far so good, gear changes are easy and smooth.
The bike looks really smart without being over the top and expensive. Great commuter - would highly recommend and repeat business.
Ps. If you don’t get your emails from Chappelli straight away then check your Junk mailbox, all of my emails on confirmation etc went there!!

Great service - paid for my bike online and picked it up with no hassles. Very happy with the vintage single speed. Looks great and rides very well :)

I was thinking due to its low price I would have to upgrade some parts on my vintage single speed bike. However after its delivery, I was pleasantly surprised to see how nice the bike looks and how smooth it rides. Of course, there are always upgrades you can make to a bike, but I think my Chapelli is great right out of the box. My wife did manage to scratch my British racing green painted frame while putting on the front wheel though. I should have put down my beer and helped.

Good website, high-quality bike, prompt dispatch, price discount readily agreed

Great bike, very light compared to my previous road bike. Looks great!

Chappelli customer service is a 5 star benchmark. Immediately after assembly in Sydney my bike had a problem with front disc brake. I sent an email to Chappelli and Justin rang the next day. He rang the bike shop I took it for assembly and after speaking to them said I should use another bike shop! He recommended another bike shop and after repair Justin promptly reimbursed the cost. I would not hesitate to recommend Chappelli - if you had any problems they go out of their way to fix them.

ordered a bike online for instore pick up but wasnt advised of when I could pick up. It wasn't till hours after I ordered and I decided to send an email that I got a call advising me they had over sold the bike I had ordered and asked if I could either go up a size or be refunded.

Given the circumstances though I think they were very professional with helping to solve the problem my only suggestion would be to have advised me before I contacted them and monitor stock closely during an online sale to avoid this in future, in the end I went with the larger size which luckly just fits and I find it to be an amazing bike and look forward to using it daily!

Great bicycle and good customer service.

I am happy with the Chappelli Urban commuter 11 speed that I bought. This bike handles the shared bike lanes throughout western Sydney well. So I am perfectly happy with the upgrade from a mountain bike to the urban commuter.