An Electric Scooter Community on a Mission to Stamp out Transportation Mediocrity.

Share your stories and adventures, good or bad.
By xw4600
#642
I just signed up to be a mechanic and my startup kit arrived in a few days. It came with a few tires, tubes and stickers. No tools, but that's not a problem for me, I'm a bicycle mechanic so that covers everything on a bird tool wise. I never got a interview call, I thought that was a part of the process. So off I went to pick up a bird for repair, I didn't have to travel far, found it easily and scanned the QR.

So I'm in the pre repair inspection and I am going through the list and I am confused by the headlight checkbox. I mean, I see what looks like a headlight, it's not on, is there a test procedure? Not knowing the answers to these questions I checked it as needing repair. Also with the stem which was loose and the bell which was jammed against the brain, not allowing it to chime. I took it home, repaired the bell and stem and messaged my mechanic on boarding contact first thing in the morning about the light. No reply. I'm pretty sure it's a person, perhaps it's a bot. Around lunch I contacted support through the app, for some reason the reply went to my email address instead of the app. I didn't realize anyone had replied until hours later and the ticket was closed. I was able to learn that the headlight doesn't come on in mechanic mode. I still don't know if there is a test procedure I am supposed to perform or if I should just release the scooter or drop it off at one of these storage units or wherever it is you bring these for more serious repairs.

When I realized I had missed the reply and the ticket was closed, I tried making a new support request, I was greeted but then the line went cold. I picked the scooter up at 9:30 on Tuesday and it's about 4pm on Wednesday, so I have about an hour to release it to get paid. 5pm comes and goes, I have tried messaging the support chat, replying to the emails, calling the rider support number (I know mechs/chargers are not supposed to use this number) and just nothing. I don't know if my messages are getting through or not. I send one final message explaining my trouble contacting support, with my phone number so they can get in touch to sort this out.

So far I would have to say my experience as a mechanic has been disappointing, I'm hoping it's just startup hiccups and this will become more streamlined, I think this could be a really nice side income. Working on the scooters is enjoyable and with a bit of practice you could get your repair times down and make a decent hourly.

So in conclusion, the scooters are good quality and a pleasure to work on, the app and support section, I would describe it as a beta version. It would be nice to get an introductory call and a point of contact, maybe they don't have enough staff yet for this. Also, I am still wondering where the drop off location for very damaged birds. I think the platform has potential, I'm hoping it is successful. :)
User avatar
By guisar
#643
Bird support is awful, just awful.

Mech here as well. I do my best to fix the the e-scooters and make them safe. You could spend all day testing every function if you wanted to but Bird doesn't enforce this. You can go back into the ticket and start over or just check that the light is working.

Check out the Bird Repair Guide, it's been a big help for me.
User avatar
By Edmund
#650
@xw4600 Welcome to the forum!

If you're interested in meeting your location's Mech handler you'll find them at the storage unit. Usually between the hours of 8am - 5pm Monday through Friday. Text support for the un-repairable Bird drop off location and they'll respond with instructions of how to get into the storage unit. While you're there picking the handler's brain be sure to grab spare fenders, calipers, rotors etc.

Also, ask where you can get a pair of e-scooter tire irons. They are designed to pry tires off of e-scooters and will save you a lot of time and headaches.

Here is my set. Grabbed the closest fun item for a size reference. :D

Image
By xw4600
#651
Those are some nice spoons you got there! Where did you pick them up at? I have various bicycle tire levers and an old school motorcycle tire lever, I'm going to have to see how I do with those because I just picked up my firs flat repair. :D

I got a hold of support, I think they are stretched really thin being a startup and all. I released it into the wild yesterday. It was really hard to find the first nest because there is a fence in the picture that doesn't exist anymore due to new construction, but I eventually found the spot. I couldn't release it, although I was certain I was in the right spot. Do we report bad nest to the support? I went downtown and found a nest without problem. Success!


The Bird Repair Guide is good, and I think nerding out with the mechanic for a bit will answer the rest of my questions. :geek: I need to grab a bunch of fenders, it seems like people like to use them as a footrest and it causes the tire to scrape and short out the taillight wire. I grabbed 7 bird this morning and a few of them I'll have to transport because of this issue.
User avatar
By Edmund
#662
The tire spoons :D came as a gift from Bird when I signed up. Back in the day, a couple of months ago, they used to send tons of tools along with parts in the Mech welcome kit. Ask support if they can send you some. They’ll probably tell you to swing by the storage unit to pick them up.

Regarding the nests, most of the photos are out of date or not existent. Your best best is to get close enough to the GPS spot and place the e-scooter in a safe spot.

Seven is a nice haul. Have fun fixing them!

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