Absolutely agree. And it's the gruff and grumpy older bikers that I always go in search of when I walk into a bike shop. This is the kind of relationship I want with the service department in my bike shop:
"Hey you, you look like you've been in here since 1963, what can you tell me about this component?"
"It's shit, get this one instead. It does exactly the same thing, looks the same, feels the same, fits your bike the same. It costs about 20% more but'll last 10 times longer. The older design sheds muck better meaning less wear and the compound it's made from has the same tensile strength as the newer one but it doesn't rust because it was made before they cheaped out and started making shit quality product. I don't even know why the fuck they released this one. The old one was better. We're gonna stop carrying their newer stuff until they get their shit together."
They don't tend to mince words. They tell you exactly how it is, rather than exactly what they think you want to hear to get you to part with your money. In my opinion, you cannot pay enough to have people like this on your team.
