Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - best bike shop in NYC??

i live in boston but am in nyc every weekend since my chick is in law school there. my question is what is THE best bike shop in the city? i've been to a few but am spoiled i guess by the ones in the boston area.

thanks!

i like gotham , toga,frank's, bikestation.

"my chick"????

you're ridiculous!

"my chick"????

you're ridiculous!
no, you are...

nycbikes, hands down.

teehee.

nycbikes, hands down.

teehee.

No way dude, R&A.*



*I've actually never had any problems at R&A.

not trackstar, for real

p.s. hate, hate, hate

bikestation is the only bike shop I've ever gone into and not felt like I was being condescended to.

hey were is bikestation located

wheres bike station, location plz

bicycle station: on vanderbilt near bergen. kinda on the way to prospect park in bklyn. its one that i always recommend as well. others: r&a and trackstar cause they actually have things i want. i would have to disagree with 'enlacalle' with nycbikes if he means spokes and strings. that has to be the worst shop.

yeah thats what i thought but they called it "bikestation" ok bicyclestation duh was there yesterday thanks

bikeworks, for everyday stuff.

trackstar, for bling.

"my chick"????

you're ridiculous!

why "ridiculous"? she IS my chick. and why you "hate america"?

thanks!

i really like the guys over at NYC Velo.

Bikestation is a great shop, but its way the hell over in Brooklyn. There don't seem to be that many good shops in manhattan--just lots of places selling gucci bikes with overpriced components, or places with shady mechs who make their living selling fuji hybrids and fixing flats for delivery guys. If there are any old packrat shops with good used parts and friendly bike-geek (as opposed to bike-snob) mechanics, I havent found them.

For example--I've been looking for grade 25 loose balls, a mafac racer front brake, cloth bar tape, and a 1" centerpull brake guide for a threadless headset. All to no avail.

Anybody have any recommendations for good uptown bike shops?

did you try Emey's shop on east sixth street. He has the pack rat shop and have old stuff in stock.

a lot of shops ae not like they used to be and some changed their whole format(larry and jeff 's plus) look nothing like they once did years ago.

what shops are you talking about?

S/F,
CEYA!

i like:
nyc velo great guys, really cute female mechanic there (Brooke)..sorry if she has a bf/gf hat posts reads here.

toga bikes fun staff, really nice, have always tried to take care of me.

R&A cycles: Some really nice guys, some very non-knowledgeable staff as well who just like to push bikes on customers, also, not convenient if you live in inwood...like i do...in spit of this, i recently bought a frame from them, a beautiful casati..pics will come when its finished...

shops i have had bad experience with (this is me hating):

rennaisance cycles: overpriced, very pushy salesmen...I went in to get a threadless adapter, guy wouldnt leave me alone trying to sell me a 2003 specialized that was too big, then after telling him i wasnt interested took me 10 mins to get someones attention in order to purchase the part...upon asking i was promptly told "we dont have any of those"...i point at the one under the glass and say, then sell me that one...they did, at $4 more than i was quoted over the phone...no more rennaisance for me

Tread bike shop: a few blocks from my house, staff know close to nothing and ignore customers. i call ask if I can buy a frame box owner says sure come on down tomorrow we have a few in the back...I call the next morning before showing up to see verify box was there...boy on the line says "i don't know, probably not" i tell him the owner told me it would be there in the back, kid says no, i say can you check, he says after a brief pause no, not really. This happens two separate times. Part 2: went in with cash in hand to buy a singlespeed road bike (specialized langster). Salesman looked at me and put me on a 56cm bike, it was way too big (5'7", 31" inseam), when i told him it was too big, he tried to convince me it was perfect, then tried to tell me they could just swap one of the short mtn bike stems to the handlebar...told him they were two different size clamps, salesboy tells me no, they're the same, industry standard now is 33mm...hmmm, huh? That mtn one is 25.4, this road one is 26.0, the oversized stuff is 31.8...don't remember any that are 33....there are several other stories about the shop i can tell you (like charging my roommate $30 plus parts (2X$5) to change two flat tires)....

neutral: shop that says bicycles on west 6th st or thereabouts...apathetic staff, small selection, but nice people and do sell appropriate sized bikes to customers...

yeah, the owner over at NYC Velo is a stand up guy. He was doing a rear wheel build for me and said he was gonna put it together as quick as possible so i could have it for my saturday ride. It ended up that there were some late problems with the hub that stayed at the shop with me for over an hour after he was supposed to leave so i could have the wheel for saturday. I felt really bad when i cracked the rim the next day and had to bring it back to the shop.

I've been using Dixon's forever... great guys, very friendly, but definitely not high-end. I've also been going more recently to Bicycle Station... as everyone above says, it's great.

did you try Emey's shop on east sixth street. He has the pack rat shop and have old stuff in stock.

a lot of shops ae not like they used to be and some changed their whole format(larry and jeff 's plus) look nothing like they once did years ago.

what shops are you talking about?

S/F,
CEYA!


word. busy bee bikes. emey and jeff are great, super-helpful, friendly, knowledgeable. busy bee doesn't have shelves of high-end parts, but they do know all about track and f/g, and they'll do you a great conversion if that's your cup of tea

I'm definitely gonna throw in for the NYCVelo guys as well. Really nice, helpful, no bull****, and they'll spend the time with you. Not especially track heavy but they can generally get the part you need. Besides, if they don't have it then just head down 3 blocs to trackstar or like 10 to Bikeworks. Both winners as well.

Liberty Bikes. 9th Ave between 56 and 55.
Always cool, always reliable.

bike works.

I like Westchester Pro Bike Shop in the Bronx. They have very good prices (much better than Manhattan), and a strong in-stock selection of better mass-market brands (Specialized, Cannondale, Trek, Bianchi, Litespeed, etc.). I've bought 3 bikes there, and I've found the owner, James, to be very good to deal with -- knowledge and integrity, took time to get bikes set up and adjusted just-right. Certainly seems the best bet for anyone in Bx, Upper Manhattan, or Lower Wstchstr.

i cast my vote for NYCVelo - friendly and helpful folks. they don't cater to track really, but they had a 17t cog for me after i had been told they were hard to get at another shop and that they could "maybe" order one... they also have a good selection of riding wear.

Bay Ridge Bikes on 5th, Brooklyn

Tread bike shop

i used to live right down the street from the tread on dykman and yeah, way ****ty service. it's basically a buncha neighborhood bmx kids who just hang out all day and don't really do anything. the owner (i think) is an alright guy who was pretty helpful when he was around, but only after i had been in several times and he started recognizing me and that i spend money on my bike. then when i started just buying parts on doing the work myself he was less helpful. i got in good with the mechanic cause he's mexican and was stoked that i had a benotto cause they are now built where he's from. he started helping me out with stuff for free when he had a chance.

i have to give props to trackstar. i ordered custom phils through them and thru no fault of theirs the hubs took about 3 months to find their way to the shop. then there was some confusion about rims.

ultimately, everything was taken care of patiently and professionally. the wheels were built quickly and well. none of the delays were really the shop's fault, but brad threw me a chain to match the wheels and a frame i'm having built as a "consolation prize."

no store's ever given me a prize before even if they were completely responsible for a problem or series of problems. in my book, trackstar's got class.

edit: they also sold my girlfriend a really well built wheelset complete with tubes, tires, cog and lockring after kyotoloco for next to nothing for a conversion i did for her.

i generally just get the impression that they sincerely love this facet of cycling and are excited to get people involved in it and do what they can to insure that their customers have fun. i can't say that of most bike shop employees in NYC...

i dont know about that,i went in there and they ignored me:(

NYC velo

THey put together a karate monkey for me last spring. Really cool guys.

i know it's generic, but i have had good luck at metro bicycles (yes,the chain) at canal street (but bad service at the one on 6th ave). i also dig trackstar, while i do feel not cool enough to be in there, i have to say they have always been helpfull and fair and have the best track stock in the city. not a fan of bicycle habitat, although have had good experiences there with certain mechs, but overall kind of cruddy. of course, my favorite place is recycle a bicycle in dumbo. good people, good cause, cheap!

i'm never sure how to respond when i hear that businesses are condescending or apathetic. in general, i find that if i go into a store in a good mood and am friendly, it's reciprocated. if i go in and don't really care or am just approaching a shop in a utilitarian way, i generally walk out feeling ignored.

sometimes people are just dicks. sometimes people have bad days.

always hard to say...

i rely on my mech skills only! but when it comes to wheels they got me by the balls.i wish someone can teach me how to lace a wheel+ true it.

i rely on my mech skills only! but when it comes to wheels they got me by the balls.i wish someone can teach me how to lace a wheel+ true it.

maybe if enough people ask times up, they'll do a wheel building clinic.

i generally just get the impression that they sincerely love this facet of cycling and are excited to get people involved in it and do what they can to insure that their customers have fun. i can't say that of most bike shop employees in NYC...

THAT IS BECAUSE T-STAR (BRAD,ZACH and PATTY) EFFIN' RULES!

My vote is for trackstar / bike works and when I stopped in King Kog in brooklyn, I felt at home with all the hot track equipment. I lust after the Colnago frame on the back wall.

king kog is the jam for bling njs parts/frames (and the colnago) and great wear and stuff. However they don't do any wrenching. It's more of a front for 4916's gear and japanese or campy parts. They do sell stuff on consignment and Gina and Jason are solid as hell. Their prices tend to be cheaper than trackstar for bling as well (sugino cranks for $15-20 less, etc).

I tried to go to King Kog three times last week and it was closed each time. The first time was my fault, the other two were not. People in Williamsburg sleep in late.

nycbikes, hands down.

teehee.

+1

Word that's true, they tend to be a little behind schedule but the 4916 gear is great. They do a Hoodie cycling jersey style with the pockets on the back and the stripes on the hood that's ubernice/convenient.

Word that's true, they tend to be a little behind schedule but the 4916 gear is great. They do a Hoodie cycling jersey style with the pockets on the back and the stripes on the hood that's ubernice/convenient.

That's just the kind of thing I would've been interested in buying, had they actually been open during their posted hours.

I usually go to C&M bikes on 17th street between Irving and 3rd ave.
Great prices for the everday rider and he has a nice selection of Bling

king kog is the jam for bling njs parts/frames (and the colnago) and great wear and stuff. However they don't do any wrenching. It's more of a front for 4916's gear and japanese or campy parts. They do sell stuff on consignment and Gina and Jason are solid as hell. Their prices tend to be cheaper than trackstar for bling as well (sugino cranks for $15-20 less, etc).


I went by King Kog this morning before I went to work and they were not open yet.. Grr.. If its slow at the shop tonight we are leaving a few min early to check the place out.. Its nice to see a shop thats open until 8pm!

ummm yeah. Not being open when you say you're going to be open is sloppy and unprofessional. And if I decide to go there one day and they're not open for no good reason, I'll never go back there again. It's unacceptable to waste someone's time like that, especially someone like mcatano who was only in town to visit for a few days.

Lame.

Times-up space on 49 houston if you don't need to buy anything and just need to wrench on your ride.

recycle a bicycle in DUMBO

I tried to have a look at King Kog too...I took a ride over there during posted open hours and they were closed. From what I could see, it looked like your average Williamsburg boutique more than a bike shop. I'm not planning on another trip over there.
Good people at Bike Works, Trackstar and NYCVelo.

did you try Emey's shop on east sixth street. He has the pack rat shop and have old stuff in stock.

a lot of shops ae not like they used to be and some changed their whole format(larry and jeff 's plus) look nothing like they once did years ago.

what shops are you talking about?

S/F,
CEYA!
i like emy but he is old and bitter;also he will rip anyone off without thinking twice.
before i got more into bikes i did some buisness with him and he sold me the most
fecked up bike ive ever had. i then saw him do it again and again to other people,
so be wary.
the nyc velo guys are nice people and it is a good shop for gear/clothing type things.
they will overcharge on labor so again be a little wary,but i mean hell their rent has to be
in the 30,000$ range.
trackstar is good in that they dont charge a arm and a leg for labor and seem to know
what they are talking about really well. other shops to avoid are bicycle habitat which is
way too expensive,and all the metro cycles are very expensive as well.
that leaves me with nyc velo if its late at night (they stay open till 9ish)
or trackstar, because i dont get over to brooklyn very often and bike works
has a early close time.