Originally Posted by
quesofrito
I've been to pretty much all of these bike shops you guys have mentioned (except for some of the uptown ones), but they have NOTHING on conrad's in tudor city. They're primarily a high-end (think VERY high end) shop (see the gios torino in the shop window), but I've been in there when they've changed flats for $50 beater bikes. They are by far the nicest, professional, and most courteous people in NYC.
They aren't cheap though. They overhauled my Merckx for something like $225. However, it was in showroom condition after. Could've eatened off the drivetrain, new cables, grease, the works. I mean, they even cleaned the pantographing on the frame. Worth every penny.
How come nobody has mentioned them?
+1
After the disgusting 155miles to Montauk, I took my bike to Conrad's for a complete overhaul based off of this review.
Their standard overhaul is $225. Expensive for sure, but they take EVERYTHING apart then clean/grease/lube, put everything back together, then clean again. No joke, even my bottle cages were shiny! I think they even cleaned up some of the surface rust spots from the more obvious paint chips. They replaced all cables, (did a great job routing them) and put on new handlebar tape (very well done, can't figure out how they ended the wrap on top of the bars, it's so neat and clean).
My bike is an old columbus tubed schwinn with a mix of original biopace chainrings, ultegra 9spd shifters (triple controlling a double) and derailleurs, and shimano 600 hubs + brakes. The drivetrain has never been buttery smooth and it still isn't perfect, but I think Conrad's tuned it to about as best this combo of components can be. I did a short 20mile test run last night and was very pleased with how smooth everything was.
A few things I wasn't 100% happy with:
The chain was wiped down, but it seemed like an afterthought. It was the only thing they DIDN'T thoroughly clean (both the chainrings and cassette were sparkling).
The adjustable screw for the right side dropout has been broken for a while (the screw head broke off). It would have been pretty cool if they replaced it considering it probably costs a few pennies. Then again I'm not sure if shops have these laying around anymore or if there are odd thread sizes for different bikes.
Tires were a bit under inflated when the bike was returned. Or maybe I usually over inflate them? Whatever, I'm just nitpicking at this point.
Overall I'm more than happy. I'm ecstatic about the quality of their overhaul. The manager there is super friendly and made me feel like they welcomed and appreciated my business - which is a rare treat as most of the shops I've been to in Manhattan and Brooklyn are surly or indifferent.
So Conrad's is my go to shop for repairs/service from now on. I can't afford any of their new bikes, but I'll definitely put them on top of my list if I ever have the disposable income.