Who is the best wheel repair place in New York City?

How do you define "repair"?

My wheels need to be trued and the rear has a hump in it. I was told by the shop on 10th and 46 that the hump is impossible to get rid of because a hump is an indication of physical damage to the rim itself.

A "hump" suggests a bulge outwards which is not likely. More likely is an inward dent or "flat spot" from hitting a pothole.
Flat spots can be difficult, or impossible to fix, depending on severity.
Often the best fix is to replace the rim. Depending on the quality and condition of the wheel, an entire new wheel may be a better option, when factoring in labor costs, and possibly new spokes.

I want a shop with someone like you working in there. So I guess I should rephrase my question to what bike shop has people like Homebrew01 working there.

I'm no expert. Just a guy who fixes his own bikes as needed.
Walk into a couple of shops and ask what they suggest. Did the shop on 10th & 46 have a suggestion for repair or replacement ?

nope they just trued it laterally and said the hop couldn't be dealt with and the rim needs to be replaced.

You could get a 2nd opinion, but wouldn't surprise me if another shop also says the rim needs replacing.

I assume you mean "flat spot" , and not "hop"

The rim looks like it's taken on an oval shape. I'll have to get the rims trued again and really examine the rim. Or can I just take the tire off and it'd be obvious if it's flat on a side?

If the rim is out of true radially because of a flat spot or a hop, the shop's answer is probably the right one. A flat spot, like Homebrew01 mentioned above, can be impractical to repair. There are tools that can bend a rim to help reduce flat spots, but for the time and effort (and thus expense) involved and the likelihood of less-than-perfect results, it often makes more sense to replace the rim.

It certainly doesn't hurt to get a second opinion, but the first one is pretty plausible.

I'll have to defer to someone else for a shop recommendation. Wrong part of the state for me.

I really need to come to terms and abandon the idea that I can stick racing wheels on a road bike and use it as a commuter bike. I need wheels that can handle potholes, New York is just a city of potholes.

Spin the wheel somewhat slowly, then look at the rim from the side where the brake pads are. Using the pads as a guide, you will see how bad it is. If you have disk brakes just rest your finger on the frame and watch the rim as it goes by.

Replacing a rim is not a big deal (usually). If the spokes are in good shape, you can get a new rim with the same Effective Rim Diameter "ERD", tape the new rim to the existing rim, loosen the spokes, and swap them to the new rim, and true it up.

Sturdy wheels may be a good idea, but technique can also be helpful. "Ride lightly" by getting up off the saddle when you're going to hit a pothole or other road imperfection. Let your legs absorb the shock instead of the rim and your butt.

Bunny hopping too.
And look up the road to anticipate dodging potholes. Move gradually to go around it. Don't swerve at the last minute, too dangerous with traffic or other cyclists behind you.

Keeping tires properly inflated can help "protect" rims from that kind of damage....to a point.
Larger tire size if you have room.
You never did specify what kind/size rim this is, except "racing wheels". That can have a very wide interpretation, unless you are a racer.

I ride in NYC and don't have a problem with my wheels. I'm careful about where I ride, take it easy over bumps and try to avoid potholes. The wheels I built myself for commuting are still round and true after two+ years of use. My stock wheels are also still true after many years of riding. I'm not a lightweight any more either. I will say that I no longer rush around the city when on my bike, I take it a little slower, stop at lights, etc...

Your best bet is to get a new rim and find someone that'll build it up properly with the right amount of tension. I'd offer to do it, but I can tell you that I won't get around to it any time soon as I have plenty of my own projects to pursue. Since I do my own work I haven't brought a bike in for repair for many years so I can't really recommend anyone. I also always assume the worst, that whoever does it won't do it right so make sure they know what they are doing.

Not knowing what the problem may be, or whether it is in fact repairable or not, I'll simply suggest two guys who do good work. See Hal at Bicycle Habitat down on Lafayette, or Larry at Larry's Freewheeling on 110th just west of the top of Central Park.

See only the two people I suggested, not just whoever happens to be at the shop. I'd call in advance to check that they're there, and you might mention my name -- Francis - from Chain-L -- in case it helps.

I know Hal at Bicycle Habitat for a long time and he is a good honest guy.

Also happen to be a big fan of Chain L.

I damaged a rim on 58th st between 5th and 6th Ave heading towards Queensboro Br on a lawn mower sized pothole. It almost threw me off my bike. Fortunately the slight rim damage doesn't seem to effect the ride.

To to those of you who think that you can just avoid potholes, I guess you bike pretty slowly.

In Manhattan? Yes. I don't go screamin' down any streets anymore, it just isn't worth it. Too many lights. So tell me how you don't see a lawn mower sized pothole? What's a lawn? This is NYC, we don't need no stinkin' lawns.

+1000 about Hal....He is an old school mechanic, if your wheel is salvageable he will let you know. I worked along side him at Cycles LaChance in New Haven CT back in the early-mid 90's. If you see him tell him I said hello.

-j

It's a small world. I also knew Joel well, though it's been years since i last saw him. I'll pass your greetings to Hal, what name does he know you by?

Funny, these were exactly the two people I would recommend. Larry is in his 70s and still fixes bikes. He does the hard jobs. He is pretty amazing.

I recently became acquainted with Hal at Bicycle Habitat, which is handy, because the shop is close to my home. He seems to be in his 50s and is clearly extremely knowledgeable and skilled. Very nice guy, too.

Thanks, I usually go to Bike Works down on Ridge and Rivington. I actually took my bike there today. I love those guys. If the hop is still there I'll take it to Hal or Larry.


i looked at the rim and found that one of the spokes is bent. It's an Ultegra WH-6600 wheel set.



Do you guys think me hanging my bike has caused extra wear on the rim? I recently started doing this to save space in my place.




I take the same route everyday. So much so that I've got the lights timing down. I only have to stop at 2 places usually. Although one can't anticipate traffic which is what throws me off sometimes. I ride from World trade center to Long Island city queens. Right now Essex is being worked on. Man I was so mad when I pulled onto Essex and realized the whole damn street is unridable. I think that is what did my wheels in.

Unfortunately I ride at night and lot of the streets I take are not lit. If you ever take a ride down Norfolk st. towards Delancey heading north, that street is dark and full of holes. I would take clinton but I'd have to wait at that stop light if I don't make it in time (i'll have to experiment with that one). I've got terrible luck with headlights. I've gone though maybe 4 brands. Either they are not bright enough or get damaged. And don't even get me started about the roads I need to ride to get home in Jersey. Literally half my ride is in near pitch black conditions. There is a sliver of smooth road I stick to until the end where I have train tracks I have to cross. That part I just slow down because it's impossible to navigate those cracks and holes on that street.

Riding fast and testing your reflexes is the whole joy of New York city Bike riding. <-- I'm not a careless rider as that makes me sound. i do stop at reds, look both ways ate every intersection even if the light is green for me, I never round a corner at full speed without having looked at what is around that corner first ( lots of accidents where a UPS truck is parked on the corner and a bike rider is going the wrong way taught me that one)

The bent spoke means there's no tension. That means the flat spot is pretty bad. Time for a new wheel or rim.

Hanging a bike by its wheel does no damage whatsoever.