bigwoo

Happy new year everybody

If small/Indy shops go out of business you can bet that I will have a heck of a time getting good parts for my C&V machines... I'm just sayin....

"People were dragging long-forgotten bikes out of basements and garages and fixing them up for recreation because they were staying home instead of traveling..."

"Many stores said that they had to hire more mechanics. The most curious development was an influx of bicycles so old that they caused a run on 27-inch tires, once an industry standard but largely out of use since the early 1980s...."

“The question is,” Mr. Townley said, “will they take the bike out of the basement, inflate the tires and ride it again? My gut says no.”




I seem to recall a few of you predicting a renaissance of sorts that would make "old bikes" sought after......

Both good and unfortunate stuff here: https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/01/bu...html?_r=1&8dpc


What do ya' reckon this will mean for old bikes and parts availability if the LBS closes??

luker

my lbs is in no fear of closing. The gas prices re-enforced the status of the LBS here in outback, Idaho. The boys hired two extra mechanics last summer and couldn't keep up with the repairs coming in. Unless gas stays in the basement we'll see the same behavior next summer and I'm thinkin' that the owner is postponing retirement because of all of the extra income...

RFC

In my opinion, ebay is a far better source for odd parts than the LBS is or ever was. Generally, the LBS financial focus is almost entirely on selling new bikes, not providing parts for old ones.

wrk101

The only thing is that repairs on some of these gas pipe boomer bikes cost more than a new XMart bike. I would guess Walmart et al, is seeing a boom in bike sales.

I did see a bottom end old Free Spirit 10 speed (I would estimate it to be a $25 bike when in good condition), getting a $150 tune up and tire at the local bike shop yesterday.

Blue Order

But according to the posted article, other bike shops have experienced the same thing-- extraordinary demand for repairs as people have hauled long-neglected bikes out of the basement, but no increased demand for new bikes, and no increased demand for cold-weather commuting accessories.

Spinz

My LBS is hurting ---- period. There are three more in Greensboro that I use and I believe they are feeling the pinch too. Lp

cycleheimer

I think I have seen a slightly different take on this theme. People "haul the long-neglected bikes out of the basement"; find it needs too much work, and then toss them out. Many of these bikes clean up nicely (got a nice one just 2 days ago), and can be inexpensively fixed up by people like many of us BF members who do this as a fun hobby. For those bikes that really aren't worth fixing up, they can still be a good source of replacement parts. As far as tires go, I've ridden around on original tires that are up to four decades old without a problem. You can also have another wheel set around to throw on that uses more readily available tires sizes.

embankmentlb

How many pair of 27" tires doe's the average shop keep on hand? A half dozen? I am sure selling those 12 tires made a huge difference in that months revenue. I can only speak for the area i live in, north Ga. This is not a bike friendly place to live. We need some type of government initiative to make roads bike friendly. Friendly enough that when you need to go pick up a few things from the store you will say to yourself " I think i will ride my bike this time".

Kommisar89

The LBS has not been a major factor for me. I have had work done when I didn't feel comfortable doing it myself but in each case I first acquired the parts from the Internet and brought them to the LBS to have the work done. I guess if the LBS goes away I'll just have to learn to do more work myself. About the only thing I can't do now would be wheel building or probably frame aligning since I don't have the appropriate tools.

roccobike

A few miles down route 40, I'm seeing both. LBSs that counted on sale of new bikes for most of their income are hurting. But others, who make the major part of their income from repairs are doing OK. My LBS has added staff to their repair shop.

tacomee

Repairs have, and will always be, a big cash generator for local bike shops. New bike sales do not make any real profit, as a general rule. It's all about service and accessories.

RobbieTunes

I patronize 3 main LBS (shameless plug: Steve's in Rocky Mount, Don's in Wilson, Bike Post in Greenville and Kinston). They had "OK" years selling bikes. They sell other stuff, like skateboard, kayaks, outfitter stuff, which helps.

None has said a negative word this year about C&V bikes. They don't stock a lot of parts, but will order what you want and give you a good price if you prepay. Good wrenches at all locations.

They have seen the fixie crowd and the single speed crowd grow, especially in the university area.

I get the distinct impression they prefer working on C&V bikes, especially the 80's, and I think they get a kick out of seeing them restored, upgraded, and then ridden.

And January is the best month, in my experience, to get what work done you need LBS to do.

Rabid Koala

I pretty much gave up on them, but I go to one for things like tubes, spokes, cable housing, etc. that has been extremely nice about making sure I got the right spokes.

The rest of them I am totally done with.

cb400bill

I've got 4 LBS that I pop into for various reasons. I know that the smallest one is really hurting. He has said it is quite likely he won't make it. I have bought many accessories and a couple of bikes from him over the last few years. I feel bad for him, but beyond referring friends and such to him, not a lot more I can do. Shame too as he is definitely the most C&V friendly.

RFC

Actually, the best LBS like shop in my area is the Performance in Scottsdale. The mechanics are great, like my interest in old bikes, and help with spare parts whenever they can. The rest in the area have the attitude of "if you are not here to buy an expensive bike or to buy over priced clothing, why are you bothering us?" The Performance is an example of a model that works. The shop is intended to draw customers in and, although profitable, tends to be more friendly and customer oriented.

TL179

I don't know about any of you guys but my LBS (JR's in Montreal) is a repair only shop. The only bikes they sell are on consignment and in the spring and summer their staff works till nine just to keep up on a steady 2 week backlog. These guys order 27 inch gumwalls by the bale and regularly sell out of good 27's like marathons or zaffiros. They love C&V too!

I think one reason (other than to sell new bikes) some shops always say "replace" is an incomplete service department, whether is means tools or expertise.

tacomee

TL179 has a good point....there are shops that don't even bother to sell new bikes. A million dollars of new bikes doesn't make a real bike shop.

On the other hand, I know life can be really tough on a small bike shop in an area that's not as bike crazy so other places. If anybody knows of a small failing shop--- suggest moving to Portland! There's always room for another small, but darn good, shop there.

BluesDaddy

I apologize this is slightly off topic, but... can bike shops please be more accomodating of my oddball projects? What I really want is a place where I can go in and poke around in a bin of old, cheap parts and accessories and chat up a fellow bike enthusiast. I can't afford to pay top dollar for new parts when I'm trying something new or repairing one of my kid's bikes. I recently moved to a different state, but at the LBS's I used to haunt, I felt like they would roll their eyes when they saw me coming, because I was not a "normal" customer. I rely a lot on eBay these days. Doesn't that worry the LBS? /rant

cyclotoine

Where do you get your information? Care to elaborate? Labour charges are drops in the bucket for bike shops. Yes selling parts that go along with repairs are a revenue generator and that should be considered when evaluating sales, however, bike sales are the bread and butter of all traditional bike shops. The community bikes shops in vancouver and and victoria canada that are focussed on service and used parts are just that.. community bike shops, they are either run by non-profit organisations, suplimented by a school or are just scraping buy and depend on people who volunteer or work a couple days a week (these people of course have other sources of income).

If new bike sales drop significantly this year the LBSs are going to hurt and hurt bad. I do think there will be a demand for more service but a lot of shops are booked solid for 4 months already so unless they increase their service capacity they will see a drop in revenue. New shops or shops with a larger service capacity may benefit a little. In general, the cost of bike service is cheep when you consider it as an important form of transportation for many people.

screwdriver

I went to 5 bike shops in Houston before finding a pair of 27 inchers. Speaking of Houston bike shops. Davids Bicycle Shop has a gentleman name Harry that's been working on and restoring Schwinn bikes for 41 years.

cobrabyte

I have a grerat LBS two blocks from me, it's more of a fixed gear "boutique", but he works on anything, old or new, and will order anything you can find online at wholesale & pass the savings on to you. Great guy & a great shop
The other LBS I frequent caters to the "high end" bike crowd, but stock a lot of older bike parts, including 3 or 4 varieties of 27" tires & the guys love it when I bring my bikes in..it always sparks a conversation. Whenever I have a mechanical question, they will put my bike on the stand and SHOW ME how to fix it..Now that's a shop! They also stock lots of great accessories for touring & commuting. Another great shop & they're doing fantastic..in fact they just opened a bigger store down the street about 2 months ago.
There's also one more shop I go to that deals mainly with the mid-range crowd, is always fixing & selling old bikes, carries both old & new parts & are all around nice guys, but the prices are a bit high. i still shop there to support them, but wouldn't buy a whole bike due to the prices (avg. $200 for a $100 CL bike)
There's about 5 other shops in my area that I've been to once & won't go back to, cuz the guys were jerks & looked at me as I might as well have shown up on a broom. One of those shops closed about 6 months ago.
For me it's all about customer service

USAZorro

I have an LBS that permits this, but they aren't as close or convenient as the one I have gravitated towards. I noticed that, while they do let me do this, the prices they ask have increased to the point that it's more cost effective to trade here for most needs.

That said, if I do need something, either shop will be very accommodating, and will order without pause if I request it. In the case of 27" tires, I can ask the most local LBS to special order them, and pay more, can drive 25 miles round-trip to pay about $2.00 less per tire, or drive 60 miles round trip and get them for $7.00. I tend to make infrequent trips and get a few of the $7.00 Kendas all at the same time.

cb400bill

I stopped into my local hardware store this past week to pick up some home supplies. I was poking around their shop and found they were now stocking some bicycle parts. They don't sell bicycles. They had various sizes of bicycle tires in stock including Kenda 27" x 1 1/4 blackwalls for $7 ea.

You just never know where you can find bike stuff.

YoKev

My LBS of choice is Overlook Mountain Bikes in Woodstock, NY.

Quick drive down the road, have a supply of 3-speed stuff such as cables/tires/ect as well as 27" tires and other misc "old" stuff. If it's not available, they order it on Monday. They service lots of older bikes as well as the newest you can get. Good place.

Rabid Koala

That is exactly how I felt in some of them. One even nicknamed me the "old Campy guy" which I didn't care a whole lot for. Now I don't bother them with my annoying needs, I find it online or on ebay.