dsellinger

What is the deal with this place? Anyone here in the know?
There isn't much info on their website except how great they are, and how you can fix your bike there. And of course that they need volunteers, but they keep strange hours and are closed Sun-Tues. (except you can volunteer on Tues.)
Anyway... It's about a 40 min drive for me to get out there.

How do I go about getting my grubby mitts on on of the thousands of frames they have laying out in their bone yard?
Any idea what they charge for used parts?
By getting parts from there am I expected to volunteer or become a member?

I would like to just pickup a junker from a thrift shop or goodwill and turn that into my winter commuter, but these places seem to not have bikes at all and I wonder if they are just sending them over to the Hub.

Thanks for any info.

kpug505

Whoa dude......Are you saying they have thousands of frames laying around?!?!? Damn! I wish it was closer to me! I might have to make a trip up there to check it out!

dsellinger

Yes

mattm

wow, that place looks sweet!

kpug505

I'm about to have a heart attack! Wish I drove outside of work.....

Trickery

The hub.
A lot of people go to the hub expecting a retail bike shop-like experience. This is really not a business, so as long as you’re patient and self sufficient it can be a really cool place. The ?owner? Kyle is a really nice and compassionate guy. You don’t have to volunteer or become a member to use the shop or buy parts. It takes awhile to get the feel\hang for how things work. Most of the time you sorta bargin with Kyle regarding what your buying. Although I really like the hub, but it definitely has an “in crowd” kinda feel that can be frustrating and intimidating. Over all it’s a really neat place to checkout and it’s fun to work on your bike. I wouldn’t drive from across the state to come visit though, wait till you have business in bham or Canada and drop in. Hope that helps. Also, leave your Cervelo at home

dsellinger

Thanks that's helpful . I definitely got the in crowd feeling when I've been there. (Basically people are hanging out and I'm told oh we're closed).

If you have been there and done the haggle thing do you have any idea what I might spend for parts to build up a 3-8 speed commuter? I know people have gone there and been quoted $3-$500 for them to build up a bike, but I would want to do any work myself. (I used to suggest the hub to people who asked me where they could find a deal on a bike. I don't anymore after hearing the prices that people come back with.)

SoreFeet

I hate to see bicycles become scrap or landfill material but if they are quoting you at 3-500$ for bikes they can go to hell.

One pile of bikes in the photo shows that they have all been stripped pretty much down to nothing.

You ought to negotiate a fair price on what you need. I hate to see things thrown away but greedy people drive good bikes into the landfill daily.

Perhaps you should offer to take the raw frames to the scrapper and offer a percent on how much money you make. Or course don't throw out rare classic frames or anything good!

Trickery

I couldnt really give you an answer about the priceing. I would tend to agree that I think they over price complete bikes. But then this is bellingham, and the demand for rain\bar\beater\fun bikes is much higher then other areas, so maybe they are reading the value of these bikes correctly. I have bought odds and ends there, mostly I worked on my bike before I had my own tools. When I do buy things i've tended to get the in-crowd priceing i guess, but im usuially getting a single, random part. I also tend to bring in recyclable parts, and help answer questions to strangers that walk in, which tends to improve the staff's opinion of me?. In general priceing varies alot based on how you interact with the staff.

TommyL

I think I can speak a little to the pricing. Components are going to be cheaper than you can find elsewhere, other than random things popping up on craigslist. You need to go in, rummage through bins of stuff yourself, and find what you need. The staff will help you if you're not sure what you need, but if you know what you're looking for then don't ask them to find it for you. Be careful that you know exactly how each component works, because there is no guarantee that anything is complete. The first purpose of these components is not to serve folks like us, but to serve as a starting place for replacement parts on bikes that the HUB is repairing or building.

Once you find what your looking for, you find Kyle or somebody else (who will probably go find Kyle), and ask how much. I've had a similar experience to Trickery with pricing.

Now about the price of bikes. If you buy a bike at goodwill or craigslist, there is no guarantee that it is ride ready. At the HUB, they build every bike up and are meticulous in making sure they are set for the road. I've seen employees filing chainrings! It's a great service for people who need a decent, reliable bike to get around, but probably not a service that mot people on this forum would be interested in. I suspect that there are so many frames lying around because they tend to use better quality frames to build with, and a lot of crap gets donated to them.

At first I noticed the feeling of not being cool enough to be there, but the truth of the matter is that they are just so busy. They are a non-profit, and their first priority is to help those who need a bike, not save folks like us a bit of money on used components. Anyway, now that they recognize me the ice has melted away for the most part.

Watch out for strange hours. They are open Wednesday-Saturday 12-6. Avoid Saturdays if you can, the place is a zoo.

Bill Kapaun

They may want a high price on "complete" bikes because their mission isn't to compete with a bike shop, but to help you work on your own bike.
IF you are too lazy to build your own, you pay near new prices for them to do your work.

Just theorizing-

dsellinger

The Hub opened its doors in Bellingham, WA, in March 2002 as a self-supported cooperative run by an experienced volunteer staff dedicated to keeping cycles in motion.

I guess needing a bike isn't the same as keeping one in motion. I'm all for doing my own work and I prefer it but that doesn't work for everyone.

Also when their rent is free (https://www.bellinghamherald.com/255/story/389795.html) and their bikes/parts are donated, I only see them as competition for me finding deals on garage sale or salvage bikes

cc700

Dammit, i really want there to be a coop with that kind of frame selection in seattle.

StevenC264

This place is a godsend for bike commuters. No way in hell I'm paying $60+ for Park Tools that I'll use twice a year, fortunately you can you the tools here for a small fee if you'd rather DIY instead having the staff fix your bike. They'll even guide you or let you borrow repair books. Thousands upon thousands of spare parts lying around, and its fun to dig through the masses of frames for that occasional diamond in the rough (I've spotted at least one Bridgestone MB-3 in here). Also, Kyle and the crew are great guys; they don't charge a lot when you consider the amount of time that they volunteer assembling great bikes out of piles of scraps.

dsellinger

I was in there last night ( finally) and while I'm not sure if it is a goldmine for rare parts or sweet frames (I think they know what they have, and will charge for it). The shop area for DIY work is great and has lots of tools. I can really see how useful this could be to apartment dwellers or students with few tools and less space.

I would love to know more about how the charity part of the Hub works. How many bikes they build up and donate, how they determine who gets a bike etc.

StevenC264

I don't know the statistics, but I do know that they do quite a few community outreach programs, including getting bikes out to low income families who lack transportation. They also tried a "Yellow Bike" program similar to what Portland does, providing free rental bikes, but it didn't really pan out. Here's an article with some more info:

https://westernfrontonline.net/200709...life-to-bikes/

TommyL

I forgot to mention, but they donated a bunch of bikes to the middle school I work at. The plan was to teach kids to fix up the bikes, then the kids could use them. We would also have community members bring in bikes once a month for kids to fix up as community service. Unfortunately, we haven't gotten the program up and running yet. So far we've only used the bikes for kids who want to go on after school rides wit us but need to borrow a bike.

Mark Turner

I've purchased a couple of obsolete chainrings for my old roadie from the Hub. I just walked in and asked for some help and was pointed to the appropriate bins, which I proceeded to empty until I found what I needed. I also got a good-condition freewheel and cluster. I was told parts were basically a $5 donation -- put it in the box on the wall. Tool & repair stand rental is the same (per hour) last time I was in. My sister-in-law had them build up a nice 5-speed commuter for her to ride when she moves here from Atlanta (she's about 60). Overall I think the Hub is a great community resource, appropriately Bellingham funky.

DogsBody

We have a great place called O.ur C.ommunity B.ikes up here in Vancouver BC.
It is a similar operation: I swear by these folks for their helpfulness, and knowledge.
The shop is cramped; but that lends to atmosphere.
I love parts bins: A Rat-Rodders dream they are.