Bicycle Repair in Edinburgh

donnacha_2

Let's share our experiences of bicycle repair in Edinburgh and the surrounding area.

I have had quite a few bad experiences over the years, so, these days, even though I like to cycle every day, if disaster strikes and my bike becomes unusable, I tend to just stick it away and forget about it for a few weeks or even a few months - trying to start a business, I am pretty broke and I just don't have the emotional energy to deal with getting shafted.

Like car repair or dentistry, bicycle repair is one of those industries in which it is all too easy for the practitioners to slide down the easy path of taking advantage of the customer's ignorance - but, of course, we're not that ignorant and it becomes pretty easy to tell when a business sees you as prey rather than a valued customer.

So, let's pool our experiences and figure out what the best options are. Obviously, as money-savers, cost is very important but we should also consider the quality of parts, competence of the work carried out, turnaround times, environmental considerations, location convenience, their willingness to explain what they do and the general attitude.

I will get this started with a few of my own experiences.

donnacha_2

The Leith Cycle Co. - bad experience.

My worst bicycle repair experience during my decade in Edinburgh was at The Leith Cycle Co., which is a damn shame because it is by far the nearest to my home in Leith - their shop is actually almost half-way down Leith Walk but still on the Leith side of the border between Edinburgh and Leith.

I have often wondered why there are so few bike shops in the north of the city, I can understand that attraction of locating your business close to the university, full of pedal-happy students, and the deeper pockets of some areas in the south of the city but surely, with so many businesses competing in close proximity, there would be a good argument for a bike shop opening closer to all the new apartments along the shore - I have heard that all the new developments have more than doubled the population in the North of the city in recent years, and you've also got colleges such as St. Margarets and the new Telford College campus in Granton.

Anyway, my unhappy experience with the Leith Cycle Co. was fairly straightforward - I was too inexperienced and too trusting, they saw me coming a mile off, and quoted me a figure that I knew was wildly high but, somehow, they confidently insisted that it was necessary to do this and that, and foolishly I agreed. I later took the time to read up on the precise thing that was wrong and realized that their "fix" cost far more than it would have cost to simply buy a new part and have it fitted.

Funnily enough, a few weeks later, a friend grumbled that he had been ripped off on a bicycle repair, I simply asked "Was it those guys on Leith Walk" and, surprised at my psychic skills, he nodded yes. Over the years since then, I have heard of many similar tales, most experienced cyclists around here now head over to the other side of the city instead.

donnacha_2

The Edinburgh Bicycle Cooperative - variable, over-subscribed.

The coop are probably the biggest bicycle business in Edinburgh and have long had a great reputation but, as a customer, their popularity has become the biggest problem - their shop is large but often crowded and their turnaround times suck. They built up a great reputation by being more honest than a lot of smaller shops and, for that reason, a lot of people who got burnt elsewhere will always be die-hard fans but I get the sense that this has caused their prices to become quite expensive.

Obviously, if you have more customers than you can handle, why not inch your prices upwards? I mean, if you had a restaurant that always had long queues snaking out the door, you would experiment with higher prices until demand slacked off a bit, the same applies to any business. For those of us on tight budgets, however, it is important to ask: at what point is a good reputation outweighed by rising prices?

Reputation can long outlive the factors that originally propelled it and, especially with the boom in cycling over recent years, you really have to pay attention to what you are paying, you can't simply relax because a particular shop offered good value when you discovered using them years ago, businesses change and, as reputation solidifies, they almost inevitably become more expensive - we have to accept that there comes a point when we cost-conscious customers are no longer the target market.

I bought my bike at the coop, from their own Revolution range, a Streetfinder 2010. My research at the time indicated that it was a very good deal, once you understood that the sub-£100 bikes in supermarkets and online would probably cost more in repairs in the long-run. The general sentiment was that the Revolution range is a bargain considering the components. I like it mine but it has needed more repairs than I expected.

It was this summer that I realized that getting my repair at the coop was no longer a realistic option - they were so busy that the turnaround was SIX WEEKS!! That was nuts but I was so bought into the idea of the coop that I didn't think, there and then, that I had any other options. Unfortunately, I really needed a bike during those six weeks, so, I ended up buying a second-hand one, reasoning that it would cover me for future prolonged repairs too.

When I picked up my Streetfinder, a month and a half later, it ended up being more than we agreed to and, although I don't think there was any dishonesty involved, they should have phoned me when they discovered than something else that needed to be done, they had my phone number and email address, it would only have taken a minute.

rodenal

It might help to indicate what type of work you have been having done at both places? I'm pretty new to (road) biking but am already at a point where I can do all my setting up and the majority of maintenance and replacements myself. It's not like you need much in the way of special tools for a bike (compared to a car anyway) - Could spend £50 on tools and be good for as long as you had the bike, or any bike really.

custardy

dont really use the shops much as I do it myself

theres a new place opened in Russel Road

http://greasemonkeycycles.com/

no experience of them but the collection/deliverycourtesy bike coud be handy

donnacha_2

rodenal wrote: »

It might help to indicate what type of work you have been having done at both places? I'm pretty new to (road) biking but am already at a point where I can do all my setting up and the majority of maintenance and replacements myself. It's not like you need much in the way of special tools for a bike (compared to a car anyway) - Could spend £50 on tools and be good for as long as you had the bike, or any bike really.

I am not unwilling to learn and, over a couple of decades of cycling you can't help but pick up a bit, but there are some jobs require real expertise and, sadly, I don't always have time to hit YouTube or the cycling forums to find out how to fix a particular problem. Like most people, I am working night and day to stay abreast of my own particular area of expertise and, sometimes, it would be nice to just go and get my bike fixed by someone who does it professionally without having to worry about getting taken for a ride.

The point of this thread is to identify and celebrate bicycle repair professionals who take a genuine pride in their work and who act with integrity. If you, as a cyclist, can fix every problem that is going to crop up I genuinely admire your ability but this thread is not for you - it is for the majority of cyclists in Edinburgh who do occasionally need to pay for repairs and, as such, would love to know who is legit and who is not.

donnacha_2

custardy wrote: »

dont really use the shops much as I do it myself

theres a new place opened in Russel Road

http://greasemonkeycycles.com/

no experience of them but the collection/deliverycourtesy bike coud be handy

Judging by their website and promo video, Grease Monkey seem to be very impressive, definitely a good approach and attitude. Thank you for pointing them out, Custardy - again, for people who aren't able to perform all their own repairs, knowing about such places is invaluable.

There is another new repair shop by the Meadows, Pedals, who are doing some repairs for me this week, I am very impressed so far, both by the work and the philosophy underpinning their business, and will write up my experience later this week when I have a bit more time.

rodenal

My comment wasn't intended as a dig of any sort incase that's what you've picked up from it - I genuinely just meant it would be good to know what work you were talking about being done from each place as some jobs have far more potential to go a bit wrong than others.

(p.s I am also working long hours much of the year, its no excuse not to learn - That doesn't mean you won't ever need/ want somebody else to look at it for you)

Biketrials08

Sorry to hear you've had bad experiences, I find bikes simple so haven't paid anyone to do anything (except building wheels) for many years so I'm a bit out of touch with prices. What work have you had done and how much did it cost, on bikes it can be true it can be cheaper to buy a new component then repair and existing one? A few years back I picked up a hardly used Shimano XT chainset than had been scrapped because it cost more to replace the rings than just to buy a new chainset, I used it (and still do) on my trials bike so only needed the smallest ring.

custardy

donnacha wrote: »

Judging by their website and promo video, Grease Monkey seem to be very impressive, definitely a good approach and attitude. Thank you for pointing them out, Custardy - again, for people who aren't able to perform all their own repairs, knowing about such places is invaluable.

There is another new repair shop by the Meadows, Pedals, who are doing some repairs for me this week, I am very impressed so far, both by the work and the philosophy underpinning their business, and will write up my experience later this week when I have a bit more time.

yeah I pass that Pedals most days commuting

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackpuddinonnabike/6100706145/sizes/l/in/photostream/

the tattoo shop isnt so keen

gadjah543

Blackhall Cycle Repairs gets my vote. Friendly service and reasonable prices.