Swinnertons Cycles, Fenton and Mammoth Cycles, Milford.
Helpful, honest advice, good stock, good prices, personable, great with returns and exchanges, lent me funny tools n'that to help me out & solid mechanics when needed. If I dont have money or owt when I need something I can owe them.
I'll also give a big chain store a pat on the back, Leisure Lakes in Wolverhampton, my old near work LBS- same service as above.
No real LBS where I live. Maybe 20+ minutes into Southampton?
But they are expensve, don't stock a huge amount and get shirty when you want something out of the ordinary they can't supply.
I tend not to bother with them unless its something I can't do myself, like building wheels. Even then they moan.
nonk - Membersome day we should have a thread for lbs owners/employees to rant about cuntsrumers because belive me folks its just the same the other way round.
Working in a shop used to make me wish that my hobby was..... oh say 'computers' and if i felt bored of an afternoon i would just turn up at overweight IT guys place of work, tell him i'd bought a 'computer' cheap on the web which had now decided that it wouldn't work the way it was intended, and how i now wished to warrentee it through him, then moan and bitch like a little girl that i wasn't being treated like the queen mum. Oh how i miss the bike trade. 
Saying that i do miss the great customers we had, some were true gents and made working in a shop worthwhile. 
The Edge in Lancaster.
Nice friendly staff, some better than others - the main mechanic seems to know what he's on about. Staff are mostly roadies though.
Everything generally seems pretty expensive and it often takes ages for them to order something in. Some nice bikes in there (Orange/Trek/Marin)
Another vote for Leisurelakes in Wolverhampton from me. Not really my LBS (They're crap) but I work near Wolverhampton quite a bit so pop in when I'm about.
Always friendly, they know me by name and they've been really helpful with the odd bit of spannering I can't do (often without charge). Never any pressure to buy stuff either - they'll get something in for you but aren't offended if you then say no 
I do still buy stuff online as well but I'm quite happy to pay a bit more at Leisurelakes given the support I've had.
well that fair cheered me up! thanks for the appreciative words from mike and dave!
some of the attitudes to discounting are very interesting.....it does seem some folk will never give the lbs a chance! i had a interesting chat with a customer the other day where i was getting sick of his constant requests for a discount...i had to remind him that crc/wiggle didnt really offer what i do and that unless he understood what we're trying to do we mite not be in a position to help him out in the future....he apologised and paid a fair price for the work on his bike..
the internet shops dont bother me but it would be a sad state of affairs if more lbs shut due to them,theyre does seem a lot of guys have strong loyalty to theyre respective shops and good experiences...
id second what was said about square wheels,great shop and great guys!
My best mate used to own and run a bike shop.
Used to be in the centre of town and we'd often go down around 5 ish and tinker with our bikes ready to go out for a ride, a few times though we never actually got riding as there was always beer in the back of the shop and we ended up getting drunk and then headed off to the local bars and clubs! (after doing drunk wheelies outside the shop). As we would have our riding gear and no going out clothes he'd let us wear clothes from the shop (he sold casual clothes) as long as we didn't mark or damage them and he's hang them back up the next day for sale - although often we'd like the stuff so end up buying it!!
I enjoy visiting ur shop Chris, always welcoming and well stocked with shiny bits and sensible bits...check the website ; ) . I could easily waste an hour or 2 looking and chatting..and have done recently. A good lbs is hard 2 come by, there are a few near me but none keep the stock and choice u do. I have used other shops before but i genuinely prefer Cycle World, good product knowledge. Internet shops are fine if you know exactly what u want but a visit 2 ur lbs is worth it 2 talk 2 the guys selling the kit, they know they are on about and can recommend a similiar product, i buy the odd part online but any expensive buys go 2 the lbs, they are never that much more expensive, if at all. I think alot more people are realising the benefits of buying locally, nobody want's 2 see a shop go out of business! Especially a good bike shop...we are a unique and slightly geeky bunch as it is, imagine all we had was internet bike shops! Next step would be chords, tucked in shirts, thick glasses, computer fairs and talk of pentium processorthingymabobs and that my friends would be a step 2 far. SUPPORT UR LOCAL BIKE SHOP!
High Peak Cycles, Glossop. Nice people, proper riders, five minutes from my front door. If I can buy from them at a half decent price, I do, on principle.
It's always worth differentiating LBS as Good LBS or Crap LBS. Round here (Colchester) 53.12 are damn near perfect (great service, nice people, can't do enough for you etc...) but tricky to find. I buy from these guys in preference to the internet whenever I can. Thomas's on the other hand are rubbish with snotty sulky kids behind screens ignoring customers invariably dishing out hopeless advice (when they can be ar$ed) - Bad value too. Sadly they seem to get the lions share of custom though.
we have loads in brighton. i would only trust one with anything mechanical - rayments. but its rare i go there as their opening hours are damn inconvenient for me.
embarassingly i spend most of my money (cables and small bits) in evans as they are actually open after office hours and therefore the bits are obtainable when i need them.
i would go prefer to go to an independant shop but its hard to get to them before they shut.
i would only trust one with anything mechanical - rayments.
I believe that's where adstick who posts on here works.
My local bike shop was great and is 30 yards from my front door. It used to be that you could pop and the owner would go 'hmm that's a bit creaky' pull out a spanner and fix it - free !
Unfortunately he left and sold it to a more money orientated owner who (over) charges for everything, has an arrogant attitude and has pi**ed away all of the faith and goodwill built up over the last 30 years.
Rant over.
The Hub - Southampton.
Guys in there especially mechanic couldn't have been more helpful when I was building my Epic.
Advice, bit of tinkering, fitting BB, and only charged me 27.00 to go over complete bike, rectify all my mistakes, fit chain, swap cables, sort out brakes, adjust mechs etc.
Only bought a few odds and sods along the way so was not as if I was spending 100's of pounds.
Cant praise them enough.
Pleasantly surprised at Cycle Surgery in Holborn here in London. Been very good at ordering bits for me. Honest about likely delivery times (helmet pads), call me up checking what year the lid is, call me up when they come in.
Oh and whilst not longer my bike shop I call up Bromley Bike Co for new bushings for my yeti (having not been in there for two years or more) and they remember who I am!
ace Co in Stourbridge is my first choice. Always happy to have a chat and offer some advice, always have nice things in store to flex my wallet and will more often that not fix things quickly if brided with beer and/or cakes. Really good place, and there shiny new shop is very nice as well.
My local (ignoring Evans) is Moose in Colliers Wood.
I very rarely go there.
Instead, I get the missus to go in there, where she flirts* with the staff for half an hour or so, then walks out with stuff at a hefty discount...
* that's what she's telling me anyway
You may have heard of my LBS. It begins with C and ends with RC.
Some good lads work there and some proper onions too. Can't complain as they usually have anything and everything in stock.
whats their workshop like? do they have a changing room? tea/coffee making facilities? do they ansa emails/phone calls within 24 hours?
just wondered...
Im at my LBS most days!
Another vote for Freewheel in Nottingham. Went in there with a seriously gunged up hub after another shop in Nottingham said it was broken. All I wanted was a cone spanner but the mechanic there grabbed it, stripped it, put new bearings in (sealed units), greased cleaned and sorted (ta, Rob!).
And only charged me for the bearings too!
I agree about the quirky characters but they are nice peeps.
cycleworlduk, you make a good point, as someone who is tall with strange feet a place i can try on shoes and clothes is a huge plus in my eyes (another tick for Race Co on that).
Customer servce is the key though, i'll spend an extra £5 or £10 over CRC if the service is good.
Is it just me or are some of these tales of mega friendliness and helpfulness of local bike shops examples of bad business practise and people undercharging for their work?
My local bike shop is Cyclesense in Tadcaster. Not a hardcore MTB shop and doesn't stock the blingest brands, but they are always there with sound advice, won't sell you anything that's not 100% right for you and always do their best to get pretty much anything you need.
I do most of my own spannering, but would trust them 100% with my bikes, and use their workshop for frame facing, wheel building etc.
I'd rather go in there and pay a couple of quid extra for a cassette, chain, etc and keep up the relationship, and put some business their way, because when I've got a bike problem they're always happy to discuss and help out, whether that means they get a sale or not.
I wouldn't want to be without my LBS. 5 Mins from my house, I must take them some cake!
Long live the LBS.
My nearest one is Harry Perry Cycles in Woolwich. Owner is a lovely, helpful chap. No fancy kit or bikes, though. Just an old school bike shop. He builds road frames too, if i remember rightly.
Moose Cycles in Colliers Wood is my ex-local and they're ok. Some guys in there are nice enough, and the mechanic(s) do a great job, but it's a bit of a trek. The owner can be a bit up himself, though. Last time I took my bike in for a service, he commented "well, you've obviously not ridden it much". I assume because it was clean and had box-fresh tires on. ****.
Thumbs up for Mountain Mania in Tring - always very helpful, have more bits than you'd think for a small shop (and always willing to have a look in the bits bucket in the workshop). Build a good wheel, too.
Alf Jones Wrexham, Quite literally a stones throw from my house since they moved to Rhosnesni lane.
Freindly staff and always had great service from them.
And they like jam doughnuts!.
Rich
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