bike shops in glasgow recommendation please

Hi,

I have finally moved up to Glasgow, and absolutely love it…. anyway that isn’t the point…

The point is…. which bike shops do you recommend (or otherwise). I’m in Kelvindale so not far from town.. but have bike and will travel for a good LBS.

Cheers

Andy

Bike Love

I always found Gear on Gibson St quite helpful.

If you’re looking for a browse your best bets are either Alpine Bikes or Dales for shop size.

I’ve never used them for spannering but free flow/Craig McMartin did me proud with my Soul, proper alladin’s cave of a shop too.

I’ve recently moved to Glasgow too (went on my first ride with GMBC yesterday). Only shop I’ve been in is Alpine Bikes and it seemed pretty good.

I’ve used a few in the city and never had any complaints with Dales.

Bike love – and it is near you.

Be careful of freeflow, nice folk but the service is dire. Bought my Zesty 314 there, told I was getting a £100 or so off it, went to pay and voila no discount (bought it anyways as was last 09 in Scotland), told I could pick it up at 10am Saturday, went to get it and not ready till’ 12:30. Then noticed a scratch on it, went back in and was told it would get scratched anyways, kicked up a little and they just happened to have a bottle of touch up paint handy 🙄
Was also told that I wasn’t getting a shock pump with the bike even though that was agreed earlier, I got it 7 months latter after many ignored calls and broken promises. Beware.

Bikelove, good service! Carl is CRC team mechanic(Cunningham’s) nowt in stock
Freeflow- loads in stock and are on the case with brands. Everything bling I ever wanted they had instock unlike every other retailer in Glasgow. They have a unit which is manned by good staff, shop can be a little hit/miss depending if the bosses are in. I have never had anything to complain about them.
Alpine – nice but uninspiring
dales – as alpine. More bikes but lacking in decent parts
Gear- good friendly indie and fixie/ss specialists
Evans braehead- typical major. Always seem understaffed and rely on their pc deals rather than what’s there
Cyclelane- ok bit small and don’t hold great parts stock

I use Alpine Bikes or Dales when I don’t have the time to make it to the worlds best bike shop, Big Alistair Gows at Clachan of Campsie. That’s my recommendation. You haven’t shopped for bike bits until you’ve shopped there. Set aside 2 hours for the actual time in the shop first visit.

I’ve had a bad experience at Evans and been underwhelmed by Gear in the past.

Evans at Braehead/Xscape, not in town but there must be buses that go out there?

+1 for Freeflow/Craig MacMartin Cycles.

+1 for Freeflow/Craig MacMartin….first rate customer service and great prices.

+1 rep341’s comments pretty much spot on!

Willy Bain’s bicycle repair on the south side is great, a knowedgable guy and has gotten me out of some sticky situations for free. Good for work but not so much for stock

hey guys,any1 used the bikechain on dumbarton rd(scotstoun) or magic cycles in bowling?im on the look out for a handy lbs from clydebank.

Carl in Bikelove is great for repairs and getting stuff to order.

Stu, Jon and the guys in Alpine are also very knowledgable though their workshop struggles a bit to keep up with the high level of demand. They are a bit of a victim of their own success meaning you have to book repairs and services well in advance depending on how busy they are.

Big Al at Wheelcraft in Clachan of Campsie is a legend and definitely worth visiting.

I’ve also heard good reports about Willie Bain. He seems a really nice guy.

Mark and Dave at Solid Rock in Balmore deserve a mention. Excellend stock and nice folk to boot.

George in West End Cycles would also be pretty handy for you and Gear is close by too.

Hope this helps?

Ditto for big al@wheelcraft as its an aladins cave 😀 His number is (01360) 312709

I just got my bike to work via Behind Bars Bikes on Kilmarnock Road in Shawlands. Absolutely no hassle whatsoever despite my work taking their time with the vouchers, good service and chat from Donald, a few bikes in stock, not a large amount of accessories. Perhaps more set up for commuters but certainly worth it if anyone was considering a Cotic or Genesis (they’re dealers, hence me going there).

http://www.bikes-behindbars.co.uk/

Thanks folks….
Oooh just thought I could do a whole day of touring bike shops…..
that could get expensive… probably end up with a whole load of things I couldn’t possibly do a sunday ride without……

+1 Bikelove, Carl is great. 🙂

try sprockets out in kilmarnock(ayrshire) a little further away, they sell lapierre, santa cruz, genesis,cotic and also bos forks very helpfull and there is also a coffe shop on site selling fantastic cakes.
http://sprocketscycles.com/