BIKEPGH MESSAGE BOARD ARCHIVE

Ambridge Bikes. I simply LOVE Ambridge Bikes -- it's what I wish all bike shops would be like. Great selection of all sorts of bikes (including steel road bikes), and great service for those times that you can't figure it out. It's such a cool, low-key shop.

The shop is on the main drag in Ambridge. Very much worth the drive.

For stores actually in the city, for buying a bike, I'd say you'll definitely get what you want and get good advice / service from Thick on the southside.

After you get your bike, then there is always Kraynicks (garfield), Performance (Point Breeze), Iron City (Oakland), and newly Love Bikes (Lawrenceville), all of which seem to be doing pretty good work. Kraynicks for advice/tips, Performance for cheap gear, Iron City for bikes/parts, and Love Bikes for service/some parts.

I have bought bikes from both West Liberty Cycle and Pro Bikes and have had excellent help and service post-purchase.

I have a favorite bike shop and had great service and even got a good price on a bike and gear. The problem is during the spring and summer bike shops tend to hire extra people to handle the spring summer rush. The extra help doesn't mean good or knowledgeable help. There is a core group at my favorite place who do good work and give great deals, it's hard to know who is who in the summer. I tend to buy my bikes during the off season.

Thick will probably have what you want, so I second Rob on that.

I like Big Bang and they do a nice job with fitting.

West Liberty is good for repairs.

FWIW, I've patronized all of the shops in the city (aside from Love - I haven't made it there yet) and I haven't really had a bad experience with any of them.

I bought my last bike (Cross-Check) at Trek in Shadyside - they had last year's model in my size and gave me a good price, plus a reasonable deal on swapping out the crank for a triple (they bought back the unused parts). I've mainly been going there for repairs too - it's pretty convenient for me and I think they have some good mechanics.

I do like Thick, it's just the furthest away from where I live and work, so I don't make it there too often.

A shout-out for Scholl's in West View, if you happen to live north-ish. They also have a shop in Warrendale/Cranberry, just N of the US19 & Red Belt intersection. I've done pretty well on parts and service there.

Thick is the one I've spent the most money at - I tend to be very high maintenance with my bikes - and pretty much always leave satisfied. What really struck me about them was that they remembered my name after my second visit, and I can be a pretty awful customer (trying to be better), but they still always give me the best service they can.

I definitely need to spend more time in Kraynick's, since I know nothing about fixing my own bike, aside from brakepads and flats.

I broke two spokes since friday, and need my bike back ASAP, and knowing that it's getting to be the busy season at thick (my go-to), I thought I would give Caravan Mobile Bike Service a try. They came and got my bike within an hour of me calling, and I'll have it back tomorrow evening for about $30 (they said it would have been tonight, but they didn't have the proper spokes). So we'll see how that goes.

Chances are, I'll still go to thick if I don't need super-rushed service (quality service takes quality time), and I'm definitely buying my next bike from them. I'm hoping though, that between the three shops, I'll always be covered.

Thick bikes. Sorry but ABS sold me a bike that was two sizes too big after they "fit me" for it. I spent a lot of money on that bike, too.

I bought my current bike at Biketek in Squirrel Hill. Last Thursday I showed up five minutes after their posted closing time with a broken bike (blowout going down Greenfield Avenue), and they stayed late to fix it (replacing my bent wheel, tire and tube for $80, took about 20 minutes). They've also patiently answered many dumb questions over the past few years.

Ambridge Bike Shop, hands down. Good people, care about cycling, more interested in selling you the right bike that fits rather than just selling you a bike. They're in a low-rent district, and that's reflected in their prices. Workmanship and service is unequalled.

ps Welcome to Pittsburgh.

If you're north, try Immel's, in Gibsonia.

Thick is my go-to in the city. Good guys, good products, good service, good prices, etc. The guys there have even taken on some projects for me that other shops almost laughed at (the biggest project being an electric motor). They found my ipod outside one time and went through it to find my email and return it, without knowing i was a customer of theirs. and every time i ride by i get a wave.

Big Bang (west mifflin area? im not really sure what that area is considered)is really easy to get to, although not reall "in the city" and is where my parents go. they're purely trail riders and the people there are always good to them.

I would stray from Immel's in Gibsonia. I have been their multiple times to only be treated like crap because I wanted/needed things they never had in stock and did not take their word that what they did have in stock was any good.

Example: I wanted Panaracer tires and they tried to sell me a set of tires that were not the same size and looked to be what comes on the bikes at Wal-mart. I was told these were all I needed and I was wasting my money on anything else. And of course, they closed with "suit yourself". This was about 3-4 years ago now.

I was not at all impressed with Ambridge Bike Shop. They tried to fit a bike to me, rather than the other way around in order to make a sale. I go past it often, but have not stopped in recent years. I bought my mountain bike at Sholls in Warrendale, but have been frustrated by efforts to buy anything from them since. They have the STUPIDEST hours. Tried to stop there a couple of weeks ago. Before 4:00 on a Saturday. CLOSED. Why? When the heck do they expect people to be shopping for bikes? I've had good experiences at Pro Bikes, Thick and Trek. And surprisingly good experiences from the tiny little Coraopolis Bike Shop. Small purchases, for the most part, but great service, quick turn around, etc.

since kraynick's is obviously the best bike shop in the area, i'll just skip on to the rest of them.

i've had very good experiences at iron city, biketek, trek, dirty harry's, thick, and rei. each has gone out of their way to satisfy my myriad inconvenient requests. none showed a hint of impatience, despite my strange propensity for entering within 5 minutes of their closing time (in dirty harry's case, after closing time). never got a hard sell or an attempted upsell, either. in fact, yesterday, when looking at bikes for my gf, the fella at biketek told her "sleep on it. you don't want to make decisions involving a lot of money unless you're really sure." cool stuff.

never had a bad experience at pro bikes, though it's not my favorite. not sure i can articulate why—maybe they just haven't been quite as patient as the other places. still, no problems there.

i would not buy a bike from performance.

Wow - really great advice, and prompt too! I can see I will be having no troubles and look forward to seeing such a great bike community on the road.

Thanks!

thick and dirty harry's are my go to shops. rei, shadyside trek, iron city and love bikes are all good too. if you want crazy hard to find stuff that hasn't been made in a decade, or to learn how to do things yourself, you can't beat kraynick's

When I lived in/close to Ambridge, ABS was great. Gary and Larry have been there for like two decades. They helped keep my POS bike running, (and somehow it still is)

Dirty Harry's in Verona - I like them so much I feel guilty stopping by anywhere else (but sometimes have to due to where I am / what I need). They are so awesome. Reminds me, need to get the husband in for a proper fit up on his bike, he's just been riding as-is.

I still haven't found an all-around stand out in Pittsburgh. I often reminisce about a bike shop in my hometown that was kind of like Kraynick's with the work stands in the back and a super knowledgeable and friendly proprietor but less than full-retail prices, modern bikes and parts!

The funny thing about Kraynick's in Garfield is the first time I used that shop I was 9 years old. I'm 35 now and still love it. But I go to Trek of Shadyside for most of my repairs and bikes. The have always treated me with respect and go all out to help me. I had a bad experience with Bike Tech in Squirrel Hill, the owner, or manager there treats his employees like crap and he assumed I couldn't afford anything in the store. Maybe it was a bad day and not normally like that but I haven't been back since.

no that was pretty normal. weird shop, that one.

My favorite Biketek moment:

23 Year Old Ted: "Why do I keep breaking spokes on my rear wheel?"

Angelo (Owner): "Cause your a messenger!"

I've been frequenting Thick a bunch lately, but have found ToP/Shadyside to be a really nice shop (which, at first, I found interesting, since I just assumed they would cater to the lycra crowd, but they don't). I've purchased my son's bike and my current commuter there. And, the wrenches there are always willing to help a brother out.

Biketek is spotty. I've had Angelo bend over backwards for me at times, and at other times, not help me on bit. YMMV.

Dirty Harry's is also awesome, but mostly out of the way for me, so I don't go there much.

It's funny in the last week I've talk to 3 people who had a bad experience dealing with the owner of Bike Tech, and one of them noted how bad he treats his employees. So I guess its all true.

I love Trek in Shadyside because of the employees. They are always friendly and never ignore anyone, regardless of what they look like/are looking for. I have been flat-out ignored at two smaller shops. Why waste my time with them? I also have had great experiences at Thick but it is not very close to where I live.

I have been going to Thick's a lot because they are close to me and they are great.

Kraynick's is a cool place to go and work on your bike and Gerry is awesome.

I lived up north a few years ago and I purchased a Trek 2100 at Scholl's in Wexford. They were very nice to deal with.

Immel's in Gibsona has a very good repair shop but "the professor" does not like to be told anything. If he is not busy and you want to talk old bikes he warms up and is an encyclopedia of bike facts.

ted, that might be the perfect angelo defining story. although larry and i did get a discount on our tcrs we bought from him because "no one wants a white bike" oh the 90s...

I've purchased four bikes from West Liberty Cycles over the past 7 years, and have been very happy with the deals I've gotten, the service and support after the purchase, and the answers/advice/suggestions throughout.