Where to get tyres changed? « CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum

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Where to get tyres changed?

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Started 11 years ago by cc
Latest reply from Blueth
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cc
Member

It's time to change the winter tyres on my Paper Bicycle back to summer tyres. However since the bike has hub gears, hub dynamo, hub brakes, basically hub everything, I don't want to tackle it myself. Can anyone suggest a place which could do it for me?

The obvious first try was The Bicycle Works in Argyle Place. They could probably do it next week but I'd have to leave the bike with them for several days, I was told today when I called in. That's a bit of a blow as I'd hope to be getting to and from my work on the bike during those days! So I'm looking for a shop or mechanic who can cope OK with a "hub everything" bike and doesn't need to keep it for several days. Any suggestions?

Posted 11 years ago #
chdot
Admin

Plenty to choose from

http://edinburghcycleshops.wordpress.com/repairs

Partly depends where you are.

I suspect the newest one off Dundas Street will be less busy than some -

http://edinburghcycleshops.wordpress.com/repairs/the-bike-garage

Or maybe try a mobile/pick-up service.

http://edinburghcycleshops.wordpress.com/repairs/harts-cyclery posts here sometimes.

Posted 11 years ago #
chdot
Admin

You'd think some shops would offer a 'courtesy bike' service.

Any Edinburgh doing it??

Posted 11 years ago #
SRD
Moderator

"You'd think some shops would offer a 'courtesy bike' service."

Doesn't greasemonkey?

Posted 11 years ago #
SRD
Moderator

@CC we had similar dilemma. my solution was to lump the tyre change in with other stuff that needed to be sorted (chain stretch etc). But then got puncture, so attempted to fix ourselves with help from uberuce. Then got another puncture, and ended up taking to Biketrax, because they were close, and they ended up replacing winter tyre with new summer tyre.

But I totally agree, would love to know there was somewhere that didn't mind just a 'tyre change'.

Posted 11 years ago #
cc
Member

Thanks a lot for the thoughts & ideas!
I suppose I was thinking that many bike shops maybe wouldn't be so confident about tackling a weird bike with clever hubs, but it seems I was wrong. (Sorry bike shops!) I've just phoned up the place I used to take my more normal-for-Scotland bike to - the Bicycle Repair Man - and they're quite happy to tackle it, and reckon they'll get it done in a day.

Posted 11 years ago #
LivM
Member

Leith Cycle co have lent me a bike for a day while they were doing work. This was in the off season for bike hire though.

Posted 11 years ago #
LaidBack
Member

Can lend out the LB PB while we swap over your tyres cc.
TBW are often bit busy but midweek should find slot - have some outside hours help pencilled in for bike build.

Posted 11 years ago #
cc
Member

@LaidBack that's really kind - much appreciated.
In this case though you don't need to go to the trouble as I've already got the Bicycle Repairman to do it and they've done a great job as far as I can tell. The gears seem better now too!

Posted 11 years ago #
Uberuce
Member

Bike Repair Man is a track shop and is therefore a ninja at chain tension. My bet is yours had slackened, which makes a hub/single/fixed gear bike feel sloppy.

Posted 11 years ago #
cc
Member

Aah is that what it is, thanks, yes that sounds likely.
It had slowly got to the point where (this sounds crazy) low even-numbered gears were skipping but the odd-numbered ones were fine, except occasionally when changing down into them. I was never quite irritated enough to get it fixed. (And I never quite like the thought of going to a bike shop and saying, "you know, it's kind of not quite right in second gear, but most of the rest are fine, except occasionally...") Now it seems lovely again so far, and as a bonus I have beautiful smooth quiet summer tyres on again, no more breakfast cereal following me about everywhere I go.

Posted 11 years ago #
LaidBack
Member

From experience the PB needs to have its chain tightened with the outside guard off. The noise I started to get from my now sold 8 speed demo was chain against the guard spacers. Once tight it was nice and quiet. Sturmey 8 speed has calibrating marks but a less easy to see than Alfine.
Glad your bike is working well though. With the Big Apples back on you'll be riding in luxury!

Posted 11 years ago #
cc
Member

Oh yes - this morning's ride to work was bliss! Like riding on air. And the gears were perfect too, best I've ever had them. Big thumbs up for The Bicycle Repair Man and for the Paper Bicycle.

Posted 11 years ago #
Harts Cyclery
Member

Glad you got it fixed! For the record (and a shameless plug), I'm happy fixing ANY type of bike. I like obscure stuff! A 1955 Raleigh All-Steel Bicycle was treated to one of my Grand Tour services recently, including a Sturmey service - a joy to work on.

Posted 10 years ago #
Blueth
Member

I'm not trying to denigrate anyone's capabilities but I am genuinely puzzled as to how cyclists who can't/are so reluctant to change a tyre (notwithstanding the hub complexities in this case) cope with punctures, given how frequently they are likely to occur compared with motor transport.

Most on here seem to use the bike for day to day travel where journey time is more important than when just out for a ride and a dispruption could have a significant effect on one's day. I suppose, given the upsurge in numbers of late, you might well be within walking distance of a bike shop in Edinburgh but that's still a fair bit of time involved.

I don't want to take the bread out of the mouths of the bike shops but is it not time someone did classes in tyre removal and replacement - in most cases where I see people having difficulty it is because they don't seem to understand the basic principle of what they are trying to do - to me this is a skill as essential as the ability to balance the bike.

Posted 10 years ago #
Wilmington's Cow
Member

Especially if it's a case of replacing a tube rather than fixing the puncture.

But, I'd actually say a puncture for an urban commuter is less disruptive than for a weekend long-distance rider who might find himself or herself in the middle of nowhere with a flat.

My ride is 5 miles, so in worst case scenario I'm a 2.5 mile walk from either home or work. And while workplaces are different, a once-in-a-blue-moon call to work to let them know you'll be 15-20 minutes late is normaly okay (I did just that on Tuesday past).

However, I agree entirely, fixing a puncture/replacing a tube should be something taught to all (I still remember my dad teaching me, and in the absence of tyre levers using two gert big dessert spoons (handle end).

Posted 10 years ago #
wingpig
Member

"...than for a weekend long-distance rider who might find himself or herself in the middle of nowhere with a flat."

Especially if they're wearing shoes they can't walk in and only carrying what they can stuff in their rear jersey pocket and don't have a proper pump as they're too heavy compared to gas cartridges.

Having somewhere to fix punctures helps - some might not like the idea of hunkering down outside in the winter if their bike parking is outside at both ends of their journey. Some might be put off by the grey grime.

Posted 10 years ago #
cb
Member

Some people might not be physically strong enough to get the tyre off the rim, depending on tyre type/rim size.

But I agree with the principal that it's a useful (and let's face it fairly basic) skill to have.

Posted 10 years ago #
Blueth
Member

While there are the occasional tyre/rim combinations that need a bit more persuasion, generally the ostensible need for more strength can be overcome by good technique, which is where experienced tuition could assist.

I take your points too Wingpig but they are tacitly accepted in taking up cycling in the first place - indeed that was kind of my point. In becoming a cyclist we all accept that a puncture will have to be dealt with on a varyingly regular basis.

Posted 10 years ago #
wingpig
Member

"...but they are tacitly accepted in taking up cycling in the first place"

Nneem. Without sufficient experience someone might think that you only get punctures by cycling over drawing-pins or nails or large obvious chunks of broken bottle or have let your tyres wear down to the thread. Awareness of the invasiveness of tiny slivers of red NEPN wintergrit or the ability of chunks of razor-clam shell to penetrate even Marathons Plus is not acquired simultaneously with the acquisition of a bicycle.

Posted 10 years ago #
SRD
Moderator

@blueth I have sometimes changed a tyre okay. but other times struggled to get it on or off. or patched only to find another hole, or that patch did not stick.

If I need to get to work for a busy day, and then have to pick kids up promptly from school (and need bike for this), I am extremely happy to pay an expert to do it for me.

There's not a good place to do this at my work, and I can do without greasy hands etc. If leak develops on the way home, I will usually have a stab at fixing it, but twice recently have had to call in expert help even then.

Sadly a billable 15 min (or less) of a bike mechanics time is 'worth' much less than the equivalent of my time...

Posted 10 years ago #
steveo
Member

Sadly a billable 15 min (or less) of a bike mechanics time is 'worth' much less than the equivalent of my time...

Indeed, there are times when I have farmed the relatively trivial job of bb and chainset replacement purely because I didn't have then required hour to do the job. Whilst I've never paid any one to repair a puncture, were I in town and in a hurry I probably would just get a bike shop to do it especially if I had something else I could be getting on with while they fixed my bike.

Posted 10 years ago #
Baldcyclist
Member

I've often taken my bike over to bike works to get a puncture fixed if I've punctured on the way into (and near) work.
Not so easy to do on the way home, when you are 15 miles away from home, and as far away from anywhere open that could do it for you. As a result, I have become a 'reluctant' mechanic and can fix most things on a bike.

I actually think this is one of the real barriers to getting people taking up cycling, especially as a method of transport. Whilst bike shops exist on practically every Edinburgh street corner, most towns / villages don't have one shop which could carry out these 'maintenance' tasks, especially at short notice.

Posted 10 years ago #
Blueth
Member

As a side issue to that Baldcyclist, a couple of years ago while in Assen, obviously a special place for bike use even by Dutch standards (confirmed by research on getting home)in proportion to bike use here my pals and I expected to see a bike shop literally on every corner. I think we found all three of them over the weekend.

In a short visit to Groningen we were only able to find one and that with cycling numbers requiring a massive multistorey bike park at the station.

Puzzling. And not a puncture seen!

Posted 10 years ago #
crowriver
Member

Puzzling. And not a puncture seen!

Properly maintained cycle paths and roads probably a big factor. No broken glass/thorns/car detritus/massive potholes = fewer punctures?

Most Dutch bikes are fitted with puncture-resistant/proof tyres?

Most Dutch bikes have hub gears (3 speeds) or single speed, drum brakes, fully enclosed chains. Very little need for maintenance, therefore not as much demand for bike mechanics/shops?

Most Dutch bikes are old. Relatively few new bikes bought due to high rate of cycle theft. So relatively little demand for bike emporia, despite the huge numbers of cyclists?

Posted 10 years ago #
crowriver
Member

David Hembrow sums it up:

http://blog.dutchbikebits.com/2009/01/anatomy-of-reliable-everyday-bicycle.html

Posted 10 years ago #
cc
Member

I went through a stage a few years ago of getting a puncture every other week, mostly on the Innocent path. I got fed up of that pretty quickly and on a friend's recommendation switched to Schwalbe tyres with built in puncture protection. Touch wood, no punctures in recent years.

Also when I was younger I used to do my own bicycle maintenance. I was never very interested in doing this so neglected it and as a result my bike was generally a creaky rusty wreck with dodgy brakes. These days I'd far rather get someone else to do it so it's taken care of without hassle.

I know some folk here prefer to do all their own maintenance and really enjoy it. I'd far rather just get someone else to do it. Makes me happy. Each to his own, different strokes for different folks, etc.

About bicycle shops in the Netherlands - maybe they're just small and hard to spot? If you search google maps for e.g. 'fietswinkel near Groningen, the netherlands' you get a number of results. Here's a Bicycle Dutch article about bicycle shops.

Posted 10 years ago #
Wilmington's Cow
Member

"I know some folk here prefer to do all their own maintenance and really enjoy it. I'd far rather just get someone else to do it. Makes me happy. Each to his own, different strokes for different folks, etc."

Agree 100% with this (I'm in that former camp), but I think the point of the OP is that a puncture repair isn't really 'maintenance', but rather something that could happen anywhere at any time and knowing how to sort it would save you a walk.

Posted 10 years ago #
cc
Member

Yes it's a good point. I solved it by changing to puncture-resistant tyres several years ago, and so far they've worked 100%.

Posted 10 years ago #
Wilmington's Cow
Member

I have no luck with tyres. Every single type of tyre I've had have had a puncture (save the winter studs, but they've not really been out much).

Posted 10 years ago #