Another bike shop recommendation thread - City Centre or Dublin 11 (ish)

Skittlebrau

Greetings everyone.

Been a lurker around here for the last few months since I started commuting to work. Want to upgrade my old heavy Giant MB (worth about €100 at most) to something a bit more comfortable / speedy for my mammoth 15k roundtrip daily commute.

Looking for recommendations for a bike shop that provides excellent service (will chat through my wants / needs etc without trying to sell me the world). Will be doing the B2W and don't even need to spend the max given my limited use.

Am based in Dublin 11 and have used McQuaid Cycles in Glasnevin for repairs to date but haven't been that impressed.

Closest shop to work seems to be Dublin2Bike which I have not yet been in.

Any recommendations? Or horror stories?

Thanks for your help.

magicbastarder

very near finglas village - humphries cycles. it's my go-to shop at the moment.
it's on mckee avenue.

Wishbone Ash

+1 for Derek Humphries (Tel. 8342170)

Weepsie

Another for Humphries. Only discovered them recently when looking for some wheels to be serviced but Excellent service and some beautiful frames on offer.

Skittlebrau

Fairly unanimous. Thanks a mil. Will check him out.

fat bloke

Worst website ever though :rolleyes:

Wishbone Ash

fat bloke wrote: »

Worst website ever though :rolleyes:

Agree - one of those generic ones that's never updated.

Their FB page is better: https://www.facebook.com/Humphries-Cycles-450812244967380/

Lusk_Doyle

fat bloke wrote: »

Worst website ever though :rolleyes:

It does what it is required to - tells you who they are, where they are and what they do/have. What more do you want? It's a proper bike shop where you go and talk to them.

fat bloke

Lusk_Doyle wrote: »

It does what it is required to - tells you who they are, where they are and what they do/have. What more do you want? It's a proper bike shop where you go and talk to them.

I can sum up their website in one sentence:


"We carry all types of (*********) to suit every need, so if there’s something you don’t see here – why not drop in store or give us a call today!"

Replace ******** with bicycles / helmets / wheels / clothing / frames etc etc etc

If every website were so, there would be no Internet. I'm not disagreeing with the general opinion that is a great shop but unfortunately in Ireland, still, lots of establishments think the above is grand for a website when, really, it isn't.

Lusk_Doyle

I have never visited or not visited a bike shop based on the content of their website. I, like most others value what comes out of their shop, product-wise, and out of their mouth, advice-wise. Forming an opinion on a bike shop based on the website is short sighted IMO. It ain't CRC.

fat bloke

Lusk_Doyle wrote: »

Forming an opinion on a bike shop based on the website is short sighted IMO.

And forming an opinion on a website based on a website? Where do you stand on that?

robyntmorton

Unfortunately everything these days is tied to online. There are so many old school guys who may be extremely good at what they do, but online is not their skill. That means that someone searching online comes across a poor/non-existent web presence and (possibly mistaken) view that the shop doesn't know what they are doing, and goes elsewhere.

As much as it may be thought that the web presence isn't important, it is more important than ever. It doesn't need to be a massive e-commerce affair like CRC, but showing some knowledge and passion is a massive plus.

magicbastarder

i'm not sure what the middle ground is between a placeholder site with contact and location info, and brands stocked, and an e-commerce site which allows you to purchase online.
perhaps a blog, or way to interact with current and potential customers, but facebook offers something similar and is a lot more user friendly - and probably cheaper - than something hosted on your own site.

Lusk_Doyle

fat bloke wrote: »

And forming an opinion on a website based on a website? Where do you stand on that?

I have no position on it as I have never had cause to consider it. You are diverging away from my point though. I was saying to not judge the shop by its website but rather by its product, service and reputation. I've never once, until now, heard anyone comment on the website of said local bike shop, or any other for that matter, as by their nature they are usually discovered by word of mouth or actual visits there.

Kevincavan83

The lads in the bike institute on dorset street are good.
Good variety of bike and knows his sh!t

dougee19

Didn't want to start my own thread but am also in need of a road bike for Dublin city centre.

Had a nice second hand road bike but it has given up the ghost after some scumbags decided they could fight it whilst it was parked. I could get it fixed and still might but thought I'd post here first as I'd prefer something new.

Just wondering if anyone has any recommendations for something in the 100-300range? I looked at halfords cheap ones but the reviews are dreadful, would Humphries have something suitable if I went in later today? Basically just need it for cycling on normal road, no off road stuff and maybe like 50km a week.

Thanks folks

OleRodrigo

Bolton cycles on Bolton St , just beside the Dominic St/ Dorset St junction, are a good option for second hand bikes. Its run a by a Polish guy, he's an excellent mechanic too.