From: rnk@sei.cmu.edu (Rick Kazman)
Newsgroups: pgh.general,rec.bicycles
Subject: Re: Good Bike Shop in Pittsburgh Area Sought
Date: 31 Jul 92 14:05:27 GMT
Organization: The Software Engineering Institute


In article <MeS02Xm0hXu882qA8A@andrew.cmu.edu>, cv0q+@andrew.cmu.edu (Chad R. Vizino) writes:
|> Do you have a favorite bike shop in the Pittsburgh area?  I'd like to
|> hear about it.
|> 
|> I am fairly new to the area and am looking for shops that do good repair
|> work and carry a decent selection of parts and supplies.  By the way, my
|> primary interest in bicycling is touring.
|> 
|> Thanks.
|> 
|>  Chad Vizino

This question gets asked with regularity.  We should probably set up a
cmu.rec.cyclists FAQ.  

It has been a while since I posted anything on this, so I will do a core
dump of posts on this subject over the past few years, slightly edited.

My personal favorite is Ambridge bikes, but it's a bit of a hike in
Ambridge, PA (just past Sewickley up the Ohio).

rick

===========================================================================

From: Dale.Moore@MOORE.FAC.CS.CMU.EDU
Subject: mailing list, SEI and Bike Shops

Several folks have asked me my opinion about local bike shops.
Below are some local shops that I'm familiar with.  I prefer a road
bike with skinny tires and do centuries and double metric centuries.
I was hoping to get 5000 miles on my Colnago this year, but so far
I've only got 4700.  I'm sure that my style has something to do with
my opinion on bike shops.  Folks who have a different outlook on cycling
will probably have a different opinion on the local shops.

Rating (Poor - Fair - Good - Very Good - Excellent)

Store		Ambridge	Pgh Pro		Monroeville	Gatto
Selection	Excellent	Good		Good		Very Good
Price Bikes	Very Good	Very Good	Fair		Fair
Price Parts	Very Good	Very Good	Poor		Fair
Price Clothes	Good		Very Good	Poor		Fair
Sales Folks	Very Good	Excellent	Good		Very Good
Service Quality	Very Good	Very Good	?		?

The Ambridge Bike Shop, my favorite bike shop, has moved.  They
are now in a huge ex-furniture store across the street from their
old shop.  Although they are still busy getting settled into their
new home, check 'em out for any bicycle christmas gifts.  I think that
there selection of road, triathlon, criterium style bikes can't be beat
in the pgh area.  Plus three or four groupos on display.
Although Pgh Pro Bike in Sq.Hill has real good folks (Raleigh and Angelo)
their selection just don't stack up against Ambridge.

Dale
______________________________________________________________________
From: SR1F@TE.CC.CMU.EDU
Subject: bike shops

What would life be like if everyone agreed???

I  and many of my friends have had bad experience at Pgh Pro.  Things like
bad repair jobs, new bikes that were not built and prepped correctly, snotty
salesmen, and especially High Prices!!!  Even one of the co-owners, Alan
Orlansky will admit they mark up all their merchandise much more than the
standard 100%.  While the mark-up on bikes is less, it too is higher than
the industry standard.  

My preferences lie with Snitger's Bike Shop on Penn and Braddock.  The
sales people are nice, the repairs are always top quality, the selection
is very good, and the prices are right.  They carry a full line of stuff
and can satisfy the skinny-tire, high mileage racer as well as the serious
mountain biker, and bmxer.  They employ people at the store who race in
all three categories of bikes.  

FYI: my frame of reference is as a "skinny-tire" bike racer who logs
approx 8000 miles a year, and who used to be a mechanic at the Bike Barn
and at a couple of bike stores in Texas.  (i.e. I know what bike stuff
costs retail and I know what the markups are.  I also know enough
about mechanics to know what is and isn't a good repair.)

______________________________________________________________________
From: Kevin.Dowling@ROVER.RI.CMU.EDU
Subject: Local info

I sent this to the cyclists@cs mailing list several months ago.
This list of local bike shops, cycling organization, and mail-order
places can also be found in /../rv/usr/nivek/Cyclists-info

Cyclist suppliers: local and mail-order
Cycling organizations

Send comments, suggestions and additions to nivek@rover

--------Local Bike Shops:

Ambridge Bike Shop
507 Merchant Street
Ambride, PA 15003
(412) 266-1111
- Consensus: the best all-round cycle shop in the area
- Good, knowlegable mechanics

Gatto Cycle Shop
729 Allegheny River Boulevard		139 E. Sixth Avenue
Verona, PA 15147			Tarentum, PA 15084
(412) 826-1600				(412) 224-0500
- Carry Schwinn - Cannondale - Centurion - Ross - Specialized - Bianchi
- Excellent customer service and good selection (nivek)
- Big twice-annual sales 

Pittsburgh Pro Bike
Murray Avenue, Squirrel Hill Pittsburgh
- Carry Trek - Klein - Cannondale
- Good quality merchandise
- Perhaps the most snobbish and arrogant sales people around. (nivek)
- Likes to cater to racers and other serious nuts.  (doug)

Birmingham Bridge Bicycles and Exercycle
2210 E. Carson St
Pittsburgh, PA
- Right off the Birmingham Bridge in the South Side. The selection of
  both bikes and accesories is rather dismal. The owner Ron
  Silverman(?) is slightly obnoxious but tolerable. (marko)
	  [Note: this shop has closed --rnk]

Kraynick's Bike Shop
5003 Penn Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA
- Good for getting parts, especially those hard to find ones. Seems
  like an ok guy the few times I have dealt with him. (marko)
- For parts he's number one in the area.  He has an incredible selection
  of parts and they're always at reasonable prices. (blake)


Snitger's Bike Store
7501 Penn Ave. (corner of Braddock, in the factory)
731-9200
- Carries Schwinn and Cannondale.
- Sells a lot of casual and kids bikes.
-  Good about dealing for accessories and substitute parts (doug)


---------Mail order Cycle Shops

Bike Nashbar
4111 Simon Road
Youngstown, OH 44512
(800) NASHBAR
- Probably the biggest cycling retail business...
- Good prices and selection
- Store is an hour or so from Pittsburgh
- Has a number of stores in OH, MI, MA and VA.

Performance Bike Shop
P.O. Box 2741
Chapel Hill, NC 27514
1-800-334-5741, (800)-PBS-BIKE (727-2453)
- Selection is very good. (Especially tools)
- Price is comparable with Nashbar. Further away so mail might be longer.
- They have goofed on one of my orders. (dale)
- They have checked the availability of clothes over the phone for me. (doug)
- One instance of them screwing up promised shipping dates,
   and then not being good about taking responsibility for the problem. (doug)
- Various retails stores (Fall Church, VA and others)

REI
Recreational Equipment Company
PO Box 88125
Seattle, WA 98138
(800) 426-4840
- OK selection and prices on everything from tools, to bikes and clothing.
- Has about 20 stores around the country now. Closest is DC.
- Selection is no better than mediocre -- not nearly as good as Nashbar,
  for example. Primarily an outdoors outfitter, not a bike shop. (doug)

Cyclo-Pedia
PO Box 884 
Adrian, MI 49221
(517) 263-5803
- Doesn't advertise, often seen at bike rallies, meetings etc
- OK prices
- Carries kind of the odd stuff you can't find elsewhere
- Has lots of parts for Stronglight, Campy, TA, Regina, Nisi, etc etc...
- Can buy parts like bottom bracket shells
- Involved in Human Power Vehicle community.

The Third Hand
Box 212
Mt. Shasta, CA 96067
- Bike Tools, Books and Loose Screws (from their advertising)


--------Miscellaneous local bike related businesses:

Schnaubelt Shorts
1322 5th Avenue
Coraopolis, PA 15108
- Cycling and Triathlon Apparel
- Good quality, makes some of the name brand stuff found in mail order catalogs
- Does a lot of custom club clothing too.

Rattenborg Tandems
1229 Hazlett Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15237
- Oscar makes custom single and tandem frames.
- Has complete frame shop and does painting too.
- Top-quality but mucho bucks...

--------Cycling organizations

ACA - Allegheny Cycling Association
- Local organization devoted to time trials and racing.
- During the summer months, they hold criteriums every Wednesday at
the Highland Park Zoo and time trials every Tuesday at North Park.
These events start around 6:30pm. Participants range from novices to semi-pro.

WPW - Western Pennsylvania Wheelmen
PO Box 6952
Pittsburgh, PA 15212
Monthly meetings - Big cycling weekend every year early in the summer at
Slippery Rock College about 50 miles north of Pittsburgh. Many rides for all
levels of cycling, fun socializing etc. Many tours are planned by club
members.

AYH - American Youth Hostels - Pittsburgh Council
6300 Fifth Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15232
(412) 362-8181
- Weekly open house meetings 8-10pm each Thursday adjacent to the Arts and
Crafts Center in Mellon Park, Shadyside.

- Started in 1954, about 1500 people. Pittsburgh AYH is a great organization
if you do any touring in America or abroad. Very inexpensive accomodations.
Locally the AYH Chapter has a very active outdoors program in many sports.
The Bicyling Program has a progressive series of rides ranging from short
evening and day routes, longer day trips and weekend trips. You can also get
information about National AYH Trips, Bikecentennial and others.



Rick Kazman (rnk@sei.cmu.edu)  	    Ph: (412) 268-5752      | Disclaimer:
Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University  |    Nope
5000 Forbes Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890                  |

Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.misc