Good bike shop glasgow/lanarkshire area

suzyb

I've decided to get a road bike. Will need to be a second hand one though as I can't afford new. However I'd still like some advice on which size I'd need, ideally from someone who knows what they are talking about.

So does anyone know of any good bike shops where I could get this advice.

fnb1

Dales and Bilslands.

Sometimes some used for sale on the notice board in Dales, Picked up a nice Giant OCR, plus, Helmet, Plus Turbo trainer, plus shoes, plus a spare groupset and wheels (Tiagra he had up graded it to 105) , tools and track pump from just such an add from a Springbok Chef that was heading home. Gave it to me £350 the lot. I was only in Glasgow for the weekend so a lucky browsing visit to one of my old haunts

spen666

Where is West Central Scotland?

suzyb

spen666 wrote:

Where is West Central Scotland?

What you on about

I was trying to cover a wider area than by just saying Glasgow but not so wide I'd end up in Edinburgh.

mcj78

Hey there,

Also you've got Gear of Glasgow in the West End, very good service & friendly to boot, and Alpine Bikes at St. Georges Cross which have a good rep too.
Further out, you've got Dooley's in Paisley - I got my Dolan through them, they're a good stop for advice on road bikes, when I bought mine they ordered a couple of sizes in to let me try out before I decided, what you planning to go for - good luck whatever it is!

J

p.s - I'd avoid entering into any dialogue with spen666, seems to have some sad anti-scottish vibe going on... :?

UndercoverElephant

mcj78 wrote:

p.s - I'd avoid entering into any dialogue with spen666, seems to have some sad anti-scottish vibe going on... :?

That's unfair, Spen666 has an anti-most things vibe going on.

mcj78

UndercoverElephant wrote:

mcj78 wrote:

p.s - I'd avoid entering into any dialogue with spen666, seems to have some sad anti-scottish vibe going on... :?

That's unfair, Spen666 has an anti-most things vibe going on.

In that case I appologise to spen666 - it's only a matter of time before we discover a mutual dislike of something & sail off into the sunset

j

-spider-

suzyb wrote:

I've decided to get a road bike. Will need to be a second hand one though as I can't afford new. However I'd still like some advice on which size I'd need, ideally from someone who knows what they are talking about.

So does anyone know of any good bike shops where I could get this advice.

The only bike shop in the world worth recommending is Wheelcraft in Clachan of Campsie.

And he does wheels not bikes (but he might get you one if you drink his tea).

mcj78

Bikes for tea eh? what kind of tea is it? :shock:

the article don

Behind Bars in Shawlands - the owner is a keen roadie so may be worth a look.

Always been impressed with Alpine bikes at Georges Cross so +1 for them.

Each to his own, but I've consistently found Dales very poor for advice and poorer still for servicing.

For repairs and general advice this guy seems to be some kind of underground cycling hero but I've not personally used him:

http://www.bicyclerepair.co.uk/ ( Willie Bain)

And slightly OT but for Mountain Bikes I'd always go to Craig McMartin cycles - the mechanic in there ( Stevie) is a genius.

spen666

mcj78 wrote:

UndercoverElephant wrote:

mcj78 wrote:

p.s - I'd avoid entering into any dialogue with spen666, seems to have some sad anti-scottish vibe going on... :?

That's unfair, Spen666 has an anti-most things vibe going on.

In that case I appologise to spen666 - it's only a matter of time before we discover a mutual dislike of something & sail off into the sunset

j

how is asking where "west Central Scotland" is either anti Scottish or anti anything other than being anti ignorance?

i have no idea what area of Scotland people describe as West Central Scotland, so I simply asked whwere it was

some of you are a bit touchy

BoardinBob

Another vote for Bikes Behind Bars. Craig McMartin also carries a good stock of road bikes.

suzyb

Went to Dales today. Service was OK, the guy was helpful and let me sit on a couple of the bikes. They didn't have a drop bar bike in a small enough size for me though so I only got to sit on a flat bar roadie.

I seem to have been right in thinking a 43 - 46cm would fit though.

mcj78

Hmm, just though on the back of your being slightly touchy about a certain tennis player not supporting your national team you had issues with things of a tartan nature, "where is west central scotland?" seemed like a slightly blunt response, especially if it's a reply to someone looking for a good bike shop... you're hardly going to be able to recommend one if you've no idea where the op's talking about - not like West Central Scotland is going to stretch into England is it? Sorry for appearing touchy, i'm usually more touchy-feely

Back to the matter in hand - like the article don, i've had iffy service from Dales in the past too - they do have a great selection of bikes & bits, but might lack some of the personal touch being such a big operation.

J

suzyb

The thing is, because I really can't afford to buy a new bike I don't want to go to a shop and have them going to a lot of expense getting in a small bike when I wont be buying it.

And if Dales don't already have a small enough one set up what are the chances of a smaller bike shop having one.

I hate being short

UndercoverElephant

suzyb wrote:

The thing is, because I really can't afford to buy a new bike I don't want to go to a shop and have them going to a lot of expense getting in a small bike when I wont be buying it.

And if Dales don't already have a small enough one set up what are the chances of a smaller bike shop having one.

I hate being short

On the plus-side, you have a much better chance of getting one at a bargain price than someone who's average

If you can get over to Edinburgh early on a Saturday morning, you may have a good chance to get a re-cycled one http://www.thebikestation.org.uk/. Will definitely on the "cheap but rustic" side though.

spen666

mcj78 wrote:

Hmm, just though on the back of your being slightly touchy about a certain tennis player not supporting your national team you had issues with things of a tartan nature, "where is west central scotland?" seemed like a slightly blunt response, especially if it's a reply to someone looking for a good bike shop... you're hardly going to be able to recommend one if you've no idea where the op's talking about - not like West Central Scotland is going to stretch into England is it? Sorry for appearing touchy, i'm usually more touchy-feely

Back to the matter in hand - like the article don, i've had iffy service from Dales in the past too - they do have a great selection of bikes & bits, but might lack some of the personal touch being such a big operation.

J

The business re Murray has nothing to do with him being Scottish or any other nationality

It has to do with him saying he supports anyone other than my team, so all I did was return the favour.

I am neither anti Scotland notr anti Scottish people



As to my question. I like to learn things. If I don't know where an area is I will ask.

Or am I wrong to want to learn. Perhaps I should remain ignorant

UndercoverElephant

As an Englishman living in Scotland, I can, with all certainty say that the Andy Murry thing had more to do with him being naive with the press than anything else. He was young and a journalist said, "Who are you supporting then, anyone but England, eh?", to which he grinned and said, "Aye".

When reported though, Andy stormed that he'd slay every English baby in their cots and re-impregnate every English woman with his ginger spawn. The old, "take a throwaway comment and make it the whole interview" trick.

mcj78

suzyb wrote:

The thing is, because I really can't afford to buy a new bike I don't want to go to a shop and have them going to a lot of expense getting in a small bike when I wont be buying it.

And if Dales don't already have a small enough one set up what are the chances of a smaller bike shop having one.

I hate being short

Have you tried having a look on ebay/gumtree for a second hand option? At least that way if you find something close-by you can pop over & try it out.I say this as some road bikes have a compact geometry now, where the seat-tube is significantly lower than it would be on a similar bike with standard geometry - so two bikes with a similar sized seat tube could have significantly different lengths of top tube, i.e. my road bike has a compact frame (44cm) but the top-tube length is similar to a standard shaped frame with a 50-52cm seat tube.

Don't mean to confuse you but it's always best to try before you commit to anything, either new or used.

I'm off home, have a good weekend one and all! 8)

suzyb

I've been looking on ebay but there hasn't been anything local. All the short people seem to live south of Birmingham.

Wallace1492

spen666 wrote:

mcj78 wrote:

Hmm, just though on the back of your being slightly touchy about a certain tennis player not supporting your national team you had issues with things of a tartan nature, "where is west central scotland?" seemed like a slightly blunt response, especially if it's a reply to someone looking for a good bike shop... you're hardly going to be able to recommend one if you've no idea where the op's talking about - not like West Central Scotland is going to stretch into England is it? Sorry for appearing touchy, i'm usually more touchy-feely

Back to the matter in hand - like the article don, i've had iffy service from Dales in the past too - they do have a great selection of bikes & bits, but might lack some of the personal touch being such a big operation.

J

The business re Murray has nothing to do with him being Scottish or any other nationality

It has to do with him saying he supports anyone other than my team, so all I did was return the favour.

I am neither anti Scotland notr anti Scottish people



As to my question. I like to learn things. If I don't know where an area is I will ask.

Or am I wrong to want to learn. Perhaps I should remain ignorant

I think Spen666 is very fair and is not "anti" anything, Have had some good debates with him and find him very knowledgable and open to other points of view, which is more than many on here can claim!

Spen666, West Central Scotland is anywhere close to Glasgow rather than Edinburgh and located within the low lying central area of Scotland.

always_tyred

Wallace1492 wrote:

I think Spen666 is very fair and is not "anti" anything

Well THAT's not true.

West Central Scotland - yes, confusing to the average English person, because until you have to drive through it, you forget that there is quite a bit of Scotland between England and the festival and/or U2 at Hampden.

I guess it means not upland, highland or Edinburgh.

Arguably it rules out the good bits, then.

twohits.thesix

Solid Rock Cycles in Balmore on the road to Torrance is a good shop. Wheelcraft is also good but as Spider said wheel building is their speciality.

I've had mixed service in Dales. Sometimes really good, but can be bad.. all dependant on the assistant. When I was buying my first bike the guy said it was a perfect fit if I could sit on the saddle and not see the front hub because of the handlebar :? .. I've since had the BG Fit service done in there and it was really good.

Wallace1492

twohits.thesix wrote:

Solid Rock Cycles in Balmore on the road to Torrance is a good shop. Wheelcraft is also good but as Spider said wheel building is their speciality.

I've had mixed service in Dales. Sometimes really good, but can be bad.. all dependant on the assistant. When I was buying my first bike the guy said it was a perfect fit if I could sit on the saddle and not see the front hub because of the handlebar :? .. I've since had the BG Fit service done in there and it was really good.

+1 for Solid Rock - its my LBS, always found then good and fair, decent advice and knowlegeable guys.

suzyb

Is there no bike shops anywhere on the south side :?

Does anyone know if Alpine has a car park nearby?

twohits.thesix

suzyb wrote:

Is there no bike shops anywhere on the south side :?

Does anyone know if Alpine has a car park nearby?

Dooleys in Paisley town centre and Billy Bislands shop on Saltmarket are the two closest shops to south side i can think of.

Think there are plenty of parking spaces outside Alpine bikes at Georges Cross

-spider-

suzyb wrote:

Is there no bike shops anywhere on the south side :?

Craig McMartin on Pollokshaws Road opposite Queen's Park
Behind Bars in Shawlands
Cycle Lane on Clarkston Road (Not that good though)

Broonster

West Central Scotland = South Lanarkshire & North Lanarkshire > Glasgow.

East Central Scotland = West Lothian > Edinburgh.

Harthill is the border I reckon - everything west of Harthill is 'West Central Scotland' and everything east of it is 'East Central Scotland'!

Does that sound about right?

suzyb

I would say so.

Although strangely Lanark gets the Edinburgh public holidays and not Glasgow's. So the "border" could be a bit further west.

shrekster

Hi suzyb,
You won't get much help at Dales if your after a cheap second hand bike, speak to big Al at Wheelcraft there's a very good chance he can get what your after. Also you can try 'Common wheel' they are a charity shop started by a Glasgow doctor (I think!) who do tons of second hand bikes, worth a try.

Jim.

-spider-

Broonster wrote:

West Central Scotland = South Lanarkshire & North Lanarkshire > Glasgow.

East Central Scotland = West Lothian > Edinburgh.

Harthill is the border I reckon - everything west of Harthill is 'West Central Scotland' and everything east of it is 'East Central Scotland'!

Does that sound about right?

The border is where you stop getting vinegar with your fish supper and stat getting that rancid brown sauce.