Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

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Colin63
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Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by Colin63 »

This morning i needed to get out to the shops to buy a small part for my derailleurs. It eventually involved having to visit all the bike shops in Lancaster, so I thought it might be useful to let people know what I think of the city's shops as I know lots of people pass through on northern bike tours and while LEJoGing.

Leisure Lakes, Penny Street.
This shop has a decent range of stock but the service is awful. Loud music and disinterested staff . The salesman could barely lift his eyes from his computer screen to tell me that they couldn't help me. If you know what you want this is a useful shop but don't expect to leave with warmed cockles.

The Edge Cycleworks. Cable Street (adjacent to the Lune Valley cycle path).
Really friendly and helpful staff, but the shop is heavily tied to Trek/Bontranger and so an extremely limited range of stock. Their mechanics will go out of their way to be helpful (I think Jamie was the name of the chap I chatted with). Didn't have what I wanted but at least offered to order it if that was a viable option for me.

Halfords, Bulk Road
Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha! They had no idea what I was asking for and went around their displays reading the product descriptions to me before asking me again what it was I wanted.

On Yer Bike, Caton Road
Genuinely friendly and engaged service - very helpful. They have a small but useful selection of stock and good mechanics. Recommended.

Smalleys, Parliament Street
This is a tiny old shop run as a hobby rather than a business - the dying embers of a once thriving local family business selling prams and cheap bikes. The customer base is at the bottom end of the market. Mr Smalley is the sort of man who will chat to you for hours if he can and it's the sort of shop that will have old cardboard boxes out back filled with bits and pieces and he'll help you with repairs if he can.
geocycle
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by geocycle »

Nail on the head their Colin. Leisure Lakes has a good selection and will buy in from their web store but otherwise not much to recommend in terms of service. Would like to use them more. Remember when it was Lancaster Cycles?
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Colin63
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by Colin63 »

geocycle wrote: 5 Jun 2021, 7:41pm Nail on the head their Colin. Leisure Lakes has a good selection and will buy in from their web store but otherwise not much to recommend in terms of service. Would like to use them more. Remember when it was Lancaster Cycles?
And before that it was Alan Dent. The last indy bike shop in Lancaster from the good old days when every town had its own frame builder. I haven't seen Alan for years.
Tangled Metal
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by Tangled Metal »

There used to be another Indy across the road and nearer the now closed waterstones. Called cycle ,2000 IIRC. Shut down before leisure lakes took over Lancaster cycles.

On yer bike is an East Lancashire based bike chain. It came here with a lot of MTB bikes and an few road bikes. They soon realised the market here wasn't the same and started stocking commuter bikes, e bikes and a wider range of bike types. Never looks busy.
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Colin63
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by Colin63 »

Tangled Metal wrote: 6 Jun 2021, 7:00pm There used to be another Indy across the road and nearer the now closed waterstones. Called cycle ,2000 IIRC. Shut down before leisure lakes took over Lancaster cycles.
That was Alan Dent's original shop. It became Cycle 2000 when he hung up his brazing torch and then moved to where Leisure Lakes is now. It didn't last long on Penny Street. There was a very good mechanic called Colin who worked there, but I haven't seen him around for many years.
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cycleruk
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by cycleruk »

I know it's a bit up the road from Lancaster but have you ever been in Lakeland Cycles at Bolton Le Sands?
Always noticed it when going up the A6 but never needed to go in.
You'll never know if you don't try it.
Tangled Metal
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by Tangled Metal »

It's a little like Smalley's. It's an old guy who owns it with an almost as old guy working as the mechanic. I'm not so sure but they managed to bodge together my recumbent before a tour when it turned out they didn't have the chains needed. Basically stretched the chain as far as they'd go n instead of adding links or putting a new chain in. Not completely satisfied but it got me through the tour.

Not going back to the one in carnforth though.

Further up the A6 for lejogers there's a new bike mechanic set up in milnthorpe main square next to Goa spicev takeaway. I've spoken to them, a youngish couple, and they seem ok. We plan to go there when we need bikes fixed. At least to try them out?
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Colin63
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by Colin63 »

cycleruk wrote: 6 Jun 2021, 8:01pm I know it's a bit up the road from Lancaster but have you ever been in Lakeland Cycles at Bolton Le Sands?
Always noticed it when going up the A6 but never needed to go in.
I popped in a couple of years ago because they had a nice Alan Dent frame displayed in the window. They told me that it belonged to a friend and they were looking after it while he moved house and that the window was the only spare space they had to store it.
Not really a viable shop anymore, more of a retirement hobby, but they have a few bits and pieces in stock that make it worth remembering for emergencies.
Tangled Metal
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by Tangled Metal »

Also only open Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The owner owns the building and lives upstairs. Only opens to keep it going, for something to do it other reason. It's often a hangout for older cyclists in the area. The ones with dawes bikes dating from back when they were good bike!!!! :lol:

Seriously though, what bike shop doesn't stock 8 speed road chains or 10 speed for that matter?
geocycle
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by geocycle »

Ah yes, Alan Dent! I do remember using his shop about 30 years ago. I think the mechanic was Colin Stone, who was/is doing mobile repairs in the district after the shop closed.

I'm fairly self sufficient in terms of repairs and I confess to buying most of my bits from SJS or Spa, so I am part of the problem these shops have faced. However, having spent yesterday afternoon fruitlessly trying to get a tubeless tyre to pop on to a rim I might be re-acquaintancing myself with the LBSs this week.
arnsider
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by arnsider »

Thumbs up for On Yer Bike.
They modified my Whyte Coniston E bike, changing the whole gear train from a ten speed thumb shifter to a nine speed grip shift.
An excellent job.
Tangled Metal
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by Tangled Metal »

Old thread but I find leisure lakes depends on who you get serving you. There's a woman who who works there that's very good at the service aspect of retail.

Edge have of late been a bit snooty with me. If you haven't got a 2k plus bike or want one you're dirt on their shoe. Or at least that's how I've found them since they reopened from iirc being flooded out.

On yer bike originated from east Lancashire. They came to lancaster with the n idea that they'd sell costly trail mountain bikes and expensive road bikes. Like in their other shops. Poor bike sales meant within a few months that stock went back east and they sold more utilitarian bikes and e bikes. The sakes staff and mechanic (one was one of the owners over for the day) told me that lancaster market had more of a commuter market than back east. After the stock change and a few mechanics issues they but things right I think. However I've been in and unable to find what I needed a few too many times to bother with them any more. You have to be there and get lucky with the right person to get good service.

Smalley sells a £400 bike. It's the most expensive by a long way. £160 bikes for people who don't want to walk a couple of miles to work anymore or but a bus ticket for whom money is wasted on a bike.

Halfords? Get lucky service can be OK, if not you get a label reader!

If I need a bike shop I buy online or visit wheelbase in Staveley. However with it being partly owned by blacks / go outdoors now I fear that's now out too. I think since covid lockdown it really started fading IMHO.

If wheelbase is within range then biketreks at Ings is one other place. Sort of helpful but they are trying to be boutique bike store. Cheap bikes and parts you'll not find there only expensive stuff. The staff vary from stuffy, elitist to very helpful indeed. As always you have to be lucky with staff.

This is my more recent take on this.

PS there's the Carnforth shop. Another hobby shop until retirement place. Avoid for getting your bike fixed. Good day they're mediocre quality work. Any other time you better check the work done, for safety reasons!
Tangled Metal
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Re: Lancaster Bicycle Shops.

Post by Tangled Metal »

If you can get out to Kirkby Lonsdale to Ingleton road there's the bike shop there called escape. It's a bit in the middle of niwhere. It used to be an early Whyte stockist. Good shop but mid range upwards stock I thought. No £500 hybrid for people trying cycling out more seriously but my sure they'll keep up.
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