Cal Bicycles

I sold the bike I had serviced here I reported earlier for a tuneup and tire repair. The person I sold it to turned out to be a bike mechanic, he informed me that the bike had not been tuned at all. So in addition to wasting my time not fixing the tire they didn’t even tune up the bike as they recommended and charged me for.

An amazing example of a local bike shop. Amazing service — fast and expert. Product line perfectly in tune with the local community. I’d like to describe one recent experience that I think is illustrative of the kind of service you will enjoy at this shop — I was on a long ride with a group of friends when I noticed a mechanical issue with my bike. I rode straight to Cal Bicycles. Recognizing the situation, they stopped what they were doing, fixed my bike and had me back on my ride in minutes. Can’t ask for better service.

Cal bikes is the spot, best service and prices thanks again to Ben for getting me a great deal on my bike! I wouldn’t shop anywhere else!!!

I’ve been in 3 times in the last month — had one biked serviced and purchased another one. Ben was great answering all my questions — which I had a lot of since I am not really into bikes, but just started commuting to work so I wanted to learn. Overall very helpful. Plus it’ snice to shop local.

When I first walked in, I was a little frustrated when the young salesman and I were clearly not speaking the same language. As a professional sales trainer, it drives me crazy when sales people talk about what is important to them instead of focusing on the customer’s hot buttons! This guy was way over my head with technical info… nice kid, but I am not a tech person!
The owner finally jumped in, who was much better at understanding my needs, and I purchased a bike that made sense for me. The first salesman finished the purchase, ordering the bike, etc., and he was very helpful from that point on.
Overall, a very good experience, and they offer a 10% discount on accessories if you purchase a bike, which I took advantage of. They also put the chain back on after my first ride resulted in it falling off!
My only lingering «annoyance» was that I was encouraged to purchase the womens bike (with a curved bar) because of the higher (straight-​across) bar on the mens version. It turns out that the size small in the mens bike also has a bar that is angled, rather than running straight across– — either they didn’t know or didn’t bother to tell me– — and I would have been much happier with the look and the color of the mens. With the bar at an angle, it would have been perfectly comfortable. In fact, more so, as the curve of the womens bike starts at an odd point.

Great and knowledgeable staff. Bought a commuter from Omar; The man knows his stuff. I am in love with my bike.

Bought my Felt road bike from them a few years back, great people and great service.
Just had in for a tune up and to replace some parts and it looks and feels better than new. Just the best all around, always answer your questions and are very helpful.

Purchased an Electra Coaster 3i from these guys, the transaction went very well. I also brought in my wife’s bike for a flat repair, the work was done while I waited… and very reasonable priced. I highly recommend you check them out, it’s always nice to support a good local business.

Ben is a magician with a bike. Made my shit so fast that I would rip your clothes right off if I came screaming past you. What you got on that? Bangarang!

I’ve always been impressed with Cal Bikes. with their employees and selection.
Even though they may have a limited accessory selection, they can always order whatever you want through their catalogs. I mean, it’s not like their store is super big and they can fit a whole lot of stuff in there anyway. I bought a new bike last year and was buying new stuff for it at Cal Bikes. I couldn’t find what I was looking for in-​store. They gave me free reign over the catalogs and ordered what I picked out. It was there within a few days, with no extra shipping fees or anything.
The by far best thing about Cal Bikes is the employees. Ben and Robbie are always extremely helpful and informative. I trust them fully with my bike. And for this reason, I always choose Cal Bikes over the other bike shop in town.

My son bought a Verde Radia from Cal Bikes last year. We received excellent service and I appreciated the low pressure sales staff.
Last week the bike lost a part of the pedal mechanism. My son went in and ordered a replacement part. I just received a call from the manager, the part is in and there will be no charge for it! Wow! Thanks Cal Bikes!

I was in downtown Livermore and had to stop at a local shop.
Basically had a mixture of BMX, cruisers, road, hybrid, and mountain, all kind of mid range products. They had GT, Giant, very nice Electra cruisers, but not much else. Basically a room full of bikes with a service bay. Place is lacking in parts, clothing and accessories. The staff were nice.
bikes****
parts*
clothing
service****

Downside:
I bought this bike in June and left my number for black beachcruiser grips and tires. They told me they are ordering them and expecting them within days or weeks. Well, guys you never called and now I have to shop outside of Livermore. You let me down after fixing my first purchase at your shop.

Just bought a new comfy mountain bike from these guys. After the trial and error with modifying my current mountain bike, the guys were very helpful and walked me though the thought process for how & where I ride. I was on a bike that was far too big even for my long legs & it was causing me back pain… i basically gave up ridng. Now that I have a new bike that fits my fram & riding style, I ride 8 – 10 miles a day for errands & it’s fun!
Cal is my new «go to» bike shop.

I’m a fan of patronizing local bike shops. And, since there’s so much personality in the bike culture, talking to an actual person is sort of key when doing this kind of thing.
I’m in the middle of a custom cruiser build, and I dropped in to see what Cal Bicycles had to offer. Within a minute of walking in, I was greeted by Kenny, the manager, and it began.
First impression: These guys are not bike snobs, and they’ll give equal attention to bike aficionados and bike noobs, alike. Super cool. Kenny and I talked for about 10 minutes, and he told me that anything they don’t have in stock, they’re willing to order. I learned that they receive shipments every Wednesday, so expect a quick turnaround on your one-​off orders.
I didn’t order anything today, but Kenny did give me a manufacturer’s catalog to get my brain going. This is gonna be trouble. Awesome, awesome trouble.
They don’t do bicycle consignment or anything like that, so don’t expect to find any vintage roadies or cruisers sitting in the back, but Kenny did pull down an old, dusty Schwinn «gas tank» for me to finger and drool over. Be sure to ask about any weirdo stuff they might have laying around.

This shop is good for servicing a bike
I went there a couple of times to buy a new wheel for a mountain bike and to tune up the dérailleur of a road bike. The service was reasonably cheap.
The staff is pretty friendly. They won’t try to sell you extras. However, they are unreliable on delivery time.
I think they should offer a larger range of accessories. I was looking for a helmet and they had nothing good.

I’ve been going to this shop for a while. I’ve found them very helpful. I bought a Santa Cruz Nomad from them a couple of years ago. They did a great job on the build. What really sets them apart is the service afterwords. My rear hub has broken a number of times, the first time was little over a year. They have taken care of the install of any parts, including rebuilding it twice — no charges for any of it.
I’ve had wheels built, etc., all without issue. They have the basics for gear with decent prices. I think you can get a 10% discount as well if you are in a local club — can’t remember the name but that have info at the shop.
They have a wide variety of bikes; the nomad is a mountain bike but its obvious they do a lot of cruisers and bmx bikes.

Cal Bikes contacted me concerned with my experience and asked if I could help them improve, and that’s big points in my book. In fact, since my initial negative review, I’ve been in the shop and bought a multipurpose tool, tubes, grips, patch kit and tire irons for my son’t fixie.
I’m sorry my review of their shop turned into more of a commentary about the types of shops in the entire area. Cal Bike shop does have a niche, and if you’re looking for a BMX or a Cruiser they have plenty of really good ones. I’m just not their regular customer because I look for road bike and mtn. bike accessories and bikes. I’m sure what they do, they do well.

My husband, daughter, and I went in with hopes of getting help with a bent wheel. Instead of being realistic and giving us a decent wheel for a decent price just to get us back riding he just said it will cost you $ 250 to get a new one. On top of the fact that he obviously didn’t want to make a sale he portrayed an attitude that showed that he thought that he was better than us! The tech was a cocky arrogant jerk! I was extremely disappointed with the service. My daughter just learned how to ride without her training wheels and was so excited to go to the bike store and look at the bikes too. No one even tried to help us find anything that we might like to get her when she gets better. Never go there again! We ended up at Livermore Cyclery. They sold us a decent wheel for $ 60. It only took 15 minutes and we were out the door. That’s where we will go from now on!
Boycott Necessary!

I’m not one of those spandex guys with the wrap around shades and a prostate-​friendly seat on my Italian 35-​speed bike made out of metals so advanced that NASA doesn’t even know about them. If I watch the Tour de France it’s because it sometimes comes on after the 2 am SportsCenter and I can’t reach the remote. So this is a 5 star review from the point of view of a guy with kids who own, outgrow and destroy bicycles.
Very convenient location in the newly reinvigorated downtown Livermore. The selection seems great to me and yeah the prices are a bit higher for family bikes than they are at WalMart but then you have to deal with the near term problem of the bike falling apart in 3 days and the longer term issue that noted theologians have proved that if you buy a bike at WalMart, you go to hell when you die.
The service at Cal is good and they’re not out to upsell you at every turn. When I bought a bike for my 8 year old, they gave me several options. I picked the most expensive one but they made every effort to let me know I didn’t need to. Another thing I like about the place is that there is usually someone there who can do small repairs while you wait. Even for larger jobs, they’re quick and pretty cheap.