Spokesman Cycles

ACTUALLY Spokeman Cycles DESERVE NO STARS
Absolutely the worst service. They MAKE YOU WAIT while they all gather to watch YouTube videos. Heed to this review and take your business elsewhere.

Had a flat on a brand new tube and stopped in to Spokesman for a change.
The staff was quick and courteous but also took time to investigate potential issues with my rim/​wheel and discuss in depth my options to fix things. I was not given the hard sell on anything and was informed of the price point for each potential fix.
Recommended for quick and easy fixes on your bike.

these guys are total rippers and know nothing. they insisted that a component is broken although i clearly showed them how it works. a bunch ignorant and stubborn people. i went for a simple component and they wanted to change everything that touches each other on a bike.

One star.
Only problem I told them was chain not catching between first and second gear on the front cog. It failed to catch literally on the sidewalk outside. On the first shift out of the gate. They literally did not test at all, if they bothered to even look at it.
And it’s staffed by a bunch of… non-​helpful people. It’s weird that I don’t want to hear your daughter playing some Frozen video game while I’m disscussing components. Oh, wait, we couldn’t do that because a little girl is playing a video game.
If they did anything it was at best incompetent. Or they tried hard (no) and failed miserably at making a bicycle change gears.
Cannot support.
14^th street bicycles is wonderful!

These guys try to rip you off. I had two things done here. One was to replace the rear cog with something a little easier. I got the bike back, but the cog had the same # of teeth.
I obviously didn’t learn my lesson and I also tried to get a crankset replaced here. They quoted me a price of around $ 80 for the crankset + brakes + labor. They call me 15 minutes later, say the crankset will not work with my bike and tell me they only have a more expensive crankset that will work with the bike — ~$ 20 more (shady, but fine). I ask them what the total price would be, and they then quote me $ 160. (!). I told them to stop work on everything and just got the bike back.
If you just need equipment or anything, the shop is fine, but don’t get labor from these guys.

I work on the block and bike to work, so having a great bike shop downstairs would be ideal.
They have all the regular supplies and if you can’t fix a flat I suppose they come in handy.
My issue with them was the attitude. I came in because I was having an issue with my new Chrome shoes not releasing properly from my SPD pedals. The man at the counter insisted it must be the cleats or the shoes, because, as I had said, the pedals had worked properly in the past. I explained to him that the shoes and cleats were brand new and that there were tension adjustments that could be made to the pedals, I just wasn’t sure what the optimal tension was. He wouldn’t help me and was very condescending about supposedly not understanding that it HAD to be my shoes.
I fiddled with the pedals for about 30 minutes and now they release just fine. But wouldn’t it have been nice to have a bike store that could help with these kinds of things?

Hey, thanks for trying to rip me off. You had that rear dérailleur part the entire time, yet you said you didn’t and tried to sell me the full dérailleur instead. Not cool bro.
This is a mismanaged, cluttered and unhelpful shop. It is a perfect example of why all mom and pop bike shops are slowly going out of business.

Stay away from this shop. I bought a $ 2000 bike from this shop and they are not standing behind their promise regarding the bike’s warranty/​maintenance that they promise you at the time of purchase. Find another shop. Carlos is no help at all!!!

Not impressed.
I have a triathlon bike that I was having converted over with road handlebars and shifters. First, they CHIPPED the pain and carbon fiber all around the seat post (from not securing it properly in the bike rack), then the grip tape was put on backwards (you start mid-​handlebars and finish on the drops, NOT the other way around), and it took twice as long as they projected.
I thought that since they sold triathlon bikes, it would be the place to go… However, I should have known something was up when I told the guy I wanted drops on my triathlon bike and he started to pull out clip on aerobars. Note that he was looking at my triathlon bicycle that already has aeros going through the handlebars.
Bunch of knuckleheads. I’ll have to repair the damage, redo the grips, and find a better shop.

It was around 8pm and I had a 40 minute bike ride back to Brooklyn ahead of me when I discovered a flat on the front tire. A few days prior, I found a hole in it, which I foolishly had patched instead of getting the entire tube replaced. I’m lucky that Spokesman was open at that hour. They replaced my tube pretty quickly and charged around $ 15. In and out, awesome.
I rode just fine for the next couple of days, but then one morning I woke up to a flat front tire. I pumped it up and went to work, and by the time I was finished working, the tire was flat again. GAH, another hole?! This time I went to a different bike shop, Echelon Cycles in the West Village. These guys were able to identify the real culprit: a needle stuck in the outer tire was puncturing my tubes.
Why didn’t the Spokesman guys do a thorough check of my outer tires? Shouldn’t that be par for the course? I felt jipped and certainly would not return.

no good, havent had any luck here. i live a block away, i wish this place was better. just a bunch of mexicans looking to take your money. the only thing they helped me out with so far was a tiny bottle (i think 2 oz) of lube for 5 bucks. i came in once looking for a cheap set of pedals for my city bike, they had what i wanted, plastic platforms, but they wanted 20 bucks! should have been 5, 10 tops! they werent even in packaging!

My review doesn’t need to be long. It goes like this. I brought my bike in for a tune up before the NYC Triathlon. They forget to screw in the pedal when they reassembled it. 1 hour into the triathlon the entire pedal comes off almost killing me and ruining my race. They don’t know bikes. And they don’t know customer service. What’s worse is that I bought my bike here a year ago and have received poor treatment. I’m never going back. And if you have any desire to avoid having an accident, you should stay away.

Don’t really know why my review is so much different than everyone else here but I’ve recently found this shop, have visited three times and all times my expectations were surpassed (and I have high expectations). I found it better than another shop right around the corner.
The one variable may be the worker Martin. He helped me each time. First time was to shop for a bicycle for a friend. We were just coming to look and left with a Bianchi Milano. Martin answered our many questions and we decided to buy it right there and then. Martin had it cleaned up and tuned up within 24 hours and my friend was very happy.
Went in today with an unorthodox question, one that the bike store around the corner wouldn’t help me with, and Martin helped me with a smile.
Spokesman is a roomy, clean shop with more bikes, accessories and tools than any other bike shop I’ve seen in Manhattan.
I’ll shop here as long as I’m helped by people like Martin.

In a pinch I needed to inflate my tires.
They were happy to offer a pump and let me bring life back to my bike! Open late too!

Went in today to take a look at a road bike for the season. Said hi to a few employees and some said hi back. No one asked if I wanted help or what I was looking for.

Wet, cold, and rainy ride today into work. About 4 blocks from my destination I felt that horrible feeling. If you are a cyclist, you know what I’m talking about. That squishy bounce, that rim-​on-​pavement bump, that sensation we all dread, the worse part of cycling… a flat.
Ugh.
Hopped off the bike and walked the balance of my commute thinking I’ll just change it at lunch.
Well, the weather turned crappier and things got busier so I decided to try out one of the near by bike shops instead of sitting outside in the freezing rain to change a tire. Spokesman was one of the closest. Reading the reviews and knowing how people can get with bike shops, I took all the comments with equal parts caution & grain of salt and decided to check it out.
Walked in the rain, popped in, and at first the two guys working seemed more interested in not helping me, choosing instead to jibber-​jabber at each other. It was my review-​prejudice kicking in and it quickly faded when I realized they were just on the phone. I explained my situation and before I knew it, the bike was hoisted up and the tire was being changed.
I meandered around in the store as I’m quite the fan of bike pr0n. While doing so, the mechanic and the guy behind the counter kept a conversation going in Spanish. Personally, I could care less because he was knocking out my flat lickety-​splt, but I can see how a non-​Spanish-​speaking bike newbie might not feel too welcome. Bike shops can be intimidating when you don’t know anything. Just like a car mechanic or a plumber or whatever. I’m no newbie, I was just being lazy. Just fix the bike and we are good.
About 7 – 8 minutes later, boom, bike is ready to roll and tonight, I’m good to go! I walk the bike back to work, lock her up, content that I’ll be riding home on solid air.
Later that evening, dark, drizzly, pending some snow, I unlock and load up, ready to roll. I start making my way down the busy streets, avoiding taxis and cars in bike lanes, and the occasional jaywalker. Merely 5 blocks into my ride, I was riding on my rim again. Yeah. They didn’t clear whatever punctured the tube.
Me and my bike… we rode the subway home.

I’m just getting into cycling, and will eventually learn the ropes of repair and building, but am currently 99% clueless. Being a beginner is intimidating. Came in with a nice, barely used, but 18 year old Trek MTB with nearly flat tires and a need for a tune-​up (I had just bought it elsewhere), and they helped me out. Answered every question I had (I have an endless supply of questions), filled up my tires, and I ended up getting it home safely.
I can’t comment on their skill-​level, because I don’t know what the hell I’m doing myself. My main takeaway is that they weren’t really obligated to spend any time helping me out, and they did anyway. I bought a mini-​pump, but they didn’t charge me for their time, expertise, or use of their full-​sized pump. I can appreciate that. They’re also open pretty late compared to others in the area.

Horrible customer service! What a bunch dog a-​holes!

Hope the 5 dollars you charged me to tighten my handlebar because you wouldn’t lend me a tool was worth this review, you $&)$$!?,?(

Wonderful customer service!
Desperate for air in my bike tires, I took a chance and stopped in on my way home. The attendant invited me in, took my bike back and filled ‘er up. He then greased up my chain and checked my brakes — all in the name of bike love and without charge.
It was quick and exactly what I needed to regain status as a responsible bike owner but done with the most unexpected kindness. I’ll be back to check out their seemingly endless inventory of biker needs.