Bespoke Bicycles Now Open on Lafayette
Bespoke Bicycles, the new store at 64B Lafayette Avenue in Fort Greene that we wrote up back in February, is now open for business, reports Clinton Hill Blog. Our focus is on commuting, errands and city bikes, so most of what we offer is on the practical, every-day end of the spectrum,” says owner Cassidy…
Bespoke Bicycles, the new store at 64B Lafayette Avenue in Fort Greene that we wrote up back in February, is now open for business, reports Clinton Hill Blog. Our focus is on commuting, errands and city bikes, so most of what we offer is on the practical, every-day end of the spectrum,” says owner Cassidy Vare. Check out CHB for an interior photo. Their website is not up yet. GMAP
Hi everyone, this is Harrison from Bespoke Bicycles. I’m sure I’ve met a few of you in the shop! To answer a few questions and discuss a few points:
We do sell Raleigh bikes. Our least expensive adult bike presently in stock is $400, but Raleigh does make a few models in a lower price range and we are always happy to order them for any interested customers.
I absolutely agree that you get what you pay for (although it’s very possible to over-pay for quality that you simply don’t need for your specific uses given the price difference), and I absolutely understand not wanting to spend a ton of money on your bike, especially if it’s not an every day tool or toy for you. Fortunately, used bikes help fill this gap. While there are a lot of poor investments out there, you can certainly get a used bike of good quality for a bit less money than its newer counterparts.
In addition to selling new Raleighs and building custom bikes, we do plan on selling used bikes as well. We just haven’t gotten around to getting the license for it. We just got the necessary paperwork, so hopefully the rainy weather this week will afford us some time to actually fill it out and submit it! Once we do, we’ll start building an inventory. This will probably be a few more weeks, however, so if you don’t want to let May (bike month!) pass you by, there have been a handful of good suggestions already made on here. Recycle-A-Bicycle on Pearl St. is always a good option. And I personally have not met Mike at Bicycle Station yet (I’ve been meaning to ride over and say hi but it’s hard to get away from the shop), but I’ve only heard good things. So definitely check out Bicycle Station and see what they have in stock!
And as someone noted, ‘custom = $$$’ … this is definitely true. If you’re looking to build something custom from the frame up, after the cost of labor and parts it’s really only cost-effective for you as the buyer if the bike is in the $800 and up price range. Otherwise it’d make more sense to buy a pre-built bike (or used bike) and then make some modifications. And, that said, one should always determine exactly what they want out of a bike before they have one built. It’s possible that it already exists!
Whether it’s something we stock or not, we’re always happy to help you in your search for a bike that’s suited for you, so please feel free to stop by with any questions you may have!
I stopped in here over the weekend to talk about buying a bike. I found the shop pleasant, the owner helpful, and prices and quality to be pretty reasonable compared with what I’m seeing elsewhere. I’m not in the market for a $2,500 racing bike, and I’m finding it difficult to find an attitude-free shop that wants to sell me something that’s neither that nor a cheap BSO (ha! love that term!). Sure, there are places that sell these bikes, but I often feel like I’m not being taken seriously when I tell someone at these shops what I want.
I do think that spending a decent amount on a durable, reliable, comfortable bicycle that I’ll enjoy riding seems like a good investment. And, whoever said that you get what you pay for is totally correct.
I’m also planning to check out Recycle a Bicycle. Thanks for that link.
Go to The Bicycle station and talk with Mike.
Order a Jamis Commuter. It’s under $300 and comes with 3-years (THREE YEARS!!) of free maintenance. A friend bought one two years ago for his commute from Park Slop into Manhattan.
As for there being “too many frakking bike geeks in spandex terrorizing dogs and children as they whiz around.”
Please.
The people who terrorize the neighborhoods are the idiots who ride on the sidewalk like they own it and the complete retards who ride against traffic with their iPod on and no helmet. Bonus points for the ones with the doggy in the front basket. Those folks are dangers themselves and to those around them.
That’s the problem, there are too many frakking bike geeks in spandex terrorizing dogs and children as they whiz around.
You should be able to get a good bike for less than $500, and I mean with fenders, bell, chainguard and rack. But the bike makers obviously go for the high end because there are not enough people like me who want basic transport that I actually USE to do errands and carry things and go places (as opposed to showing off in the Park.)
But I won’t hold my breath. I have a 9-yr od bike made one year by Gary Davis, a simple, upright model with a 7-speed internal gear hub (if you don’t know what that is, you don’t know what you’re missing.) When I need to replace it with a $1000 “commuter” I’ll be crying.
Stonergut, I think you’re referring to the Chicken Hut. It’s not a bike shop — it’s the private club/flophouse of a group of maladjusted mutant bicycle enthusiasts that call themselves Black Label.
It looks like there’s a bike store on Willoughby on the block before Home Depot, across the street. Anybody know anything about that one? It looks interesting but I haven’t stopped in there.
aw brooklyngreene sorry for your loss. patti seems like a great person. (when you say tricycle tho do you mean. ugh duh, like a bike with three wheels?) im thinking like two in the back one in the front like a little kids bike?! i dont think ive ever seen anyone ride any of those.
on a slightly unrelated note. does anyone else cringe when they see babies on the back of bikes speeding all over heavily trafficked streets!?! i mean yeah most of the time they have helmets, but still!
*rob*
my bike i left in the basement storage area when i moved out of chelsea a loooong time ago. i just didnt feel like bringing it with me when i moved to harlem for some reason. i kept saying id go back and get it but i never did. now i dont know anyone who lives in the building anyway so who knows if it is still there. i got it on craigslist from a chinese delivery dude hahaha. it was his old bike. it served me well the few times i used it. i wouldnt use a bike to commute but just for leisure in the park. i was thinking about maybe going to kmart or something to get one. thanks for the links to those other places tho ill check those out too 🙂
*rob*
Thanks for that link, Randolph. It’s genius.