Chainwheel Drive — Local services in Palm Harbor

I want to tell you about my experience with Chainwheel Drive today. My brother is flying in today from Maryland to visit. He shipped a bike here so we can ride the Pinellas Trail and also will ride the trail at Starkey Wilderness Park this weekend starting tomorrow morning. When I set-up his bike, the rear wheel wasn't "true" and was "wobbly". We needed a FAST repair or the weekend of riding would be ruined. I called Chainwheel Drive and asked if they'd be able to help get the rear wheel straightened on very short notice. They told me to bring it in and I went up there right away. They had 3 techs working today! I was amazed to see how many techs they had.They took my brother's bike in right away and I was happy to wait. They did the repair super fast while I waited. The fee was only $20. I expected that they might charge me more for an emergency repair but they did not take advantage of me. They took care of it and charged the normal fee. They are very friendly and customer service oriented. I walked around the store while waiting and they have a great selection of road bikes, mountain bikes, and other types. I also saw another customer come in with some questions about their bike seat and had an issue. The customer got their question answered and was happy with their answer. The lady asked how much and they told her no charge. She tried to tip them $5 and no one would take her money. They were glad to answer a quick question without compensation. Isn't this what you want when going to a business? Friendly service and fair pricing? I wanted to leave this review right away because they deserve it. Thank you John and the team at Chainwheel Drive. I really appreciate what you did for me (and my...

I bought several bikes from Chainwheel, and they usually have a decent selection of basic bikes. However, their service department is severely lacking when it comes to dealing with mountain bikes. Took my bike in for a loose cassette, and they basically told me I needed to contact the manufacturer to get the parts, and then bring everything back in for them to install them. Told me I needed a new thru-axle and end caps. They put it back together and charged me 15 dollars for that. No repair, no information on part numbers, etc. I immediately took the bike to University Bike Center, they told me they would get the parts, install everything for me and not to worry. They even advised if they needed to rebuild the wheel with a new hub they would do that also, something Chainwheel didn’t even bother mentioning as an option. Almost as if they couldn’t be troubled with it. I see them working on a lot of road bike stuff, so I think that’s their forte. If you need your mountain bike worked on, don’t bother. Just go to UBC. I would have given them a one star rating, but because I have a history with them and their Drew St location is decent, I added a couple. I shouldn’t feel like I’m being a bother to a shop when I bring my bike in. They should be happy to get the business. UBC had two people waiting on me, and the tech in the repair shop was enthusiastic and stoked to talk with me about his mountain bikes. That’s the shop that’s getting my business...

I don't write many reviews on google, but the staff at Chainwheel Drive in Palm Harbor deserve this, so here goes.

My experience with the staff at Chainwheel drive has been nothing short of incredible. My wife and I wanted to purchase an e-bike to try and get ourselves out of the house and make an attempt to do more long-distance touring style riding to ease us through the boredom and lethargy of sitting at home during the pandemic.

We purchased two specialized bikes, the Como and a Vado. The Vado had some minor glitches, along with being a little bit large for my height. We returned the Vado and exchanged it for a step-down.

I was so impressed with how determined the store manager and staff was that we weren't just happy with the bike, but nothing short of in love with our new bikes. I had a few concerns with my e-bike, which ended up being configuration/technical tuning. The manager took the bike on a 3-4 mile ride and verified that the bike was behaving in the manner I was describing, the next day they had the bike sorted and resolved and me on my way.

It's refreshing in an age where local service and expertise seems to be a rare feature of a business and so nice to find a shop like Chaindrive that cares. I whole-heartedly recommend them and will continue to use their shop for any future maintenance or bike and accessory purchases.

Thanks again for the...