Bicycle Center of Fort Worth — Local services in River Oaks

I really wanted to like this shop. It's right by my home, so there's that... But that's about the end of the Pro's list.

As for the Con's, well to start, even when I was still trying to like this place I felt like I was inconveniencing the owner by even being in his shop. It's odd. I'm paying him to work on my bike, and yet feeling bad to be so disruptive to the current service he's performing on another bike that I actually feel the need to apologize for even walking through his doors. He's not the most personable guy I've ever met (if that wasn't inferred already); in fact, he's pretty dang short with everyone else I've seen in there too. Prices were ok. I didn't feel like I was being ripped off, but he sure nit-picks the crap outta you for service. The last straw for me was my 4th time in (yes, I put up with it 3 times because of the convenient location) when ALL I NEEDED was to use his air compressor for one quick blast to bead my tire onto the wheel. My air compressor was broken, so I thought, "Hmm...I've paid this dude over $1000 in parts and service over the last 6-8 months. Surely he'll let me use his air for 1 tire." NOPE! I explained my situation with my broken compressor and asked politely for a quick shot of air and he says, "Well, you can pay for a wheel and tire service and I'll do it. But I can't let you just use my pump." SERIOUSLY?! I needed one lousy blast of air to get the tires to bead. That's it. And he turned me down ...oh wait...he offered to let me PAY him for the free air that we were both sharing in our lungs. I stood there for a few seconds, honestly speechless...and not even quite sure if I heard him right. So I repeated my story and asked again if either he or I (being respectful of his property, but also of his time by doing it myself) could just quickly pump up my ONE tire. Again he said no. And again he offered to do the service, but I would have to pay for it. He tried explaining how the Stan's No Tubes sealant inside the tire would , "...blast ALL OVER my shop!" Um, I've done this like 10-15 times now and the biggest mess I've ever made was some bubbling onto MY OWN TIRES as the sealant dried and sealed. Even if those bubbles were to be so audacious as to drip onto his precious floor...wet wipes, dude, and problem solved. No; wet wipe (singular as opposed to plural because any potential mess would literally be cleaned up with a 1" x 1" wet piece of cloth).

To emphasize, it wasn't just this one thing that turned me off from his shop, but the previously poorly completed service visits, poor attitude, and prices that oppose the poor service in addition to this last experience is what did me in. This was definitely the straw that broke the camel's back. Such a simple request... Come on, bro. Really?

Spark Notes: Please. Support a LBS that actually cares, and this guy does not care. If this dude finds no happiness in what he's doing, then it's time to close doors and find something else. As for me? I'll be making a longer drive from now on to support a LBS with better service and better prices. Give this guy a break and go somewhere else. He finds no joy in his work, and you'll just be putting him out by paying him to do your bike service anyway.

Sorry for the rant... Now go out and RIDE!!! (but don't come here for...

This bike shop always has the best prices on bike service. I needed a wheel trued and Rocky offered to true the wheel while I waited. He quickly found 2 broken spokes, so I picked up the wheel the next day. I was charged less for parts and labor than other shops would charge just for labor. Also, when I had purchased a new Specialized MTB from a big bike shop, they could not get the gears to shift properly. I was told that it is just the way it is. I brought the bike to Rocky for an adjustment. He was not satisfied that the gears were not working properly. He took the time to work on it and found that the frame was bent on my new bike! This was causing the issue. I returned the bike to the big bike shop for an exchange. They did not catch the issue after me complaining about the shifting for 3 visits to them after purchasing the bike. Rocky is an honest bike mechanic with a...

These people saying the service is rude must be trolls or hired to give bad reviews by competitors. The shop is great and the owner patient helpful and professional. I’ve been going there for about 6-7 years and I’m a large woman, not your typical cyclist body for sure. He’s patiently helped me buy bikes and seats suited to me without ever once making me feel condescended to or as if he were judging me for my size. He’s helpful but not pushy either, he lets you look as much as you want but will offer plenty of advice and help if you ask. The prices are also competitive with the internet and if you buy a bike here, he tunes it for free for life. And he really does tune it for free for life, he doesn’t try to use the tune-up to try to get you to buy stuff or make up repairs that need to be done. He’s honest. This bike...