American Cyclery

Service is hit or miss and attitude ranges from helpful to arrogant. Rounding down to two because of higher pricing.

quickly fixed my flat. nice guys. helpful.
nice shop. figure i’ll try them again soon.

I bought a bike from here that was stolen less than a year later. I came back to these guys to put together a kind of «throwaway» bike that a friend was willing to spare. I got a call from American Cyclery a couple of days later and they told me that it wasn’t worth it to put the bike together. They could have just done what they could have and charged me for it, and I wouldn’t have known better. Instead, they GAVE ME A BIKE to have until I got enough together to purchase a new one. Awesome and honest, no? I think so. Come here to buy a bike. You’ll ride away happy :-)

These guys are the friendliest dudes I’ve met around. There stuff is medium end, but you can pretty much find what you need here. If you can’t they can order it. I like to shop here because these are good people and always very helpful.

Summary: super helpful repair provided by friendly, trusting employees.
I walked into American Cyclery having sustained a puncture and having been unable to fix it on the first two attempts. I had been carrying a repair kit and CO2 cartridges, but had now run out of CO2 since the replacement tube was leaking too. I mentioned that I didn’t have much cash with me — no problem, they said — just call us with your credit card number when you get home. «We look after fellow cyclists».
The repair person checked my tire for wear, found an embedded sharp object that had caused the leak, and recommended I get a new tire (it was old). I mentioned that I had a new tire waiting at home, so he assured me that I could get home with the old tire. They put in a new tube and sent me on my way. Total cost — $ 18 for labor + tube, which I paid by phone when I got home.
Based on this experience, I intend to make this my go-​to bike shop for future maintenance needs. Looked like a shop with lots of good bike components and frames too, although I confess I was mostly focussed on getting fixed and home at that point.

This is my favorite bike shop in the entire San Francisco bay area. They carry lots of high end Italian and Japanese vintage parts and bikes. I was looking for vintage Benotto handlebar tape which was almost impossible for me to find anywhere else. They had it! I’ll be sure to stop by during my next SF visit just to see what else I can find. The guys here are friendly and helpful.

Interesting cross section of reviews here, but I have to say that my experience was extremely positive. I did a bunch of research before I went into the store on what I wanted: a road bike that fit my height (6’6″) and could take my weight (320 when I bought the bike). I had most of the components selected but needed guidance on fit, frame size, gearing, etc. I worked with Brue on the bike and he was awesome, answered all of my questions and put together a bike that I am completely in love with and rides like nothing else (just did a ride this morning in fact!). All I can say is that my experience was excellent and American Cyclery were fantastic to work with.

Don’t EVER give them your email unless you want to be spammed for the rest of your life with no means provided to get off the list. The unsubscribe only takes you off one particular thread. Totally useless!

I went to American Cyclery because it was the nearest one at golden gate park at the time. I was apprehensive because they look pretty high end and I only had a cheap bike. I spoke to Thomas and he look over my bike (had a broken shifter cable). Really patient guy and attended to me. He repaired both my shifter cables (one was broken) even though we agreed to fix only one at a fair price. Adjusted my derailleurs too. He was very honest that the bike didn’t have much life to it and didn’t insist on expensive repairs which would cost more than the bike. In the end I was very happy and satisfied with their service. Thank you.

Got the absolute bike of my dreams here. Knew what I wanted, saved up a bit, and they did a custom build-​up that came out better than I had imagined. They took the time to help me figure out the details of what I wanted (rather than telling me what to get) and had the expertise to put it together perfectly. So stoked on my new ride!

Unfortunately, a series of bad experiences, poor service, and insufficient solutions at American Cyclery over the last several months have lost them my patronage.
Basically, they ended up costing me well over a thousand dollars by completely screwing up my insurance claim after I was hit by a car.
But worst of all, they sent me out on a bike that they’d inspected and repaired, only to tell me later that they changed their minds and they think it’s unsafe to ride and irreparable.
Long story long:
I was hit by a car in October 2014. American Cyclery did the post accident inspection, but wouldn’t repair or release my bike to me for FOUR MONTHS until my property settlement came through.
(Turns out the driver’s insurance would only agree to cover a week of transportation alternatives, since that’s the reasonable time it takes to repair a bike.)
When I recovered the bike, I discovered they had missed damage, like a broken saddle. Since my property claim was already settled, i couldn’t recover anything for the broken saddle.
I was also having chain rub issues, but figured they had set the screw limiter too tight. A week and a half after I picked up the bike, my bottom bracket sheared off while I was commuting.
The shop gave me a hard time about the bottom bracket, but eventually agreed to replace it and the chainring with salvage parts. Great, I was happy with the resolution. Though they also noticed that my brake caliper was bent… Would have been nice to catch that in the post-​accident inspection and get that covered/​repaired.
But when I picked up my bike again, shop manager Tyson had a major attitude. He made it clear that he wouldn’t have replaced the bottom bracket if the decision were his, and that he thought I was just bullshitting to get free parts.
I sent an email to Bradley, the owner (?), expressing that I appreciated the resolution, but letting him know about Tyson’s behavior and some of the other service issues I’d been having since October.
Bradley responded that nobody at the shop feels comfortable working on my bike, and that they should not have worked on it or encouraged me to spend money repairing it. He apologized for the frustration, and ended by saying that we both learned some harder lessons from the experience than we wanted. He did say that he’d give me a good deal on a bike. (But what does that mean? Wholesale? Or subtracting the cost of my post-​collision assessment, all of the parts and repairs I paid for, the total cost of my bike, and some compensation for the four months?)
I’m still trying to work out the lessons I learned.
–I brought my bike to get assessed after an accident (and paid for it!)
–The bike should have been totaled, but wasn’t
–so my property settlement with the driver’s insurance was a total waste, spent on parts for a dead bike.
–I’m out months of transportation costs, hundreds of dollars on a useless bike repair, and now however much it costs me to buy a replacement bike (all of which should have been covered by my settlement)
–And I was sent out on an apparently unsafe bike.
The only lesson I can draw from this is to take my business elsewhere. American Cyclery’s mismanagement of this process cost me a lot of actual time and money.
Further, American Cyclery’s «solution” – suggesting that I learn a valuable lesson from this experience – is pretty insulting.
I know many people who have had positive experiences here for years, but I’m done.

With exceptional service and an extensive selection, American Cyclery has won my business for as long as I have a bike.
Been here at least three times, the first to buy a new road bike for my girlfriend, the second to buy a helmet, and the third time for a build of another bicycle. We’ve dealt with different employees each time, and every one of them has been accessible, friendly, and deeply knowledgable. I’ve never felt «sold too» and always felt that I was being consulted by someone who genuinely loves bicycles, and helping others love them too.
Most recently we dealt with Bru, who went above and beyond to help us. Great guy.

Came in here last week to purchase an entry level road bike. Regretfully, I don’t remember the name of the person that helped me, but. He was very helpful and knowledgeable, as well as all of the fine gentlemen that assisted me at American Cyclery Too.
I went in not knowing exactly what I wanted, but they were able to find a bike for me that fit my budget and I was very pleased with the overall experience.
Two big thumbs up to American Cyclery and American Cyclery Too for their help!

The mechanic work was done well but the costumer service was whack. My particular objection is with the mechanic named Tyson who is curt and acted like I was wasting his time during all of our interactions. He acted like he was in the right when he pushed back my scheduled repair by a week and when i picked it up he acted like i owed him more because it took him longer than was it was quoted. He needs to get his head out of his ass and be a service worker.

Excellent service :) Just a quick in and out for my back tire. Ian provided thorough explanations about the desired inventory items, and also expressed genuine concern for my safety due to the lessening quality of my equipment; thank you for the recommendations! — something you don’t see much anywhere else. Fair prices and quick work.
Thanks again!

I went back and I still feel like theyre not always helpful /​friendly. I feel like It’s hit or miss at this place

A $ 6,000 nightmare.
If you don’t want to read the whole post I’ll sum it up by saying —
Stay away from American Cyclery and avoid at all costs buying a Waterford R33.
I went to American Cyclery to get a custom Waterford R33 built. After doing all of the fun things — picking the parts, getting measured for the frame –my R33 was delivered some months later.
I was happier than I had been with any other purchase — a steel bike that’ll last me that’s also custom fitted, super light and that rides as smooth as I could have hoped.
I took the bike out for it’s first ride from San Francisco to Mountain View on a sunny Saturday with three others. Along the water we stopped and I leaned the bike against a chain link fence while resting. It was a little windy, though I didn’t think anything of it. I was drinking some water when my friend, Eric, excitedly said «Your bike is falling!» I looked behind me, saw it tipping, and not wanting to damage the brake levers (or anything else for that matter) I stuck my leg out to catch it. I was successful in not damaging the brake levers.
We stopped a few miles ahead to wait for some people and something caught my eye. A HUGE crease/​dent in the frame was what grabbed my attention. I immediately called Bradley at American Cyclery to tell him what happened.
From the beginning I was dismissed. Neither he nor anyone else in the shop believed me when I told them what happened. «That dent happened from a blunt object, not someones limb…» I tried to explain that if a hard object hit the frame, the paint would have scratched (there are plenty of scratches on the frame that proves my point). Each time I would try to explain they’d laugh at me and visibly show their disbelief with smirks on their faces. «You’re the first person that’s ever dented a Wateford with their leg» Bradley said with a smile on his face, patting my shoulder. Multiple people, including Bradley, likened the crease in the steel frame to a door ding on a new car. «It’s actually closer to getting a dent in a new car’s frame from a small rock on the interstate» is the analogy I think is more appropriate.
Bradley called Waterford to see what could happen. The solution? I pay to ship the frame, Waterford repairs the frame for $ 500, I pay to ship it back (~$ 100), American reassembles (~$ 200) and I drop nearly another $ 1000 to get my bike back to me.
I decided that I should send it to Waterford for their assessment. I brought the bike in to the shop last week and was told that Bradley would call me the following day. 7 days later, still not having received any call I rang them to find the status. Bradley said that he thinks that he saw my bike and may have seen some notes about it… now I’m confused. «You’re in the bike shop and can’t tell me if my bike is there?» «Hold on, Glenn.» Then he confirms it’s still there. «Why is it still there?» «Well, we need to know what you want to do, because for it to be fixed we need to break it down and send it back to them…» «I told the mechanic that was what needed to happen, and it’s still there?» Not broken down, not in a box ready to go out the door.
Plainly, obviously, undeniably, customer service is not a priority for these guys.
It is totally unreasonable to pay that much. My hesitations? I just spent $ 6k on this bike and why should I pay that much money to repair such a fragile frame when it’ll dent again by hardly anything happening?
I tried to take the matters into my own hands, calling Waterford myself.
I spoke with Johanna and one of the first things she said was «Yeah I believe you, you can dent these frames by squeezing them too hard». When she said this I started feeling a little better, receive empathy rather than condescension. But that soon stopped, too.
Johanna said that she spoke with Richard Schwinn and that «he’s not as forgiving as I am, but we can repair it for you».
I asked about swapping it out for the thicker steel 22-​series frame. «We can do a crash replacement discount for $ 1300».
So I’m left with either spending $ 900 on repairing a delicate frame, or spending $ 1300 on a new frame that’ll require me to spend more on different parts.
The bottom line — do not buy a Waterford, do not bother with American Cyclery. Customer satisfaction is not on their list of priorities, and it really bums me out to say that.
How can they show they value a customer? Waterford and American should eat the cost themselves. The steel used for the R-​33 should not dent/​crease so easily. Had I gotten into an accident, I would understand that they couldn’t and shouldn’t pay for a new frame for me. But given that my ankle was able to dent weak and thin steel, that’s a situation that they should treat with professionalism and courtesy.

First of all, let me say that bike mechanic snobbery is horrible… and the ones who can’t back up their shit absolutely reach the pinnacle of what I despise about the culture.
The scenario: I take a high end TT bike, with high end components, into the shop after being a bit short on time for a fix, and my regular shop not being able to get the work in at that point. The shifter were eating up the cables for some reason, and it snapped during a ride. After «fixing» the problem, and charging $ 70 for it, I took the bike up to Tahoe for a big training weekend for Ironman Tahoe. The shifter cables lasted for just the weekend, before snapping again. This time, I finally got it right, and took the bike in to a shop that dealt with Campy components, only to find out, that the cables used during the «repair» were not campy compatible, as well as the shifters were taken apart (TT shifters) and not put back together properly, which caused additional mechanical issues.
Of course, this resulted in having the shifters sent back to Campagnolo for fixing (luckily, they honored the warranty). Furthermore, I was reduced to riding a road bike without a powertap or cadence for training. It felt like it was 2011 all over again.
All kidding aside… normally, I would not write such a bad review, as I am sure many people had positive experiences in this shop, but it was not the first problem I’ve encounter with their service, not to mention attitude. However, the biggest problem I see is not knowing your limitations. I am all for the notion that you have to push yourself in order to improve your skill-​set, but perhaps not do it with others’ money, possessions and safety. So, if Campagnolo gear were out of the expertise, then perhaps they shouldn’t have wasted my time and money. And perhaps, learn a little humility along the way as well. That’s what annoys me the most. Just remember, kids, arrogance is not confidence… it’s the complete opposite.
On the positive side, I probably had the hardest ride I’ve ever done with a single gear on the second loop of the Tahoe course (lovely climbs) that provided a lot of mental grit, but nonetheless, that’s about it.

This is the one for road bikes, accessories and mtn bikes are across the street. Great selection, you should be able to find anything you need here. And the place has HISTORY! and a great location right next to GG Park.
The staff is really great, and shop dog wouldn’t leave me alone. I can’t tell if that makes her «best shop dog» like they say. she won’t let me leave, but she also really distracts from the merchandise.

This is a five-​star neighborhood bike shop. Most recently, I was in to have my dérailleur fixed and the staff was incredibly helpful and friendly. The service is top-​notch and there’s a great selection of bikes, parts and apparel.
Bonus points for Lani, the sweetest shop dog in the city.