The Chainlink

New Bike Shop

Anyone know anything about a new bike shop going in at 4912(ish) N. Elston?

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Permalink Reply by Michael A on August 11, 2011 at 11:20pm
Permalink Reply by John Sirovatka on August 11, 2011 at 11:32pm

Are we zoning enforcement, entrepreneurial police or cyclists? Let the city deal with their licencing and zoning. IF there is a shop worth patronizing, Adam Smith's "Invisible Hand" of economics will let it prosper.


I'm happy to see there are people who are willing to stick their fiscal necks out to serve the bike community.   

Permalink Reply by h' Zerocats on August 12, 2011 at 12:13am
I certainly heard rumors but would have loved for there to have been "proof."

notoriousDUG said:
Fastlane and Shining Bikes and Things both.

Stolenbike Dot Org said:
Which shops have "proven sketchy?"

Bailey Gene Newbrey said:
Anyone know if they have a second hand dealers license? I'm always a bit weary of folks posing as a bike shop without the proper legal papers, especially when many have proven quite sketchy. Anybody have the pleasure of dealing with "Fastlane Cyclery"?
Permalink Reply by Doug Haynes on August 12, 2011 at 7:19am
Did you see the bikes they are selling?  They are not serving the bike community, they are doing it a disservice.

John Sirovatka said:

Are we zoning enforcement, entrepreneurial police or cyclists? Let the city deal with their licencing and zoning. IF there is a shop worth patronizing, Adam Smith's "Invisible Hand" of economics will let it prosper.


I'm happy to see there are people who are willing to stick their fiscal necks out to serve the bike community.   

Permalink Reply by Doug Haynes on August 12, 2011 at 7:21am

Shining bikes and things sold unsafe bikes and has botched tons of repairs, go read their yelp.  I know first hand that they had no actual bikes tools and would buy any bike that walked through the door.  their owner kicked me out for trying to check serial numbers on his bikes with the stolen bike registry.

 

Fast Lane I have no personal experience with but the sheer volume of bad stories about them and the fact that they went out of business makes me think the bad news is probably true.


Stolenbike Dot Org said:

I certainly heard rumors but would have loved for there to have been "proof."

notoriousDUG said:
Fastlane and Shining Bikes and Things both.

Stolenbike Dot Org said:
Which shops have "proven sketchy?"

Bailey Gene Newbrey said:
Anyone know if they have a second hand dealers license? I'm always a bit weary of folks posing as a bike shop without the proper legal papers, especially when many have proven quite sketchy. Anybody have the pleasure of dealing with "Fastlane Cyclery"?
Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on August 12, 2011 at 7:29am

I sort of feel the same way about fixies myself. But I guess to each their own.  If  someone wants to make a brake out of shift lever then whatever I guess. I've got a Unicycle -talk about the most dangerous "bike" in existence.  Let's not even mention tall bikes or other crazy contraptions.

 

I believe in market forces doing the choosing about which business succeeds or fails.  If you say this business is a crappy one selling bad bikes then I believe you.  But harassing some business by calling The Man on them and hoping they can get them on some BS city code technicality is just a practice I can't personally get behind. I have too much self-respect for that.

 

It's so damn hard for a small guy to start a business and create their own job these days.  Big corporations run this world and do all they can to crush independent competition and they use these rules, licenses, fees, and codes to keep their power over us little guys.   We don't have back rooms full of lawyers and accountants for compliance for this BS and they know it.  

notoriousDUG said:

Did you see the bikes they are selling?  They are not serving the bike community, they are doing it a disservice.

John Sirovatka said:

Are we zoning enforcement, entrepreneurial police or cyclists? Let the city deal with their licencing and zoning. IF there is a shop worth patronizing, Adam Smith's "Invisible Hand" of economics will let it prosper.


I'm happy to see there are people who are willing to stick their fiscal necks out to serve the bike community.   

Permalink Reply by Doug Haynes on August 12, 2011 at 9:27am

1. I am not advocating calling any regulatory agency on them beyond the free market.

 

2. The 'invisible hand' of the free market does not always work because 'there is a sucker born every minute.'  Yeah, people will go there and get burned because they do not know any better and never go back but there is always going to be an endless supply of people who do not know any better.

 

3. In many cases the people who 'do not know any better' end up with a crap bike that discourages them from riding more; that is a disservice to the bike community in my opinion.

 

4. I have no issues with fixed gear bikes or even fixed gear/single speed conversions on older frames, I have a fixed gear I ride regularly (with brakes) and I love it.  My issue is with a SHOP selling a bike with a shift lever for a brake and brakeless conversions.  The bike with the shift lever brake is not even a fixed gear but a half ass single speed done with a multi-speed freewheel, pie plate still intact no less.  there is no way to stop that bike other than a shift lever used as a brake; does that sound safe to you?  Does that sound like a shop that should be in business? 

 

I have owned a small business before.  I know how hard it can be. 

 

I also know one of the things that makes owning a small business so hard is when you have 'competitors' like these jokers spring up and undercut you.  People who do not know any better or only shop based on price get drawn away from your business not only hurting your income but giving your industry a bad name.  When horrible shops like this pop up they need to be regulated by the community as a whole because they are hurting the Chicago cycling world as a whole by discouraging new riders with their horrible service, bad bikes and poor info as well as hurting reputable shops by taking their business and talking trash; it's usually the bad shops that have the most to say about other businesses.

 

James BlackHeron said:

I sort of feel the same way about fixies myself. But I guess to each their own.  If  someone wants to make a brake out of shift lever then whatever I guess. I've got a Unicycle -talk about the most dangerous "bike" in existence.  Let's not even mention tall bikes or other crazy contraptions.

 

I believe in market forces doing the choosing about which business succeeds or fails.  If you say this business is a crappy one selling bad bikes then I believe you.  But harassing some business by calling The Man on them and hoping they can get them on some BS city code technicality is just a practice I can't personally get behind. I have too much self-respect for that.

 

It's so damn hard for a small guy to start a business and create their own job these days.  Big corporations run this world and do all they can to crush independent competition and they use these rules, licenses, fees, and codes to keep their power over us little guys.   We don't have back rooms full of lawyers and accountants for compliance for this BS and they know it.  

notoriousDUG said:

Did you see the bikes they are selling?  They are not serving the bike community, they are doing it a disservice.

John Sirovatka said:

Are we zoning enforcement, entrepreneurial police or cyclists? Let the city deal with their licencing and zoning. IF there is a shop worth patronizing, Adam Smith's "Invisible Hand" of economics will let it prosper.


I'm happy to see there are people who are willing to stick their fiscal necks out to serve the bike community.   

Permalink Reply by S.Presley☠ on August 12, 2011 at 10:49am
I called the Fire inspector because I thought I saw an open flame while peering though a crack in the window...turns out to be painted flames on an old schwinn collegiate.
Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on August 12, 2011 at 10:56am

Who regulates the regulators?

 

Oh, yeah the big corporations are the ones that control government -and always will.  

 

Walmart doesn't seem to have any issues with selling their crap bikes.  

Permalink Reply by igz on August 12, 2011 at 11:25am
so...one hand on the bars while front only brake applied.  i wonder which will happen first, goin over bars, or momentum of your body pushing one side of bars effectively turning the wheel (probably right) causing a sudden swerve and down you go landing on your shoulder and/or cranium.

Michael A said:
Permalink Reply by Michael Perz on August 12, 2011 at 4:43pm

Community scrutiny of market players is very much an integral part of Smith's "invisible hand".

 

More specifically, it's the thumb.

 

John Sirovatka said:

Are we zoning enforcement, entrepreneurial police or cyclists? Let the city deal with their licencing and zoning. IF there is a shop worth patronizing, Adam Smith's "Invisible Hand" of economics will let it prosper.


I'm happy to see there are people who are willing to stick their fiscal necks out to serve the bike community.   

Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on August 12, 2011 at 5:05pm

Read Smith again.

 

You are conflating "community" with "the state."

 

They are NOT the same thing.

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