14/05/2026
Lucky enough to have The cycle guy - Bishop's Stortford supporting our cycle ride on Sunday - https://www.cambridgecancerhelp.org/cambridge-cancer-help-cycle-2026/
๐ช๐๐ฌ ๐๐ฅ๐๐ก๐ ๐ฌ๐ข๐จ๐ฅ ๐๐๐๐๐ฆ ๐ง๐ข ๐ ๐?
Good question.
I could mention that my workshop is based at my home and that means I have lower costs (which I pass on to you in the form of lower prices) than 'shops' that have rent/rates/bills etc specific to their business and premises....
But no..... That's just a bonus.
No, the main reason is.....
I run my business based on trust.
That may sound obvious, but it really isn't.
Let me explain.
Today was a great example, a customer brought me their bike to fix.
They had already visited a well known local 'bike shop' (emphasis on 'shop'), because their gravel bike's gears would not work, at all.
The bike is fitted with SRAM Rival hydraulic brakes and SRAM mechanical (cable operated) gears, combined in a single lever.
The 'shop' told my customer the bike was effectively a 'write off' because the 'entire hydraulic system needed to be replaced' and offered him ยฃ100 for the frame!? ๐ณ๐
So I took a look and sure enough, the shift/brake lever simply didn't operate the gears. Its cable was intact, but the gears didn't work, at all.
Whilst this wasn't a quick and easy fix, it certainly wasn't worthy of writing off the entire bike.
The cable hadn't been correctly installed and the 'ni**le' (๐คญ) had become dislodged and jammed in the shift mechanism, deep inside the lever.
To access it, the top of the handle bar had to have its bar tape unwrapped, the lever have its access panel removed and then with plenty of patience and careful use of tools, the cable ni**le had to be unjammed, the cable removed, the mechanism cleaned and lubricated and a new cable installed.
Then the bar tape needed refitting and the gears 'indexed'.
All in, this took a couple of hours to do, but it was totally 'do-able'.
The only part replaced was the cable and cable casing. I even saved the bar tape, which rewrapped quite nicely.
This meant that a job that could have required a new lever, brake bleed, new cable, new bar tape ~ ยฃ190 (my prices, not the 'shop's') and taken around a week to source parts and get repaired, actually cost just ยฃ80 (2 hours labour plus a cable) and was ready the same day.
That's why my customers return again and again and recommend me to anyone who asks for a bike repair shop.....
I simply refuse to fob people off, or advise anything but the work actually required. If I don't know the answer, I'll research it and either fix the issue, or advise the most financially sensible approach.
This is the second 'hydraulic brake lever' botch job I've seen from this 'shop' in 2026 alone and the second I've fixed with relative ease.
You can always trust me to deliver either the repair, or the best options available to you (yes, even if that means writing the bike off), but I'll NEVER place 'making money' over earning your trust, keeping it and putting your best interests first.
๐ง๐ต๐ฎ๐'๐ ๐๐ต๐ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐๐ต๐ผ๐๐น๐ฑ ๐ฏ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐บ๐ฒ!
