Ace Wheelworks

I want to like this shop. I really do. It's in my neighborhood and I've gone there off and on for 12 years. But I'm finally giving up. Yes, you might come in once and have a great experience. But eventually you will encounter someone impatient, rude and condescending. The final straw: mounting tubeless tires can be hit-or-miss and I couldn't get a new pair to mount. The mechanic basically acted extremely put out by what would seem to be a simple request and scolded me for everything I had done wrong. Meanwhile, another mechanic arrived late for work with her bike in tow, whacked into one of my carbon wheels with it, and kept going to the back without apologizing, just muttering some complaint. I was not in a rush that day to get the tires mounted, but it was like asking for a tremendous favor. The mechanic behaved like I was stupid for coming in. So I give up. You just don't treat customers this way.

I hesitate to write this here, as I don't want to make them any more popular lest I find it more difficult to get repair appointments in the future, but they deserve everything I'm about to say. Ace Wheelworks is the best bike repair facility in the Boston area, as far as I can tell. Their techs have a wealth of experience and can fix just about anything that *can* be fixed, coming up with multiple creative solutions when bikes with outdated, no-longer-available parts need work. They stock parts from various manufacturers and have a logistics system between their locations to deliver parts from one shop to another, often same-day, should such parts be needed for a specific bike. They're communicative, thorough, and will offer you advice should you want it on how to best maintain, clean, ride, and upgrade your bike. Their prices are fair, especially given the quality of labor they provide. Their techs deserve to be paid well - they possess a wealth of knowledge and experience which they accumulated over years of expert work, and they bring that all to the table for each bike they service. They all work within a relatively small repair shop area, so can confer with each other on solutions and help each other out. I've had all kinds of work done on multiple bikes here. They do not try to fit in pointless up-charges, and will work with you to find the most economical way to get your bike back in shape if cost is a concern. They also have a good selection of bikes for sale, plus everything else you'd expect, from handlebar wraps, lights, helmets, some really excellent cargo bag setups, reflective gear... and their website should generally list what they have. Don't buy some junk from Amazon. Your safety on a bike is not an area where you want to skimp and go with a cheap, unknown option. Go to the experts at Ace Wheelworks and ensure you are outfitted properly for riding in your choice of environment. If the lights, handlebar wraps, or whatever else at Ace are more expensive than some non-brand on Amazon, that's because they are simply... better. You're worth the investment in your own safety. They know it, and so should you. They're not upcharging by crazy amounts just to rip you off. The prices are FAIR for what you get. Don't believe me - buy the cheapo Amazon item, and when it fails, buy the replacement from Ace. You'll wish you'd purchased from Ace to start with and not wasted your time and money. These are quite literally experts in this field, there for you any time you need them. This is a business that is critical to the functioning of the Greater Boston Area, given how many people get around on bikes year-round. Can't say enough good about the work these folks do. They're extremely dedicated to their craft. They live and breathe bikes and love talking about them.

Ive given this place the benefit of the doubt for a year but I just cannot recommend getting any maintenance or advice from this place. I moved to boston a year ago and first thing i did was check this place out cause i wanted to commute by bike. They recommended i get a bike from this guy down the road who sold me a bike with a chain that immediately broke, horrible brakes, and a mismatched fork. Fortunately i received a great deal of help from the community to actually make it a safe ride, but their professional opinion couldve gotten someone seriously hurt. Later, they set my partners tire improperly and the bead popped out while we were riding, which, again, couldve hurt her. And just recently, they sold me a chain that literally does not fit on my bike. When i told them, a guy in the bike just applied lube to my chain, and i had to push the issue. They tried to convince me that the chain was never supposed to go into that gear ratio (a chain is supposed to go into ALL gear ratios though some are much worse for the chain than others). When i asked them to trade me a longer chain, they said id have to buy a new one because mine was used. Ive loved biking in this area since ive gotten here, but everything hard about biking for me has been a result of this place. Id recommend going to Bike Boom or Bicycle Bell and then getting advice from the Somerville Bike Kitchen. I hope this place gets better, but it is humiliating to realize you trusted a "professional" and got a bad deal, and they certainly won't be getting my business again.