District Hardware And Bike

Category:	Home Improvement Store
Address:	1108 24th St NW, Washington, DC 20037, USA
Phone:	+1 202-659-8686
Site:	districthardware.com
Rating:	4.1
Working:	9AM–7PM 9AM–7PM 9AM–7PM 9AM–7PM 9AM–6PM 9AM–6PM 11AM–5PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 7

Alex DiCaprio

A bike shop disguised as a hardware store. District bike serves the foggy bottom area with a much needed bike solution. The hardware store has some essentials to provide to the locals (key services, some screws/nails/hangers, and other basic needs). But the bike store is the crux of this review. First off, I bought my bike from this shop -- which goes to show I really did appreciate their service. They worked with me to procure the right parts for my bike and get me going without a hard sell that i have gotten from other bike shops. They also excelled at keeping me as a client by servicing my bike (for free) when I had minor issues with it. They support the local bike scene, hosting weekly rides and providing free help as needed. To that point, below, I heard someone was angry that they were charged 5 dollars for a flat tire. While in some circumstances this is not optimal, I have found most shops in dc have charged me ~10 to pull my tire and fix it. Similarly, I have also been to shops that aided me in pulling off the tire and teaching me how to fix a flat. So your mileage may very for those tasks -- but I think that is up to the tech and their time availability. My only issue that I have had here relates to a new mechanic they had who had no idea how to mount a speed computer for me. It was improperly mounted which required me to go back and have them fix it -- but if thats the worst of my problems ..I am more than okay with it. All in all I would highly recommend this shop as your LBS in the foggy bottom area!

Hari Demirev

Took my bike, which I purchased here, to the shop to get fixed after an accident with a car. This was Tuesday around noon, was told that the wheel and fork likely need to be replaced and possibly more. Was told the bike would be done by that evening at the earliest, possibly the next day. Wednesday: get a call letting me know a fork will need to be ordered, can be rushed (for extra $$$) to arrive Thursday, bike would be done that evening. Okay, great. Thursday: I call at around 6pm to learn that the fork has just arrived, and will be installed tomorrow. Fine. Friday: Call around 5pm and am informed that the fork did not arrive yesterday (???) and that the bike will be done next Tuesday. I understand that sometimes issues arise that take more time with these types of repairs, but this was ridiculous. If they had told me originally it would take a week, would have been fine. Rather I was misled and lied to. Went to check in person on Saturday, intending to just take my bike elsewhere for repair after this order. Even getting it back was an ordeal because for some reason they had put a new wheel on the old fork? Technicians there werent even aware the fork was being replaced. Ridiculous. Better yet, the other bike store quoted me $80 less for all of the fixes. Would not recommend repairs at this bike shop.

A Private User

The selection is very small, but mostly I was offended by how unhelpful and downright dishonest the staff was. The first time I went in I was told I could not test ride the bike because it was raining (it was not raining. It was gray and looked like rain). No big deal. So I went back the next week to test ride the same bike, and the man actually told me I needed to buy the bike that very day because it would definitely be gone by the afternoon (I guess an empty store needs to fake popularity?). Then he proceeded to write a list of the other bike-related items I would need and actually wrote down prices 3x more than those I had already been quoted at another bike shop (Performance Bikes is where I eventually went). He let me know in no uncertain terms that the bike I was interested in was going to be discontinued, and tried to scare me into buying it by saying it was just about the last time I would ever see it if I did not buy it right then and there. What a manipulative staff. I chose not to buy there just on principle. A bike messenger outside heard the whole thing and told me "If you are new to bikes, watch out there. They try to sell you anything." He was right. Beware this store!

Christine Heyser

I was quoted a price for a bicycle on the phone. I went in to look at a similar model they had in stock and then called later to order the model I wanted. First of all, no one returned my call after I left a detailed message, with a human, stating that I was ready to order. I then emailed and got a quick response but was told the price was $150 more than what I had been quoted earlier. Umm what? Is it because this is one of the cheaper bicycles available in the store? No telling, but Im not pleased with the overall interaction I had with the shop. The person I emailed with had also asked if I had been in to test ride one of the bikes. I had been in, had talked with an associate, who was perfectly nice, but did not offer a test ride. I would have liked that, but not being experienced in buying bicycles didnt think that was something that was done. Sad to not have been able to make my purchase here at the price I was quoted.

Sarah Kalman

Last March, I was in DC for some sight seeing and thought I would take the local bike share for a day or two to get around town. The cost for a whole day was kind of ridiculous, so I happy that I came across District Hardware near where I was staying. The prices for bike rentals were very reasonable and they were even accomodating for the return time due to our hotel check out schedule. The bikes that we rented were excellent, and even more comfortable than my own bike here at home. Im actually in the process of buying a new bike and went back to my receipt to see what kind of bike I had rented so I could buy the same one, which prompted this review (albeit a little late). Very friendly staff, painless renting process, and quality bikes. Thanks for helping to make our mini-vacation so great!

A Private User

These guys are hands down the best pre-1990/old school steel frame bike mechanics Ive found in DC. First, if you take an old bike to most pro-shops they treat you like a second class citizen and wont do any mechanical workarounds on your bike that might require an out-of-the-box solution (requiring tools they dont have). You come here and clearly explain your problem, you will get a very professional quality solution to odd problems afflicting older bikes (in my case mounting recessed brake caliper nuts on a steel frame that needs extended bolts and standard nuts). Since its based out of a hardware store, they have all the tools necessary to get the job done. Plus it has a mom and pop vibe which is hard to come by these days. Anyways, these guys are quality straight shooters and fairly priced.

A Private User

We came from out of town with a weird problem on an unusual bicycle (rebuilt hub failure on a Shimano Nexus 8) and these guys quickly and successfully fixed it with parts on hand. They had a few very hard to find parts that Id been looking for for a few weeks, cheaply, and they were knowledgeable and skillful. The price was comparable to bike stores in Chicago and didnt seem excessive. They do have only a few new bikes on hand - Raleighs mostly - but they also had some souped up used bikes and they easily compare to good small bike stores I know. Several other people came in and got their bikes fixed while I was waiting, also quickly and apparently well. Id be happy to go back. No idea about the hardware store side.