The Outer Rim Bicycle Shop

Reviews 3

DA

Daniel R

(edit 25MAY2015) As of this Friday the store owner Brandon has refunded me the money for the wheel which in my opinion is long over due. The wheel had fallen apart and broke spokes on 3 occasions before they would refund me the money. The cost to repair my bicycle before they would refund me the money was $60 of $15 I got back from Brandon. I also had to have friends and family pick me up on several occasions in downtown Portland since the wheel that they issued me was breaking spokes nearly every 20 miles I was riding it. What can be said when youre late to pick up your child from preschool because your wheel kept breaking every 20 miles? I honestly want to like this shop but the fact that I had to go through an enormous amount of effort to simply have the wheel I purchased from them refunded is beyond me. I also had to contact BBB which may have aided in my wheel refund. I hope no one else has the experience that I had. On a side note, REI in clackamas is hand building me a wheel that should be bomb proof. from my experience REI has always stood behind their products with no questions asked. Great store. Due to the hardship their service and customer service has caused me I still do not recommend this shop to anyone. However, I will give them 2 stars instead of 1 since they finally broke down and refunded the cost of the wheel ($90). My backstory: daily commuter for 5 years. I average about 100 miles/week along with dropping kid off at preschool via Yakima bicycle trailer. Ive gone to many great bicycle shops. Story: They replaced the rear wheel on my commuter bicycle. Upon crossing the Hawthorne bridge, about 8 miles into my first commute after service, the spokes within the wheel start coming off. My Bicycle was swaying and wobbling and It would have came out from underneath me had I not stopped to investigate. I took it to a nearby bicycle shop and they fixed the wheel. I called Brandon, the shop owner, and informed him about the incident and asked for a refund. The cost to repair the wheel was $20 and he would only refund me $15 after two phone conversations. I am surprised that they could not refund me an extra $5 just to make amends for a problem that was not only inconvenient but also hazardous. edit: 01MAY2015 I talked with Marc, the store manager, today to discuss how we could fix the problem that I had. I took time out of my morning to come to their shop to discuss a problem that they caused. Upon entering, I was met with an active security camera (its probably typically there) and Marc stating something along the lines of "Im busy so lets hurry this up." I respond with a mutual understanding. We begin talking in a very professional and productive fashion. We both state our understanding of the situation and then go back and forth about what was appropriate to make this situation better. I tell him that at this point I expect the store to cover the cost of the entire wheel that I had bought and fallen apart ($80-100). I expect this because the amount of effort that I had to take on my part to even begin to have a serious discussion between the shop. I had to take time to write this review along with contacting BBB and the FTC. It astounds me that I had to go through such lengths to even be heard. He responds saying that I wasnt being reasonable and that hed offer an in-store credit for future serving on my bicycle. I decline the credit because I DO NOT FEEL SAFE ALLOWING THIS SHOP WORK ON MY BIKE. We make each of our own views clear and then conclude with an agreement upon our disagreement. I leave the shop by wishing Marc a good weekend and he the same to me. I LEFT WITH NO REFUND and no hope of refund except for the $15 Brandon had given to me. I will end with saying that I respect Marc and how he handled the situation even though he did not grant me a PROPER REFUND.

GL

Glenn Roberts

I hate to say it--but Ive had to revise my earlier review based on my customer experience the last two times. After spending a few hundred dollars at Outer Rim (the tech has always been great on getting everything done) I think that the concept of customer service is lacking severely. Im starting to get the general impression that if you dont purchase your bike there then you dont get the same standards of service then someone that does. I was in the process of paying for a repair a few weeks ago and literally about to pay, when a guy walked up with a new bike. Of course, I got pushed to the side and had to wait literally 15 minutes just to get out of there! In addition, the rudeness of one of the techs (not the owners son nor the other partner) has an attitude that needs to be fixed. Its not very customer friendly when I drop off my bike to get it fixed, come back an hour later when its done, I ask for my bike and you snarl at me by saying "Well we have a lot of those!". This is also the same guy that if you walk into the shop and no one else is around he doesnt acknowledge your presence. Its quite sad and I had high expectations, especially compared to River City and other larger shops like The Bike Gallery. Old review The Outer Rim is now my favorite neighborhood bike shop in Portland! The service and prices are both great. The staff and techs are extremely knowledgeable and friendly. Combine that with the community involvement that The Outer Rim has (they have Jazz nights) and you have a bike shop that is unbeatable in quality in Portland. I highly recommend them for all your purchases and repairs.

A

A Private User

I recently acquired a bike that required a bit of work to make it new. First a new chain, upon entering I ask about getting a new chain. The staff showed me several of which only 1 would of worked. I also purchased a chain break tool. Upon getting home and attempting to break the chain, the product was inferior and bent in my hand. I checked the receipt for a return policy and on the receipt it still had the template "insert refund policy here" on my receipt. I returned to the store and they instantly helped me and gave me a brand new chain break tool. Somewhat satisfied I decided I would have them handle my chainring replacements. I brought the bike down and showed them which ones. They said the would have to order them and I said great and left. I drove in 3 days later to see what is going on. The same clerk didnt order anything, didnt even remember the bike or anything. At this point I probably should of just left. However I proceeded. I told him the model of the bike the year, the bolt pattern, and the component group. They looked it up and said they would have to order it. This time they told me they would call me. I offered to leave money but they refused. 3 days later a different clerk calls me asking me to bring the bike down so they can order my chainrings... After wasting a week and probably going to wait even longer if I go in for them to "order" them, I decided to write this review. I think Im going to try the bike gallery instead. I wouldnt recommend The Outer Rim.