"Non-profit bicycle workspace/ sales!" Tired of the high prices of bikes in the area? Don't know how to fix your rusty clunker and want some help and parts? The Durham Bike Co-op is exactly what you need! We discovered this place at the Earth Day festivities last weekend, and promptly visited the "store" the next day. It's not a "store", though they will sell you a fixed-up bike if you want to do that. Instead, you can come, donate a couple of hours of time, and then have a "membership" where you can fix up your own bike and use their many donated parts/ supplies as well as tapping into the expertise of the many other folks there. No previous mechanical experience necessary- they have the tools and will show you what you can do. If you don't feel like volunteering but just want to get your bike fixed, you can pay a small fee (WAY less than you'd pay at a local store). The facility is in a rather sketchy neighborhood, but they have a VERY impressive number of bikes of all sizes and types, as well as TONS of bike accessories. It's hard to imagine you couldn't find something to suit your desires at this place. The help we got from "Walt" on our visit was outstanding- he outfitted both my son and I with new-to-us bikes, set up exactly as we wanted them and fitting our needs (mine was a mountain bike, his was a kids' bike), for ~$80, and that came with 2 memberships for the year so we can come there and use parts/ accessories. Their hours are very limited (Sundays 1-6pm, and I think Thursday nights), and the facility can be a little crowded and a little chaotic, but it's fantastic for anyone who wants to get a cheap bike or fix up their current bike without breaking the bank. Highly recommend it. You can also find them on FaceBook. read more

Durham Bike Co-op - Exterior - Bike Repair/Maintenance Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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This place is pretty awesome. Basically how it works is you can either volunteer time working at the shop towards purchasing a used bike or pay 40$ for a year membership and receive one used bike with the membership. I took my kids here a few weeks ago because I thought they would enjoy working on some bikes and seeing the other side, IE repairs, etc instead of just the enjoyment you get out of riding bikes. Both of my kids needed bikes, however they were so busy on the day I went only my son was able to get a bike. He was so happy! We will be returning today to pick out and work on a bike for my daughter. I love the fact that we are taking bikes that would otherwise be discarded and using re-purposing them for another life. And I am glad there are businesses like this to expose my children to. read more

Rough around the edges, but down to Earth and friendly. I was previously looking to get a project bicycle from NCSU Surplus warehouse for my birthday, but it didn't work out after a lot of time invested. I took a few days researching shops and prices, but just couldn't find a deal on a fixer-upper. Everyone was peddling marked- up refurbished retail bikes for at least a couple hundred dollars. I finally came across the Durham Bike Co-op scrubbing the Internet and really dug their mission. It took me 15 minutes to find the building as I arrived early around 1:15pm Sunday and figured out it was behind some run down buildings. I had a few pints for lunch, so my spidey sense was oblivious to my ominous surroundings. A couple of young high school guys were shooting the breeze outside of the shop, waiting for the Co-op to open. They were friendly and definitely into bicycles, so while we waited they filled me in on how the membership worked and volunteering hours. The main man Dave rolled up at 1:40 pm and quickly got the place opened to the public. He processed our information quickly and I opted to pay for a membership ($40) so I could get a bike that day. As I was chilling (waiting for a mechanic to start my project), the crowd gathered and the line grew. I eventually was paired with a mechanic Roy and we went to work. He was very knowledgeable and experienced in working on bikes and set me up with a solid frame. It took us up to closing to finish my project, as there were plenty of distractions that complicated the labor effort and stalled our progress at times. Our biggest challenge was building a bike from the frame up and piecing it together with a random assortment of parts organized in piles. It was time consuming, but fulfilling to be able to rummage through the "junk yard" for what caught my eye and put it all together. It was a great learning experience and my mechanic was easy going when it came to delivering instructions. I will definitely be back to volunteer and pay it forward read more

First of all, the pics displayed are from 2010 and a completely different location...if you're going to visit the co-op now, the entrance does not face the street. You'll need to drive (or bike!) down the gravel driveway to the back of the building. When you see a crowd of people standing around, a full bike rack, and a popup tent, you've found the place. It's only open twice a week to non-members, so show up about 10-15 minutes before they open to secure a spot in line. You'll need to be prepared to spend a good amount of time at the shop, but the tradeoff is that you'll learn a little about your bike, you'll meet some laid back friendly people, and you will save lots of $$. A tune up is $10. A full membership is $40. Or if you don't want to pay, you can just volunteer for a few hours - no experience necessary. The full membership gets you access to all of the tools necessary to keep your bike in running order, plus help from more experienced mechanics, when you need it. You can also build a bike (there is a tent full of used bikes that you can choose from). Not a bad deal! read more

Durham Bike Co-op - The entrance doesn't face the street - go around back! - Bike Repair/Maintenance Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

Its a great idea. But you need a fair amount of time to interact with the co-op. I was interested in joining and went along on a Sunday afternoon (August 2010). It so happened that that afternoon there weren't many volunteers, they had all been to a party the previous evening. So that happens with a volunteer project, no problem, I just had to wait around. OK. But then a neighbourhood youth group decided that it would be great babysitting spot for the kids, so it brought a whole bunch of them round and they were soon tearing around the place, moving bikes, trying to take a bike I was looking at and causing a ruckus. Still OK, the kids the have got to be somewhere. But then I finally picked out a bike to work on and the volunteer I was working with kept saying I should buy new this and new that. There were apparently no second hand parts I could use. At this point I gave up. I don't want spend a lot of money on a bike. I found it cheaper and easier to buy a second hand bike on Craigslist. read more