It has been a rocky year for Belltown Pull Apart, whose old building is now being redeveloped.
But the shop has finally found a solid new home and is open for business at 3rd and Battery. Details from BPA:
Belltown- Friday, September 14th marked the official opening of Belltown Pull Apart ( BPA), Belltown’s one and only stop for recycled bicycles, parts and accessories.
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What: Bicycle Pull Apart NOW OPEN
Where: 2312 3rd Ave Seattle WA (between Bell and Battery)
Hours: Monday thru Saturday 9am to 9pm; Sunday 11am to 5pm
After months of anticipation the wait is over! Bicycle Pull Apart is now open, with a brand new location, 2312 3rd Ave Seattle WA (between Bell and Battery). New location means BPA is doing it bigger and better with deep roots in the heart of the Belltown Community.
Our mission is to deliver, whether you have $5 dollars or $500 dollars, BPA will work with you to get you what YOU really want and need. We buy, sell, trade bikes, bike parts and accessories. As well as offering the lowest bike rental and tunes in Seattle.
BPA’s crème de la crème are our custom builds. We build stunningly distinct machines designed for city riding. Each is made to order with paint and components of your choice. Design one for yourself now.
Contact information: www.bpaseattle.com , [email protected] 206-299-2674; 206- 478-3539
Comments
14 responses to “Belltown Pull Apart reopens at 3rd and Battery”
If this is the old place that was on 2nd, isn’t this place just a glorified bicycle chop shop? My friend mentioned seeing some hot bikes they were selling.
just taking a look at their yelp site, it looks as though they’ve had some “questionable” customer service moments as well.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-bicycle-pull-apart-seattle
i want to like bpa, but um not so sure this is first place i’d take a bike…
Me and my coworker actually had them work on our bike various times at the location on 2nd Ave. Sometimes it was an overnight gig, but most of the time we could bring it in before work and get it after. I have no complaints. I’ll recommend them to people still.
To idea about bpa, but from other experiences, don’t believe everything you read on yelp.
Im totally in love with BPA. This is the type of shop that builds the community that surrounds it. They host local art events as well help the less fortunate with their bike needs. And they are genuinely nice people that care about your needs and not what type of bike you have or want. I’ve been in shops that have turned away a kid because he wanted them fix his Magna or Huffy, and after the kid leaves the employees have a laugh. if you are the type of person that likes to rummage through a bin of parts while enjoying a good conversation about the community, then please pay BPA a visit. If your bike is worth more than a car and you have no idea how to pronounce derailleur, then take you business else where. BPA may not be the cleanest or most knowledgeable shop in town, but Eric and his boys are the nicest people you can know.
These guys are horrendous. Really sweet idea, but bad customer service and very surley rude and most importantly, unskilled bicycle mechanics. This place stunk as bell town pull apart, and i imagine offers the same over priced service with their new name and location.
It’s interesting that a bicycle shop has the ability to arouse such opposing emotion in peoples opinion of the place. I stumbled upon the shop accidentally at there 4th & Bell location and felt comfortable enough to come back and buy a bike from them. I was impressed after I found out how Eric’s business model and shop was created and built. I was sad to here that it was closing, then when I found out they reopened at 2nd and Stewart I was proud of his determination. Then once again the shop was gone, only to reappear on 3rd and Bell. I hope that he will get to stay and be given a chance. Its difficult to run any small business these days, and from the responses it’s extremely hard to run an independent, free thinking, bike shop.
Eric has always been gracious, helpful, and goes out of his way to provide service and excellent pricing.
His shop and style is needed in todays economy and community. Ive seen Eric be aggressive and defend his shop, its unconventional, but they deserved it! I say, leave him alone and let the business provide what other bike shops cant or wont. A place to be yourself, to explore different styles of bikes, and be able to afford it.
The Belltown Pull Apart Rocks! I am a bike mechanic from Portland and I came in there and got so much inspiration for bike builds…crazy selection of vintage and newer rare parts!!!
If you only knew what Eric has been through to remain and how much he gives back to the community.
He created the business because the demand was there and he was out of work and soon to be homeless. He learned how to create and open a business quite some time after he was doing it. The level of stress only multiplied with learning lessons on city ordinances, crooked lanlords, thieves and neighborhood watch.
Owner/operator 24/7 not 9 to 5 Mon-Fri, I’m talking 365. I’ve seen Eric so over worked and out of it he has been off on what day of the week and the month it actually was by two months.
So not every day is a good day, not every customer is a good customer either. I’m not saying BPA hasn’t made mistakes but if they do they will most likely make up for it and then some. Still not everyone will be pleased, not all can be pleased. Then there are some that are in there working their angles and some are just idiots.
Now to address the chop shop rumor and them dealing stolen bikes. First of all BPA has a pawn brokers license which enables them to buy, sell and trade. Businesses typically have an obligation to make transaction information available for law enforcement investigations. BPA reports the bikes they take in to Leads Online. LeadsOnline is the nation’s largest online investigation system used by detectives for the investigation of crimes in order to catch crooks. They take in transaction information from thousands of businesses that may lead to the right suspect. By law anything purchased has to be placed on a 30 day hold to clear before being sold. If something comes up later that comes up as stolen then BPA’s database is a good reference to locate it.
Now the real deal is yes people try to sell questionable bikes all the time, some are obviously not bike people. Over a year and a half period I know for a fact that Eric has returned 18 bikes to their rightful owners. Some he bought with the suspicion they were stolen and because he knew the owners would be looking for it and if the person selling it is dumb enough to let Eric scan their photo ID to go to LeadsOnline, that’s great. Eric try’s to maintain a a second chance policy if a bike is recovered all he asks is to be paid what he paid for it but often he doesn’t.
I know an instance a bike had been sold to a customer that loved the bike but had to give it back and Eric replaced the bike no charge. Literally thousands of dollars Eric loses out of pocket to help reunite people with their bikes. He even noticed a bike of a known customer being brought in by a thief, ripped the bike out of the guys hands and called the cops.
So I don’t know how many bikes SPD actually returns to people. I do know if you don’t have a police report and your serial # it’s practically hopeless. But there is BPA that will let you look at everything they have, will keep an eye for your bike to come in and might even buy it back for you. If SPD has your bike & nobody claims it, it goes to auction and benefits SPD.
So yes it may be known to have had a stolen bike. Yes the police have been called before. Most police officers appreciate BPA for making their jobs easier. That’s not just for bikes either. The neighborhood is safer with BPA keeping drug dealers and crackheads clear of neighboring residence, business’s and parking structures. He’ll even run down thieves half a block away, tackle them and detain them until police arrive. I shit you not.
I’m not trying to say that anyone did not have a bad experience before or that you won’t. I know Eric gives a lot of 2nd, 3rd, 4th an 5th chances to people that he shouldn’t but he might surprise you if given the chance.
It’s weird that everyone who has something nice to say about this place mentions the owner by name and/or seems to know him personally.
In response to your comment, it’s not weird at all that customers know the name of a store owner or employee… I go into a business and am always social to employees or owner when social to me and I used to always remember someones name, since I’m getting older I don’t always remember a name so I get a business card that has there name on it. I hope this business continues to be able to do the great work they have done for so many and that everyone realizes that many business that deal in used goods have or have had stolen goods in there store at one time or another. May I remind everyone that includes places that do great work like salvation army, goodwill and etc. I don’t believe anyone would want to be shutting them down if the public was told about the stolen merchandise that goes through there businesses. Let’s all be focused on the good that this shop has and is doing and aparently has already in the past returned stolen merchandise even at his own expense.
Its because he is the bike shop, owner/operator by all points imaginable. I see the man always working , always building, always cleaning. I’ve been in to the shop and seen him greet everyone that came in the door. Answer all the questions, fix and repair every walk-in from flat tire to brake adjustment. He buys, sells, and trades , runs through the rental, builds, maintains, and even rides pedicabs. HE builds all the custom bikes he teaches and guides his employees as well as customers and most anybody that wants the information on bike mechanics. He built the website, answers the phone and designed the shop with a recycled items one find at a time.
I believe that it say’s something about Eric’s character that he has friends that are willing to speak up and defend Eric. That says to me, he must be a real friend is someone is willing to defend him time, and time again your bi
That’s what friends do when a friends character is being questioned or attacked. I know Eric and have bought 2 bikes from him, I met him when I walked in the door of his shop one day. He’s been a reqular stop when I’m in town, He works tirelessly, he helps so many cyclists and people in so many ways. Eric is a bicycle guy and a dam good one at that! What’s wierd is that uneducated people are still trying to cause problems when they’ve never even walked in the door?
The customer service is great. i was able to get a bike in my budget and trade in my old one for a fair price. i think there is a lot of really commited and enthusiastic people that are part of this bike shop and i recommend them to everyone..
BPA is the only second hand shop in town that gives a person the chance to get their bike back if it is stolen and ends up there. You can bet that Recycled Cycles inadvertently buys bikes which were stolen.
They take all purchased bikes off site and strips them down. The bikes are recombined or sold parted out. But the bikes rarely end up back in the shop for people to find them if previously stolen.
An acquaintance once related to me that he saw his stolen bike on a Recycled Cycles truck off their tear down facility. He stopped them and said that his stolen bike was on the truck. The driver would not let him near the bike but gave him the owner or managers phone number.
He called the number and was told that Recycled Cycles would not let him look at a bike. The call was abruptly ended and his calls were thereafter refused.
BPA puts bikes back on the sales floor after the 30 day hold for all the world to see.