SoMa Bicycle Repair Shop With $15 Tube Swaps: Mike's Bikes

Mike's Bikes runs its service department every day at 1233 Howard St in SoMa, and the shop says plainly that walk-ins are welcome even though it prefers you book. Its posted Northern California repair list is the reason to start here: a tube or tire install is $15, a minor wheel true is $30, and a derailleur adjustment is $20. The store is open Monday to Saturday 10am to 6pm and Sunday 10am to 5pm.

This is the San Francisco branch of Mike's Bikes, a Northern California chain that also has stores in Colorado. The company describes the city store as sitting in the heart of the SoMa district and as a stepping stone to some of the best cycling in Northern California, which is a fair reading of the location: Howard Street is a flat run toward the Embarcadero, and the Golden Gate Bridge ride starts a short pedal away. The floor carries Cannondale, Santa Cruz, Cervelo, Giant, Gazelle and Pivot.

That brand list tells you whom the shop is built for: commuters on Gazelle city bikes and cargo e-bikes, road riders on carbon Cervelos, and mountain bikers with Santa Cruz and Pivot full-suspension frames who head north to Marin on weekends. In September 2026 the San Francisco Standard asked local figures for their favorite bike shops, and chef Matthew Accarrino named Mike's Bikes on Howard Street.

Service is booked through an online tool: you choose the store by ZIP code, pick a service, pick a date and time slot, and then receive an email with drop-off details. The shop's own advice is that an appointment means less time waiting, and that is worth taking seriously on Saturdays, when the workstands fill with weekend riders.

If you walk in, arrive close to the 10am opening on a weekday and bring the bike clean enough to inspect. A walk-in visit works best for the small jobs on the list, such as a flat, a rubbing brake or a hanger that took a knock. Anything that needs parts ordered, such as a dropper post or a new crankset, will go into the queue, so leave the bike and ask for a call.

Mike's sells three tune-up packages and keeps their prices off the website; the booking tool shows the figure when you choose a slot. The Comp Tune-Up is the six-month service: frame and fork inspection, headset and hub bearing adjustment, wheel truing and tensioning, cable lubrication, derailleur alignment, brake adjustment and a final torque check. The company's maintenance plan page values a single Comp Tune at $175.

The Pro Tune-Up is the yearly job. It adds new cables and housing, a bleed of both disc brakes, full disassembly and deep cleaning, a headset bearing overhaul, a bottom bracket overhaul and new bar tape or grips; the plan page puts its value at $450. The Super Tune-Up is for full-suspension mountain bikes and adds front and rear suspension service on top of everything in the Pro Tune.

An honest note on the packages: if your bike shifts well and only needs one thing, skip the tune and order from the individual list. A rear derailleur hanger adjustment at $30 and a derailleur adjustment at $20 will fix most ghost shifting on a commuter bike for a fraction of a full service.

The Northern California price list covers about thirty jobs. Brake work is where it adds up: a hydraulic disc bleed is $60 per brake, a hydraulic brake install is $85 per brake, and new rim brake pads are $20 while hydraulic disc pads are $40. Cable and housing replacement is $50 each, or $70 for internally routed lines, which matters on newer road frames where cables disappear into the bars.

For wheels, a minor true is $30, a major true is $60, a spoke replacement is $80 and a full wheel build is $150. Tubeless setup is $65 per wheel and a tubeless reseal is $25. Suspension owners will see a fork seal service at $125, a pivot service at $200 and a rear shock air sleeve service at $85. E-bike riders should know the shop lists an e-bike motor install at $200 and excludes certain e-bikes and motors it does not sell.

Two timing notes for October 2026. A fall service special takes 20 percent off eligible full-price components installed with service through October 25th, so a worn chain or cassette is cheaper this week than next. And buyers of a new bike here can add a five-year maintenance plan within 90 days: $300 covers unlimited Comp Tune-Ups, and $750 buys the Pro plan.

The most useful thing at Mike's costs nothing. Every Tuesday evening the company runs free tech workshops with a rotating syllabus: basic home maintenance on the first Tuesday, roadside basics such as a flat fix and a broken chain on the second, a drivetrain class on the third, and e-bikes on the fourth, limited to brands sold here. A fifth Tuesday becomes an open session for your own questions. Capacity is limited, so sign up through the form on the website.

The shop sits on a block of warehouses and offices, so the interesting walking is a few minutes east. Yerba Buena Gardens fills the block between Third, Fourth, Howard and Folsom with lawns, a waterfall memorial, an ice rink and a bowling center, and it is an easy place to wait out a repair. At SFMOMA, on Third Street, general admission is $30 for adults and free for anyone 18 and younger.

If you came on foot because the bike is in the stand, the ride you will want afterward is the flat route east along Howard and then north on the Embarcadero toward Fisherman's Wharf, which is a good test of fresh brakes and shifting before you commit to the hills.

Mike's Bikes is at 1233 Howard Street, San Francisco, CA 94103, in SoMa. Hours are Monday to Saturday 10am to 6pm and Sunday 10am to 5pm, with the service department open daily. Appointments are encouraged and walk-ins are welcome. Tune-up prices appear in the online booking tool, and individual repairs follow the posted Northern California list. Civic Center BART and Muni on Market Street are a short walk north. Ask Karpo in the Karpo APP for a lunch spot nearby while the bike is on the stand.