Mechanical Gardens Bike Co-op is dedicated to expanding fair access to bikes, bike repairs, tools, and knowledge.
Countless New Yorkers struggle against financial disparities, education gaps, and discrimination in order to keep their bikes moving. Founded in 2015, Mechanical Gardens hosts public programs for do-it-yourself bike repair education and creates community-based workshops that empower every bike rider to take charge of their mobility. We embody New York’s multifaceted movement for urban equity by working to democratize bike access through hands-on, do-it-yourself repair education.
How We Do It
By helping New Yorkers learn to repair their own bikes and ride safely, we help folks gain the skills and confidence to move through the city on their own terms.
By inviting learners to become co-op leaders, we cultivate a space that reflects a diversity of cultures, characters, and contexts.
By universalizing access to quality bike maintenance, we elevate neighborhood health and resiliency while combating economic, environmental, and social inequalities.
By addressing the conjunction of bike issues and affordable housing, living wage work, food deserts, gentrification, and other aspects of urban development, we engender the growth of civic engagement.
Our Programs
Mechanical Gardens is a do-it-yourself bike co-op staffed entirely by volunteers.
We spread access and education about bike wrenching through our weekly Open Hours program, and at pop-up bike repair stands at community events like Open Streets.
People of all levels of experience are welcome to join our programs to work on their own bikes. Some community members are just learning to wrench. Others have maintained their own bike for years and simply want access to a professional set of tools and a community. Mechanical Gardens volunteers hope to meet you at your level and provide whatever support or guidance you may need.
At Open Hours also sell used bikes, used parts, and a basic stock of new parts.
We accept donations of any components, wheels, and tires that are in good working condition. We do not accept donations of cycling shoes or apparel. If you are interested in donating a bike to us, please email us first.
Weekly Open Hours
Location
195 Maujer Street @ The St John the Evangelist Lutheran Church
Basement community room, entrance through the gate to the left of the main church door.
Bathrooms are available in the church community room.
Hours
Every Monday night, 6 – 9pm
Drop-ins welcome, no appointment necessary.
**Clean up starts at 8:45pm and we strongly suggest new projects aren’t started after 7:30pm**
Services
Do-it-yourself bike builds, fixes, and maintenance.
Experienced mechanic volunteers are available to assist. Our goal is for you to do the work yourself, while we help guide your learning.
Project examples: seasonal tune-ups, replacing cables and housing, brake adjustments, wheel truing, chain replacements, flat-fixes, part replacement. We’re happy to help you with whatever bike project you want to do.
Cost
Open Hours is free.
We appreciate donations to keep the place running. Used components are available on a pay-what-you-can basis. New and high end parts are priced as marked, see below.
We suggest a $5-10 donation to use the stands, tools, and guidance from our mechanics.
Used Components Available
All used components are available on a pay-what-you-can basis.
- Wheels and tires
- Bikes and bike frames
- Drivetrain components: cranksets, chainrings, cassettes, derailleurs, pedals
- Brake calipers, levers, and pads
- Kickstands, racks, baskets
- And lots more
New + High-End Components Available
New components and a few high-end used ones are priced as marked. See our price guide here.
- Tires and tubes
- Brake and shifter cables and housing
- Chains
- Screws, nuts, washers, ferrules, ball bearings
- An assortment of other components
Tools & Consumables Available
In addition to all your standard wrenches, bike tools, lubricants, and grease, the specialty tools available for use include:
- Wheel truing stands, wheel dishing tool, and spoke gauges
- Headset press and removal tools
- Spoke threader
- Derailleur hanger alignment tool
- Most of the weird cassette, lock ring, and free wheel keys
- Many of the proprietary bottom bracket wrenches
Our Safer Spaces Agreement
Mechanical Gardens recognizes that our culture fosters conformity and rewards people according to a hierarchy of institutional power based on sexism, classism, and racism. We actively work to undo compliance with harmful structures that support poverty, greed, hatred, violence, disrespect, and lack of access to opportunity by extending bike repair and related skills.
We commit to maintaining:
- Open Minds and Open Hearts
- We encourage kindness and openness
- We promote inclusive learning spaces – and are a student-centered space
- We seek questions in the spirit of personal growth – please ask!
- We prioritize honesty, kind directness, and default to peace.
- Basic shared priorities of mutual respect, mutual aid, empowerment advocacy, conflict resolution, anti-violence, and community building.
- Accountability: We accept our responsibility that as individuals, we can be both victims and perpetrators of oppression. By recognizing our responsibility and where we stand in relation to social power and control, we can begin to work towards undoing cycles of power and oppression. We accept a shared responsibility to hold ourselves and one another accountable for recognizing and changing words and behavior that are disrespectful, oppressive, and hurtful.
- Access: We commit to making spaces as accessible as possible to people who come to learn bike skills: educationally, physically, socially, and personally.
- Empowerment: We promote everyone’s ability to speak up for themselves by
- Supporting people to voice their own experience in their own words.
- Calling out speech and behavior that is disrespectful.
- Acting in solidarity to speak truth to power.
- Community: We respect each other in the shared space where we work.
- We take responsibility for using tools so that we don’t hurt ourselves or others, equipment, and bicycles
- We clean up after ourselves and collaborate to maintain the space safely.
- Autonomy
- We support free expression, autonomy, and the empowerment of each person.
- We respect each others’ bodies and spaces.
- Listening: We commit to hearing each other and creating opportunities for all voices to be heard.
- We respect each others’ experiences and opinions.
- We respect everyone’s names, gender pronouns, expressed identities, and experiences.
Read the full safer spaces agreement
Contact Us
Learn more about volunteer opportunities, donations, or join or mailing list.
For all other questions please email us at: info [at] bikecoop [dot] nyc
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