Bikes are okay, I guess.
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Richmond, Virginia
Posts: 6,938
Bikes: Waterford Paramount Touring, Giant CFM-2, Raleigh Sports 3-speeds in M23 & L23, Schwinn Cimarron oddball build, Marin Palisades Trail dropbar conversion, Nishiki Cresta GT
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For a fair comparison you'd need for the shops to provide a list in which all the new components are the same ones from shop to shop. Variation in parts would account for some variation in the price with labor the rest, but labor rates can vary widely from one shop to the next. That's a big range you quoted but without more detail there's no way to know what's fair. You also have to consider the "get lost surcharge" on some jobs; if a shop is slammed they might not want that particular job and might charge you accordingly if you insist on proceeding.