Fifty Plus (50+) - Selling on Ebay/Craigslist

Some of you guys seem to be well-versed in the ways of Ebay. I've never sold anything there myself, but I'm thinking of putting a mountain bike up for bid. It's a Cannondale Bad Boy Ultra (Does that name smack of mid-life crisis?), which I just don't ride very much. It was (to my mind) a fairly pricey bike when I bought it in 2001. It sold for about $1500.

Can anyone give me advice on the best ways to market the bike--and if there are any pitfalls to beware of in the process?

Bberry, I've found that marketing and selling on the 'bay to be pretty rewarding. It seems to me that there was a thread on this recently with lots of good suggestions.

My only warning is to check shipping prices before quoting. I haven't shipped a bike in a couple of months, but coast to coast last fall was about $80. Make sure you don't short yourself. I always cringe when I see someone put a shipping fee of $35 on a bike; I can't ship one to Portland (180 miles) for that so I know someone's going to get upset--either the seller of buyer is going to get a nasty shock. Research your shipping before quoting!

If you have a local Craigslist, try that first. It's free -- nothing to lose.

My only purchase was a great buy.....a mid-90's Trek 830 Hardtail cro-moly, 7 speed all Shimano equipped. This bike is for boy #3 who will be off to university in a few weeks, though boy #2 is considering trying to trade him for it. It was a painless deal. I won the bid, sent a US Postal money order, and the bike showed up in a bike box in three days.

You are well advised to check the shipping costs.

Tonight I'm trying to buy a set of non-indexed 7 speed bar end shifters for a retrofit. If I lose out then tomorrow there is a set of 7 speed Shimano indexed I'll go for.

My kids buy and sell on Ebay all the time.

I have both bought and sold on Ebay with good luck and ease.

Check the shipping costs and just make the buyer responsible to pay and you won't have to worry over it. You should check on the cost of a box and packing, which is something you can add to the actual shipping costs or absorb some or all of it yourself.

BTW, what size is it and how much do you want? I might be in the market for a mt bike.

Can anyone give me advice on the best ways to market the bike--and if there are any pitfalls to beware of in the process?


I didn't really answer your question with my earlier post, so here goes.

Get all the dimensions for your bike, and post them with the sale. By this I mean standover height, seat tube length, top tube, chainstay, shocks, everything. List all components and what they are, such as speed, cassette or freewheel, tire sizes, shifters, brakes, derailleurs, crank, tires, etc. Literally list everything on the bike. Take good pictures that clearly show all the major components, front and back wheels, shifters, brake and brake handles. Include some information about height of the rider relative to the size of the bike.

Get a bike box from the LBS and figure out how to pack it and what it will cost for UPS freight.

I've looked at a lot of bikes on Ebay but the Trek 830 is the only one I've bought. Be very descriptive and include lots of good pictures.

Good luck!

What they said. Plus, an LBS can do the packing for you for a fee which you would include in the shipping charge (or did someone say that already too?).

Also, you can search for completed (sold) listings of bikes like yours to see what they've sold for. If you wish, you can place a "reserve" (the lowest price you're willing to take) on the item, but start the bidding at a lower price. This is also done in traditional auctions. Buyers do not see the reserve price. You can read more about this and other details on eBay.

I'm awaiting delivery on a Giant OCR2 I bought on eBay, in fact. Hopefully today!

PayPal is a convenient and pretty secure way to send and receive money, so establish a PayPal account. It will take about five business days to get your address and bank account "confirmed".

Thorough and honest descriptions plus clear photos of the item for sale, careful packing, prompt shipping and charging the correct shipping cost plus a modest handling charge if you wish to cover your time and packing materials are key, especially since you'll be a new user with no feedback rating selling a big ticket item. Basic Golden Rule stuff.

Craigslist is a good suggestion, too. Like DG said, it's a lot more straightforward if you want to sell locally -- basically like putting a classified ad in the paper. You meet the buyer, exchange money and goods, no shipping.