Classic & Vintage - Just a Reminder, You Have to ASK!

Just relearned that old garage sale lesson, ask: "Do you have any bicycles or bike parts?" I ended up scoring a crate of parts today, including Shimano 105 crankset, RD, aerolevers, DT levers, and three 8 speed STI levers (one DOA); Suntour Superbe seat post, Cinelli bars and stem, a couple sets of pedals, a couple bags of canti brake parts, another stem, another seat post, a saddle, SRAM chain, etc.

None of the items were "for sale". You have to ask.



http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4149/5172672372_9c833b5d30_b.jpg

nice score!!

Thumbs up, that is quite a score.

I agree! Several of the family bikes were bought for next to nothing ;) Wouln't have happened if I didn't ask!

Cheers,
Chris

Just to support Bill's comment, all of the bikes below were not present during the yard sale/CL buy over the years I've been collecting. I simply asked if they were selling any bikes or bike stuff. Not shown is a brand new, in the box Ultegra 10 speed rear derailer someone had who wanted to get rid of that silly "bike part" but didn't put it out at the yard sale because "who would want it":D.
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm215/roccobike_2008/Cannondale004.jpg
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm215/roccobike_2008/SchwinnStingray008.jpg
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm215/roccobike_2008/SchwinnStingray001.jpg
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm215/roccobike_2008/RaleighGrandPrix78003.jpg
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm215/roccobike_2008/Concord001.jpg

I picked up this Centurion Sport DLX for a coworker. I saw it hanging in the rafters of a neighbor's garage when I stopped at his sale. It wasn't in the sale but it sure sold quick when I asked about it. And, he threw in a pair of shoes, a pump, and a new helmet.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_FfM_jO4_Tm0/TN9TyYvmiqI/AAAAAAAACrU/nZ8yMs-ZTsc/s800/0731100848.jpg

Nice Centurion!! Makes my score look meager indeed.

Not shown is a brand new, in the box Ultegra 10 speed rear derailer someone had who wanted to get rid of that silly "bike part" but didn't put it out at the yard sale because "who would want it":D.

I don't know, I stop by a lot of garage sales and some of the stuff I see out there, If they think someone wants to buy their old mrs butterworth jars surely they would put a derailleur on the table if they had one, for some reason. I don't live in that big a town, by that road cycling isnt that popular, and all the "roadies" kinda know each other, so I don't think its worth asking, not that its not good advice, maybe just depends where you're living. I do all my yard sales via bicycle too, often wearing cycling clothing, so I think most people would be "say you look like youre into cycling..." one time a lady looked at me and said something like "we dont have any bikes for sale!"

I did come across 2 boxes full of bike stuff at the recycle center of the dump a few weeks ago, inside was a bunch of old stamped steel shimano derailleurs (most damaged), some steel shorty fenders, quite a few no-name old centerpull brakes, a chain, I think a generator for a light... left everything!

I don't live in that big a town, by that road cycling isnt that popular, and all the "roadies" kinda know each other, so I don't think its worth asking, not that its not good advice, maybe just depends where you're living.

Nonsense! I live in a small town also and I hunt in many other cities as I travel. And I always ask...

Ask, and you will be stunned at what you find! Honestly, most of the roadies you know now don't give a rat's turd about the older bikes. The people you seek are old themselves, do not look at all like cyclists and have not thought of their old, hidden away bicycles, in the past twenty, or more, years.

So, don't ask, if that is what you think best. But I sure as the heck do and I ask every single time, I visit a yard sale.

Even if I score a really nice Freddie Grubb, I still ask if the seller has any more old bikes he would consider selling. Doing so, netted me the Grubb for $12.00 (talked the seller down from fifteen) and then, two minutes later, a near mint Peugeot for thirty bucks. And all I had to do to discover the Peugeot was ask.

178127 178128

Nonsense! I live in a small town also and I hunt in many other cities as I travel. And I always ask...

Ask, and you will be stunned at what you find! Honestly, most of the roadies you know now don't give a rat's turd about the older bikes. The people you seek are old themselves, do not look at all like cyclists and have not thought of their old, hidden away bicycles, in the past twenty, or more, years.

So, don't ask, if that is what you think best. But I sure as the heck do and I ask every single time, I visit a yard sale.

Even if I score a really nice Freddie Grubb, I still ask if the seller has any more old bikes he would consider selling. Doing so, netted me the Grubb for $12.00 (talked the seller down from fifteen) and then, two minutes later, a near mint Peugeot for thirty bucks. And all I had to do to discover the Peugeot was ask.



+1 What Randy said, he is the king for finding deals. The guy I bought the stuff from above had a Serotta road bike, so he certainly knew road bikes. But he, like most road bike folks I talk to, was only interested in really modern stuff. The vintage stuff I like is just the kind of stuff he would toss.

+1 Never assume people are going to mention bike stuff just because you are on a bike, or wearing bike gear. A lot of people are not that observant. And even if they are, like the guy I bought from, they really think the old stuff is junk. Ask, ask, ask. It takes all of one minute or less. I have bought bikes that were leaning against a tree, one in the weeds, etc. Pulled a nice 8/9/10 speed Ultegra road wheel out of the weed pile at a garage sale a couple of months ago. Seller was glad to get $5 for it.

Not a bike but I also collect older 35mm cameras. Once I asked at a garage sale about cameras, and they said they did have one but didn't know where it was anymore. They still had the bag and some accessories and said I might as well take them since they were useless without the camera. Like someone else mentioned, some people don't bother to put stuff out if they think no one would want it. The worst that could happen is to be told no.

DO ask, DO tell.

My name is ivandarken, and I approve this message.

Last year I was 2000 miles away from home and passed a yard sale selling mostly clothes. I asked, and the guy showed me a full Campy 87 Lemond Team hanging in the garage rafters. He even let me name my price.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy338/ivandarken/Lemond/CIMG4945.jpg

I've asked, and I usually just get weird looks. Still waiting for the one time the question pays off bigtime, thus justifying all of the futile attempts.

DO ask, DO tell.

My name is ivandarken, and I approve this message.

Last year I was 2000 miles away from home and passed a yard sale selling mostly clothes. I asked, and the guy showed me a full Campy 87 Lemond Team hanging in the garage rafters. He even let me name my price.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy338/ivandarken/Lemond/CIMG4945.jpg

What price did you name? I'm asking because I have some difficulty with determining an offer price for something I know is worth a bit of money, while the seller has no idea BUT can tell that it must be worth more than they think for the simple reason that I am interested.

And yes, I never asked until I followed the advice offered in BF, and yes, I have been sold some nice bikes for typical yard sale get-rid-of-it prices that were not even shown until I asked. Even better, I have been GIVEN bikes just for asking about them. Even better than that -- people DELIVER bikes to my house for free. Of course, these latter bikes need "a little work"...

I've asked, and I usually just get weird looks. Still waiting for the one time the question pays off bigtime, thus justifying all of the futile attempts.

It WILL happen for you! Trust me. If it happened for me -- and I'm no slick operator nor do I live a charmed life -- it'll happen for you.