Classic & Vintage - Whats your worst CL experience? ill start with mine...

Here is my most frustrating experience with Craigslist: So last night im going through craigslist and find a specialized stumpjumper m2 hardtail for $25 and a trek road bike with shimanoo 600 components for another $25 (same seller). I emailed the lady selling them and she said to come pick them up and out the door i rushed. When I got to the sellers house, there were 3 people already there to buy the bike, and just after I got there a few more showed up. The really idiotic seller had promised the bikes to about 6 or so people, and decided to hold the trek for some guy because she had promised it to him despite the fact that she had done the same to me only I was actually there with cash in hand. Anyway, I didnt buy any bikes that night and got very upset with the seller..rant over.

Whats your story?

I had this guy with a nice Gitane builder for $20. He hadn't sold it after a couple of weeks of listling. After several tries I got a hold of the guy. After several e-mails and calls I set up a time to come and buy the bike. I went to the guys place at the set time rang the bell knocked on the door despite there being several people in the house made into apartments that could see me knocking no one would come to the door. Since I was without car at the time I had taken a bus and walked a a mile or so a very big disiapointment.

Ah the joys of CL...

I answered an ad for a wheelset for $60.00 The seller bragged that he worked at a bike shop and they were in great shape. I only had 7sp and 8sp bikes at the time, so I asked the seller if they were Shimano 8-sp compatible. He assured me they were.

He repeated that he worked at a bike shop, and named the shop. My friend "roccobike" picked them up for me.
He thought they were nice, and Al knows his stuff.

When I got them home, I quickly realized my 8sp cassettes wouldn't fit. I went to Sheldon Brown for advice, and learned of "10-sp only." It seems from 2004-2008, there were some 10-sp freehubs that had extra-deep splines due to different materials being used in the carrier.

So, I sent an email to the seller, Mr. Bike Expert, advising of the 10-sp only capability of the wheelset. I asked if I could bring them back. He said "no way, you don't know what you're talking about. I work at a bike shop." I emailed him the photos from Sheldon's web site.

He said "I don't care, I'm not refunding your money." Not a problem. I re-listed them on CL, referenced the rip-off and the bike shop. I soon got an email from the owner of the bike shop, asking the problem. I explained. He said "_ _ _ _" will be glad to work it out."

At the same time, I got a 2-page email from "_ _ _ _" calling me every name in the book, heated to the point of fusion. I simply forwarded it to the shop owner. Within an hour, the owner said "_ _ _ _" will work it out. A second flaming email followed.

I left the CL listing up, and rec'd a note from the shop owner asking that it come down. I altered my ad to state that, while the seller works at "____" bike shop, the sale was neither one the shop transacted nor was misrepresentation a common business practice there.

I cleaned up the wheels and sulked. A few months later, I happen across a handlebar, 10-sp STI's attached, sitting on the floor of my LBS, next to a box that contained a 10-sp cassette, RD, and chain. Went home with it all for $105. Within a couple more months, I had my group, for about $220. I promptly put it on an Ironman and rode it like the whole mess was meticulously planned.

Lucky man... well the common stuff that happens is that the sellers do not answer the emails for example. One day I spotted a Saninno in kind'a bad shape for the right price, drove to Downtown Dc to pick it up (real PITA to drive the), called the guy by phone, knocked the bell of his apt and nothing at all. Never knew what happened, no idea if he sold it either.

None - yet - that have left a bad taste in the mouth. However, I have yet to find an honest Craigslist classic car seller, which has led me to devise the following Craigslist-to-English translation chart:

"Mint, rust free" = "There are areas of rust at the bottom of the quarter panels and under the vinyl roof trim."
"A little rust" = "The trunk has significant rotting, and/or holes, plus large rust on quarters. Rust is significant around rear window, including at least one hole."
"Some rust" = "Every body panel has significant rust, and there are holes in the hood."
"Restorable" = "The leaf springs broke through the rear seats yesterday, but I still want $5,000 for it."
"Never wrecked, never crashed" = "...because I'm in denial of these facts."
"Rust-free and completely restored" = "Caked with Bondo and painted in my backyard with the cheapest, Chinese spray gun I could get at Harbor Freight."

"A/C needs freon" = "Both the A/C compressor and power steering pump are shot."
"Needs tune up" = "The engine seized when the oil drain cross-threaded and fell out."
"Power steering pump is bad" = "The water pump is leaking, and I don't know where I put the carburetor."
"Radiator leaking" = "The radiator needs to be replaced, because the front end of the car is smashed beyond recognition."

That's just with the Lincolns. I can't even find someone that'll sell me a '71-73 Dodge Coronet.

-Kurt

This just happened to me yesterday. I had responded to a Craigs ad for a Fuji Gran Touring. Although it was the Friday before New Years, and I was looking at a 5 hour drive home, I was willing to take the time to drive out of my way to take a look at this bike. The seller gave me his address and phone number, so I made my way through the Friday traffic to the address. It ended up being a business address, and although the people that worked there knew the seller, he was nowhere to be found and didn’t answer his phone. What a waste of time, and what a flake. :mad:

ref: Motivated sellers. (motivating sellers?) :)

A chrome 1973 Paramount, the guy wants too much, I want the bike. So I wait him out. Three months later he still has it and the same three tiny cell phone camera images. (one that is sideways) I ask him again to send me better photos. He can email me, but can't take better photos and email those?
He emails me ten times what will you give me? etc. I need Xmas money etc.. I keep asking him over and over.
"I am not driving 150 miles until you email me better images than those three crummy phone camera photos. Then I can tell you a ball park of what I am willing to give. "
More emails. "what will you give me for the bike?"
Another month has gone by and I'm still waiting for better images..
I want it, but not so bad as to waste a whole day chasing a pig in a poke.
That's my worst so I guess I've got it pretty good so far.

mine:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/644346-Please-help-me-buy-this-Mondia-Special

mine:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/644346-Please-help-me-buy-this-Mondia-Special

Wow. A lot of hate in that thread. I guess nobody should ever stumble over a good deal.

I've only had one experience on CL so far as bikes go, (nothing much good ever for sale in my area), but I can't complain. I picked up a Trek 970 for free today. I was actually surprised he held it until I got there.

Stan: I looked at this bike in person several months ago because the
seller told me it was a 23' or 23 1/2" frame (my size.....and it is not).

I like the seller, but am as far from it driving as Joe, so was not
particularly happy to have driven the two hours for no reason.
Thus, I only gave it a quick once over, as a curiosity more than
anything else.

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/787155-Odd-Old-Paramount-...-2nd-chance-of-buying-it-but-need-more-information?p=13608701&highlight=paramount#post13608701

I had this guy with a nice Gitane builder for $20. He hadn't sold it after a couple of weeks of listling. After several tries I got a hold of the guy. After several e-mails and calls I set up a time to come and buy the bike. I went to the guys place at the set time rang the bell knocked on the door despite there being several people in the house made into apartments that could see me knocking no one would come to the door. Since I was without car at the time I had taken a bus and walked a a mile or so a very big disiapointment.

Mine was similar to yours, except the place was empty.
The ad, a $75 Raleigh International (with nice pics, my size), was a hoax. I drove 50mi to the hoaxer's given address. Turns out its a foreclosed house.

The thing is, I did have a conversation with the hoaxer before heading out.
I tried calling him a few more times afterwards, just to say F@*k You! And to challenge him to a duel, but he won't answer.

I have one potential buyer who has contacted me on several bikes including the Gitane which you have all seen that claims to be knowledgable on bikes and claims to know nothing of Suntour DR's says they are all junk and tries to argue that any bike with them should be a $100 bike.

I've been lucky so far. All the sellers have been pretty reasonable, and the buyers have been mostly fine. The weirdest one was I had to remove some pedals for a guy because he didn't want to sell them but he lacked tools; we had to drive back to my apartment, put it in my stand and use my wrench. But it was a good price for a good frame so I didn't mind.

I've been lucky so far with sellers. I've bought some bikes and had no problems. They were nice people and represented their bikes in the ads well. I called one seller about a bike and it turned out he collected similar bikes. After some chatting, he ended up delivering the bike he had for sale to my house AND buying one I had for sale. :)

Buyers on the other hand have been nothing but a pain. I get the usual scam emails, people that want the item shipped (for free or next to nothing) and lowballers that want to give you $50.00 for something you have listed for $350. The thing I don't get are the people that exchange several emails, ask thousands of questions, request extra pictures, and finally come to an agreement on price, and then they fall off the face of the earth. :twitchy:

Buyers on the other hand have been nothing but a pain. I get the usual scam emails, people that want the item shipped (for free or next to nothing) and lowballers that want to give you $50.00 for something you have listed for $350. The thing I don't get are the people that exchange several emails, ask thousands of questions, request extra pictures, and finally come to an agreement on price, and then they fall off the face of the earth. :twitchy:

You can solve half of those issues by not accepting emails via Craigslist.

If you're worried about putting your phone number down due to robot spam calls, make a black-and-white .jpg image with your phone number and insert it with HTML code.

-Kurt

My apologies if my theory has been put forth before.

Seems as though when sellers don't know the value of something, they tend to list on CL to gauge the response. They then go to Ebay with a final value in mind.

Then you have the lowball buyers who think they know it all but are completely out to lunch.

Free entertainment at its finest on both sides of the fence ;)

DD

Its free, I expect flakes, and I get them. I get flakes on ebay as well, and there its not free,

I set the bar really, really low on C/L, I expect the bike to be junk, misrepresented, etc, Usually it turns out better, sometimes not.

OK, I guess the worst one was where I drove two hours one way to get a bike. The "deal" was, seller was going to hold it until I arrived, as I called when I left and along the way. So I am just about 5 minutes from the guy's house, so I call to check in, "Oh, I just sold it." WTF? "But I have another bike (it was in the ad, grossly overpriced), why don" you come by to look at it." Yeah, right.

To be fair, anytime I drive a longer distance to scoop a bike, I assume there will be a good chance that it is going to be gone. Most of the time, those deals do work out,

Guy advertised a never used 10 speed cassette for $35.

Said he took it off His Bike.
3 days and 6 e-mails later, we meet in a shopping center.

It is an 8 speed that he got from his father- inn laws bike.

This guy might be the top gun on this thread - http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/2011/12/florida-marine-shot-during-craigslist-robbery.html
At least the thugs are in jail and the victim is going to be OK.......

Other than one misrepresented sale that I turned into lucky lemonade, my CL experience has been good. I lose a lot of items because I'm 40 miles away and can't just run over to Raleigh, but several have accepted PayPal until I got there, and several more have actually shipped me the items when I paid via PayPal and added shipping. I've not met any jerks in person whatsoever. I'm extremely fortunate in that I've had BF members pick up my item and I've gone and gotten it from them on a couple occasions, when time was of the essence.

This guy might be the top gun on this thread - http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/2011/12/florida-marine-shot-during-craigslist-robbery.html
At least the thugs are in jail and the victim is going to be OK.......

There was one recently where the CL seller of an X-box or something was met at his door by 3 armed "buyers." They robbed him of the game and cash and left. Somehow, he shot two of them as they left. Warmed my heart.

I buy and sell a lot of things on CL besides bikes and a lot of the above problems come up. I just move on and no longer get upset over it. Some items that I sell people say they are coming over to get it and never show. I give them a time window and if they can't make it then it goes to the next person. I no longer sit around and wait for people. I make a appointment and tell the next buyer to call me at a certain time to see if I still have the bike. If is is something I want badly I add a few bucks to the price and they will hold it every time till I get there. I had to drive a long distance for a Cannondale I wanted and new it would be gone so I added $25 to the price and the seller held it for me. It is all part of the game,make it fun. If you really want it add a few dollars to the price.
Ed

Guy advertised a never used 10 speed cassette for $35.

Said he took it off His Bike.
3 days and 6 e-mails later, we meet in a shopping center.

It is an 8 speed that he got from his father- inn laws bike.

I have had similar stuff happen a lot of unknowing people call almost any bike with drop bars or parts off them ten speed most are not.

It's the seller that just plain lies. Me:" are there ANY dents on the frame?"
Seller:"NO, not any".
I drive an hour to see a dent plainly visible on the top tube and say, "looks like a dent to me.
Seller:"Oh, it doesn't affect the ride in any way".
Some people operate on a different wavelength when it comes to the truth. It's the nature of the world and Craig's list.

If it's a bike I want to ride and pay market value I try and gauge the truth that the seller speaks from his general knowledge of what he is selling. If it's undervalued and a flip then just go and get it.

So far I haven't had any really bad CL experiences.

Yes, I've had the usual "buyer no shows" and "non responsive sellers". But every time a buyer has come to look at something, they have purchased it. Every time.

And, I've only walked away from one potential purchase where the seller grossly overrated the condition of the bike. Good thing it was only a short 10 minute drive from my house. I low-balled him an offer which he refused. He later emailed me just to let me know that he sold the bike for his full asking price. I didn't respond but sometimes wonder what ever happened to that rusty 80's Raleigh mixte.

Not that it really qualifies as a "bad" experience, but I've had buyers who simply do not listen to what you have to say. Recent experience:

Me: "This bike is measures 62.5cm, c-c on the seat tube."
Guy on phone: "Sounds like a perfect fit! Can we set up a time for me to test ride it?"
Me: "How tall are you?"
Guy on phone: "Five - six."
Me: "I really think the bike is too tall for you."
Guy on phone: "Hmm. Are you sure? OK."
Call ends.

Two days later, phone rings.
Me: "Hello."
Guy on phone: "Hi! I'm the guy that called you about the bike? I'm about five minutes from your house."
Me: "Uhhh."

Guy arrives and surprise! He can't even straddle the top tube without rearranging his anatomy in ways that make me cringe.

Guy straddling bike: "Man, I wish I'd known this was such a tall bike. You know I drove an hour and a half to get here?"

Me: "This bike is measures 62.5cm, c-c on the seat tube."
Guy on phone: "Sounds like a perfect fit! Can we set up a time for me to test ride it?"
Me: "How tall are you?"
Guy on phone: "Five - six."

Most mid-westerners have no grasp of the Metric system. :innocent:

Most mid-westerners have no grasp of the Metric system. :innocent:

The cm is based on a billionth of the distance from the North Pole to the equator along the meridian running near Dunkirk in France and Barcelona in Spain.

Makes sense to me. :innocent:

This happened one time to me too! :-) Luckily, the house was oly 10 minutes away. I called the seller and he gives me his address since he still has the bike. On my way there, I call hi again while I'm about 100 feet from his house. He confirms his address. As I'm approaching, I see two guys outside of the house. One is checking out the bike and riding it. The other is the seller who greets me. I mentioned to him that I'm there to see the bike, and he tells me that he just sold it to the guy test riding it. LMAO! I'm thinkig to myself you stupid sorry SOB why would you tell me the bike is still available 100 feet from you, and sell the bike two seconds after I get there? He tells me that the other buyer was practically tearing down his door down to get the bike. Didn't this moron have the sense to tell me before I got in my car that there was someone already on their way? Lol! These poor excuses of "men" really infuriate me! What happened to the times when men were real men, and your word meant something? When a handshake sealed the deal! Good luck finding that type of people nowadays! In all fairness, this has been the only experience out of many as a buyer or seller. :-)

Flash



Here is my most frustrating experience with Craigslist: So last night im going through craigslist and find a specialized stumpjumper m2 hardtail for $25 and a trek road bike with shimanoo 600 components for another $25 (same seller). I emailed the lady selling them and she said to come pick them up and out the door i rushed. When I got to the sellers house, there were 3 people already there to buy the bike, and just after I got there a few more showed up. The really idiotic seller had promised the bikes to about 6 or so people, and decided to hold the trek for some guy because she had promised it to him despite the fact that she had done the same to me only I was actually there with cash in hand. Anyway, I didnt buy any bikes that night and got very upset with the seller..rant over.

Whats your story?

My biggest beef is "no-shows". I usually set up a narrow window of when I'll be home and let the buyer know that if they're late I won't be there be cause I have to go to "work". This approach has been somewhat successful.

The cm is based on a billionth of the distance from the North Pole to the equator along the meridian running near Dunkirk in France and Barcelona in Spain.

Makes sense to me. :innocent:

Really? I never knew that. That could come in handy one day.

CL is like visiting an exotic 3rd world nation or foreign country.
Lots of frustrations but many great experiences too.
Just when you are ready to throw in the towel and leave, you experience something wonderful again.

Most mid-westerners have no grasp of the Metric system. :innocent:

Yes, and we all have chickens running around in our yards, wear overalls and have no teeth.

^ Chicago's city ordinances only just recently were changed to allow chickens so we haven't gotten ours yet. Overalls only come out for painting. Got plenty of teeth, they's over in that jar yonder.

As far as CL goes, the only bad experiences I have had so far were those of omission, either buyers or sellers that vanished.

Well, there was one time that a drive to Rockford IL when I was already going to a suburb out that way turned out to be a several-hour late-night odyssey as the seller was actually way S of Rockford. And the 'Lotus racing bike' in the tiny CL picture turned out to be a Taiwan-made Elan, a very basic model, and very small. Also it had been stored in a barn for years and chickens had apparently roosted on it. However it was only $30 and was a pretty color, so it eventually became a cute SS I sold to a former student. And the long drive in that case was my own fault.

Yes, and we all have chickens running around in our yards, where overalls and have no teeth.

No teeth?! :eek: We got's teeths but thar' ain't no more than chair legs 'round here.

emailed a seller about a Raleigh 48cm build frame for my girlfriend, said "i have cash in hand and ready for pick up", emails me back "i have someone looking at the frame tomorrow if they dont get ill let you know", that makes no sense what so ever, never emailed me back and it was 1 month ago and its keeps getting reposted. Oh Well his lost.

My worst experience was witth one seller by the name of K___, who had listed a Trek 560 for $60.

We arranged to meet some 30 miles from my house, at a public storage place, bay 66 (should have told me something) and I arrived at the agreed upon time. I waited, and waited - no seller. I called, and K___ said that he was just 5 minutes away. I waited, and waited another 20 minutes or so. I called again and got the same response - "5 minutes". About 15 minutes later I called a THIRD time, and this time he said he had just left his house. Sure enough, 5 minutes later he pulled up in a big 4x4 pickup, got out, and without a word threw open the overhead door to bay 66. - It was full of all sorts of junk -(from various estate and garage sales I surmised).
I gave the bike a quick once-over, and though it needed some work, it was all there, so I agreed to pay the listed price without haggling.

K__ responded: "Three hundred dollars".

"Say what?" I asked in disbelief.

He turned to me, and through clenched teeth he hissed "You take me for some kind of fool?! - You must be doing some bad dope. I'm not letting this go for no stinkin' sixty bucks!!!"

...The guy was in a rage, and standing right in my face, so I decided just to bid him adieu rather than hazard getting my brains blown out over a stupid CL deal. I am pretty sure this was a matter of a subsequent caller telling him of "its true value" once they were given the word that someone else was first.

PS. I just want to add that the majority of my CL dealings here have been more than pleasant. There have been a few dweebs, but none to rival K___.

None - yet - that have left a bad taste in the mouth. However, I have yet to find an honest Craigslist classic car seller, which has led me to devise the following Craigslist-to-English translation chart:

"Mint, rust free" = "There are areas of rust at the bottom of the quarter panels and under the vinyl roof trim."
"A little rust" = "The trunk has significant rotting, and/or holes, plus large rust on quarters. Rust is significant around rear window, including at least one hole."
"Some rust" = "Every body panel has significant rust, and there are holes in the hood."
"Restorable" = "The leaf springs broke through the rear seats yesterday, but I still want $5,000 for it."
"Never wrecked, never crashed" = "...because I'm in denial of these facts."
"Rust-free and completely restored" = "Caked with Bondo and painted in my backyard with the cheapest, Chinese spray gun I could get at Harbor Freight."

"A/C needs freon" = "Both the A/C compressor and power steering pump are shot."
"Needs tune up" = "The engine seized when the oil drain cross-threaded and fell out."
"Power steering pump is bad" = "The water pump is leaking, and I don't know where I put the carburetor."
"Radiator leaking" = "The radiator needs to be replaced, because the front end of the car is smashed beyond recognition."

That's just with the Lincolns. I can't even find someone that'll sell me a '71-73 Dodge Coronet.

-Kurt:roflmao2:

Auchen, isn't that really annoying to put it in a good way, when someone calls after and educates the seller on the value? Those are real SOBs that due that. And just because they were not first! If I' not the first one, I always end my conversation with the seller with "Please let me know if the person does not take it, or does not show up. I have cash on hand, thank you"! I never get a call back, of course if it is a real good deal, but what good is to me to ruin it for someone else?

Flash

Maybe I caused someone else (even one of 'us') to have one of these stories, but so be it.

One Saturday last winter I saw a Miyata 1200, the later version, on local CL for $200. I would have preferred it to still have the original Sante group but this one was updated: Tiagra, Sora brifters, new wheelset, etc. So a pretty smoking deal. I was on it within minutes of the posting, and had several emails back and forth with the seller, pretty certain I was the first to get in touch: I was of course willing to come right then, but he was not available. I didn't want to bug him but did everything I could to let him know I was positively, absolutely interested in coming to see and buy the bike. Finally that night I emailed again, or called, and he said that someone else would be coming the following afternoon to look at it.

Aargh!

But instead of giving up, I offered to come the following morning, without fail, with cash, and I'd make it $250, no argument, unless I found something seriously wrong with the bike. He said okay to that and by 10 the next morning I had the bike and a Performance mag trainer in my car on the way back into the city.

Now it could certainly be said that I screwed another CL buyer out of the bike and played dirty. But naturally I don't see it that way. :rolleyes:

As a seller I am willing to hold things for buyers who convince me they are really, for sure, coming 'tomorrow,' but even the most serious-sounding sometimes flake out. This other buyer might have flaked out too, and for pete's sake if it's a great deal you don't wait. I would certainly not have expected someone to hold such a great deal for me, nor held it against a seller who went for a sure thing.

The Miyata is on the trainer in my basement now, with a disk from season 2 of 'The Wire' waiting for me to join it for a nice hour together. :)

If it was someone here who I beat out on that deal, I am sorry. As a consolation prize, you may take your pick from my collection of classic 80s dork disks. :lol:

Nothing to do with bikes, but several years ago I listed a pristine 2002 Toyota Sequoia Limited with about 40K miles on it on CL. I had been given a trade in offer of $20K from the dealer, I had hoped to get $23K for it so I thought I would give it a try.

The only calls I got were from Los Angeles or Orange County dealers (I am in San Diego), all with broken English, all asking what was the least I would take TODAY for the vehicle. One guy offered me $20K, I told him that is what the dealer had offered me, and then he went ballistic because I would not sell it to him at that price. I started asking the other dealers who wanted to know what my lowest price was why they didn't want to make the effort to see it first, and then make an offer.

I wound up trading it at the dealer where I was buying my new car, they had treated me well and I wasn't going to give it to one of those rude jerks.

I put an '81 Honda Silverwing on CL once, in rough but running condition. I was asking $500. I had a guy call me up and offer me to take it off my hands for scrap for $50. Seriously?!

Auchen, isn't that really annoying to put it in a good way, when someone calls after and educates the seller on the value?

I do that. One guy had a nice early original Frejus TdF listed for 150. I told him to list for 800 and take 600. He told me he got 700 for it.

Why do you want to cheat people out of fair market value?

My worst CL experince was it took 6 hours to have cash in hand when selling a Honda. My other Honda was off my property in 3 hours of listing it. The Ford took 4 hours.

The problems I have are the long distant drives to pick up a bike. I understand the cash that hits the hand first takes the bike, but a little common courtesy when you know the guy is driving over and an hour. I try to pay the people $10 extra to meet me somewhere and that tends to help the "I sold it an hour ago.".
I had a great deal set up for a bike for my wife. The guy didn't speak English very well, but texted ok we agreed to a time and place 2 hours for me. I got there early and was willing to meet him at his house, so I called 10 minutes before he was supposed to get off work. No answer - text came back - bike sold. Wasted a nice afternoon I could have been riding.
Selling is not too bad, but trying to buy a good deal can be trouble.

I do that.

Why do you want to cheat people out of fair market value?




IAB, I have a lot of respect for you but I really disagree with you on this. If someone lists something for $xx and I buy it from them for what they are asking, how is that "cheating" them, even if I know it is a great deal. If it is not something you are buying or selling why are you interfering? It comes across as very smug on your part and insulting to people with limited funds that they don't deserve a bargain. If someone asked you for a valuation, that is a different story, other than that I would say to mind your own business.

IAB, I have a lot of respect for you but I really disagree with you on this. If someone lists something for $xx and I buy it from them for what they are asking, how is that "cheating" them, even if I know it is a great deal. If it is not something you are buying or selling why are you interfering? It comes across as very smug on your part and insulting to people with limited funds that they don't deserve a bargain. If someone asked you for a valuation, that is a different story, other than that I would say to mind your own business.

I think a lot of people think it's cheating because they don't have the cash to buy it at the time and don't want to see anyone else get the good deal. If a seller and buyer make a deal and everyone is happy then why should I, or anyone else, interfere? I read these types of posts calling people cheaters on other forums devoted to different hobbies and I just don't get it. Heck, I bought a Schwinn Moab 1 at a pawn shop for $95 a few years back knowing that was a smokin' deal. I guess I should have walked in there and told them to mark it up since they were selling it too cheap.

Back in 1995-96 I had a guy that I worked with offer to sell me his 1992 Camaro RS convertible for $8,200. I told him that I would get the money and we would do the deal. Someone told him that he was selling it way too cheap and he backed out. I didn't try and force the deal, but I was sure going to take advantage of it if he would have followed through with it. I offered to give him what he was asking and I wouldn't have felt bad at all.

In today's world with instant information at your fingertips, you should do your own due diligence.

:roflmao2:

You think that's funny? Get a load of an actual example from our local C-list:


'68 Caddy - $1500 (pompano)
Date: 2011-12-31, 12:00PM EST
Reply to: sale-u2x6c-2776965820@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]
OBO. 472 Big block. Needs minor restoration. Remote start, shaved door handles, remote doors. Clifford alarm system.

http://images.craigslist.org/5L95W05Fa3Kd3Lb3Jdbcvd4225448ed181718.jpg

http://images.craigslist.org/5N15Ia5H53G83L33Mbbcvd1a4666508eb1f6d.jpg

http://images.craigslist.org/5K15H75J53Lc3p43Hebcvba8755d14af1194d.jpg

I'd like to see what's "minor" about forming a new front hood clip, and blasting away all the surface rust - which has probably pitted the surface by now.

-Kurt

I answered an ad for a wheelset for $60.00 The seller bragged that he worked at a bike shop and they were in great shape. I only had 7sp and 8sp bikes at the time, so I asked the seller if they were Shimano 8-sp compatible. He assured me they were.

He repeated that he worked at a bike shop, and named the shop. My friend "roccobike" picked them up for me.
He thought they were nice, and Al knows his stuff.

When I got them home, I quickly realized my 8sp cassettes wouldn't fit. I went to Sheldon Brown for advice, and learned of "10-sp only." It seems from 2004-2008, there were some 10-sp freehubs that had extra-deep splines due to different materials being used in the carrier.

So, I sent an email to the seller, Mr. Bike Expert, advising of the 10-sp only capability of the wheelset. I asked if I could bring them back. He said "no way, you don't know what you're talking about. I work at a bike shop." I emailed him the photos from Sheldon's web site.

He said "I don't care, I'm not refunding your money." Not a problem. I re-listed them on CL, referenced the rip-off and the bike shop. I soon got an email from the owner of the bike shop, asking the problem. I explained. He said "_ _ _ _" will be glad to work it out."

At the same time, I got a 2-page email from "_ _ _ _" calling me every name in the book, heated to the point of fusion. I simply forwarded it to the shop owner. Within an hour, the owner said "_ _ _ _" will work it out. A second flaming email followed.

I left the CL listing up, and rec'd a note from the shop owner asking that it come down. I altered my ad to state that, while the seller works at "____" bike shop, the sale was neither one the shop transacted nor was misrepresentation a common business practice there.

I cleaned up the wheels and sulked. A few months later, I happen across a handlebar, 10-sp STI's attached, sitting on the floor of my LBS, next to a box that contained a 10-sp cassette, RD, and chain. Went home with it all for $105. Within a couple more months, I had my group, for about $220. I promptly put it on an Ironman and rode it like the whole mess was meticulously planned.

This is hilarious. Thanks for telling it so well.

I don't really have anything bad, although I've had several people get mad at me when free stuff I offer is gone. Long story short, I've found more than one usable bike in the trash, and instead of having them go to the dump, I just recycle them on cl. For free. Since I wouldn't find any of them if it weren't for my collection of stray dogs, I've decided the next usable one I find will go on cl for a ten dollar donation to a local dog type charity.

To explain, the bikes are left by the trash in the alleys where I walk (and even found one of) my dogs.