General Cycling Discussion - How do you sell a used bike?

I want to sell 2 bikes (a road bike and a hybrid) serving as my commuters and get a single bike that does what both are doing now. Essentially I want a road-bike position with ability to have wide (700-38+ width) tires, frame braze-ons for ....nevermind, you get the picture. Anyway, How would you suggest I go about selling them.

There is one shop in town that will take bikes as trade-ins on new bikes, but I have a feeling that's a bad way to go. At the same time, it may be my best bet since I know I'll get "something" for them. Ebay is an option, but I have no current presence on ebay, so I'm afraid people would avoid me....2 bike listings with no other listings or purchases? I've read that people try to avoid sellers like that. Is there something I can do to make people feel better about buying from me? Then there's the classified ads somewhere approach.

Can anyone give me some suggestions? Thanks.

I do really good with Ebay, Describe it truthfully, even the bad stuff, take extra pictures (4 to 6) & have a LBS package it for you (last time they charged me $30, up from $20 last year). Ship it FED EX GROUND (Cheaper). and send the buyer a tracking number. Extra Insurance IMHP (In My Humble Opinion) is useless as they usually don't pay. Be sure NOT to underestimate shipping. Explain in you description that you are new to Ebay and will provide references. Sign up for and use PAYPAL. Note: they charge you a couple percent off the top.

I've sold probably 10 bikes on ebay, only one problem - a bike I packaged myself. It was damaged and I gave the buyer an option of taking the bike back (full refund) or telling me what he thought was a fair refund to have it fixed.
He chose sending it back. I refunded in full, took the bike apart - sold the parts and came out almost as good.

Good Luck!

Many LBSs around here have bulletin boards where people can post bikes for sale. Several local bikes clubs here also have "classified" listings on their web sites and newsletters. Why are you leery of the shop's trade-in policy?

craigslist

Definitely craigslist. You can upload pictures, and it's free to post.

Koffee

Try www.craigslist.org (http://www.craigslist.org) first, it's free, you can set your own price, insert pics, and it's regional, buyers usually come pick-up.

If this doesn't work, then try eBay as suggested above. eBay will bring a lot of traffic to your posting if well presented and detailed (don't overdo it though). No previous feedback is no real problem if you answer queries truly and honestly.

Start with a low value to attract bidders (this will save you $ too) and set a reserve value a little under ,or at your breakeven point, everything above is profit. Don't post with a fixed price at the $ you expect.

Good bikes sell well on eBay, often overprice IMHO.

Good luck.

You can send me the specs of the roadbike and I might be interested,otherwise use craigslist. I don't realy trust ebay and they charge more on fees than you might think.

imho, ebay is only a good choice if you want a bike sold fast and doesn't take too much of your time. Some bikes will sell well (overbid). Other bikes, probably your hybrid, won't do so well. Low-end road bikes also don't do well. Considering the added cost of shipping, packaging, ebay & paypal fees, etc...you may get a higher price locally.

Having said that, I've found selling locally to be a big timesuck. People will often not reply to emails, sometimes not show up when they say they will, etc. Can take weeks or months. Depending on where you are, craigslist alone will probably not give your ad enough visibility.