PapaToad

I live here in Northern Kalifornia and I don't understand bike prices. I see what seem to be OUTRAGEOUS prices on bikes, frames, and parts... who's paying these prices and why here where the market is flooded? Example... $50 for a Trek 930 frame and fork with trashed paint and old bits. PLEASE enlighten me.

jet sanchEz

You can ask for any price you want on Craigslist, there are no rules. Whether they sell at those prices is another thing all together.

Wolfwerx

On CL, you start your prices high because you expect to be haggled down.

wahoonc

It is worth what someone is willing to pay for it. I have learned to set prices higher than what I expect to get, people want to haggle so they think they are getting a good deal. Me I will pay what I am willing to pay, if it requires a bit of haggling, so be it. But I won't pay more just because someone is too proud of something. I have no problem with paying a fair price and will pay a premium for somethings. But I am not into the getting something for nothing mindset of too many people.

Aaron

unterhausen

I can't see $50 as fitting the description "outrageous." It's high, but it's the right order of magnitude. If they were asking much over $100, that's getting into outrageous territory

wrk101

Prices are determined two ways. First, sellers can ask whatever they want for a bike, ridiculous, low, and everything in between. Secondly, the market decides what bikes are worth. If people in your market will pay those prices, then that's what they are going to sell for. I am always surprised/nearly stunned to see what bikes sell for in San Fran and Portland, OR. But that's what those markets are like.

To expect a seller to ask under market, is a transfer of wealth from the seller to the buyer. I frequently get the sob story from the "poor" college student, on needing a break on a bike, being short of cash, etc. I tell them I know exactly how they feel, being unemployed/retired, living on a fixed income, etc. And of course, most of those SOB emails come to me from their iPad, iPhone, etc...

Buyers in those red hot areas can choose to not participate/buy their bikes elsewhere. Every time I go on vacation in a car, I bring back bikes and bike stuff. If I lived in San Fran or Portland, I would be buying on vacation, or having families or friends outside the area facilitate for me.

+ In an area where Huffys go for $150, $50 for a high end Trek MTB that needs a repaint is not outrageous.

+1 Regardless of the asking price, I limit offers to what an item is worth to me. The seller has the right to take or reject that offer, no problem. So sometimes I walk, sometimes I strike a deal.

OldsCOOL

Market values do seem a touch high on the reasonable end in most markets....but that is totally subjective to needs/wants of the buyer.

On the good side of this "vintage" boom we are seeing is the digging through barns and basements to offer some nice and sometimes rare bikes if you dont mind sifting through the "golden chalice" huffy's some think they are

RaleighSport

Ohhh a fellow Sonoma Countian, yeah our prices are ****ed. But there deals to be had, assuming you're not a flipper there's tons and tons and tons of hidden gems out there, like that "raliegh mountainbike" that was going for 50 bucks for several weeks/months (I'll assume you saw it given your location). What kind of bikes are you interested in? I also may know a shop or two you'd be interested in, first one I'd reccomend to you since you seem to want older stuff would be uncle crusty's.

PapaToad

I get that... but when I (respectfully) make offers I'm often met with umpteen reasons why that.... is SO valuable,desireable etc. Guess I'm a clueless dunce or somethin' cause if I paid those prices even though I do all my own fab and wrenching those builds would be worth a fortune... or $100.00 if I'm the seller. Enough of my ranting!

TugaDude

As stated in posts above, value is in the eyes of the beholder. My advice to counteract the situation you describe would be to do your research. When they portray their bike as the holy grail, be prepared with market information gleaned from Ebay, CL and this forum. Ask them (in a nice way) if it such an awesome bike why they are selling it. Can't tell you how many times I've seen ads extolling the virtues of a particular bike and the pic shows a bike with a saddle nosed way down or a saggy chain, you get the point.

I think Bill hit the nail on the head. Offer what YOU think it is worth, based upon your desire and research. If the seller says no, give them your contact info so that in case they have a change of heart they can contact you later on. I've had this happen to my benefit.

Finally, be patient. Ususually when I buy a bike I see one listed the next day that is equally or more interesting and I am now out of "bike money". So goes it.

RaleighSport

You're not clueless at all, and I score my bikes usually for way less then the area prices but I don't hunt in the usual spots.. and it's very very very hit or miss. I've often ranted about our area's bike economy as well so I totally sympathize.

wahoonc

Some sellers are clueless, they see the name Schwinn or Raleigh or??? and have watched just one too many episodes of American Picker or Storage Wars and automatically think they have a gold mine. I walk away from those people, most of them you cannot get through to about the real value of what they have. Some people have the mentality "if it's old it is gold"...they have been making crap for centuries, just seems they make more now than they used to or the crap stuff has gotten crappier. Not sure on that count.

Aaron

RaleighSport

Where the OP and I live, is a very affluent area.. and to boot we're at about the furthest end of the bay area making us semi-remote (well as remote as this area allows anyhow). Our bike market is almost without compare in terms of high prices on bikes most of the rest of you would laugh at! At the same time though, the people paying those prices find these bikes much more disposable then us poor commoners do, and they can be had from dumpsters etc when the weekend warrior bike mechanic dumps his C&V beaut and gets a CF beast!

randyjawa 

Three fundamental criteria should be in place for something to become collectable - Familiarity, Interest and Availability.

Anyway, for those who take the time to read through the page linked, you will come away with a better understanding of why I believe, absolutely, that today is the best time to get a vintage road bicycle because tomorrow it will cost more!

curbtender

You have the Bike CZAR up your way. He posts tons of bikes at premium prices. The average Joe see's this and they think they have a gold mine.

PapaToad

+1 for Uncle Crusty's! I've known Frank for many years and we have done one NICE build already. He has another 930 I'll probably get and build. I'm just sayin... thanks all

RaleighSport

LoL I know, I'm the one who posted up the "Czar" remade possible Nishiki or Univega for what was it 500 or 600? Meanwhile Sekai 2500's get sold for 250-300 here!

RaleighSport

What kinda bikes do you ride? I don't get over that way much but Frank is the guy who sold me my super course frame for 30 I think it was...

Miyata110

From what I see (by no means is this a cycling hotbed) there are three types of sellers:

- The completely ignorant (very rare) - just looking to get rid of an "old ten speed" where deals can be had
- The dangerously ignorant (unfortunately quite common) - has a decent bike that they think is ultra rare and are asking a ridiculous price for
- The reasonable guy (my main interactions) - knows what he has, wants a fair price, isn't try to send the kids to college on a bike.

The seller described by the OP sounds like the last. I mean, maybe it isn't worth $50 - but it is only $50! It's hard for me to think anything at $50 is outrageous these days.

stalag13

Try California, the prices might be more agreeable.

PapaToad

RS, I'm kinda hooked on the " older" hybrids and MTBs. I've been building them up and either giving them away or upgrading my "trekking" bikes. I commute by bicycle too so these bikes are USED.

curbtender

Check this out for me.... https://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/bik/2848335760.html

RaleighSport

Well if that's what your into, I'll let ya in on a little secret, the Meecham Rd dump, and the one in healdsburg are both excellent sources of mtb/hybrids at 5-20 bucks at most, but being as you already knew about Frank you probably already know about that too.

Edit: I know a good salvage yard in windsor too, but it's even more infrequent it has anything.

howeeee

The guys that think start way high so they can haggle you down, I think are wrong.
I have sold about 200 Schwinns in the last 2 years..I price them at what I think they are worth and what I think they will sell for,,if a guy wants to haggle me down 10 bucks no problem. When I am buying bikes and I see a way high price. I move on,,thinking the guy doesnt have a clue,,so why even mess around with him.

I rarely have to post my bikes twice, cause I price them right in the first place, the guys pricing high sometimes repost their bikes for months on end.

esldude

Hey if it is near the vintage of my 930 it has double butted True Temper Ox Comp tubing in the frame. Some years had triple butted. This is a modern air hardening heat treated steel a cut above Reynolds 531 tubing. If the frame is good, try getting anything else with that quality tubing for $50. Those frame geometries were quite good for single track use.

Sure, by the time you put all the components on it you could go buy a pretty good new bike or newer bike for sure. But that is always the equation with frames. Even buying a very new frame and building it up is much more expensive than a whole bike. Yet some people do it.

Further it could be like a 950 I knew of near me. Guy bought one for $50 with good frame in a condition that could be ridden though everything was worn out. However, he had just gotten a broken framed Rockhopper with all great parts he could switch over to this one. For peanuts and the time doing the work he had a pretty nice bike in the end.

If a frame from good quality tubing and good basic build quality isn't worth $50 then what is it worth? If you think $10 is fair, most people would just as soon toss it in the trash as bother advertising it for that. Then you get someone posting here about scoring a good frame in a dumpster and listing all the stuff they will put onto it.