I have bought a lot of bikes and other items off Craigslist. I assume sellers are clueless, and around here that is the case 99% of the time. As a buyer, you need to know exactly what you need, or the risk of buying the wrong item is high.

I drove a long distance last Sunday to buy a bike. It was really frustrating, as the picture did not match the bike being sold, it was totally different model (a crappy one unfortunately). Seller thought his bike was "just like it". Another lesson for me, ask the seller: "Is the bike you have pictured in the ad the bike you are selling?"

Seller was also a liar. He said he bought it new, and rode it for only a couple of years. Well, the seller was all of 21 years old, and the bike was a 1983 Miyata..... I guess I should have asked him when he bought the bike new, as I could have saved a lot of time and fuel.

This is the only time I have run into a seller who was a liar. Running into clueless sellers, and sellers who have brain fade, is very common.