I've found 500+ brand-new, in-the-box bicycles from the 1970's. The bikes are mostly steel-frame, midrange models from (primarily) Raleigh & C-Itoh. They mostly have 5-speed freewheels & downtube shifters (except for the models that have suicide brake levers & a shifter box atop the stem). The upper-midrange models have decent tubing, and a few, (about 25-30) have Reynolds 531 tubesets.

The boxes have been kept in a dark, climate-controlled environment, and the rubber tires (27x1-and-a-quarter, mostly) and brake hoods show little or no sign of dry rot. The sizes run in an inverse bell curve between the small and large, with most of the 56-58cm sizes gone.

The owner is eager to recover his warehouse space and is willing to deal. Assuming that I'd have to rent my own warehouse, a truck to transport the boxes, and labor to move them; also assuming that I'd have to advertise the bikes on e-Bay over a long-enough time frame to keep from interfering with my regular "irregular" job (as a safety conultant); and also assuming that I'm doing this for profit, not for giggles; what price should I offer per bike to take the lot?

The owner also has an additional 500 or so children's bikes of the same vintage (mostly with 20" wheels). The owner may be willing to sell those as well. What additional price per bike should I offer for the children's bikes using the same assumptions as above?

This question may be beyond the scope of this forum, and paying for the advice of a business consultant may be advised. I've sold bikes (all used, all personal) on e-Bay over the past two years, but this is a new scale for me. Also, if I opt to do this, the enterprise becomes a business and taxes must also be taken into account against eventual profits.

Pardon the ramble, but I'm thinking as I go here... Yet another option would be to buy just the 531-tubeset models and walk away from the rest. I certainly won't get as good a price, but the profit may be the same with less work.

What say you businesswomen & men?