Shifty

I need to sell my 1984 Specialized Expedition, 56 cm. I bought it new and have traveled thousands of miles on it, but I'm not as tall as I was then, and it's a bit too large for me now. It's all original except for saddle and pedals, and in A- condition. I even have the Expedition water bottles that came with the new bike and Tailwind panniers for the front.

What do you think I should ask for the bike, and where should I post it for sale?

mparker326

Looks to be in very good condition. Ebay for top dollar. I'd say you will get >$500 for it as these are sought after bikes. You will need better pics though.

wrk101

ebay is the land of variance. Same item can sell for 3X and 1X on the same day. Better have a strong marketing plan, willingness and ability to ship at a reasonable cost, and gold plated feedback (as a seller). If so, that's where you will get the most $$. Otherwise, look to the yahoo group for Specialized Expeditions. Bike has a strong following.

Do not expect ebay type money for a local sale or a forum sale. That's not realistic.

Your choice, I sell on ebay every week, but it can be painful (gain is worth the pain).

Ignore some of the ridiculous asking prices on ebay, that is becoming more and more common. Most of those sharks rarely sell a bike. Instead, look at completed auctions, ones that actually sold. You will see a nice one sold today for $650, plus $100. It was the only bid (seller started it high). More and more, that is my strategy on ebay. Rather than assume you will get auction fever among buyers, just start it at a price you find acceptable, and be prepared to only get one bid. (FWIW, one sold two months ago for $750 plus shipping).

So if you go the ebay route, I would start it somewhere between $650 and $750. May have to repost it a few times.

BBC has one listed right now for $1800. Total dreamland, they won't get it, and don't let the high asking price influence your pricing decision. Another ****er was asking $799 for his last week, it did not sell, so he just relisted it for $1400. Huh?? Problem with BBC is that it misleads naive sellers into thinking they can get those kind of prices.

ebay's fee (on a bicycle): 11% of the first $50, 6% over that. Over $1000, they lower the additional charge to 2%. Of course, you also have the paypal fee (2.9% plus 30 cents per transaction). I always just estimate 15%, which is a little on the high side, but close enough. Fee structure varies by the category.

It would be hard/impossible to get $650 for an Expedition here locally. Realize ebay's fees on that bike sale approached $90+, so seller really only netted $550 to $560. Still pretty good, but that price may be achievable locally since you are in a strong market. Ebay not only has the fees on the final selling price, they also take a cut out of paypal, and their final price fees include taking a slice from the shipping. Welcome to ebay....

Despite their fees, I regularly sell stuff (not many bikes though) for 3X to 10X what I could sell for locally. So I do not have a problem with them getting their piece. Part of the cost of reaching a national or even international market.

Also realize that buyers win any/all disputes. My favorite was on a pair of blue womens shoes I sold. I had full sized pics in the ad. Buyer complained that the shoes did not match her blue dress, so ebay ruled in her favor, I ate my shipping, lost the sale, etc. Fortunately, most ebay transactions go through without a problem.

allysdad531

hi,your "84 expedition looks very clean and original(?) from what insight the pics show;you need to post VERY CLEAR HIGH RESOLUTION PICS if you want to get close to what its worth;as you hopefully know,your frame was built(likely) by Miyata and is frighteningly similar to Miyata 100,both of which are top notch touring frames/bikes...PLEASE post pics of driveside Clearly displaying drivetrain,brakes,hubs,wheels etc as that makes All the difference!......Not a whole lot of Expeditions were built between appx 83-86,Tim Neenan of Lighthouse cycles designed them and they are still very much sought after.....If you can document your bike"s condition and provenance it will help the value.......Best of luck!...I think you should ride the heck out of it as its a great riding and very versatile bike and MUCH "nicer and better" than most current Non custom built touring,randonneuse,audax,gravel grinder all-rounder bikes(or frames) offered currently.

FastJake

wrk101 covered it very well as always, but I can't help repeating that you MUST HAVE DRIVESIDE photos in any ad you post. Especially on a bike of this caliber, the ad matters a lot. For an ad you'll need many more photos, and a description of the specific components on the bike (shifters, derailers, hubs, rims, etc.)

jyl

Beautiful bike and you took good care of it.

You're close to Portland which is a strong market.

I would suggest taking very good and detailed pictures, hosting them on a site like photobucket. Then listing on Craigslist, forums, yahoo group, etc using links to those pictures. Be willing to ship. Maybe try that for awhile before resorting to eBay.

Most times, selling in spring is better that in winter. Not sure if that applies to a bike of this caliber?