gioscinelli 

I've noticed that there's a seller or sellers hijacking Craigslisting. There are no photos just a description and "good condition"
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Have other's experience the same issue?

bear_a_bug 

That's funny, I noticed the same thing in the last week. I thought it was something with my computer, maybe.

Not sure what the scam is, though. It looks more like an issue with CL than an actual scammer.

Steve Whitlatch 

I have noticed. Sometimes he takes up the whole page with nondescript listings with no images. I want to break his fingers.

smontanaro 

This is one of those cases where if the sale was going to take place (seller sends you pix, you think they are fine, price is acceptable), I'd take advantage of the fact that many local police departments have begun to allow CL transactions in their vicinity (lobby parking lot).

Steve Whitlatch 

The way this guy litters CL with ads would make me never call him to begin with. He does not tell you what brand or model the bike is. He just says Red road bike with 10 gears, or Vintage Raleigh, red with pretty tires. I think he is just a troll trying to take up ad space on the pages? He has so many ads up. He also repeats the ads. I have never tried contacting him. I guess I could ask him why all the ads that say nothing?

Spaghetti Legs 

A lot of this stuff is low level phishing to get email/phone contact info for resale.

Vintage_Cyclist

Scams on Craislist? Say it ain't so!

mstateglfr 

Seems like a really slow way to get email addresses...what does he get- manybe a handful of email addresses?...and that's only if the buyers dont go thru CL's email program.

There are far easier ways to gather far more emails.

CliffordK

Those are a lot of high-end bikes being listed without photos.

Perhaps it is just a lazy pawn shop owner.

Or, if the seller is intentionally trying to fence stolen goods, then he might choose to hide the identity of the bikes.

Spaghetti Legs 

I would guess bot driven. Reply to ad, get a response asking for a phone or email. I've gotten responses to CL ads before that read like from a real person asking for contact info. Something like " Hi, sorry for the slow reply. I'm interested in your ad, is it still available? Please send me a text or email so we can meet."

gioscinelli 

Here's a suggestion, I used bundled and hidden, which amounted to 154 listings on CL. It used to be you could and others de-list, but not anymore.

Slightspeed

Last night on ebay I saw a Campagnolo 50th anniversary group in a fitted case for $20, Buy it now, free shipping! From China. It had a nice picture. Screenshot below (not photoshopped!)

mstateglfr 

Yeah, i get all sorts of CL messages like that as I refurbish and sell a handful of bikes each year. Texts that ask me to email. Emails that ask me to text. Emails that ask me to hold it for a sister who is at church(on a random Tuesday morning) due to the buyer being out of town and God bless.
etc etc etc.

I just find it to be an incredibly slow way to collect emails or phone numbers, even if bot driven, due to what i believe is the low response rate.
There are significantly cheaper ways to collect significantly more email addresses in significantly less time. <---significant.

CliffordK

Of course there are the legit buyers too.

Hopefully the legit buyers provide a little more info.

I have a part I'm trying to buy locally for over a week. The seller responds by e-mail every couple of days, and apparently still has it, but so far has refused to provide his phone number, or an address, or a place or a time to meet. I'm a few miles out of town (and car-free), so it is easiest to combine trips. Sometimes I'm tired headed home, but still, I'd do the extra 5 to 10 mile loop, if only I had the contact info.

I don't really have any questions other than how to meet the buyer and make the purchase. The photo and description are clear enough. Maybe... "is it stolen"? Which I'm sure will get a truthful answer.
You can still flag ads as "prohibited". It hides the ad for you, but I think a few "prohibited" clicks, and it takes the ad down.

CliffordK

About half the Craigslist sellers publish phone numbers. If one wanted phone numbers (and didn't want to use the phone book), then one could harvest phone numbers from Craigslist, unless Craigslist shuts down the click if one opens more than 1000 or so ads a day.

Of course, it could be someone wanting you to ship the bike to Nigeria. They'll send you a good cashiers check. Promise it is GOOD. And they'll even pay you a hefty bonus.

Spaghetti Legs 

Oh I've done a couple that way. As soon as the Prince's funds are released from the bank I'm totally gonna be set for life!

loxx0050

There is a guy in my area that posts ads like that and is not a scammer. Just an older gentleman that isn't so tech savvy but runs a bike business out of his garage. Performing tune-ups, selling economy tires/tubes and installation of said items for cheap too. He typically is selling older bikes he rebuilt (most likely he took them in trades for other bikes he had or garage sale finds I think). Something to do in his spare time since he is retired (probably before he retired he did it for extra income). I know because I met him as he lived only a few miles from me. I bought a couple of bikes from him actually (vintage Schwinn with friction shifters at the top of the head tube with dual position brake levers with the extra handle and a late 90's Giant Kronos with index downtube shifters). He also placed local ads for coupons on his services in the local mailing flyers and such. First time he saw an STI shifter and worked on one was when I brought a bike in for him to tune the rear derailleur for me (before I learned how to do it myself) about 6 years ago.

His ads weren't the most descriptive and would post a dozen or so at a time (noticed when I used to scour craigslist on a regular basis). But he does include a phone number. Here are a few of his ads (did a quick search and glad that is still at it).

https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/h...280987815.html

https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/h...290157496.html

This one might be his I think:

https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/h...288864204.html

gioscinelli 

There are no descriptions of size or equipment, which leads me to believe it's a scam. Ad's are all over from different locals, like picking out an ad and using it, like the auctions on eBay from a sellers in China with no ratings and you'll find the original seller posting...

Clang

Finally I know the deal with Chuck from Brooklyn Park. His ads are uniformly atrocious.