This recession thing is getting annoying,(workwise and lifestyle) and I think it will impact on our Love (C+V) ,Question is= will the Flippers still Flip ? will some of us have to sell some of our beloved collections off ? will the wives and girlfriends not be so accommodating towards our passion ? (as if they were,lol) things are gonna change my friends whether we like it or not, do you think it wil affect you ? and how ? (Not trying to put a downer here,maybe there could be a posative out of all this ) what say you ?

Sure, it already has in a few ways:

1. I bought my first bike when gas reached 3 dollars last spring, so the recession actually got me into cycling.

2. I don't use any money from my paycheck to buy anything for my bikes, I donate plasma and have flipped a few.

With higher oil prices maybe more American cities will find ways to better accommodate cyclists. Larger cities have started but not so much where I live.

Sure it has. People are cleaning out their attics and garages and parting with bikes that were simply not on the market last year.

1-The entry into the market of aluminum entry-level STI bikes at $200-up has impacted C&V buying by first-time bikers.

2-The same situation has not only siphoned off customers, it's impacted the price if you HAVE to sell.

3-Now, it appears the mid-level bikes being stored because they cost more to buy, but aren't being ridden anymore, are hitting the market. This is great for buyers, and see 1) and 2) above.

4-Tolerance for biking is a wee bit higher, as people stop and think a wee bit more. Not much.

... Bicycles suddenly become secondary as a hobby and almost mandatory as transportation and as potential income generators. I wonder if there's a market for suburban and rural bicycle curriers - "Have B.O.B. - Will Deliver"

It may be just beginning for me. The day job is in no immediate danger, but I have to be careful of how much I buy flipper bikes for, and how much I put into them in parts. My labor has to be pretty cheap. Fixed gears are still selling well though. There are other flippers in the Indy area, and my bikes run a bit more, but I am the only one doing fixed gear and SS conversions, and my multispeed flippers are all fully reconditioned. The other flippers are selling them as-is or with minimal massaging.

geek

It's affecting the hell out of me. My cheap-ass company stopped hiring, and now I'm working 50-60 hour weeks. At least I'm not salaried - that would really suck.

On the bright side, restoring and riding C&V on the cheap now makes more sense than ever. In the modern group rides, the rest are worrying about keeping up their spending and their status in the conspicuous consumption pecking order.

A second round of layoffs was announced about a week ago. I'm thankful to still be employed.
On the other hand, I found out today the remaining parent has about six months.

Just got back to full time at the bike shop, spring is around the corner and people are buying. Of course things are not as bad here in Canada as in the US especially on the west coast. We're pretty sheltered in the capital city as well.... government, education, science and technology as well as military are the big employers here, those are all pretty stable jobs and those people are the ones carrying the service industry. In the early months of this year high end bike sales were decent. Now people are come out of the wood work for the low end bread and butter bikes. All signs point to a more or less "normal" season in the bike shops.

The recession is improving my bike hobby. When I first started I planned on getting myself a few bikes and then calling it quits. That quickly changed. Especially now when people are forced to sell their bikes just to stay afloat due to the outrageous prices of houses and apartments around here. I'm starting to pick up nice bikes for less than the cost of a meal at McDonalds.

In addition to getting bikes cheaper, I'm also able to sell them quicker. Department store bikes are like hotcakes. I buy one for $5, put $6 of tubes in it, $1 of grease, sell it for $25 thus doubling my money. And that's for the cheapo huffys. Next and Mongoose bring even more. Roadmasters are gold. If I sold 1 roadmaster a week, I could buy a 70s high end raleigh every month. There's no way I could live on this, but I only do it as a hobby. I don't make much at work, but I always have the option of working 24 hours a day to make more money. Energy pills and Monster are my best friends. My organs hate me though

Selling mid-range bikes isn't doing as well...yet. You can pick up a running driving car for $300, so why spend $200 on a bike? However, those $300 cars are being grabbed up as fast as they appear now, so I think that bikes for under $250 will start selling very well.

The place where I work on/store/sell my bikes is right on a major bike trail, so I constantly have people asking if I do maintenance on them. As for now I say no, that's for the LBS. But if I ever need any more pocket change, that'll change quickly. I don't want to hurt their business though because they're the only place in town that I can buy 700c tubes and tires.

One thing I've noticed is the substantial increase in used parts on CL around here. Seems like every day someone is trying to sell off the stuff they had buried for a few bucks. There's also been a large increase in high priced bikes. Most of these are terrible buys because the owner has not grasped reality and thinks their 4 year old aluminum frame with Ultegra 10 speed is still worth 90% of what they paid, but it shows some folks are parting with some really nice bikes. Not much has changed on the C&V front, pretty much the same, high prices for 70's & 80's low end bikes.

This winter, it seems to me, was almost devoid of the usual temptation-filled offerings that have, over the past three winters, had me salivating and buying.

If there's one thing I've noticed, it's that the fear of not being able to get reasonable money for a great bike has sellers holding off on until 'season' hits (If they even put 'em up then).

Being laid off since the middle of last August has really put a stop to much of my project work.

I recently accepted a job (for about 60% of what I was making) so the future isn't much brighter. At least it is finally getting to be Springtime around here so I can console myself with some riding.

I thought that would be the case, but I sure haven't seen it yet. I think that as the recession drags on, prices will necessarily start to drop. I think. But countering that downward pressure on prices will be upward pressure as more people take up cycling. I guess it remains to be seen which force will be greater.

I think that's true. As financial pressures act to get more people on bikes, they and their families will become more aware of the need for tolerance towards cyclists.

Sell them.

Major effect. My plant closed up last Sept.. There is not a sniff of a job around here. All the other saleried folks got together a couple of weeks ago and only one of them has found a job and he is commuting almost 2 hours each way. It ain't good out there fellas do do what you must to keep your job. Good luck

If I ever needed the money, I would! But they'd probably be rejected...

Actually consider myself to be in great shape. I can usually stay up for 24 hours without any caffeine. Just a few energy bars and I'm good. People have gotten used to me being the only person in the neighborhood with the garage doors open, lights on, music playing, and a bunch of bikes laying around getting wrenched on at 2 in the morning. Even the cops have accepted it. This is the reason why so many people want me to work on their bikes. They know that the LBS is open for the same hours that they have to work, so they can never go there. However I'm only there in the evenings and saturdays, the exact opposite of the LBS.

From a buying perspective - I think offerings are low. I've lately I've hit some real e-bay bargains in the past month from $6 suntour superbe levers to a $75 for a 2nd 60's Frejus frame to $5 for a suntour shifter set. Demand is down, sellers are recognizing it and holding onto things longer. Just the e-bay offerings on suntour superbe stuff, which I've been picking up lately, is about half of what it was a few months ago.

I am in a growing area of work during a bad economy, so although things are tight and hours are long, I am one of the lucky few. If you can do it - it's a good time to refinance, rates are around 4.8%.