For the love of English 3 speeds...
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My understanding is that S-A AW hubs with no date = 1936 or whatever the first year on the market was.
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Probably safe to say it's around '47-48 with that serial, but definitely want to see what the Dyno has marked on it.
-Kurt
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Is that a top tube gear selector erroneously put on the handle bars? It will have three positions Low N High. Those selectors were pre - WW2. It looks like a Humber No 56 Utility bike. Certainly the red pinstripes (there should be some gold as well) make it a 56 and a front dynohub was an optional extra. In the 1936 catalog they sold for £8. 2 shillings and 6 pence.
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I will remove it and see.
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Is that a top tube gear selector erroneously put on the handle bars? It will have three positions Low N High. Those selectors were pre - WW2. It looks like a Humber No 56 Utility bike. Certainly the red pinstripes (there should be some gold as well) make it a 56 and a front dynohub was an optional extra. In the 1936 catalog they sold for £8. 2 shillings and 6 pence.

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You won't have to pull the Dynohub to get a date - it'll be on the inside of the large flange on the shell.

-Kurt
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Raleigh/Eatons Glider
a tidy example.

something going on with the headset.....
Missing spacer/bracket?
Replaced forks?

Over priced @ $250.00
a tidy example.

something going on with the headset.....
Missing spacer/bracket?
Replaced forks?

Over priced @ $250.00
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My experience with the "no date" AW hubs is that they tended to be produced shortly before and shortly after WWII. How late they went, I do not know. Internally they were a fairly early generation of AW hub, from before the changes of the early 1950s. A late 1940s bike would be consistent.
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Classic American and British Roadsters, Utility Bikes, and Sporting Bikes (1935-1979):
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The concern with the cheap leather is not so much metal fatigue as it is flaking up chrome plating or encouraging pitting to start on metal. I've had several cheaper bags and saddles that turned out to be fine. But I've also seen some where the residual chemicals leave the leather and then rust steel that is in contact (and in some cases, cause corrosion on brass as well). That looks like a nice leather barrel bag, and if you've had it for quite awhile without problems, then it's a keeper.
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Trigger shifter
My mistake. Trigger shifters were all postwar. A 1936 dynohub would probably not have keyhole spoke eyelets on the small hub flange as depicted in foto. They would have simple holes requiring curly spoke ends.
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Mildew
The concern with the cheap leather is not so much metal fatigue as it is flaking up chrome plating or encouraging pitting to start on metal. I've had several cheaper bags and saddles that turned out to be fine. But I've also seen some where the residual chemicals leave the leather and then rust steel that is in contact (and in some cases, cause corrosion on brass as well). That looks like a nice leather barrel bag, and if you've had it for quite awhile without problems, then it's a keeper.
They do point out they use a traditional organic tanning process and their goods should not be left wet.
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Oh yes very overpriced. I have one almost identical that I bought for $60 and that was overpaying! However it did get me back into IGH after many years. Paint faded significantly and has lost the proper green......ah well, a project for the future.
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FYI, I just put this one in the FS forum, but as a pay-it-forward - cover the shipping (and don't part it out) and it's yours. I'd like to see it stay within the BF C&V family:
PAY SHIPPING: 1951 Raleigh Sports (21" ladies' frame)

-Kurt
PAY SHIPPING: 1951 Raleigh Sports (21" ladies' frame)

-Kurt
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FYI, I just put this one in the FS forum, but as a pay-it-forward - cover the shipping (and don't part it out) and it's yours. I'd like to see it stay within the BF C&V family:
PAY SHIPPING: 1951 Raleigh Sports (21" ladies' frame)

-Kurt
PAY SHIPPING: 1951 Raleigh Sports (21" ladies' frame)

-Kurt
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Exactly. If they were easier and less expensive to ship, the bikes could get where there's a demand for them. We have bike jumbles here where many older bikes change hands. I don't know if, through this link, it's possible to contact any of the vendors if you have bikes you'd like to move. Some of them may have the ability or a network to collect used bikes.New York Bike Jumble
I got a call about 5 weeks ago from a guy who replied to an ad for a pair of brand new road bike wheels from the late 70's. (Pair of new old stock Rigida rims with Campy hubs with two new 27x1" tires off a vintage Trek), he tells me how long he's been searching for those very wheels but he's in Springfield, MA. He asks if I'd ship them and I told him I didn't intend to ship anything, if I did they'd be on fleabay. He goes on and says he'll come get them the following weekend if we could agree on a price. I had $250 on the set of wheels, which were mint and in new condition. He tells me if I'd do $25 he'll make the drive. I told him these weren't Huffy wheels. Try again. He goes on about how old bike parts aren't worth anything and @$$#*^%s like me are why bikes and parts have gotten so expensive. If he had made a reasonable offer I'd have let them go but he called back at least 5 times asking if I changed my mind.
A woman two doors down has her husbands 1978 Raleigh Sports for sale, its been in the newspaper, on CL, and some of the phone apps for $150, but no takers. The bike is clean, one owner, not rusty, with original tires that are holding air. I rode it around the block after pumping up the tires for her. She hasn't gotten a serious offer yet. She's had a few goof balls who want it for $20, but no one serious. She offered it to me for $100, but I don't need another bike and if it won't sell here for her, its not going to sell for me either. I've already got four 1978 Raleigh Sports here waiting for me to get the time to go through them. All in just as nice a shape. I gave between $20 and $100 each for the one's I have from various sources last year and the year before. What I don't see here is the off brand English bikes, like Robin Hood, Hercules, or Dunelt, those are harder to find, and really hard to find in good shape.If she drops the price to $50, I may have to make it 5 in the basement waiting for me to get to them.
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Here's a nice one for sale
1966 CCM Galaxie 3 Speed
$150.00
1966 CCM Galaxie 3 Speed
$150.00

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Raleigh 3 speed rod brake bike

Apollo Vintage English 3 Speed (like a Schwinn) Ladies Bicycle - $35

Old bike - $40
$400
Posted 29 days ago
Apollo Vintage English 3 Speed (like a Schwinn) Ladies Bicycle - $35

Old bike - $40

Last edited by vintagebicycle; 04-09-21 at 11:15 PM.
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Odd Ball International Hybrid
A Norco Monshee...
Japanese parts, assembled in Canada with a Raleigh Dybno hub up front...
A Norco Monshee...
Japanese parts, assembled in Canada with a Raleigh Dybno hub up front...

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Saw this the other day on CL not too far from me, not my size though:
It doesn't look too bad for the price
Vintage Hercules men’s bicycle made in England - $80

____________________________________________________________________________________
For the most part around here CL and FB is flooded with junk people think are antiques. About 3/4 of the bikes listed are ladies models
which for the right price are good for parts, but only if they haven't sat outside for the last 40 years.
Very few seem to sell, unless their priced under $50 and in pristine condition.
I've been looking for several months for a decent parts bike to replace a rusty set of rims on one bike I have and so far all I see is either rusty junk or bikes priced in the stratosphere because they think their made of gold.
The problem is that even fairly priced bikes lately are not selling, I watched four or five Raleigh Sports and one Superb about 40 minutes from me go unsold all last summer, they were in better than average condition and the ad listed them as recently relubed and ready to ride. Each was listed in the $150 to $250 range. They sat there all year, about 40 minutes out of NYC. There's several auction flippers in the area that always have tons of used bikes, nothing special but generally someone could pick out a few decent rides for cheap there, most are on CL or FB. I spoke to the one woman a few weeks ago and she was completely done with bikes, she had 800 used bikes and couldn't get $20 a piece for them all year. (I bought a pair of really clean Huffy beach cruisers off her and one Schwinn for $50. The Schwinn was complete, but old, from the late 50's, but for $30, I couldn't let it sit there. I couldn't buy the tires for that much at Walmart. She told me most of the bikes she currently had have been there for over a year, she hadn't gone to an auction all last year due to Covid. She like everyone else kept hearing about this bike boom but it didn't happen here. We lost four bike shops last year that had been around for decades and like mentioned above, even Walmart seems to be getting out of the bike business, at least in the store here. I hadn't checked till this morning but all they have is a small portion of the bike rack left and nothing but a dozen or so tiny kids bikes, the type with 8 and 12" wheels, a one or two 20" full suspension bikes. There were no parts, no tires, no bike related isle at all anymore. Nearly half the rear of the store is now video games, TV's, cell phones, and laptops where there used to be two rows of bikes.
Them not selling bikes is no big deal but I'm sure it was a business decision driven by demand. Walmart didn't get where they are making bad decisions. I do remember walking past an 'in the isle' bike display there for years with four or five flowered beach cruisers that were starting to look pretty dated and rough from so many kids playing on them. They opened the store in 2008 and those bikes never seemed to move. Their sporting goods section is just as dated, I'd venture to guess they have the same lures and fishing tackle on the shelf from the day they opened.
We don't have a local Target and Kmart has been gone for years so I can't make any comparison there, but with no bike shops left, and no department stores selling bikes anymore, I don't see or hear of anyone complaining that they can't find a bike either. CL and FB is loaded with bikes, but many have been there for months, some for years.
Before the pandemic, bikes would sell faster, now I think its a matter of people not wanting to deal with strangers, I used to shop and sell on CL quite a bit here but lately most ads go without any replies and items I email about go unanswered. Especially on FB. CL is better than FB here, out of the probably 100 or so bikes on FB I've inquired about I've only gotten a reply once, and did end up buying the bike. A $25 Robin Hood that was in excellent condition. I had to email about 5 times though before I got a reply a week later, the woman said she never knows which emails are real so she doesn't answer any of them. I messaged about a Raleigh the other day, the bike has been up for two months for cheap and its in decent looking shape, but the seller has yet to give me an address. He keeps asking when I'm coming to see the bike but refuses to give me his address or phone number. I get that a lot on there,
CL is starting to get the same way, but most there will at least give you a contact number to call if you email.
It doesn't look too bad for the price
Vintage Hercules men’s bicycle made in England - $80

____________________________________________________________________________________
For the most part around here CL and FB is flooded with junk people think are antiques. About 3/4 of the bikes listed are ladies models
which for the right price are good for parts, but only if they haven't sat outside for the last 40 years.
Very few seem to sell, unless their priced under $50 and in pristine condition.
I've been looking for several months for a decent parts bike to replace a rusty set of rims on one bike I have and so far all I see is either rusty junk or bikes priced in the stratosphere because they think their made of gold.
The problem is that even fairly priced bikes lately are not selling, I watched four or five Raleigh Sports and one Superb about 40 minutes from me go unsold all last summer, they were in better than average condition and the ad listed them as recently relubed and ready to ride. Each was listed in the $150 to $250 range. They sat there all year, about 40 minutes out of NYC. There's several auction flippers in the area that always have tons of used bikes, nothing special but generally someone could pick out a few decent rides for cheap there, most are on CL or FB. I spoke to the one woman a few weeks ago and she was completely done with bikes, she had 800 used bikes and couldn't get $20 a piece for them all year. (I bought a pair of really clean Huffy beach cruisers off her and one Schwinn for $50. The Schwinn was complete, but old, from the late 50's, but for $30, I couldn't let it sit there. I couldn't buy the tires for that much at Walmart. She told me most of the bikes she currently had have been there for over a year, she hadn't gone to an auction all last year due to Covid. She like everyone else kept hearing about this bike boom but it didn't happen here. We lost four bike shops last year that had been around for decades and like mentioned above, even Walmart seems to be getting out of the bike business, at least in the store here. I hadn't checked till this morning but all they have is a small portion of the bike rack left and nothing but a dozen or so tiny kids bikes, the type with 8 and 12" wheels, a one or two 20" full suspension bikes. There were no parts, no tires, no bike related isle at all anymore. Nearly half the rear of the store is now video games, TV's, cell phones, and laptops where there used to be two rows of bikes.
Them not selling bikes is no big deal but I'm sure it was a business decision driven by demand. Walmart didn't get where they are making bad decisions. I do remember walking past an 'in the isle' bike display there for years with four or five flowered beach cruisers that were starting to look pretty dated and rough from so many kids playing on them. They opened the store in 2008 and those bikes never seemed to move. Their sporting goods section is just as dated, I'd venture to guess they have the same lures and fishing tackle on the shelf from the day they opened.
We don't have a local Target and Kmart has been gone for years so I can't make any comparison there, but with no bike shops left, and no department stores selling bikes anymore, I don't see or hear of anyone complaining that they can't find a bike either. CL and FB is loaded with bikes, but many have been there for months, some for years.
Before the pandemic, bikes would sell faster, now I think its a matter of people not wanting to deal with strangers, I used to shop and sell on CL quite a bit here but lately most ads go without any replies and items I email about go unanswered. Especially on FB. CL is better than FB here, out of the probably 100 or so bikes on FB I've inquired about I've only gotten a reply once, and did end up buying the bike. A $25 Robin Hood that was in excellent condition. I had to email about 5 times though before I got a reply a week later, the woman said she never knows which emails are real so she doesn't answer any of them. I messaged about a Raleigh the other day, the bike has been up for two months for cheap and its in decent looking shape, but the seller has yet to give me an address. He keeps asking when I'm coming to see the bike but refuses to give me his address or phone number. I get that a lot on there,
CL is starting to get the same way, but most there will at least give you a contact number to call if you email.
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I'm more than two hours from New York City here and about 45 min out of Philly, I list only bikes I happen upon that are too small for me or just not old enough.
Since this pandemic started CL, FB, and eBay have been pretty much dead for me. I sold two cheap bikes all last year, and both were ready to ride with good tires.
I listed a 1979 Raleigh Sports in chestnut brown all last year, the bike was one of those amazing survivors, complete with original tires that looked just fine. The paint was near perfect and the chrome was clean and shiny, I put it up for $275 obo. I never got a single email.I figured if I can't get at least $250 for it I;ll junk it for parts and make my money piece by piece but I hate taking apart nice bikes because no one is willing to pay a fair price. To top it all off, its a taller 23" frame.
Someone here made the comment that people have forgotten how to bargain, and that's very much the case here. If you list something for $250, in hopes to get $200, and someone only wants to pay $180, they don't email and make an offer, they just skip over it, Like I read above here, I've listed things for $500, and gotten no replies, only to sell it when I dropped the price by $5 and having the buyer say they had been looking for months for one.
If I see something I want or have been looking for, I don't much care what they're asking for it, I'm going to make an offer for what I think its worth, usually I'll shoot a bit low in hopes we can negotiate to where I want to be. More often than not lately, instead of a counter offer, I get either no response, or a nasty comment in return. Its gotten to the point where I'm actually surprised when I meet a personable seller who is willing to listen to a reasonable offer, or one that can even decline an offer without insults and nasty comments.
I had a buyer reply to an ad on CL two years ago for a mid 60's Hercules I was had listed. The bike was in good working order with new tires and looked pretty good overll with no rusty chrome anywhere. The wheels were perfect, it had two new tires and tubes on it, a Dynohub, and a Prestube rear rack. I had price it at $125..
After a few months I got an email from a woman who said the bike would be perfect for her husband and if I'd be around after work she'd like to come get it. She called me around 5pm and said she was on her way, and I waited around till 7 and no one showed up. I called her back and asked what happened and she tells me she's stuck in traffic. It turns out she was 400 miles away. She finally gets here at after 11pm that night.
I roll the bike out of the garage, she looks it over and hands me $40. I said the ad was for $125. She said she knows but she spent the rest getting here in gas and tolls. She didn't realize I was so far away. She had driven from upstate NY to southern NJ. I told here I would let the bike go for $100, but no less, (I had priced it a bit higher to leave room to negotiate anyhow). She hen told me I should give it to here for free because of all the trouble I caused her.
I made it clear to her that I wasn't giving her anything for free it was her who said she'd be there at 9pm and now at after 11pm she shows up without the money. I pushed the bike inside, closed the door and told her if she wants it, to let me know if she came up with the money but she went home empty handed. A few days later I got several nasty messages from her about how unfair I was and that there was no way she will ever buy anything from me in the future.
I little peeved about the whole ordeal, I raised the price of the bike to $150 the next day.
Two days later the same woman messages my ad on FB, tells me she'd like to look at the bike and goes through the whole story about it being a gift for her husband again. She showed up around 7pm, handed me $150 cash and left with the bike. She acted as if she had never been here before. Same car, same phone number, etc. (Her phone number and plates were from upstate NY). Maybe she just forgot to take her meds that first day? A year or more later I get a message saying that the bike has a flat front tire, this time from a guy, presumably her husband, who tells me its lost air ever since his wife brought it home and will I make good on it if he brought it back here.
Wanting to see if someone would actually drive that far to save $12 on a bike tube, I said sure, bring it by, I think I've got a couple of used tubes here to fit it.
The following weekend he shows up with the bike on a rack behind a Chevy Tahoe SUV with NY plates. The first thing out of the guys mouth was that he didn't realize how far away I was. I pumped up the tire, noticed the valve stem was leaking, I tightened the valve stem and all was fine. He loaded the bike back up and left. At that point I prodded him a bit to see if he had really driven that far to get a bike tire pumped up and he showed me the receipts from the turnpike and bridges from the trip for that day.
He likely spent $60 in gas to drive here to save $12 at the local bike shop.
Since this pandemic started CL, FB, and eBay have been pretty much dead for me. I sold two cheap bikes all last year, and both were ready to ride with good tires.
I listed a 1979 Raleigh Sports in chestnut brown all last year, the bike was one of those amazing survivors, complete with original tires that looked just fine. The paint was near perfect and the chrome was clean and shiny, I put it up for $275 obo. I never got a single email.I figured if I can't get at least $250 for it I;ll junk it for parts and make my money piece by piece but I hate taking apart nice bikes because no one is willing to pay a fair price. To top it all off, its a taller 23" frame.
Someone here made the comment that people have forgotten how to bargain, and that's very much the case here. If you list something for $250, in hopes to get $200, and someone only wants to pay $180, they don't email and make an offer, they just skip over it, Like I read above here, I've listed things for $500, and gotten no replies, only to sell it when I dropped the price by $5 and having the buyer say they had been looking for months for one.
If I see something I want or have been looking for, I don't much care what they're asking for it, I'm going to make an offer for what I think its worth, usually I'll shoot a bit low in hopes we can negotiate to where I want to be. More often than not lately, instead of a counter offer, I get either no response, or a nasty comment in return. Its gotten to the point where I'm actually surprised when I meet a personable seller who is willing to listen to a reasonable offer, or one that can even decline an offer without insults and nasty comments.
I had a buyer reply to an ad on CL two years ago for a mid 60's Hercules I was had listed. The bike was in good working order with new tires and looked pretty good overll with no rusty chrome anywhere. The wheels were perfect, it had two new tires and tubes on it, a Dynohub, and a Prestube rear rack. I had price it at $125..
After a few months I got an email from a woman who said the bike would be perfect for her husband and if I'd be around after work she'd like to come get it. She called me around 5pm and said she was on her way, and I waited around till 7 and no one showed up. I called her back and asked what happened and she tells me she's stuck in traffic. It turns out she was 400 miles away. She finally gets here at after 11pm that night.
I roll the bike out of the garage, she looks it over and hands me $40. I said the ad was for $125. She said she knows but she spent the rest getting here in gas and tolls. She didn't realize I was so far away. She had driven from upstate NY to southern NJ. I told here I would let the bike go for $100, but no less, (I had priced it a bit higher to leave room to negotiate anyhow). She hen told me I should give it to here for free because of all the trouble I caused her.
I made it clear to her that I wasn't giving her anything for free it was her who said she'd be there at 9pm and now at after 11pm she shows up without the money. I pushed the bike inside, closed the door and told her if she wants it, to let me know if she came up with the money but she went home empty handed. A few days later I got several nasty messages from her about how unfair I was and that there was no way she will ever buy anything from me in the future.
I little peeved about the whole ordeal, I raised the price of the bike to $150 the next day.
Two days later the same woman messages my ad on FB, tells me she'd like to look at the bike and goes through the whole story about it being a gift for her husband again. She showed up around 7pm, handed me $150 cash and left with the bike. She acted as if she had never been here before. Same car, same phone number, etc. (Her phone number and plates were from upstate NY). Maybe she just forgot to take her meds that first day? A year or more later I get a message saying that the bike has a flat front tire, this time from a guy, presumably her husband, who tells me its lost air ever since his wife brought it home and will I make good on it if he brought it back here.
Wanting to see if someone would actually drive that far to save $12 on a bike tube, I said sure, bring it by, I think I've got a couple of used tubes here to fit it.
The following weekend he shows up with the bike on a rack behind a Chevy Tahoe SUV with NY plates. The first thing out of the guys mouth was that he didn't realize how far away I was. I pumped up the tire, noticed the valve stem was leaking, I tightened the valve stem and all was fine. He loaded the bike back up and left. At that point I prodded him a bit to see if he had really driven that far to get a bike tire pumped up and he showed me the receipts from the turnpike and bridges from the trip for that day.
He likely spent $60 in gas to drive here to save $12 at the local bike shop.
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Toronto
Posts: 2,557
Bikes: 1971 Hercules, 1978 Raleigh Superbe, 1978 Raleigh Tourist, 1964 Glider 3 Speed, 1967 Raleigh Sprite 5 Speed, 1968 Hercules AMF 3 Speed, 1972 Raleigh Superbe, 1976 Raleigh Superbe, 1957 Flying Pigeon, 1967 Dunelt 3 Speed
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278 Posts
I'm more than two hours from New York City here and about 45 min out of Philly, I list only bikes I happen upon that are too small for me or just not old enough.
Since this pandemic started CL, FB, and eBay have been pretty much dead for me. I sold two cheap bikes all last year, and both were ready to ride with good tires.
I listed a 1979 Raleigh Sports in chestnut brown all last year, the bike was one of those amazing survivors, complete with original tires that looked just fine. The paint was near perfect and the chrome was clean and shiny, I put it up for $275 obo. I never got a single email.I figured if I can't get at least $250 for it I;ll junk it for parts and make my money piece by piece but I hate taking apart nice bikes because no one is willing to pay a fair price. To top it all off, its a taller 23" frame.
Someone here made the comment that people have forgotten how to bargain, and that's very much the case here. If you list something for $250, in hopes to get $200, and someone only wants to pay $180, they don't email and make an offer, they just skip over it, Like I read above here, I've listed things for $500, and gotten no replies, only to sell it when I dropped the price by $5 and having the buyer say they had been looking for months for one.
If I see something I want or have been looking for, I don't much care what they're asking for it, I'm going to make an offer for what I think its worth, usually I'll shoot a bit low in hopes we can negotiate to where I want to be. More often than not lately, instead of a counter offer, I get either no response, or a nasty comment in return. Its gotten to the point where I'm actually surprised when I meet a personable seller who is willing to listen to a reasonable offer, or one that can even decline an offer without insults and nasty comments.
I had a buyer reply to an ad on CL two years ago for a mid 60's Hercules I was had listed. The bike was in good working order with new tires and looked pretty good overll with no rusty chrome anywhere. The wheels were perfect, it had two new tires and tubes on it, a Dynohub, and a Prestube rear rack. I had price it at $125..
After a few months I got an email from a woman who said the bike would be perfect for her husband and if I'd be around after work she'd like to come get it. She called me around 5pm and said she was on her way, and I waited around till 7 and no one showed up. I called her back and asked what happened and she tells me she's stuck in traffic. It turns out she was 400 miles away. She finally gets here at after 11pm that night.
I roll the bike out of the garage, she looks it over and hands me $40. I said the ad was for $125. She said she knows but she spent the rest getting here in gas and tolls. She didn't realize I was so far away. She had driven from upstate NY to southern NJ. I told here I would let the bike go for $100, but no less, (I had priced it a bit higher to leave room to negotiate anyhow). She hen told me I should give it to here for free because of all the trouble I caused her.
I made it clear to her that I wasn't giving her anything for free it was her who said she'd be there at 9pm and now at after 11pm she shows up without the money. I pushed the bike inside, closed the door and told her if she wants it, to let me know if she came up with the money but she went home empty handed. A few days later I got several nasty messages from her about how unfair I was and that there was no way she will ever buy anything from me in the future.
I little peeved about the whole ordeal, I raised the price of the bike to $150 the next day.
Two days later the same woman messages my ad on FB, tells me she'd like to look at the bike and goes through the whole story about it being a gift for her husband again. She showed up around 7pm, handed me $150 cash and left with the bike. She acted as if she had never been here before. Same car, same phone number, etc. (Her phone number and plates were from upstate NY). Maybe she just forgot to take her meds that first day? A year or more later I get a message saying that the bike has a flat front tire, this time from a guy, presumably her husband, who tells me its lost air ever since his wife brought it home and will I make good on it if he brought it back here.
Wanting to see if someone would actually drive that far to save $12 on a bike tube, I said sure, bring it by, I think I've got a couple of used tubes here to fit it.
The following weekend he shows up with the bike on a rack behind a Chevy Tahoe SUV with NY plates. The first thing out of the guys mouth was that he didn't realize how far away I was. I pumped up the tire, noticed the valve stem was leaking, I tightened the valve stem and all was fine. He loaded the bike back up and left. At that point I prodded him a bit to see if he had really driven that far to get a bike tire pumped up and he showed me the receipts from the turnpike and bridges from the trip for that day.
He likely spent $60 in gas to drive here to save $12 at the local bike shop.
Since this pandemic started CL, FB, and eBay have been pretty much dead for me. I sold two cheap bikes all last year, and both were ready to ride with good tires.
I listed a 1979 Raleigh Sports in chestnut brown all last year, the bike was one of those amazing survivors, complete with original tires that looked just fine. The paint was near perfect and the chrome was clean and shiny, I put it up for $275 obo. I never got a single email.I figured if I can't get at least $250 for it I;ll junk it for parts and make my money piece by piece but I hate taking apart nice bikes because no one is willing to pay a fair price. To top it all off, its a taller 23" frame.
Someone here made the comment that people have forgotten how to bargain, and that's very much the case here. If you list something for $250, in hopes to get $200, and someone only wants to pay $180, they don't email and make an offer, they just skip over it, Like I read above here, I've listed things for $500, and gotten no replies, only to sell it when I dropped the price by $5 and having the buyer say they had been looking for months for one.
If I see something I want or have been looking for, I don't much care what they're asking for it, I'm going to make an offer for what I think its worth, usually I'll shoot a bit low in hopes we can negotiate to where I want to be. More often than not lately, instead of a counter offer, I get either no response, or a nasty comment in return. Its gotten to the point where I'm actually surprised when I meet a personable seller who is willing to listen to a reasonable offer, or one that can even decline an offer without insults and nasty comments.
I had a buyer reply to an ad on CL two years ago for a mid 60's Hercules I was had listed. The bike was in good working order with new tires and looked pretty good overll with no rusty chrome anywhere. The wheels were perfect, it had two new tires and tubes on it, a Dynohub, and a Prestube rear rack. I had price it at $125..
After a few months I got an email from a woman who said the bike would be perfect for her husband and if I'd be around after work she'd like to come get it. She called me around 5pm and said she was on her way, and I waited around till 7 and no one showed up. I called her back and asked what happened and she tells me she's stuck in traffic. It turns out she was 400 miles away. She finally gets here at after 11pm that night.
I roll the bike out of the garage, she looks it over and hands me $40. I said the ad was for $125. She said she knows but she spent the rest getting here in gas and tolls. She didn't realize I was so far away. She had driven from upstate NY to southern NJ. I told here I would let the bike go for $100, but no less, (I had priced it a bit higher to leave room to negotiate anyhow). She hen told me I should give it to here for free because of all the trouble I caused her.
I made it clear to her that I wasn't giving her anything for free it was her who said she'd be there at 9pm and now at after 11pm she shows up without the money. I pushed the bike inside, closed the door and told her if she wants it, to let me know if she came up with the money but she went home empty handed. A few days later I got several nasty messages from her about how unfair I was and that there was no way she will ever buy anything from me in the future.
I little peeved about the whole ordeal, I raised the price of the bike to $150 the next day.
Two days later the same woman messages my ad on FB, tells me she'd like to look at the bike and goes through the whole story about it being a gift for her husband again. She showed up around 7pm, handed me $150 cash and left with the bike. She acted as if she had never been here before. Same car, same phone number, etc. (Her phone number and plates were from upstate NY). Maybe she just forgot to take her meds that first day? A year or more later I get a message saying that the bike has a flat front tire, this time from a guy, presumably her husband, who tells me its lost air ever since his wife brought it home and will I make good on it if he brought it back here.
Wanting to see if someone would actually drive that far to save $12 on a bike tube, I said sure, bring it by, I think I've got a couple of used tubes here to fit it.
The following weekend he shows up with the bike on a rack behind a Chevy Tahoe SUV with NY plates. The first thing out of the guys mouth was that he didn't realize how far away I was. I pumped up the tire, noticed the valve stem was leaking, I tightened the valve stem and all was fine. He loaded the bike back up and left. At that point I prodded him a bit to see if he had really driven that far to get a bike tire pumped up and he showed me the receipts from the turnpike and bridges from the trip for that day.
He likely spent $60 in gas to drive here to save $12 at the local bike shop.
People are nuts.
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Toronto
Posts: 2,557
Bikes: 1971 Hercules, 1978 Raleigh Superbe, 1978 Raleigh Tourist, 1964 Glider 3 Speed, 1967 Raleigh Sprite 5 Speed, 1968 Hercules AMF 3 Speed, 1972 Raleigh Superbe, 1976 Raleigh Superbe, 1957 Flying Pigeon, 1967 Dunelt 3 Speed
Mentioned: 57 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1024 Post(s)
Liked 403 Times
in
278 Posts
I've often though I should teach young people a quick course on how to
buy something like used a bike or a car:
1- Decide what you want to buy and do your research
2- Find the thing you want to buy
3- Call the owner and ask about the thing
DO NOT negotiate by email or on the phone
DO NOT make a ridiculous offer by email or on the phone
4- Make a plan to see the thing
5- Go to the bank and get some CASH!
6- Show up on time.
7- Look at the thing, ask questions, drive/ride the thing
8- If you like the thing make an offer.
9- Negotiate. Be polite and reasonable.
10- Agree on a price
11- Take the CASH out of your pocket and pay for it or leave a reasonable
deposit.
12-Take your new thing or arrange for the seller to deliver it and offer him/her
a ride back.
In turn, I've delivered cars to the buyer, taken the plates off and gotten a ride home.
That's all I gotta say about that.
buy something like used a bike or a car:
1- Decide what you want to buy and do your research
2- Find the thing you want to buy
3- Call the owner and ask about the thing
DO NOT negotiate by email or on the phone
DO NOT make a ridiculous offer by email or on the phone
4- Make a plan to see the thing
5- Go to the bank and get some CASH!
6- Show up on time.
7- Look at the thing, ask questions, drive/ride the thing
8- If you like the thing make an offer.
9- Negotiate. Be polite and reasonable.
10- Agree on a price
11- Take the CASH out of your pocket and pay for it or leave a reasonable
deposit.
12-Take your new thing or arrange for the seller to deliver it and offer him/her
a ride back.
In turn, I've delivered cars to the buyer, taken the plates off and gotten a ride home.
That's all I gotta say about that.