+1

Happens to my wife and me...I've since fixed up two more for friends and relatives, and now people are asking them where they got that cool bike, and they call me...

To everything, there is a season.

My craigslist pet peeve:

I get an email, and all it says is:

"is it still 4 sale"

...

Of course I've been struggling to get bites on this bike, so I'm going to respond.

Those are usually scammers. You can usually spot them by their gmail address and the fact that they never directly mention what you're selling in their initial message ("the item" rather than "your Schwinn," etc.)

They're automated messages but a real person may respond if you reply, it's usually fairly obvious that they're trying to rip you off...

The subject of this one was just "folding bike". Which, they would have had to actually read the ad to know it was a folding bike, so I don't think its spam. We'll see.

Ugh, I've just started selling on CL again after a year or two break. The first three were quick, smooth transactions. Now I'm trying to sell a nice 531 framed bike at a VERY competitive price point, I've had 12 responders. Two were obvious culls, 6 of them started dialogs wanting more info. The one last night was the last straw. We conversed all afternoon, I sent him a breakdown of all the parts and 6 more pictures. Took measurements of everything. Then I get an email asking if he could see it tonight instead of the weekend. Ok, all well and good. I get up to go to the bathroom and when I get back there are two more messages asking if he could get it tonight. I told him to tell me when he expected to be in town and never heard anything back. If this keeps past this weekend, I"m going to throw it in the rafters until the bike swap this spring.

I know its not breaking news but

CRAIGSLIST,

Saw an ad pop up on my Craigslist at about 9pm for a bike. Crappy cell phone non-driveside picture. All I could see was "Panasonic" and the tiny red square of what appeared to be a Tange 2 sticker. No email left, only a phone number. As it was late, I texted, hoping it was a cell-phone. She responded back almost immediately that "someone is coming to look at it at 4, but if you want the bike, I'll be here until 10 tomorrow." By the time I got there (1.5 hours after leaving my house) I got there, only to find it had been sold.

Perhaps my line-jumping screwed me, but man. It was my size too.

Ah, that sounds better...

I found the same thing, that guy in Maine who had the Roger Riviere. After dropping him a note (I'm 800+ miles away) explaining why I'm interested, he calls me back. We talk. Turns out I'm the customer he's looking for - someone who will actually take the time and effort to restore an odd French $100 10-speed from the Bike Boom. He holds it for me for three months (after our trip to see Patti's mom was delayed by her - Patti's - stroke) . . . . . . . . . . and then he GIVES me the bike! Turns out the listed selling price was just to put off the fixie-wannabes.

I owe him some pictures once the bike is done. Total debt.

^^ that's a cool story

Now that I've done the nice warm-fuzzy-for-my-year-story, back to reality:

I listed two bikes on the Richmond Craigslist this morning, an '80 Schwinn World Sport and a '99 Nishiki Manitoba mtb. First call I get is . . . . . . . . . a guy who, since I'm fixing up and selling an older mtb, wants to sell me a suspension fork he's got. No, I'm not interested, I've got four others hanging on the wall waiting for future frames (I don't do a lot of mtb's). OK, if I was interested in such a fork, what would I expect to pay for it. I told him I'd picked up all four in my inventory, one having never seen a frame, for $30.00 total.

From the silence at the other end, it was obvious I wasn't coming up with anything near the figure he was hoping for.

CL problems? BAH! CL is GREAT.

In the words of the local fixie fellows: "Epic ownage."

Nice job of shutting him up - I don't appriciate amateur C-list phone solicitors.

-Kurt

I've had all kinds of ups and downs with CL. Mostly ups though

I was selling a mid-2000s Trek 820 earlier this summer. It needed some work - new tires and cables, mostly. Clearly listed that in the ad with pics and all. I had 3 people look at it and not actually read the ad and got mad at me for deceiving them. Finally got rid of it for $10 under my asking price two weeks later.

There was a Giant OCR3 being sold for $300 at the beginning of summer. One of the best deals I saw all year in Chicago. Jumped on it a minute after it was posted and I was first in line. It was mid afternoon, so I asked about being able to look at it that night. He said he was busy but the next morning would work. Get an email from him at 10pm saying he sold it to someone who could come that night.


The better ones were a Saris Bones 3 for $25 that was well worth the 3 hour round-trip drive on a rainy Saturday Afternoon, and a 1986 Fuji Del Ray from a local person for $50. She was so happy it was going to be used (it was her mothers bike). Great condition too. Original components, next to no rust on the steel frame. Its a great campus commuter. Too old for someone to steal but nice enough to ride around and mess with the DT shifters.

In general, I've had a good time on CL.

My craziest experience was a couple of years ago. I had been looking for a bike for my GF, and found a 48cm celeste, italian made Bianchi at a church yard sale for 25$. I thought it might fit her, but it didn't. This left me with a very nice, basically unridden Bianchi, and no bike for my GF.

Aha! I think, in a rare moment of inspiration-- I'll try to trade the cute little Bianchi for something a bit bigger, that'll solve all the problems. So I compose a nice little CL ad, explaining my situation and that I am looking for a trade, not a sale.

I get bombarded. I think the total was around 50+ emails and calls. I get offered a Murray (not a Serotta one, either), a cheap Asian bianchi ( the girl wants both cash and my bike for hers, which is a far lesser bike), several sub 100 offers, and an insistent woman from 150 miles away who asks for a lot more photos (fine) and grouches about how she knows a lot about bike and I know very little.

Eventually, I relist the bike, this time with a 450$ price tag (or offer in trade). A woman drive from Roanoke that day (6 hr drive), and pays the full price, no questions asked.

The time I found a perfectly good Huffy (not a Serotta) in the trash and put it on CL for free was almost as crazy, too. Next time I'm charging five bucks for it, or a donation to Pen Pals (a local organization that has prisoners in the state pen train homeless dogs).

Another good CL day:

Had gotten one call yesterday on the Schwinn, said he was interested in coming out Saturday to see it. Terrific. He calls this morning, is out by 1300, with his college age son. Junior's the one looking for the bike, and they were spending the morning going down the CL ads they'd found. I was the fifth stop of the day. And the last one. Comment as he came back up the hill from the test ride, "This bike's feels a lot more solid than any of the other four." Paid the asking price of $125.00, no questions (didn't hurt that stop #4 was asking $140 for a Murray, #3 was a Raleigh that looked a lot better in the picture). Turned the kid on to Richmond Re-Cycle for spares, accessories, etc.

It's a nice warm feeling when a sale goes well.