Just wondering what you would do.
 

I saw an add on CL. The bike was overpriced and the seller(Hopefully not someone here :o) was totally lying about the bike and said it had an original MSRP of much more than it actually did.

I decided to post a response add simply stating the actual info about the bike and a line at the bottom that if by some chance the seller had received misinformation about the bike, I would delete my response add if they changed their add to be honest about what they were selling.

Would you guys get upset by a response add like this or would you rather see someone nicely* correct the situation?

*My add wasn't in poor taste at all. I didn't say anything negative about the seller, even though they are a local flipper who I recognized and chances are know exactly what they're selling and are just lying to get more for the bike. I've seen other adds by this person talking up bikes that they're asking too much for, but this one was blatantly lying, so...

I have posted similar responses to CL ads. If available, I usually post a link to Bikepedia's page as proof.

BTW, according to Bikepedia, that seller's bike is an 05, not an 06.

http://www.bikepedia.com/QuickBike/B...20SE&Type=bike

Many people are rightfully concerned about purchasing from people on-line or where there are not "money back guarantees."

If someone is informed and believes that a poster is not telling the truth, as both a consumer and seller, I would appreciate someone taking reasonable action have the situation corrected.

I somewhat regularly purchase things on line: Not for convenience or price, but because there are things I would like to purchase that are simply not available locally even though I live in heavily populated S. California. For online markets to thrive, people must have confidence. Misinformation, mistakes, and/or outright fraud destroys confidence and ends up hurting the system for all players.

I have responded a couple of times, not so much about pricing issues (to me, pricing is a personal choice), but due to obvious damage. I have seen sellers post obviously wrecked bikes, and present them as if they are something special. I don't want to see a naive buyer get screwed on a damaged bike.

Very few things on the planet annoy me more than the Craigslist "Re:" posters commenting on the price of another bike. If somebody wants to ask too much for their bike, then nobody will buy it. If somebody buys it anyway they are stupid and didn't do their research and good for the seller. Outing lies or potentially dangerous, damaged bikes are less annoying and sometimes have a place. In general though people can take care of themselves and decide how to spend their money on their own without the help of Craigslist "good Samaritans".

I would mind my own business.

personally, i think the response ads that expose dishonest sellers online are good for the integrity of the online marketplace in general, good for the cycling community in this specific case, and good for promoting a culture of integrity and decency, as much as something so insignificant as a re: post on CL can contribute to something so grandiose. "Outing" someone for subjective stuff isn't exactly cool; if a seller touts something as "super-rare" or a "future collectible", you can't really call him/her on it. After all, your definition of rare may be different from the seller's or the buyers', and no one can accurately speculate on the future. But, if a seller is outright lying about an item's original msrp, or things about the items condition, i applaud folks who'd take the time to politely correct it. If the downtube's bent, but the ad says perfect condition, go ahead and out it. If the ad states "all original", but components or finish are modified, go ahead and out it. I don't think we're obligated to do so, but it is certainly within our rights.

If you're a cyclist, and you're into old bikes and CL and helping poor schmucks who just bought a super-rare varsity for $400, it *is* your business to keep your hobby clean, no?

-rob

How many people have bought the Brooklyn Bridge?

I'm not a fan of people trying to take advantage of the ignorant or stupid. That sort of behavior is one of the reasons why it's hard for honest people to sell things in any venue and one of the reasons why we tolerate dishonesty even from supposedly reputable establishments such as retail chains. It screws up my life more than is necessary and, since complacency won't solve the problem, I call people out with fair regularity and even take down some of the truly despicable ads.

I aided in the arrest of a bike thief who stole someones Surly Travelers Check with a CL response add/email maybe a month ago. The person had posted a "stolen bike" add and then the Travelers Check came up a few days later. I emailed the guy and posted a response add showing "interest" in the bike for more info. That was awesome to have done and have helped the guy get his bike back.

Ditto.
+1
I agree.
All that stuff.

People can ask whatever they want for what they're selling. People buying can do their own research...they're already on the internet and could find just about anything they want in just a few minutes. It's not some random person's business to babysit the potential bike-buying public. If someone buys a $400 "super-rare" varsity and finds out later they shouldn't have spent $400 on it...well, I guess they learned to do more research next time before buying something they don't know anything about.

I have mixed feelings about the Re: adds on Craigslist. Personally, I do not feel that they belong. Craigslist if for selling and buying products and services. It is not a forum.

Craigslist needs to police their service better. The "Re: stuff" should be flagged and removed immediately. The question is, how to police the situation?

For now, all I can see is let it be. Let the crooks and ignorant people try to pedal (pardon this obvious pun) their bicycles on-line, for too much, if they wish to do so. O for too little and none of us complains about that person. It is up to you and me to flag the Re: and bogus listings, not warn others about them.

Just my opinion, of course.

I like making response ads. Mine are usually fairly tasteful—just a light dose of "buyer beware"—but every once in awhile I venture into slight hyperbole and start calling people crooks.

I've only once done a re: ad on CL. It was for a local bike seller who either lied constantly or had absolutely no clue. For example:

Batavus was made in Germany (maybe for a brief occupation period in WW2)
Tange Infinity is the equivalent of SLX or 531 (no it's not, it's seamed tubing)

and that's just a small sample. Every ad he posted was full of ridiculous innacuracies, almost all of them making the bike look better (Yes, he identified UOs as PXs at least twice). He'd put ads in fishing for a price, and various other dubious matters. Finally I made a post asking him to shut the heck up and just advertise his bikes, listing numerous innacuracies and distortions he had made over the prior month. He shut up, praise whatever.

I emailed a seller a while back. He was listing a bike, and I had seen it when he bought it. It had a major dent at the join of the headtube and down tube, not really a good place. He didn't show it, and called the damage a "cosmetic dimple". I called him on it, and told him he should put it in his listing, or just part the bike. But I saw no need to do a "re" on him, I just think he really didn't know.

It's good to remember that many CL sellers are not necessarily informed about bikes. Both of these example were regular CL sellers, although the first no longer really does-- his business practices caught up with him.

I've also seen the re: posters go to far. One recent one claimed that 300$ for a Serotta was way too much. Another complained about an 800$ De Rosa. It would help if some of them, like the sellers (not the above to examples, obviously) they so often rightly criticize, got a clue.

Craig's list is like a bar full of insurance salesmen at a convention; 79% lies, 20% cluelessness. It annoys me, but if you do not know what you are buying, then you are going to get screwed sooner than later. Its sad, but I do not know what to do to fix it. People launching counter adds simply makes it worse.

+1, I will usually flag the re; ads. CL is exactly that, a listing of things for sale, buyers need to inform themselves. I would certainly reply tothe seller if they were selling something dangerous, but never over a price. If that were the case you would do more good standing outside of Target with asign telling everyone what is cheaper at Wal-mart.

I'm another with mixed feelings on the subject. I have written RE ads when the bike in question was damaged, but the pricing issue to me is dangerous territory. A lot of the good samaritans know a lot less than they believe they do...I remember selling a Columbus SL Grandis with top end parts and I got an RE post saying my bike was worth $100 and I was ripping people off. I've seen similar criticism leveled at others asking high'ish prices...but there was nothing wrong with the bikes in question. To feel confident in criticizing another's ad, the person had better be on damned solid ground and have a lot of expertise on the topic. I think the best advice is to default to shutting up and only commenting if something is blatantly dishonest or dangerous. The bottom line is that CL is a market...if the seller can get it, it's worth it.

I'm in the "mind your own business" camp. If the ad (and that's how it is spelled folks, please take notice) is prohibited, then flag it. If it's not and you just don't agree with the price or the claims of a used bike salesman you should simply move on and keep looking.

Outing a fraud @ CL is tricky as you drop yourself in an arena with a person that will most likely not admit that he/she posted the wrong information. and will most likely either ignore or strongly challenge your correction statement.
That's why I pretty much leave those alone when I really feel the person is lying about an item for monetary gain. Better to do it indirectly through the people who manage the site instead if that option is available. as they may have more "leverage" on the guy to have them correct their statements.
Only time I jump is to clarify information where a seller might go " I'm not sure, but this could be a Peugeot or a Motobecane......." or "I think something is missing from the bike as there is this threaded hole....". They usually appreciate the constructive comments that I can supply identifying bikes and components that the seller might not be familiar with and explaining their functiuons with more back up info, of course.
JMOs

Chombi

Its the internet.

Anything you say can and will be twisted, turned around, altered, changed, misquoted, googled and wikipedia'd to death.

To think otherwise is foolish. Especially on Craigslist. Its one of the few places Anonymous can still hang out, and as the internet has become more and more "social" folks have forgotten that Anonymous is still there and hasn't changed. Anonymous is still a gigantic a-hole, and Anonymous will always be legion....and like it or not Anonymous is usually right.

I voted the third, and evidently least popular option because it had that very convenient "if" clause. Had there been a "I could care less" option I would have gone that way. I have never done a re."-post, and they usually annoy me. As I see it, the seller is leaving a response email or phone number, and often his or her name; honest or dumb or whatever, they have effectively put their name and reputation on it.

So far I have never seen a "re."-post that had the commenter's name, phone number etc. They are all, as far as I can see, anonymous. Anonymous postings are never in good taste. If you have something to say, sign your name to it. Otherwise STFU.

Nonetheless, an informative, level-headed and signed 're."-post would be fine with me. So I voted the third option.

2 things I can guarantee you about Anonymous.

1. He will never STFU
2. He will always sign his name to it, like this.

--Anonymous

This is all very funny to me because before everyone's mother got on the internet it was just common knowledge that the internet was full of jerks. Now its like a revelation. "oh my god people are being a-holes on the internet!". Being a jerk on the internet has been around a lot longer than being nice....its almost been around longer than porn on the internet.

I wouldn't be inclined to call someone out for pricing, and my assumption is that if I went to the trouble to write a re: ad it would be flagged by the seller anyway. If I see something that really looks dangerous I'd be more inclined to flag the ad.

This is absolutely NOT true. If something were worth what the seller could get for it we'd all have a bunch of high-end bikes which are "worth" around $50. Something is actually worth what the seller can get for it in a fair market and when both parties are informed.

Whatever happened to the members of this forum who used to contact buyers who'd been scammed on ebay? Do you now enjoy seeing someone buy that fake Merckx recently? It may be terribly cliche, but it bears repeating: All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. I'm flabbergasted - what happened to trying to help people?

+1 While I leave pricing alone as it is an individual decision, I will out the damaged bikes. Based on the customers I have seen on bikes I have sold, 99% of them are novices at best. The potential customer (and seller) can of course decide to totally ignore my opinion.

On pricing, the difference between a good deal and a "bad" deal could be as little as $50 to $100. At that margin, there is plenty of room for interpretation. While that Schwinn Varsity might not be worth $150 to me, maybe it is worth $150 to someone else. I leave those decisions up to the buyer.