PadawanHealy

Would you primarily recommend Ebay or Craigslist for purchasing Mountain bicycles and Road bicycles? How much success have you had with either or both? Any trouble?

FiftySix

I've bought one bike each from eBay and Craigslist.

Craigslist gives me a better local purchasing option than eBay due to the sheer quantity of local bikes available. Which means I can see the bike in person and even take a test ride before purchasing.

It seems like all the bikes I am interested to buy on eBay have to be shipped, which is costly and the bike can be damaged in shipment. Plus I don't get to see the bike in person on eBay. I can only go by photos and there may be mechanical issues that aren't disclosed.

While I like eBay over Craigslist for many things, I like Craigslist over eBay for bicycles.

cb400bill

I tend to like to see, touch, and ride a bike before I purchase it. Especially if I am considering a used bike. Easier to do this with Craigslist than eBay.

Now, if I am looking for a specific used bike, I may never have it become available on my area Craigslist. Then eBay would be the only viable option.

cyccommute 

For whole bikes, I'd probably go with Craigslist...although I have yet to buy a bike from that source. For frames, I've purchased a number of them from Ebay without issue. A frame build up isn't something you can really test ride before buying anyway so being able to see the frame in person really isn't necessary. I check the measurements prior to purchase and, if there is a question, contact the seller.

'02 nrs 

try FB marketplace,seems to have taken most of the wind from CL as it's not as likely to result in a shady seller.paypal offers some safety for a buyer,more than a cash sale with CL.a gamble either road you choose really.

rumrunn6

Craigslist and lots of success and no trouble buying and selling

Homebrew01

On Ebay, you can select "X miles from my zip code" to see only local listings.

delbiker1 

I bought one bike from Ebay and it is a terrific bike. No one else was bidding on the bike and there was no reserve, so the price was low. The seller did a very job of packing it. We had excellent communication back and forth. I bought a bike that I found on C'list, but did not buy it using C'list. It was more local, I drove to see the bike and bought it. Also very happy with that transaction.

CliffordK

It really depends on your needs.

If you want something like a used department store mountain bike, then go Craigslist. They are a dime a dozen.

On the other hand, say you're looking for something relatively obscure like a 1940's British bike, then go with E-Bay.

A lot will also depend on your location. I'm about 100 miles from the "Big City", and 300 miles from the "Bigger City". It has both advantages and disadvantages. But, very few people are willing to ship large items with Craigslist. E-Bay, it is just expected. So, if you're in a small town, there may be some tremendous deals, or just nothing for sale on Craigslist.

For parts, I buy a lot off of E-Bay, or purchase new from European mail-order vendors.

Also, sometimes Amazon.

Or, for some sellers, if I can snag a name off of Amazon, I'll go to their own website.

Perhaps just a Google Search and see what pops up. I've actually even had Google searches pull up stuff from E-Bay that I wouldn't have found with E-Bay searches.

MikeyMK

Hmm. Aston Martin or Dodge. I can barely decide.

To assist, I've done a 4-figure number of transactions on eBay and got to a bit of a judgement on their service.

Strengths include having everything I ever want, unless I'm insanely fickle, and the sellers bending over backwards to get it to me, for the cheapest price.

Weaknesses? Well, eBay's 'money back guarantee' isn't worth jack. Once they have your money, it's down to the seller. Twice a courier has admitted to a seller I didn't receive an item. Twice the seller confirmed to eBay I didn't receive an item. Twice, eBay refused to refund me because they technically could - as the courier had clicked the 'delivered' button when leaving a parcel on the street and at a vacant property!

I doubt Craigslist would've got the money in my pocket though. They cannot match eBay's strengths so tell me how they can possibly excel..?

CliffordK

A few additional things about E-Bay:

#1 , there are some unscrupulous sellers that toss their junk up there. Disclose just enough that buyers are stuck, but fail to mention significant flaws that would make local sales difficult.

#2 , be careful about buying used complete bikes. Inevitably sellers do a poor job at packing them, and damage is common. Buying individual components, even frames seems to have better packing/shipping results.

As always, pay attention to shipping quotes. They can vary considerably. For a complete bike, perhaps from $50 to $200 (or more). Even small parts can vary considerably.

Amazon, fulfilled by Amazon also has an issue that the individual seller isn't the one filling the boxes, and perhaps the goods even came from a different vendor.

Oh, also, E-Bay & Amazon are becoming favorite sources for China direct purchases. That is slow, and both good and bad. Good prices, but there is a risk to getting second rate products, especially if an unknown brand.

wipekitty

Craigslist: No problems. I've bought a bunch of bikes (ranging from a nice road bike to a mid-grade commuter bike to vintage and beater bikes) on Craigslist. Size of town and time of year can impact supply. Prices for the same item vary widely by location. Advertisements are not always on-point.

Ebay: My favorite road bike came from Ebay, used. Better supply for specific items, though I'm careful about sellers. If it's a larger seller, I'll see if they have a separate website and coupons or shipping deals (which they'll sometimes have, since they're not paying Ebay fees that way.)

FB Marketplace: Seems to be the new Craigslist. I have yet to buy/sell bikes on FB, but have used it for some other large transactions that previously would have been Craigslist territory.

tak2

I have purchased a bike locally listed with good results, I have tried to purchase a bike on Ebay that turned into a big hassle that ultimately didn't happen, and I have purchased a bike and various other things on Pinkbike.com which were totally positive and I would whole heartily recommend. Pinkbike like Craigslist, you are working with individuals where you can communicate directly and you are not universally charged sales tax. You may be up for sales tax if you are purchasing from a bike shop and there are several that seem to list their clearance bikes on the site.

Slightspeed

I use Ebay for parts and Craigslist for bikes. Ebay gives you a wider selection, even world wide, for hard to find parts, but for a bike, I like to see it and try it for size in person. So far, Ive bought 1 complete bike on CL and a few parts, lots of parts but no bikes, from Ebay.

Skipjacks

I've NOT bought 2 bikes off Craigslist

They looked good online.

I showed up with cash. And walked away. 1 just didn't fit my quite right. The other had a broken shifter and wasn't worth the price with a repair needed.

Both would have been a hassle had I bought them on eBay as they both would have been hard to return.

But when shopping on Craiglist...returning them just meant keeping cash in my pocket and walking away.

The one bike I did buy on Craigslist was for my kid. Got a great price and was able to see the condition of it before handing cash over. Turned out it was under priced because it was put together poorly and just needed a good going over with a wrench to make it perfect.

Plus no shipping charges.

So Craigslist all the way.

dedhed

I've only bought 1 bike on Ebay quite a few years ago and that was my Raleigh hybrid NOS still in the box. No issues. I've bought parts on Ebay as well without issue. I've bought and sold bikes on CL both complete and frames I stripped the parts on for other builds. No issues there either. CL or FB is where I will generally go if I'm looking for a rider or parts donor as I want to have a good look at it and maybe ride it as well as see any issues I can bring into price negotiation. I've also bought from thrift stores and garage sales.

NoWhammies

Craigslist. I like to see be able to see, touch, and take the bike for a test ride. I'm also finding that eBay is being taken over my professional sellers whereas Clist is still very local focused.

MikeyMK

That's not entirely fair, as the only complete bikes I bought off eBay were pick-ups on a classified advert. I had presisely the same option to walk away.

02Giant 

Ebay for bits, Craigslist for complete bikes.

tim24k

Craigslist or eBay only if it’s local. I would not buy a bike I could not “see, touch, and ride” before I hand over my money.

PadawanHealy

Never heard of FB Marketplace, seems interesting thus far!

coffeesnob

I have bought cars before from ebay

MNebiker

I use eBay or Amazon for parts, accessories, etc. - items that are small enough to ship without problems. There are a couple of good bike shops that sell via eBay at decent prices and give quick service. But I would rather use CL for items that I want to check out prior to handing over the money. I did buy a mountain bike and a Saris rack on CL and have sold a couple of old Schwinns there.

CL does have some limitations - I am in a major metro area so there is quite a large selection of various "stuff" available to choose from. But if you live out in the boonies or some smaller city, the selection is smaller unless you want to drive some distance to check out an item.

kolovoz

Most used bikes/frames have got on eBay, but did get a bike this year off of Craigslist that was cross country and the seller was happy to ship, so that was nice. eBay now has sales tax even on used stuff, so that's starting to impact where I look for things.

robnol

I have done both .each has its advantages...craigslist has the get it today advantage..ebay has the much greater selection of bikes and prices to choose from...if I had to choose I would say....ebay is better