Originally Posted by wrk101

For every bike I've "scooped", I've just as often gotten good deals several days after they were posted for sale. I bought a Colnago Master Lite that had been for sale for two weeks, at a very attractive price.

As important as it is to be fast, its just as important to have the cash in hand, and the knowledge to decipher a lousy ad with no pictures or a terrible picture. Case in point: I bought a Pinarello where the ad was just four words, "Race Bike Bad Paint" plus a price of $50. There was one picture in a dark garage of a bike in pieces on the floor. I bought it after it had been for sale for four days......

I bought a Tomassini, it had been for sale for ten days, full Dura Ace 7400, for $200. No one was willing to drive to get it (guy lived in the middle of nowhere).

Don't blame flippers/hoarders. Randy has taken the opposite approach. Instead of waiting until bikes pop up for sale, he has aggressively sought out bikes before they were for sale. My two most recent purchases were that way, an Eddy Merckx and a Litespeed. Neither was listed for sale anywhere.


As far as the big bad boogey man/flipper/hoarders out there, I have donated at least 250 bikes in the last ten years. I've donated 200 wheels this year. Randy has probably done even more. I've wheeled in refurbished bikes to the local co op and sold them before I reached the counter (proceeds to the co op). Sure, I've kept some along the way, some went to friends, some were sold for loss, some were sold at a profit.