Poguemahone

So yesterday I go to the local Goodwill auction. They had a little celeste Bianchi in back, and I wanted to see what it was. They pulled it out to sell during the Memorial day auction, as the traffic is heavier on those days.

Alas, it was simply an Alfina with seven speed 105, and a nice fat dent on the top tube. The auction was crowded, but I did spot a couple of the local CL dealers, and took a moment to tell them about the frame damage. I decided not to bid, figuring it would go for more than 50$, which was about what I would pay for it as a parts bike.

I came back later to check on another bike, later in the auction. The bike sold for about 125$ to a Craigslist flipper. As I was leaving, the flipper was trying to re-sell the bike to another dealer for two hundred fifty, claiming it was a valuable, top of the line Bianchi.

The guy who bought the bike grabbed me, literally, and said: "Tell this guy this bike is worth a lot of money."

So I told him it had a dent in it, and was worth about what he paid for it-- maybe. If he could find someone who wanted the parts.

The dealer than proceeds to tell me the dent is no big deal, that you can saw out that part of the top tube and weld in a replacement piece. No, I'm not kidding. I told him getting that job done right would cost more than the bike was worth and he'd have to repaint. He was not happy, especially with me-- what am I supposed to do, condone his BS? He asked me; I didn't insert myself into the discussion.

I've got to stop going to this auction. I used to go, years ago, and get the bike no one wanted (ie any road bike) for a fiver or so. No more. With the advent of CL, these guys-- who know nothing about bikes and lots about how to rip people off-- have been grabbing up frames and bikes at high prices. If I show up and there's a decent roadie, enough of them know I'm the one person there who knows something about bikes, and I get grilled by these guys.

I'm thinking now I shouldn't have told anyone about the dent-- the bike would have gone for even more. But I dreading seeing this bike pop up on the local CL now, likely with no mention of the frame damage and a ridiculous price. After dealing with this jerk, I think I might have to do one of those annoying CL posts along the lines of "this seller is on Crack". Or perhaps next time a decent bike is there, I'll loudly announce it has a huge crack in the frame...

Bianchigirll 

too bad some people are such greedy idiots. however he is sort of right about 1 thing, it is worth alot of money but only to him. LOL

the closest it got to the "top of the line" wa '91 but the 600 equiped Virata was still above it, as well as the C-Record equiped Proto. but with the price of the Virata at $950 and the Proto jumping to $3200 you could call the Alfana 2nd from the top.

BTW he really thought it was a 'simple' proceedure to cut out the dented section of the TT and replace it? I would hate to buy anything from that idiot.

where do you live I'll have to watch the CL posts.

robatsu

The vintage bike stuff used to be fun when you could get this stuff for pennies and ride around on great vintage bikes to the disdain of the the LBS and everyone else. Now that it is getting to be a little more of a serious money thing, it really isn't so much fun anymore. You have to worry about "destroying the value" of everything, whether it is painting a frame or installing some NOS part.

This happened years ago with the Campy stuff, at which point I quit being a vintage Campy enthusiast. Now it is happening with the old Japanese stuff. Right now, I've been selling off stuff in preparation for an international move and I literally can't believe the prices for some things, like old Sugino cranks, that just a couple of years ago you couldn't give away. This is all well and good for me at the moment as a seller, but it gives me a foretaste of what to expect were I to go back into buying mode.

So I thinking I ought to just keep enough stuff to keep myself on the road for the foreseeable future and recuse myself from the wheel-dealing. It is no longer collegial fun; rather, it is more and more becoming a swim in shark infested waters. Heck, that is what I do for work, hobbies are supposed to be fun.

cb400bill

It's still fun for me. I stay out of the high end stuff though. I just sold a nice Schwinn Hybrid this morning.

cudak888 

Don't let them ruin it for you. Don't bother to socialize with them, and don't offer them favors when they ask for it. Go there and seek out what you wish to buy - they remain stupid enough that a real good deal could slip out from under their noses, and if you don't bother to assist them, they'll become unsure of themselves.

That said, I'd tell the jerk seller to go find someone else to facilitate his sale, "and get your flipping hand off of my arm."

However...

If you really want to have fun with them, start examining many decent-looking, but bottom-end 10-speeds - especially those with frame damage. Wrecked Raleigh Sprites are perfect. Once they go on the auction block, put a bid on them for $5. Be arrogant about it. It'll be noticed. If you are daring, and the flippers seem anxious to knock you out of the running, bid as high as $10 or $15. By then, you'll have them bidding wildly against themselves for a worthless Raleigh Sprite or Schwinn LeTour; they'll think that it's valuable because you both looked it over and bid on it.

Repeat this a couple of times for some deceptively decent junkers, and make sure to be very careful about glancing at the nice stuff. You might be lucky enough to get them to buy enough expensive junk that they won't have the money, nor room to haul a nice machine out the door. Even if you don't bid on anything yourself, you'll certainly screw up their purchases for them

-Kurt

jsharr

This should take care of a dent in a celeste bianchi

https://www.shop3m.com/3m-duct-tape-3...900-SQQF6PNXT0

robatsu

Or just put a Power Bar sticker on it.

20grit

My family used to be big in the sheep industry. If we went to a certain kind of sale and started bidding on an animal, it would instantly attract other bidders. I'd say, from what you're saying you suffer from the same malady. You should probably take someone else with you to bid on the things you actually want. Then while that is going on.... you bid on the worst things imaginable. Eventually the flippers will get tired of outbidding you on junk and you'll be able to buy things you want more freely. When we started doing such things, it put a stop to those annoying other bidders.

Oregon Southpaw

I must say, in my experience with the CL bike-flip "Varsities are $500 vintage bikes" people, they are just about the worst.

Its amazing how every city has like a hundred of these people. "FIXED WHEEL 27" BIKE: $500, NO LOWBALLERS, NO SCAMMERS!"

Wogster

One of the handyman's two secret weapons ..........







The other is WD40.

Zaphod Beeblebrox 

I especially like "NO SCAMMERS" because if I were out to scam someone I would definitely see that in the title and know better than to scam that guy.

People are either too newb to the internets to know or have just plain forgotten that CL is the a**hole of the internet. Its always been full of weirdos, jerks, freaks and losers since its inception and the nature of an anonymous, free message board on the internet has always been and will always be a magnet for cocks. If this surprises you or shocks you or makes you think "oh no, that can't be" then you need to learn to internet. Its a malicious hateful place out there....if it doesn't seem that way its just a momentary lapse.

cudak888 

^
Precisely why it would be amusing if Pog started bids on the cheap junk.

-Kurt

Wisco

Let the ripoff artists have their fun--it will not be a long ride. Reputation counts, and the only reason they haven't been put out of business is because lots of people are still in love with the internet. That love, IMHO, will not last.
Also...as much as I detest the Varsity-for-500 sellers, you can't help but wonder who their customers are. It doesn't take lots of bike knowledge to do a little research on brand, model, and component value (as we see every day here on the forums), or to question the basic technical feasibility of replacing an entire frame tube. It's a dog-eat-dog world out there. If you have $500 for a Varsity, you probably have too much money in the first place (and let me tell you about this bridge...). If you want to be 'hip' so badly that you pay the same amount for a repainted Huffy with a flip-flop on it...same deal. My real beef with those clowns is that they tarnish everyone else who tries to sell quality used bikes for a fair price. The bike manufacturers and new-bike shops benefit immensely from this image, while selling products that, in my opinion, are poorer-quality, on a dollar-for-dollar level, than older bikes.

Also, not to take this too far off-topic, but as the scammers take over the used sector of the market, and its' image, the charities also move in. Please note: I have nothing against bike nonprofits, especially ones that educate the public about bike maintenance and use. But increasingly I've seen both a diminishing flow of raw material (with the explanation of "Oh, we had some old bikes, but we donated them") and less business, thanks to charity bike shops staffed by volunteers (many of whom, I'm not gonna lie, are not great mechanics, or knowledgeable about vintage bikes), who can undercut my prices. Again, I'm not against charities (and I shouldn't whine too much, I make a decent living off of vintage bikes) but...there's nothing shameful or shady about selling used goods, and there's no reason it should be the sole preserve of nonprofits. I'm making a living for myself, so that I don't have to receive charity. As long as one is neither a thief nor a ripoff artist, wheeling and dealing is perfectly good business. Ain't that the American way? Ah well, rant over.

USAZorro

If you find someone who just bought that bridge, they're going to need insurance for it. That's where I can help...