adlai

I have some good bicycles, a little older, still in good working condition but I don't use as much anymore because I got better bicycles. It's kind of hard selling them because a lot of people are just ignorant on bicycles.

I was looking into renting them out to out of towners. There is Spinlister but it appears mostly defunct.

When I've traveled I would have liked to rent a good road bike to explore the area so there must be demand for a service like this. Most rental bikes are crappy hybrid bikes like the citibikes in NYC.

dedhed

One word - Liability

tFUnK

When some coworkers visited from out of town, they mentioned wanting to rent bikes. I offered to let them borrow mine for the weekend. They were stoked and recommended that I start a rental service. Liability and the need to provide mechanical support/customer service were the primary deterrents.

blacknbluebikes 

I can't imagine making enough money to offset the hassle of dealing with the public at my door complaining about their experience with my old bikes.

soyabean

There's a reason why I don't do Airbnb, nor have any investment rental properties with tenants.

I like to use my time for CYCLING, not providing customer service.

Best of luck to the OP and their insurance and tax filings.

veganbikes

Maybe you are also part of that group. Maybe because you have had those bicycles a while and care about them quite a bit you are putting more value into them then they might be worth. I cannot judge either as I have done the same, that is why I don't sell stuff often.

I wouldn't rent bicycles, it is a lot of work for little to no reward unless you really dedicate to it and have a good shop behind it also making other money. Plus all the insurance is going to be a pain and worrying about loss and also having sizes for people. Most rental places have the same bike in different sizes you probably have a bunch of stuff in the same size.

shelbyfv

I guess that means people haven't wanted to pay what you've asked for your bikes. There's more than one way to view that situation.

indyfabz

I remember this guy. Not worth responding to.

livedarklions

Talk to a local attorney before you even consider this. There may be licensing requirements, major liability issues, what you would need to do to secure your bikes against theft (nonreturn). and the documentation your customers will have to sign.

Also make sure you have a vehicle to go get these bikes when they break dwn wherever because the people you're renting to aren't going to be really keen on roadside repairs.

Seriously, what could go wrong? Bwahahahahahaha!

tFUnK

Thinking about this some more, another spin on this is to provide guided rides/tours with bike rental as part of the experience.

smd4

If you want your bikes to get trashed, I can’t think of a better way than renting them out.

plumberroy

I can't imagine you having enough bikes to cover the liability insurance needed to protect yourself

big john

I've given away old bikes or sold them cheap. Wouldn't want to try and rent them to strangers or even let people use them. I did let a friend use one of my bikes and he crashed it and gave it back unrideable.

I've had a bunch of old cars and a friend and I bought one to use as a rental when we worked at a shop. Some guy had our car and it was stolen from him. He said "sorry". My boss shamed him into giving us a little money but still a loss.

soyabean

When an owner makes excuses as to why "It's kind of hard selling" bikes, it always boils down to the same.

They're asking way too much.

Vintage crap is not valuable (unicorns fall into here).

No one simply wants what they have. The crux of the world economy works on supply to demand.

Accept it.

Atlas Shrugged

If you can’t sell your old bikes what makes you think someone wants to rent them? I have rented bikes on occasion and it falls into two categories. Either city bikes which are set up for that purpose with wide bulletproof tires, upright position and racks or performance oriented bikes in areas renowned for good riding. These performance bikes are set up with appropriate gearing and current models. Perhaps if operating in Tuscany there may be a niche opportunity for classic bikes.

veganbikes

Chinghis

I have to say, the crutch used as a backrest on the banana-seat bike is a nice touch.

big john

Sissy bar.

_ForceD_

In my neighborhood we liked extend the forks on our stingrays. I once used a swing set crossbar, sawed in half, to extend my forks for the chopper look. But metal crutch would work perfect for extending the forks.

Dan

Chinghis

That was what we called them! I couldn't remember.

smd4

That isn't a Black Phantom just sitting there, is it??

Leinster

I rented out a couple of my bikes on Spinlister a few times. It was a good service, and I keep my bikes in pretty-ok condition, so didn’t get any complaints. I made a couple hundred bucks off 5 or 6 total customers.

When I looked into renting out through them in other cities, it seemed like other owners generally priced their stuff higher than I would have expected to pay.