EveryManALion

Had my wheelset stolen yesterday, it is a no name wheelset that came with the bike, when I look on ebay all I am seeing are brand new ones. People who steal ****ty wheelsets, are they actually able to sell them? I find it hard to believe anyone is willing to pay more than $30-$50 for a cheap wheelset with tubes and tires or am I wrong? I am just glad I didnt have a more expensive wheelset.

knobster

Yep you're wrong. I've bought several sets on EBay and have yet to be disappointed. My last set was a $800 set I got for $350. Wheels look brand new but they are a good 5 years old. I've sold several sets on EBay as well and most range from $200 to $500.

Not everyone is out to rip you off. Just be sure of what you're buying and from whom.

EveryManALion

But what about the cheap sets? There is no way mine was worth more than $50

TenSpeedV2

I purchased a front wheel along with a wheelset for my fixed gear bike. No issues at all. What you consider to be junk, someone else might see as gold.

wedgeSG

I bought a new set of wheels from a guy that builds wheels as a sideline, brand new set with killer hubs he built up for a project bike that never got finished....felt like I got a fantastic deal on them. Point being, deals are out there on Ebay, you just gotta be patient and do the digging around. Most of the online retailers have sales often too...you can probably do a cheap upgrade for about the same as used if you watch for the clearances even just a little bit.

noglider 

The stuff is selling, which means people are buying it.

Tannedsailor

Yeah, Age never tells the condition ,depends on the usage.
So you cant really tell if what your buying is gonna be worth or not.

Tannedsailor

My beat up cracked rusted stock plastic pedals were stolen from my bike while parked on a busy street in the middle of the day once so some people just steal stuff for the sake of it.

bakes1

Sorry OP, you have to understand this is BF and most people here don't spend much time trying to read or comprehend simple posts lol.
Yes, there is a market for even the cheap wheel sets on EBay and Craigslist.
Sorry you got burned btw

Homebrew01

Or the thief needed wheels for his own bike, not to sell.

T Stew

That sucks. Reminds me of my cheap old Huffy MTB I had as a kid that got stolen out of my car back in the college days. I lived in a real bad area though. Someone either needed $5 or $10 REALLY bad, or they just didn't want to walk all the way home. Worse part was the broken window and glass all over the car. If I had known what they were going to do I'd have left it unlocked, which I later started to do (leaving nothing in the vehicle again).

It's really hard to tell someones motive in something like that. Just be thankful it was a cheap set. Yes, lots of used sets on Ebay but often either higher end sets or perhaps vintage stuff. For a $30 set I think shipping would be cost prohibitive. And for cheaper sets there are many out there brand new from some places that charge no shipping, like Wiggle. Maybe not much choices for $30 to 50 but many from 100-200 it seems.

steve0257

Sell locally on CL or at a garage sale.

knobster

Maybe. Unfortunately, the shipping might be nearly the cost of the wheels. Like others have said, try using craigslist or maybe donate them to a local bike coop if you have one. I donated a ton of stuff to them that I wasn't going to use anymore and they put that stuff back to work for people that might not be able to afford to buy.

fietsbob

Yea, the internet replaced 'the Fence' in selling stolen property.

knobster

After I read your post, I went back and re-read the OP's post. Yep, I did it as well. To the OP, I doubt you'll see your wheels on EBay, but Craigslist is a haven for stolen good and I've heard people say flea markets are also huge to get rid of wheels. You'll never find them and even if you did, unless you marked them with something unique, you'll never be able to prove they are your wheels.

If you were local to Oregon, I'd give you a set of wheels. I've got a set of Mavic Aksium Elites that I'd give you.

CliffordK

I think the question is what happens to all the wheels, seats, and etc that get stolen.

Perhaps there is an underground trading network that one never sees on E-Bay/Craigslist, buying/selling/trading hot stuff.

For someone building up bikes, wheels are an important component. If it is a $1000 wheelset... someone will be looking for it.

On the other hand, if it is a $20 MTB wheelset, one looks pretty much the same as the next. Put it on a bike, and nobody will be the wiser.

Retro Grouch 

What kind of wheelset do you need? Maybe we can make a deal.

Stucky

Or maybe he's building a bike on the installment plan...

OP, no- generally, with what it costs to ship wheels, not too many people would be buying such cheap wheels on Ebay.

Sorry to hear that you got ripped-off; and sorry that so many here apparently just replied after reading the title of the thread, and not your actual post. (Happens all the time- "My XYZ is making noise, I tried tightening it. Still makes noise. What else can I do?" First 18 responses: "Try tightening it". )