April 2023 - Time to stock up? a glut of bikes and parts in the market right now
 

I started another thread about quality tires selling for cheap. Most everyone in the bike biz seems to have over ordered during the pandemic, and it would appear there's a glut that one could take advantage of. I've purchased 8 tires recently that typically go for $80-90 for around $30 or less. I'm seeing the already good value Tektro 539 brakes under $30.

Anybody else stocking up?

Not stocking up but what you assume is right. They say that the bike industry as such got into huge trouble on global level as big manufacturers did everything in the pandemics 2nd year to ramp up production then covid (or better said the effs given about it) disappeared. Bicycle was no longer the sole alternative to walking in the park as outside entertainment. Also the article where I saw this explicitly said that people can expect big discounts all over.

Thanks for the heads-up on those Rivendell tires.

I'm still waiting for that massive overproduction of 60cm late fifties Cinelli B's to hit the market. I'd also like to get in on the feeding frenzy which will certainly occur when all those new Nivex derailleurs hit the market for pennies on the dollar. I have it from the usual reliable sources that all the old-time collectors are going to start dumping their hoards of California Masis and Confentes.

...But so far all I see swinging from the end of the supply chain is a Campagnolo-equipped Huffy.
Brent

Clincher tires + tubes = Yes. But most bikes are tubular. :o. Am I missing those on deep discount somewhere?

Will look into the Tektro brakes as I am thinking about moving a couple to double pivot. Sometimes (lately) it is "To heck with originality!".

edit: Silver 539 for $30 = where?

Your post wasn't what I expected from reading the title. I'm seeing some deals on new parts, but -- at least here in Seattle -- more vintage parts and frames and bikes are coming up on Craigslist and Facebook marketplace, and for lower prices. I think some of the new fans brought in by Eroica California are drifting back out of this niche, and some riders are aging out overall. There were some stellar deals at the bike swap, if one were so inclined.

But I'm trying (kind of unsuccessfully...) not to stock up on part etc. until I know that I actually need them. I've got more than enough in the bins already.

I say this having picked up four frames in the last year... Two of those need to get sold, though.

10 speed stuff seems to have the glut. Probably thinner tires. That’s where I am getting bargain Vittoria tires.

However, the 8 speed and older, especially higher end SunTour, Shimano and Campy seem to have a still increasing price.

Used bikes bought during Covid are filling FB near me. Nothing particularly interesting.

I went looking for Challenge tires but found no deals.

One place had a good price but they had no inventory to sell. :(

Here you go: Tektro calipers

Online shops in Europe have such great prices compared to US ones - I just bought 6 x Conti Gator Hardshell tires yesterday for $22/each.

When I dump my Campy 8 speed stock, there will be a huge crash.

There are some good buys available. Even though the prices may be right, I just do not have a need, as things I want to have on hand, already are. I still fight the impulsive purchase.

I've been stocking up on spare components for the 3x10 Campy drivetrain I have on so many of my bikes, but not because it's been cheap. Instead, it's because for a couple of months all the long cage derailleurs I was seeing were over $150 and shifters for were over $200, so when I found a few at only slightly high prices I bought a couple of spare derailleurs, a spare set of shifters, the parts to rebuild a gew shifters, and just for good measure a complete bike that I bought just for the components.

There's a fine line between stocking up and hoarding, and I think I may be on the wrong side of it.

There is a glut of used bikes being sold at least in my local market in central IA though I think that's quite possibly true in other areas as well. People bought vintage bikes during the pandemic since new ones were hard to come by. Now demand has crashed but prices are still a bit sticky (but then most sellers aren't real businesses so they do not need to lower their prices so that the goods sell).

Chain Reaction in the UK has 9.99 USD shipping to the US. Might not apply to rims and such, but it worked for the tires I bought today.

I think it is free at $100US. I didn’t pay shipping for the loot at $100+

Said just about everyone on this forum

I thought there was just a thread about tires being expensive. :foo:

https://www.bikeforums.net/general-c...expensive.html

I stocked up a while ago, then my riding has plummeted.

I think I have tires, but I have to make sure I have other little parts as well as lights and safety gear.

It has been a few years, but the last time I tried to order stuff from Japan, I utterly failed. :mad: Nobody would reply back.

Free shipping for orders +$75, which is easy to hit (at least for me!). Placed 2 x orders for 6 tires total (had to order 3 at a time to avoid $40 shipping cost). Going to place another this weekend for a workstand - good reviews and currently on sale for $72 (from $84).

Didn't the 7-11 team used to race Campy equipped Huffy's in the '80s?

It seems more like the market is shifting, not a glut. Road biking as it was done on C&V bikes doesn't seem so popular. Now it's gravel and .. gasp.. e-bikes. I was just in a LBS this morning, and where last fall they had a corner with older bikes hanging, now it's all new Cannondales. Looks like they got a big order in. When I look at the local Trek dealers stock, it's one or 2 road bikes. It's not a shortage anymore, they have plenty of other bikes.

Likewise, when I decide to dump my 8 speed Dura Ace stash…

I have had this for sale on local CL and FB market place for almost 3 weeks. Not one inquiry. Not even an ill-informed low ball offer. Weird times.

https://philadelphia.craigslist.org/...605712796.html

That’s a nice bike but it’s quite rare to find folks that will fit a 62 size frame which might factor into why so little interest.

not for sale

I, too, saw long cage Campagnolo rear derailleurs at those prices very recently as I had picked up a nice pair of 9-speed Daytona Ergos that shift perfectly. Don't know if they run with the old or new 9-speed pull ratio, and research has proven fruitless thus far. Looked up Dura-Ace 7900 downtube shifters on the 'bay, and they are 2x or more what they were when new. Yeehaw. I have considered buying bikes for their component groups, though the shorter crank lengths of those bikes (due to being on smaller frames) is usually the first deal-breaker. I did buy a '90s carbon Trek for its nearly-mint Matrix Iso C II rims so I could lace 6400 hubs and put them on my OS Paramount, so I am presently participating in cannibalization of bikes. Oh well. The Paramount looks and rides beautifully, so I'm not torn up about it!

There is an abundance, and I am seeing some more really-tall frame availability and trying not to be on the wrong side of hoarding. I already have tires for years, thanks to last year. But...inflation, future dollar value, usefulness of (hand-built road) bikes--are tangible assets a bad bet? Not at all. ;)