Chuck M 

Welcome to the forums.

You only feel that way because people selling on facebook marketplace are overvaluing these bikes like you said. In my area, Fujis, Schwinns, Takaras, Free Spirits, and Huffys all get listed initially at $250 it seems.

I get the vibe that some people do try to explain how out of the ball park some prices are but I don't think I would ever do that. They are sure their bike is every bit as good as what they priced it off of on eBay which may also be overpriced. I have messaged couple of people that were selling nice old bikes that were priced way too low that they could do better.

Best case scenario when I croak is my grandson is old enough to take them over and will want Papa's bikes. The worst case is my kids will be disappointed when they try to sell them on facebook marketplace thinking they are worth something. At any rate, I've already made it known to my kids my grandson can have them.

obrentharris 

I don't expect to find bikes on craigslist or FB for "$25-$50." I wouldn't bother with the hassle of selling online for $25 or $50. I would guess that many others feel the same way. If you can't get some reasonable monetary return on the time you spend photographing, listing, and responding to inquiries, why bother? Easier just to give it away. This is part of why the $50 bikes are found at thrift stores, bike co-ops, and yard sales.
Brent

rccardr 

Absolutely this. Why sell something for $25-50 when you can give it to Goodwill or the coop, set your own reasonable price (see IRS guidelines before getting crazy) and take it as a hassle free tax deduction? Or just leave it in the basement cuz ‘it’s worth more than that to me’.

Insidious C. 

My experience with FB has been it is that bargains can sometimes be found there. Prices on used bikes are wildly variable. High quality bikes can ocassionally be found in the $25 - $50 range. Sometimes even free!

albrt 

I don't use FB or Next Door or any of those things, but my wife sometimes finds ads where they are basically giving the item away but charging a token price like $20 just to screen out time-wasters. I assume that would occasionally be true for bikes.

I look at Craigslist most days just to get a my fix of looking at bikes, but it's been taken over by half a dozen flippers who drive everybody else away by reposting the same crap over and over again. Owners of one old bike who want to sell it for a bargain price are very few and far between on Craigslist.

And that exhausts my knowledge of local online marketplaces.

3alarmer 

...first, I understand you are just getting started in this hobby. I wish you many happy adventures in it.

But from someone at the other end of the ride, eventually you are going to wonder why you wasted all that time trying to buy stuff for 50 bucks, instead of looking for the best of the olde bicycles, which usually cost more, even on CL and Facebook marketplace. By all means buy and ride what you think looks good for you, but if you're going to completely overhaul an old project bicycle, there are some that are probably more worth the time and energy you put into a project than others.

Having found one, if it's your ideal size and in decent cosmetic condition, it's worth an extra $100-150 if you don't need to repair the paint or decals. I understand that you are focused on modernizing your projects, but not all of us are focused in that direction. Eventually, you might discover the joys of early indexed Dura Ace, with DT shifters. "C+V" covers a wider range of interests than you seem to be pursuing.

If I had my earliest years in this hobby to do over again, I would have focused on painting and restoring sooner. I'm not honestly sure how many of the top echelon road bikes end up on CL and Facebook any more. Probably the reason is the same as has already been mentioned, they are worth more to the current owners as something they might occasionally still ride, than what offers they get from well meaning individuals who see ads for "old bikes", and expect that all of them will sell for less than a hundred bucks.

That said, good luck in your endeavors. There are certainly plenty of old bicycles out there. It's just that some are more interesting than others.

RiddleOfSteel

The switch to disc and the present market have me determined to outfit the vintage bikes I sell with brifters as the interest for down tube shifting is minimal at best. Only top end frames retain their original features (if down tube from the factory) for me now. Mid-level (and thereabouts) get the modernization treatment. This ethos is also driven by the fact that I have extra brifters, and that fewer people want to build bikes from the frame up. My goal is to not lose my shirt on things while also keeping good frames on the road (or returning them to the road).


Looking back on the frames/bikes I've paid for, my 720 I bought complete for well under its value, though it needed decals and a headbadge. My '85 620 was as a frameset+ which I believe was a fair value given the frame's condition. My '84 620 was a complete bike purchase for a fair value, even with removing most of its components for modernization. Naturally, knowing just how good each of these frames are, and how great they have been for me, they're all screaming deals. Of them, the '85 620 I have the most work into, frame-wise: purchase price, canti work, powder coat, decals. There is no chance I'd ever make back the money I have into the frame. Thankfully, its capacity and capability, along with its character, continues to endear it to me.

SirMike1983 

There has always been a certain percentage of vintage bike sellers who severely over-price items. It was true when things were in-person, when eBay started, and now with Facebook. They "know what they have" and they're going to price it 5x or more above market. They've always been around this hobby, and they always will be here. These are wise guys who already know everything, so you can't talk to them or deal with them in a reasonable way. This is certainly not a majority of sellers in this hobby, but it's a substantial enough minority that you notice it. After awhile, you'll get a feel for the repeat offenders, and learn to avoid their sales or shops.

Catnap 

To distill a couple of other folks advice and put my spin on it - don’t get into this hobby with the intention of restoring & flipping vintage bikes. The market just isn’t what it was 10 years ago and nothing to suggest it will ever come back to where it was.

If you really want to work on a bunch of vintage bikes, I recommend joining a bike co-op or starting your own. Alternatively, scour yard sales and Goodwill for the $25-50 gems in the rough. Hunting online for vintage bikes to flip will just leave you frustrated.

Personally, I have stopped restoring any bikes other than ones that are for my or my wife’s personal collection. In that case, I’m focused on specific niche, rare high-end brands and components. I both enjoy the hunt while also being willing to pay top dollar when I find what I want.

cleverbeefalo

Holy cow thanks for all the replies! I didn't know about the 5 post limit in 24 hours and am likely not going to be able to catch up/respond to everyone, but I do appreciate all the commentary. It's quite impressive how this thread is full of people voicing differing opinions and it hasn't devolved into classic internet forum argument. Thanks to all!

That is a perspective I hadn't considered, but it definitely makes sense! I think the assumption here is that most listings are thoughtful, responsive, and with good photos. If that's the case, totally makes sense. Definitely hasn't been my experience, though. At least half of bike listings are blurry photos with no description. Then click on the seller's profile and it's a hodge podge of random junk. My opinion--these are the bikes that really should be selling for $25-50, but of course I understand it's just an opinion and everyone's got one. Mine isn't worth more than the person selling junk and their beat up Lotus Excelle.

Love this counterpoint. Thanks!

This is about where my take on these bikes has landed. I don't intend to flip bikes, just make them cool according to what I think is cool. If I build a bike I like more than a current one I have, I will probably sell a bike at a loss and not worry about it. Also agree about keeping the bikes out of landfills.

The compression point is a good one. Also, what a steal!

cleverbeefalo

I agree. For context, the reason I bought my Panasonic is because I visited my little brother over the holidays in FL and he took me on a ride that totally kicked my ass (albeit him and his wife had road bikes and he leant me a mountain bike). Being that I couldn't let him do that again, I bought a bike and am training so he'll never beat me again because he's the little brother and that's how these things work.

I didn't want downtube shifters, so I started researching how to get brifters, which lead me to looking up 7 speed freewheels and finding Sheldon Brown's site. Now I have bought used dura ace hubs and am planning a 650b build so I can get a bit more tire/air on the Panasonic. I also considered getting a classic tourer that has a bit more clearance and getting fattish 700c tires. It's all fun to fantasize about, but yeah, I am in agreement this is a money losing hobby, not money making, but it's fun so whatever. I could be spending this money at the bar like I did in my twenties, so it's progress!

Catnap 

Welcome to the hobby! Sounds like your motivations are in the right place. If you need some classic touring bike "inspo" then check out my blog; the link here will take you to a list of articles about touring bikes I have built up and ridden on many tours: https://djcatnap.com/?s=touring&submit=Search. I've also done some 650B touring bike conversions in the past: https://djcatnap.com/centurion-pro-t...e-650b-townie/ and https://djcatnap.com/andre-bertin-650b/. Nowadays my wife and I ride 1970s randonneur bikes that were purpose-built for 650B, and I commute on a modern gravel bike outfitted with 650B. I still like my skinny 700c wheels on my fixed gear and my vintage 80s & 90s road bikes, but I prefer 650B for everything other than "go-fast" rides.

cleverbeefalo

Thanks for the links! I'll check these out when I have a bit of time, but on first glance that 3Rensho of yours is quite a bike. Making me jealous!

plumberroy

Once I a while you can find a decent bike at a yard sale cheap . But with the Internet, demand and information is at your finger tips . Also the days of running down to the local bike shop and get tires, tubes, cables and brake pads for $30 are no more. With 3 colleges here local used bikes run more than In rural areas. I quit flipping a few years ago. I will fix up a youth bike to donate once in a while.
My Granddaughter has already staked claim to my purple Univaga mountain bike that I have modded into a cruiser when I can no longer ride

79pmooney

I've also paid more than I could have recently for two! Pro Miyatas. Both from fellow BFers. First was a gamble. Lots of (well disclosed) rust. My hope and dream was to duplicate the ride of the Fuji Pro I raced and so loved. Several hundred dollars for the frame and Superbe parts that would take the patience of a monk to salvage. Spent its first winter getting nail polished to hide the rust and slow the continuance when the bike saw water. But ... the ride! A real step up from that bike I loved so much! Rode the final week long Cycle Oregon last Sept on it. Wonderful! Worth every penny and every hour of nail polishing. Total keeper - except that rust.

Another Pro, same size popped up here. A couple hundred dollars more. Full bike. I jumped on it. Paid full price except some parts I wasn't going to use and the seller could. Completely amiable. Now in the garage awaiting attention. A couple of paint flaws so the polish will come out and I will mix up a new repair batch. (Seller had a repaint done. Slightly different blue. I like the original better plus the original is that great Imron but this is radically better than that rust bucket could ever be.)

So, in the end I will have paid a LOT for a 40 yo production Japanese racer that can only handle very skinny tires. So close that nearly every caliper brake ever made need not apply. (Thankfully tubulars with their more forgiving ride work really well despite being so skinny, Like someone designed this bike around such skinny tires. Weird. ) And in the end, I got the ride; two sellers got their money and both the deals were fun for both of us. And by other judgements, I was a total fool and got screwed royally.

Schreck83 

Welcome to BF from another WNYer!

The C&V market here is weak but bargains on better quality bikes do appear and are usually scooped up before too long. I live outside of Buffalo but I find better quality bikes offered in the Rochester area, which may be a function the affluence of the folks that bought these bikes when they were new. Rochester has/had Kodak, Bausch & Lomb, Xerox whereas Ford, Chevy and Bethlehem Steel were major employers in Buffalo. Many of those C&V bikes are now being sold by the spouses, sons or daughters of the original rider and values range from optimistic to " I just want to get rid of it".

Since asking price is no guide to value, you need to learn to spot a quality bike. Then, simply showing up puts you in a better position to offer less than the asking price because few people will actually show up.

If you are not familiar with it, R Community Bikes repairs and provides bikes to needy riders in Rochester. One of the ways they fund their operation is by offering the higher quality donations for sale through CL and FB. These bikes have been serviced sufficiently to be rideable and are generally in the $120 - $175 range. Good value and a good cause!

merziac

This a prominent crux of what we do here.

You will see bikes that will stun you, some so very well done you will be taken with them even not knowing the brand, model etc.

You will also see bikes you know well that do or don't really grab you for some reason.

We have so many very good enablers here it will amaze you at the work they do and knowledge they have.

JulesCW 

Was/is buying old parts and putting them on brand new frames a thing in your area? I don't think I've seen or heard of anyone near me doing that. I can't see ever doing that unless I was trying to do a replica of some grail bike, and even then it sounds like strange idea. On the other hand i've seen a fair number of folks doing like the OP -- putting new(er) parts on old frames -- I've even resto-modded a frame or two that way myself. .

cleverbeefalo

Good to meet you Schreck! Fun that there's another WNY'er familiar with the rust belt history of the area. I grew up playing hockey and driving to Buffalo on weekends, but never really spent time there outside of hockey rinks. Never realized how Buffalo was that much more blue-collar, but it definitely makes sense considering the industries in each city!

I've seen some of the R Community Bikes posts. I need to make a trip and go check out what's going on there/meet some people.

smd4

There’s a glut right now. Things may be as cheap as they’re ever going to get. Low end bikes might always be a deal, but if you’re looking for a cheap high end bike you may be SOL. Ever see what Schwinn Black Phantoms and associated parts go for? Anyone here have one as a teen in 1953? No?

Then who’s buying them??

Atlas Shrugged

That’s the making of a fun thread. The craziest cycling related item that the person has spent $100 on. For me it was probably a flashy anodized titanium bolt kit or a 1st gen carbon water bottle cage. But I am sure will recall something even sillier.

smd4

Actually, probably would make a fun thread. I can certainly add more!