djkashuba 

I need to downsize and am too lazy to ship. Can anyone suggest a good bike swap in the S.F. Bay area to sell vintage stuff?

Thanks,

-D

jetboy 

i think they all sort of dried up. want to organize one?

Chombi1 

The big Cow Palace expo/swap meet died just a couple of years ago....
Too bad cause I was able to buy a good number of decent C&V stuff for good prices, the few years I went to it....
Best buy was from the last time I went. A hardly used Roval tubular aero wheelset from the 80's! Paid something like 35 bucks for the set....
Must be the high cost to insure such venues that contributed to its demise.....

bargainguy

There used to be a wonderful little swap in the parking lot at Endless Cycles in Castro Valley. It was free to attend, free vendor spaces, and they served free food as well! I believe they closed last year, but I no longer live in the area - maybe someone here can confirm the store closure.

prathmann

Our club still has an annual swap meet the day after our Cinderella ride (the swap meet will be April 15th this year). As with the one above, it's free to both sellers and buyers and, if there's food left over from the Cinderella, that may be available as well. Details at:
Valley Spokesmen Bicycle Club - Bicycle Swap Meet

obrentharris 

There's also one each spring at Cupertino Bike Shop. I sold there a few years ago but not many folks buying vintage stuff.
I like @jetboy's idea. Either organize our own or, maybe better still, chose an existing one and encourage all our C&V friends to attend. Maybe the one listed in the post by @prathmann would be a likely venue. Dublin is fairly close to the East Bay and SOuth Bay folks, a bit of a drive for those of us in the North Bay but I'm game if the rest of you are. We'll have a good time if nothing else.
Brent

djkashuba 

If you guys are involved I will probably come home with more than I take. But hey, I am game for any of the above.

squirtdad

trailhead cyclery host one in San Jose it will be march 25 this year https://trailheadcyclery.com/event/spring-swap-meet/

I haven't been in a couple of years but it used to be really eclectic

Dougbloch 

I could be game for this! I’m in Alameda.

curbtender

I'm going to say that it's probably the best swap out there right now for buyers.

unworthy1

In Alameda there has been (and I hope again) a small one sponsored by the Changing Gears non-profit that also runs the repair/rebuild co-op to train the local youts. It's one of the easiest/cheapest buy-ins for selling but nothin' fancy. The only downside is their date sometimes coincides with the really BIG draw antiques sale that is nearby on the old Air Station Base and pulls in a HUGE crowd...meaning gridlock traffic to get on/off the island.

curbtender

Changing Gears bike shop in Alameda is looking for someone to run their swap... About Us
They attracted a lot of buyers and sellers in years past.

Dougbloch 

Looks like the Cupertino one is coming up too.

https://sacramento.craigslist.org/bd...482823129.html

2cam16

Man, we need one in the Peninsula or the City area. All these swaps are a drive for me.

jetboy 

I could organize one at my co-op space at USF. but its not all that convenient... far from BART etc. but its in the city.

or.. how about emeryville? I have a contact at Color Wheel and they are right at Doyle st park. He might be interested in organizing if we had like 4 or 5 solid people planning to come and set up. I got a ton of stuff id let go for a song just to get the wheels turning.

unworthy1

Hmmms...some interesting ideas, I sure would like to participate (either USF or Emeryville location) if the details all fall into place. Unfortunately my current workload leaves me zero time for any planning or organizing (wish I could). It will be all I can do to just show up on a weekend with a load of stuff to peddle.

djkashuba 

S.F. or Oakland is as far south as I would want to go. Good number of vintage riders around there as well. Emeryville is pretty central for Bay Area riders.

Nothing in Marin? Seems the bike museum in Fairfax would be a good fit or the Marin Co. Bicycle Coalition ... I like to kick in money for non profits if they sponsor. Wasn't there a big sale in San Rafael back in the day?

Let's keep thinking about this and try to get something pegged for early spring? Pre-Erocia?

-D

obrentharris 

Trips For Kids used to put on the big one at San Rafael and then at Mill Valley but they haven't done one in at least a decade. I could talk to the folks at the museum and at MCBC if you folks think that Fairfax is centrally enough located for the rest of the Bay Area.
Emeryville is nicely located for most of us. Is there plentiful parking?

Maybe this is a good option if we were willing to put it together using their location.

Regardless of where we land I am willing to bring a few bikes and some parts. I would also help organize but don't want to take the lead on this since I am one of the organizers of another (non-bicycle) event in late April.
Brent

jetboy 

I will go ask at Color Wheel- last we talked he had indicated he was thinking about maybe getting a swap together- I think if I offered to help it would probably happen. We would have to ask the city if we could use the grassy area of the park but emeryville is pretty open to that sort of thing- I have seen various businesses use the area for events.

If its the weekend then there is lots of parking. emeryville is a 9-5pm weekday sort of town.
pic of park:

obrentharris 

Thanks for moving forward on this @jetboy!
Brent

unworthy1

+1 and I'll be watching this thread for updates! The alternative swap that came up in Marin was a big one and a refreshing change since at the time Trips for Kids (bless her heart) had been turning theirs into a gouger-fest.
It's understood that such good-hearted non-profits needs to maximize the donations but TfK had really gone 'round the bend with fees, percentages, tiered (all high) admission prices and high set prices for their donated goods. It was a no-brainer that somebody came along who offered some respite and that swap immediately took off. Victim of it's own success as it grew too big for the organizer to keep it running even at 'break-even". Whoever that guy was (never caught his name) he's a hero who deserved a big "THANKS!". And TfK still hangs in there and does what they do, so the "alternative" did not knock them off.

djkashuba 

The last swap I sold at was the Sacramento Bike Kitchen and the fee was 10.00. It was just as much a social event as a business opportunity. Good times ...

Thanks all for putting on your thinking caps.

-D

curbtender

bikingshearer 

The Valley Spokesmen have been doing the Cinderella Century followed by the swap meet for many years. Both are great events - I've helped the Dublin Cyclery crew with the pre-event repair station a number of times. Unfortunately, for the past three years, Cinderella weekend has coincided with Eroica California weekend. They coincide this year, too.

Grand Bois

Is the swap at The Pedaler still going? I'm ready to unload most everything.