Have you ever sold/bought a bike on EBay?

[xeney]

I haven't, but my husband bought a bike on eBay last year and it was a horrible experience -- the kind of horrible experience that involved invoking PayPal's buyer protection, appeals by the jerky crook of a seller, and a lot of serious anguish. We will probably never buy another bike on eBay just because it was so awful, even though I'm sure that 90% of the sellers are fine.

I will tell you what made the sale so awful so you can be sure to avoid these things, because honestly, this bike would have been okay and the price wasn't even terrible, it just was missrepresented and my husband didn't want an old banged up bike at any price. Plus some other stuff made the experience less than pleasant, so here is what I would say to watch out for:

1. Don't lie. Don't white lie. Don't fudge. Don't estimate. If there are dings and scratches on the bike, photograph them clearly and point them out. If the bike has deep braking grooves on the rims, worn-off decals, pieces broken off the hoods and brakes, a torn seat that clearly shows evidence of a bike wreck, and other signs of serious wear, don't advertise it as nearly new, excellent condition, fewer than 200 miles. Because people will buy a well-used bike if it is in decent repairable condition, but they will be mad if they think they're getting a nearly new bike and you sell them a well-used one that's been wrecked.

2. Include as many photos as you can, including close-ups. We should have been tipped off here because although the guy included many photos, including close-ups, but they were all from one side, and some things were only shot from a distance and at an angle. Make it clear that you aren't hiding anything, and focus on any imperfections just so people know you are being honest.

3. Accept the fact that you might not get your money back on the bike, or if you have a minimum price that will make you happy, set a reserve. This guy had a big attitude because of how much he thought the bike was worth, and from the get-go after the sale closed he made it clear that he was really mad that it had sold for so little. He was a dummy, of course: even your pristine brand new bike that you've taken around the block once isn't going to sell for what it cost you at the bike shop. But the time for him to pitch a fit about that was when he set his reserve price, not after it sold.

4. FIGURE OUT THE SHIPPING BEFOREHAND. I have been looking at old beaters (I found one locally and avoided this, fortunately) and I wouldn't even consider one from a seller who said he wasn't sure what the shipping would be. I noticed that nobody else bids on those bikes, either. I think this is probably one of the most important factors.

5. Don't overpay for shipping. Get a proper bike shipping box and measure it carefully -- a bike shop can help you, obviously. This issue really made my husband mad. The seller had originally estimated shipping at $50, but then when he finally got a box and got it measured and shipped, he came up with $100 to ship from UPS. My husband asked for an invoice because it was so much higher than the original estimate, and it seemed to check out, so he paid it. Once he got his refund and went to ship the bike back, using the exact same box and the exact same UPS service, it was only $50 -- because he measured the box really carefully and gave UPS the exact measurements. There is a tiny fractional difference in box size that can bump a bike into a different "oversized" category, and the result is a huge increase in shipping costs. Every time I see a $100 shipping estimate for UPS now I know that the seller didn't measure exactly. But it is worth being exact -- your buyers will happily pay YOU more for the bike if they don't have to give UPS $100 to ship it!

Anyway, those are the issues that I now look for any time I am looking at eBay bikes. Good luck.

[juvel01]

anaphase - Craiglist is a great idea, I always forget about that. I just put it there.

xeney - sorry you had a such a poor experience on Ebay! I've sold and bought quite a few things on there and never had the trouble you did. You brought up good thoughts to keep in mind. My LBS wil charge $75 to pack, ship and insure the bike so that cost I already know. Condition isnt an issue, the bike is less than 6 months old and spotless so I'll do lots of close pics from all angles.

Thanks!

[xeney]

Yeah, this is our only bad eBay experience in years of buying stuff there. But it was a really expensive bad experience, unfortunately!

My husband said to mention the type of packing you would use -- or saying that the LBS is packing it up for you is also really good. He said that would be a factor if he ever bought another bike on eBay. (The one sent to him was also poorly packaged -- the fork was damaged in shipping.)

[Technotart]

If you aren't an experienced e-bay shopper/seller I would like to point out that the best way to protect yourself is to ONLY deal with people who use paypal. While it doesn't guarantee that the transaction is perfect ie: the previous posters situation - at least you have recourse.

If someone wants to send you a check or money order, make it clear in your listing that you will not ship the item until the payment has cleared the bank. AND NEVER EVER EVER let someone talk you into the "I'll send you a check for 5000 for the 50.00 item, you send me back the 3500 and ship the item - upi can keep the other 1000" That is ALWAYS a scam - generally those people approach you by saying they'd like to handle the sale outside of e-bay. DONT DO IT. The checks never clear and you are left short the cash you took out to send them. I know it sounds like it should be obvious, but it really happens and people really do get suckered. Don't do business with anyone who wants to close the deal "off e-bay" and asks you to de-list your item.

If you have your heart set on a minimum price, set a reserve price up front!!!!

If you are sending a check or money order to someone for an item, make sure it is a traceable one - from your bank is best. Money Orders are too hard to trace.

I just deal with paypal. period. no ands ifs or buts.

[jeannierides]

All great advice! My SO has bought two Colnago bike frames, many many parts, and sold a bike frame. For the most part, he has had good experiences.

[eofelis]

I have not yet sold a bike or frame on ebay, but we have sold many bike parts on there. Some things sell for more than I expect, some for less. We have some frames here that need to be sold. My SO has a fancy steel Colnago frame he wants to sell eventually. He's been watching auctions for similiar items to see what he might get for his.

I did buy a nice frame on ebay in the spring. It's a 13.5" Gunnar Rockhound mtn bike. It's a sweet steel frame that retails for around $800. I got it $200

[emily_in_nc]

I bought my Aegis Swift frame and fork on eBay from a small bike shop. I got it for about 1/3 of retail (brand new, but an older model year), and the deal went perfectly. Since the seller was a bike shop, the shipping was professionally done and reasonably priced. But you do have to be very careful, check feedback religiously.

I also sold a nearly new tandem bicycle on eBay. I included tons of pictures and many details. Actually got quite a few bids and got a very good price for it. I had a local bike shop that deals in tandems package it, and I split the cost of that with the buyer (it was higher than usual since it was a tandem). That transaction also went very smoothly, although the buyer never emailed me to tell me that he got the bike, never left feedback, etc. That was a bit odd, but at least he paid!

My brother-in-law bought a bike for our niece on eBay, and although the shipping was slower than he expected, it turned out well also.

I have read that there is more fraud in bicycle sales on eBay than just about any other category (computers possibly excepted). Be very careful out there as there are unscrupulous sellers trying to "sell" stolen bikes or advertising bikes for sale that they don't even have or have any intent of selling. One tip-off is pictures from the manufacturers site rather than their own photos.

Emily