Has this happened to you? Updated!

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Body: Kokomo, In... Mind: in the gutter. Soul: in
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Have you ever had a deal come up that is almost too good to be true and think to yourself I'd be stupid not to? Well it has happened a lot lately.

July 14: Found a Hutch Judge frame for $40
HUTCH002.jpg


July 24: Found this Schwinn Frontier for $17
TodayshaulSCHWINNFROUNTEER001.jpg


July 24: Found this almost mint Schwinn Aerostar for $4
Todayshaul72412001.jpg


Aug 9: Found this Trek 4300 for $20
trek7300001.jpg


Aug 10: These two for $FREE. All the parts for the Roadmaster came with it
(one of those "Some assembly required" deals)
Todayshaul8102012009.jpg

The Huffy only had a bent set of bars on it. I have so many spare parts it's not funny so it took me more time to dig them out of my shed than it did to fix it.
Todayshaul8102012004.jpg


Aug 10: Scored this Iron Horse aluminum cruiser for $8
Todayshaul8102012010.jpg


Aug 12:
$120
1986 Diamondback Hot Streak (I'm a green freak)
BMXhaul002.jpg

Ross Pirahna
BMXhaul020.jpg

And a whole pile of rims
viewtopic.php?f=16&t=61354&p=591470#p591470

Aug 13
Traded
1. OCC parts chopper (Rusty, missing front wheel) Got in a trade for junk I was gonna throw out
2. My Schwinn Frontier Paid $17
3. a set of rims (got in a deal that these were just profit anyway)
4. a junk mongoose I had $3 into
5. and agreed to lace and true a set of rims for him

And got this little Yamaha 80cc Enduro!
Newpics002.jpg


Aug 21:
$5 Hoffman
Hoffman002.jpg

$45 SE Mauler
SEracing001.jpg


Aug 22:
$20 Recumbent
Recumbent003.jpg

Hope some of my luck rubs off on you guys. :mrgreen:
 
Re: Has this happened to you?

Dang! Nope. But sometimes the junk guy brings some good ones. They seem to come in waves, road bikes, MTBs, three speeds.
 
Re: Has this happened to you?

I rarely find great deals,I went to my local bike guy Sat to buy an old Firestone Super Cruiser.
He had told me previously he would take $150...Now that I'm ready to buy it he says no way for $150..
He has another frame he wants to use front end on,then proceeds to tell me it a waste of time to fix old bikes blah blah blah...I guaruntee those old frames will still be there in 1 year untouched...GGRRRrrrr.......
 
Re: Has this happened to you?

My 11 rules of bike flipping:
Rule 1: If it sounds too good to be true I ask why they are selling it and watch them when they answer. If they seem nervous and don't give a good reason I don't pay anything more than half what it's worth. Try to go 10% if possible. So I double my money or sell it back to rightful owner at half it's value (Normally $20 or under) and give them name and address of person to take to court for it. Most people won't mind getting a bike at half cost when they know who took it.

Rule #2 Keep every contact's name, find out what they like, what they buy, and what they get and sell cheaper than you can sell it for. Know a lot of people. If you find something you don't want but know someone who does call them and collect a $10 finder's fee for it. Find one thing an hour and you're doing better than minimum wage. ( I LOVE my iPhone)

Rule #3 Hit garage sales, flea markets, goodwill, second hand stores, scrapyards, trash piles, and anywhere you can pull a $10 or more profit from in less than an hour.

Rule #4 Know someone to buy it BEFORE buying it or dragging it home. And get it at the right price.
Have LOTS of SECURE storage or know how to fit 30 bikes in a small shed.

Rule #5 DON'T fall in love with a bike UNLESS you can sell your current "Keep bike" for double what you paid for the one you want to keep. Again double your money on everything you buy.

Rule #6 Hang out here and pay attention. I have learned so much here and I thank you guys so much.

Rule #7 NEVER turn down a FREE bike, In the worst case scenario It gives you an excuse to make $3 at the scrapyard and check bins for junked bikes.

Rule #8 Watch American Pickers, Pawn stars, and American Restoration. So when someone says well it went for this much on American Pickers/ Pawn Stars you come back with "But what would Rick on American Restoration charge to restore it." :lol:

Rule #9 Don't give more than they ask for.....EVER. That is called profit and that keeps you moving on to bigger and better things, but don't haggle an already good deal, that's bad karma and it will come back to you. Only use haggling where it needs it, then have no soul and pick out every scratch, ding, bent spoke, missing spoke, wrong bolt, flat tire, scuffed grip, and speck of dirt you can find to get the price back to a reasonable amount. Don't be afraid to offend them and walk away from a bad deal.

Rule #10 Sell bikes to close neighbors and family at only $20 more than you paid even if you can get more. They remember it and will give you things down the road just tell them they owe you a favor.
Same for repeat customers. Reputation is everything and it's free advertizing.
You're making money, a friend, and advertizing...Be happy.

And finally
Rule #11 Don't spend money on gas, Ride a BIKE! You'll like it! Ride it everywhere! It's good exercise and builds your calf muscles so you can chase down a thieves, catch them, and still have enough energy to beat the begezzes out of them. :mrgreen:



PS to all you working stiffs: After I sell everything I got today at fair market value I made $600+ from 9am this morning till 5 pm. I have some work to do on some stuff before I sell it but after a day like this I'd call in sick tomorrow and work on bikes all day if I wasn't unemployed. :mrgreen:
 
Nice scores, that red Roadmaster almost looks like a 26" quadangle, might be good for a 26" bmx build.
 
Carbon said:
Nice scores, that red Roadmaster almost looks like a 26" quadangle, might be good for a 26" bmx build.
I already sold it but now that you mention it that would have been an awesome build.
 
In my area most people don't sell anything for less than it is worth. They research it until they convince themselves it is worth double the fair value. If it doesn't sell for that price they seem happier cutting it up and taking it to salvage. Most bikes at the salvage yard here have been beaten out of shape with a sledgehammer lately to reduce picking and reselling, not sure why, I assume out of spite. Also anything for sale in the local trading paper is generally cheap walmart junk and priced well above value. I had a couple decent finds at goodwill, but since then they have overpriced everything. A well used NEXT womens cruiser was priced at $110, $10 above the new cost. I have had a couple good CL finds, but I still had to pay more than half of market value. No money to be made without parting. Oh well. Not enough time to catch the good ones I guess. I'm also not that into flipping though.
 
Yeah Indiana is pretty flat and Kokomo is nestled right between 3-5 huge colleges so I get lots of customers from Craigslist. Also I been running a bike shop out of my back yard garage / shed for the last 20 years so I have built a reputation as the bike guy of Kokomo.

Little luck never hurts either. I normally make two trips a day to the scrapyard and I hit garage sales like crazy. I have been known to swerve over 4 lanes of traffic if I see a yard sale with bikes... :lol:
 
Re: Has this happened to you?

My 11 rules of bike flipping:
Rule 1: If it sounds too good to be true I ask why they are selling it and watch them when they answer. If they seem nervous and don't give a good reason I don't pay anything more than half what it's worth. Try to go 10% if possible. So I double my money or sell it back to rightful owner at half it's value (Normally $20 or under) and give them name and address of person to take to court for it. Most people won't mind getting a bike at half cost when they know who took it.

Rule #2 Keep every contact's name, find out what they like, what they buy, and what they get and sell cheaper than you can sell it for. Know a lot of people. If you find something you don't want but know someone who does call them and collect a $10 finder's fee for it. Find one thing an hour and you're doing better than minimum wage. ( I LOVE my iPhone)

Rule #3 Hit garage sales, flea markets, goodwill, second hand stores, scrapyards, trash piles, and anywhere you can pull a $10 or more profit from in less than an hour.

Rule #4 Know someone to buy it BEFORE buying it or dragging it home. And get it at the right price.
Have LOTS of SECURE storage or know how to fit 30 bikes in a small shed.

Rule #5 DON'T fall in love with a bike UNLESS you can sell your current "Keep bike" for double what you paid for the one you want to keep. Again double your money on everything you buy.

Rule #6 Hang out here and pay attention. I have learned so much here and I thank you guys so much.

Rule #7 NEVER turn down a FREE bike, In the worst case scenario It gives you an excuse to make $3 at the scrapyard and check bins for junked bikes.

Rule #8 Watch American Pickers, Pawn stars, and American Restoration. So when someone says well it went for this much on American Pickers/ Pawn Stars you come back with "But what would Rick on American Restoration charge to restore it." :lol:

Rule #9 Don't give more than they ask for.....EVER. That is called profit and that keeps you moving on to bigger and better things, but don't haggle an already good deal, that's bad karma and it will come back to you. Only use haggling where it needs it, then have no soul and pick out every scratch, ding, bent spoke, missing spoke, wrong bolt, flat tire, scuffed grip, and speck of dirt you can find to get the price back to a reasonable amount. Don't be afraid to offend them and walk away from a bad deal.

Rule #10 Sell bikes to close neighbors and family at only $20 more than you paid even if you can get more. They remember it and will give you things down the road just tell them they owe you a favor.
Same for repeat customers. Reputation is everything and it's free advertizing.
You're making money, a friend, and advertizing...Be happy.

And finally
Rule #11 Don't spend money on gas, Ride a BIKE! You'll like it! Ride it everywhere! It's good exercise and builds your calf muscles so you can chase down a thieves, catch them, and still have enough energy to beat the begezzes out of them. :mrgreen:



PS to all you working stiffs: After I sell everything I got today at fair market value I made $600+ from 9am this morning till 5 pm. I have some work to do on some stuff before I sell it but after a day like this I'd call in sick tomorrow and work on bikes all day if I wasn't unemployed. :mrgreen:

Worth Reposting for those who have not seen this post, such as myself. Pure Gold
 
Guy at the bike shop got upset once because of the large number of Schwinn Frontiers.
 

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