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craigslist shenanigans?

Do you guys think there's any reasonable explanation for why this guy has like 89 of the same blue Schwinn?:

http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/bik/3003415334.html


I ask because I think that women's frame in front is reallllly cute... I'm sure it's a mess, but I would still legitimately consider buying it if it weren't for the fact that the post sketches me out


2012-05-08 23:21:48

also I wonder if helmuts are anything like helments


2012-05-08 23:30:59

my wild guess would be they were rentals?


salty
2012-05-09 00:27:14

Probably bought them all in bulk and is trying to make some side cash.


chemicaldave
2012-05-09 00:38:34

Rostraver township would be close to the GAP, so I think salty is right about them being rentals.


marko82
2012-05-09 00:59:51

either explanation seems plausible enough. i usually ask enough annoying questions to scare away sketchy craigslist sellers well before i actually consider giving them money anyway, so maybe it's worth a try if the guy might have an inexpensive frame that would fit me.


i just kind of want a summer project. i have tried to build a bike at freeride but i have yet to find a frame there because i'm too short for the vast majority of the frames they get (at least in terms of steel road bikes, which are what i'm interested in) :(


2012-05-09 01:03:01

ah, yeah, marko, that makes sense.


2012-05-09 01:03:49

The womens frame in the front might actually be the only one worth messing with, it has an alloy crankset. Don't pay $50 for it though, you'll have another couple hundred in by the time you get wheels and all the other running parts.

The dark blue men's frames have steel one-piece cranks, translates to - good for scrap.


edmonds59
2012-05-09 02:21:39

Cool. I had a hunch it looked less useless, but I think I was mostly just swayed by the pretty color, so I'm glad to hear there was some truth to that. I need to learn more about components so that I can figure that kind of stuff out more confidently...


2012-05-09 02:49:01

pearmask, did you see this one?;

http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/bik/3018649224.html

At $275 he's a bit out of whack, I wouldn't give any more than 200. otoh it needs very little, and is Sweet. He's right those rims are badass.


edmonds59
2012-05-19 12:41:59

Can't argue with "heavy duty" braze ons


sgtjonson
2012-05-19 14:07:25

I did, actually. I keep wondering whether it would be worth it. It's probably exactly my size. And I'm shopping around for something touring-ish like a Cross Check or LHT anyway, so I'd probably greatly enjoy it. Problem is I think I'm too far into the new bike idea to be able to resist buying a new one, and things might get a little out of hand in terms of money and apartment space if I buy myself two touring bikes this summer. Hah. I might email that person anyway just to see if they're willing to be talked down, though. It's been up for weeks, so who knows.


2012-05-19 14:23:21

Okay, I couldn't resist. Sent an email and will call if I don't hear back tomorrow. I had plans to buy the frame I originally mentioned for $25, but that seems like it might be falling through (partly because getting the bike from all the way out in Rostraver is turning out to be a giant pain), so I guess I might have space for another bike after all.


I'm trying to figure out what the fork is. Since it's white and the frame is blue, I'm guessing they didn't originally come together. Hmm.


2012-05-20 06:14:59

No it's likely it's the original fork, the white appears to match the white trim on the head tube panel. In another era that was common. It's an '80's thing.


edmonds59
2012-05-20 12:10:26

Ahhh okay, I see now. Thanks.


2012-05-20 16:14:19

The guy says he'll take $200 without the saddle and bar tape that he was originally going to throw in. I'm picky about saddles anyway and have an extra laying around, so that seems fine to me. Worth it?


2012-05-20 19:26:40

I don’t have a clue about prices, but make sure the bike fits you first. A bike that doesn’t fit isn’t any good no matter how cheap you can get it.


marko82
2012-05-20 19:50:35

Yeah, this is all conditional on the guy sending me back some measurements and letting me try the bike before I hand him the cash. From what I know about myself and the bike, it *should* be just about perfect, but depending on the geometry, who knows. I'll bail if the fit doesn't work out.


2012-05-20 19:53:33

And if anyone has any extra tips for making sure it fits okay given a few moments to judge it in a Craigslist buying situation, please let me know :) I have a rough idea of what I'm looking for, but more information never hurts since what the bike feels like in 30 seconds ? what the bike will feel like after riding for a couple of hours


2012-05-20 19:55:42

Yeah, I've read that one, and then of course there are the counter-opinions that choose other things as the "one most important thing about frame sizing"... sigh. My legs are short enough (and torso/reach relatively long enough, contrary to what is supposed to be the case for us girl people) that standover height has often been the limiting factor on bikes that might have been okay for me in terms of top tube length, so I'll start there, and then we'll see.


2012-05-20 20:22:43

You can get a dang nice saddle and bar tape for $75.

I could totally see that bike with a full on rando treatment,



edmonds59
2012-05-21 00:17:59

Our imaginations have pretty much gone to the same place. Apparently someone else is also emailing this guy about the bike, so now I'm feeling competitive. Uh-oh.


Of course, if I have the rando bike, I might need to actually use it to do rando things someday. I definitely like Type 2 fun and the idea of spending inordinate amounts of time on my bike... hmmmm


2012-05-21 01:12:19

Of course, if I have the rando bike, I might need to actually use it to do rando things someday. I definitely like Type 2 fun and the idea of spending inordinate amounts of time on my bike... hmmmm


No good will come of such things. :-)


First you find yourself doing a 200K, then a 300...at that point, you realize that it didn't really get any harder, so you feel all confident about tackling a 400K. Yeah, you were tired by the end of the 400K, but, if you do a 600K, it's really only a 400 followed by a nice nap followed by a 200, and a 200 is cake by now.


Then you start thinking about how, after the first hour or so of Day 2 of the 600K, you didn't feel bad at all, and the thought of a multi-day brevet like a 1000K seems almost reasonable.


And then you realize how much more fun it'd be if you bought a nice(r) camera, and replaced the battery-powered lights with a dynamo system, and got some bags that are more weatherproof.


And then you start planning your ride schedule a year in advance, focusing on big international events like Paris-Brest-Paris or London-Edinburgh-London. And then you're lost, lost I say.


I'll be happy to talk to you someday about all the reasons why rando is a terrible, terrible idea.


reddan
2012-05-21 15:00:06

@reddan...it sounds like a slippery slope indeed.


sew
2012-05-21 16:30:17

I've not done rando, yet. But I can say, based on my experience so far...in my best yoda impersonation (which is terrible):



The pedal leads to the mile. The mile leads to the toodling. The toodling leads to the big hill. The big hill leads to the half century. The half century leads to the century. The century leads to suffering. And to the dark side suffering leads you.



ETA: "yet"


myddrin
2012-05-21 16:39:30

Suffering is the feeling of common sense leaving the body.


Or something like that.


reddan
2012-05-21 16:46:18

Yep, reddan, sounds like I definitely need to talk to you more about it and hear about why it is so addictive to make sure I never, ever get near that slippery slope. No matter how fun and awesome it sounds. Maybe I even need to try out just one 200K once I get a new bike, just to make sure I know firsthand how very bad of an idea it is so that I never get tempted to do it again.


2012-05-21 16:49:54

@pearmask: If you're interested in such things, the Pittsburgh Randonneurs will be offering a back-to-back 200K weekend July 14th and 15th. We're leaving Pittsburgh on Saturday morning and riding to Akron, enjoying a good night's sleep, then reversing the route on Sunday. Folks are welcome to join for one or both days...see the website for details.


Also, I believe that we'll be offering a few more 200Ks next year...I don't know if it'll be one every month, but there should be plenty of opportunities.


reddan
2012-05-21 17:26:06

@reddan -- will you be offering training rides again next spring? I may be ready to join the darkside.


myddrin
2012-05-21 17:39:16

@myddrin: Certainly. There should be a couple of 100K populaires, and I and others often post informal rides in the 50-100 mile range on the Pittsburgh Randos mailing list.


reddan
2012-05-21 17:43:04

@reddan Thanks. I got the tour de cure end of June, and then nothing till fall century-wise...so I might check out some informals over the summer.


myddrin
2012-05-21 17:46:30

It seems unlikely that I would have an appropriate bike all set up and would be at all physically ready for a 200K by July. I'm doing some bike shopping this afternoon, though, so that's the first step. If nothing else I'd love to aim for riding some 100Ks as soon as an opportunity rolls around.


2012-05-21 18:03:44

@pearmask Opportunity right there. :)


PMTCC Century

When: Sat, May 26, 9am – 5pm

WhereGolden Triangle Bike Rental,


Description: PMTCC Memorial Weekend Century. C/2/105


Saturday, May 26th: 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Meet in front of Golden Triangle Bike Rental on the Eliza Furnace Trail. Please arrive on time to sign in so we can leave promptly at 9. There will be several brief refueling stops and a lunch break in Midland. Most of the hills are in the first 65 miles, ride returns along the river.


Contact: Sarah Quesen


Most of people have road bikes but not all.


2012-05-21 20:32:09

Thanks, Mikhail! Unfortunately, this is more of a long-term goal: the reason I'm bike shopping right now is that my hybrid, while awesome for its original intended purposes of commuting and lugging stuff around and short-to-medium rides, just isn't comfortable for more than a couple of hours / 25-30 miles. I'm hoping to get a bike or at least a frame ordered this week, though, so hopefully I'll be getting in shape for longer rides by the end of the summer. Yay :)


2012-05-22 19:35:09

Consider 65 miles as a double 33 (well, almost). :) This is a specific non-drop ride to teach people how to hydrate properly (and probably eat) with one big stop (at least). That is why it's so long.


2012-05-23 18:33:32

Yeah, that would be perfect for me in theory. A "double 33" doesn't seem like it would terribly hard for me from a physical conditioning sort of perspective, but I don't think it would be much fun on the hybrid since I know various parts of my anatomy would be very upset a few hours in. But I really will be trying to do as much stuff like this as possible once the new bike arrives :D


2012-05-23 18:44:34

this Mon Valley century might be a good one to target, August. I've heard good things about it, never done it.

http://www.monvalleycentury.org/


edmonds59
2012-05-23 18:50:49

Yeah, that sounds like a nice, beginner-accessible sort of ride. Thanks, I'll look into that.


2012-05-23 18:56:40

A long, long while back when I was first thinking of doing a century someone (I think reddan) says "If you can do 50 miles, you can do a century."


At the time I thought that was nuts. But now after doing a few, I can totally see it.


Most courses have breaks every 20-25 miles, so much like a 60 is "two 33's", a century is just "four 25's"...


So, if 60 looks possible to you now, a century is definitely doable....


myddrin
2012-05-23 18:56:52

"If you can do 50 miles, you can do a century."

Yes, you may walk a little funny the next day, but you can do it.


edmonds59
2012-05-23 19:03:42

Well, on May 19th PMTCC participated in 11th "Bike Around the Bay" Ride __ http://www.neocycling.org/bike-around-the-bay/. Total around 9 people. Al signed for 50 mile ride (55+ in reality). If you are going to attend today's OTB ride you can ask people first hand. :) Or you can ask Stefb.


But like RedDan told -- you have to find your pace, you stop, you rest, you continue.


2012-05-23 19:53:33

That sounds pretty cool. Hopefully I can do that if it happens next year!


I figure if riding 25-30 just running around town now is no big deal and riding beyond that is mostly just limited by the comfort of the bike, doubling it wouldn't be that hard. (Not that I'd be setting any speed records if I tried to ride 60 miles right now, haha.) Then doubling that hopefully wouldn't be too hard... and then the tumble down the slippery slope continues.


2012-05-23 22:21:12

Then doubling that hopefully wouldn't be too hard... and then the tumble down the slippery slope continues.


Yep, that's generally the way it works. You get yourself comfortable, and learn the basics like how to eat and drink steadily on the bike, how to pace yourself, and what to wear/bring in order to handle changing conditions. After that, and the ability to ride, say, 60-80 miles without feeling utterly shattered, the sky's the limit.


In my experience, so long as you don't let yourself get in the hole on calories and hydration, you'll find that you plateau somewhere between 50 and 100 miles in, and you won't feel any worse (and, sometimes, you'll feel surprisingly better!) for many, many additional hours on the bike.


reddan
2012-05-23 22:37:53

Reviving this thread again...

None of my previous attempts at purchasing an old steel road bike in a short people size on Craigslist have ended up working out, but it looks like I have another shot:

http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/bik/3066018929.html


Thoughts, anyone? I'm going to go play with it tomorrow and see what condition it's in. The seller told me she was just highballing with the $300 asking price, so I know I'm not going to have to pay that much, but I'm trying to decide how much to actually offer her for it. Google tells me the Prestige is a pretty nice bike as far as old Nishikis go, but what do I know?


(If I buy this, the number of bikes I own will triple between now and the end of July. Oops?)


2012-06-10 07:45:47

I'm not sure how you can still get photos that crappy in 2012, but CL is kind of miraculous like that.

It does look like a quality frame, forged dropouts and nice lugwork, sweet color and lining. Also looks like it has eyelets so you can get rack and fenders on there. You could bump it from a 6 speed freewheel to a 7 spd with just a back wheel change, or even 8 with a little tweakage. That stem needs to go, it is just fugly.

Since it was used as a commuter spin the wheels and see how straight they are.

How aggressive do you want to be, keeping in mind this is a "want" thing as opposed to a need? If it is a little crusty from being used as a commuter, 200. If it's really purty and you just lurv it I wouldn't feel bad about going to 250, I'd guess that's what she's looking for.


edmonds59
2012-06-10 12:42:03

Yeah, seeing as I have a NEW new bike coming my way next month, this is definitely all want and zero need. Unless it really is lurv at first sight when I see it in person, I'll think I'll offer her $200ish, and if she won't take that, I'll probably just assume it's not destined to be mine. She did say she was flexible on the price, so we'll see!


Thanks for those tips! Good point about checking the wheels. I would have been terrified to try to buy a Craigslist bike this time last year because I would have been clueless about that kind of thing, but hopefully I've acquired enough bikey knowledge now that I would be able to identify any other major issues... hopefully.


2012-06-10 14:39:34

She said $200 was her real asking price without me even having to suggest it, and I picked it up and realized it was a full ten pounds lighter than anything I'd ever ridden, and it was shiny. And now it is being shiny in my apartment.


It is totally rideable now except maybe needing one new tube, but tweaking it to my preferences is going to be a bit of a project in the long run. (The gearing is not Pittsburgh-friendly, and I might need to tweak the brake lever setup for my small hands, and of course fugly stem is fugly.) But a project is exactly what I wanted, so I'm very pleased :)


2012-06-11 02:23:37

Woohoo! congratulations.


edmonds59
2012-06-11 03:36:02

In my experience, so long as you don't let yourself get in the hole on calories and hydration...


Yeah... I was a total Don't Bee on Sunday.


It is not an experience I ever want to repeat!


myddrin
2012-06-12 20:44:00
It's been a while since this thread has been up but this one is WELL worth it; "Some work needs to be done because the front wheel is too close to the frame, but that should be inexpensive." The front wheel is close to the frame because the bike has been in a front end accident. Do not go near this bike, this frame belongs in the dumpster: Also "pjb40 at pitt.edu" did not accept an email message, so if anyone knows who this might be, please convey this message.
edmonds59
2013-04-13 07:36:57
9/10 of the time I see "fixie" in a CL post, it's probably worthy of sharing here... *laughs* (then cries).
headloss
2013-04-13 09:00:05
edmonds59 wrote:Also “pjb40 at pitt.edu” did not accept an email message, so if anyone knows who this might be, please convey this message.
It looks like they set up the redirect address thru craigslist--did you try that one? You can look up pitt people at find.pitt.edu ; i won't post it here, but the relevant record does show a phone number.
epanastrophe
2013-04-15 00:37:29
Thanks. I did respond thru the CL link, that's good enough.
edmonds59
2013-04-15 05:19:35
Oh that's hilarious! I wonder how much they would want if teh fork was correct.
edmonds59
2013-08-09 09:26:29
Here's a real gem: http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/bik/4062488824.html "i founds this here bike when i wuz dahntahn tryin ta buy sum stiller tickets. the jagov darn near smacked inta my new iroc so i chased him dahn and knocked him off his byke now im sellin it ta compenserlate myself for tha pain an sufferin of almost gettin hit it kinda looks gaybo ta me wut with tha skinny seat and all but hey if yinz are inta that... yinz kin haver cheep 10% off if yinz gots a mullet and camaro GO STILLERS! "
jaysherman5000
2013-09-12 15:59:46
kinda pushing the bounds of 'by owner', there...
epanastrophe
2013-09-12 16:06:33
a joke?
headloss
2013-12-06 00:01:56
Don't know about why the forks are backwards, but some people call the upturned drop bars "DUI bars", since it's often someone who lost their license and pulled an ancient bike out of the garage (or thrift store) and doesn't want or know how to ride drops.
willb
2013-12-06 08:56:42
The the forks and handlebars are in the right direction, they're just turned the wrong way, and this Mensa candidate doesn't have the presence of mind to just turn. them. the. right. way. Smh.
edmonds59
2013-12-06 10:25:04
edmonds59 wrote:The the forks and handlebars are in the right direction, they’re just turned the wrong way, and this Mensa candidate doesn’t have the presence of mind to just turn. them. the. right. way. Smh.
On the first one, yeah... just turned around; easy fix. The second, has that added extra step of silliness. Then, there are those seat angles. Good for a laugh.
headloss
2013-12-06 12:48:36
WillB wrote:DUI bars
That's a good one!
ericf
2013-12-06 13:13:50
I dunno. Looks like a couple of bikes from http://www.bikesdirect.com/ Maybe even after the customer viewed the "anybody can do this!!" videos.
ahlir
2013-12-06 14:37:17
Okay, who's playing around on CL? 'Cause I just want to say, nice work!
edmonds59
2013-12-06 15:32:23
On that Redline: "I just started driving so no need for it!" Like JZ said, super sad.
chrishent
2015-03-20 07:29:07