eBay

allmycollections8693 · ‎09-27-2022

So I have two vintage bicycles that I am going to be selling (individually, not together) on behalf of someone I know. I have been informed that they are both from around the early 1950's with one being a JC Higgins Colorflow and the other being a Monark Super Deluxe. I know that both are going to need at least a good going through up to a full restoration, and that the Monark has definitely been repainted. I have included some pictures for reference in case I'm mistaken on any of this info.

These would be by far the largest things I have ever sold on ebay out-sizing the horse saddle that holds the record for largest thing I've sold. I've done some research on the bikes themselves, their values, and what it would take to ship them, but I still have some questions before I proceed with listing them.

- Initially I was going to list them as local pickup only while offering to bring the bike to a UPS/Fedex location to pack and ship them at the buyers expense due to the size and complexity of shipping them myself. However I have seen how much bikes of this vintage go for if they are shipped so I am reconsidering that position. Is my initial method the best way or would it be worth shipping them myself?

- If I did decide to ship them myself, I assume based on what I've read that I'll be disassembling them to some extent. How far in disassembly should I go and are there any tips or tricks to packing bikes that you know of?

- For almost all of my listings I do BIN. Would these bikes be the kind of thing that listing them as an auction would be worthwhile?

- I've seen how much the parts on these bikes tend to go for. Based on what you see would you consider their value to be in their parts than as whole bikes? I personally would hate to part out complete bikes like this for their parts, but if that's the best thing for them than so be it.

- I know for a fact that the Monark has been repainted. I have been told that the JC Higgins has also been repainted, but I am not certain on that since I don't see any obvious signs of overspray like I do on the Monark. What do you think?

- Based on my research I suspect that the front spring assembly on the Monark is not original. Is that correct? Are there any other apparent things on either bikes that clearly aren't original?

Thank you for any advice or words of wisdom from veteran bike sellers!

2013grotz · ‎09-27-2022

First off, I want to say, very nice looking bikes. I'll say what I have to say with the caveat I'm not a bike *seller* but a real bike rider and hobbyist having dealt with a number of bicycles over the years in both riding and maintaining them. You'll have to deal with people more in selling and knowledgeable about the specific bikes in question.

@allmycollections8693 wrote:
These would be by far the largest things I have ever sold on ebay out-sizing the horse saddle that holds the record for largest thing I've sold.

It's definitely going to be a challenge to handle the size on shipping any one of these. For sure. Not just the "oversized" postage rates, but finding the proper packing supplies and getting them there in one piece.

@allmycollections8693 wrote:
- If I did decide to ship them myself, I assume based on what I've read that I'll be disassembling them to some extent. How far in disassembly should I go and are there any tips or tricks to packing bikes that you know of?

You definitely will be disassembling them. Most articles focus on assembling them, though. https://www.bikeradar.com/advice/workshop/how-to-assemble-a-bike/ is a good example on assembling a new bike, which is basically what you would be doing in reverse to ship one of these bikes. Basically it's going to be removing the front wheel, handle bars, pedals and seat post to flatten the shipment. But most of the idea is getting the bike flat enough for a box as what is shown in the picture and packing them well enough so the parts don't tear into one another. But be very sure to track your packaging costs. The whole "how much bikes go that are shipped" thing might be deceiving given the amount of money you might have to put out to get the proper boxes/packaging.

@allmycollections8693 wrote:
- For almost all of my listings I do BIN. Would these bikes be the kind of thing that listing them as an auction would be worthwhile?

It'd be like any other item, dependent on demand and how much people are willing to pay.

As a thought, if you can find a bicycling forum, you might have people around that are more able to answer all these questions, including how "original" both of the bikes are.

soh.maryl · ‎09-28-2022

Lovely bikes! But I personally would stick with the local pickup strategy.

allmycollections8693 · ‎09-29-2022

Thank you very much for the advice! I think that what I am going to do is list them as fixed price with local pickup to start then move them to a shipped listing if I am getting enough interest in them. Packing materials will not be a problem since I have a huge surplus of it.

soh.maryl · ‎09-29-2022

Just curious: What's your definition of "getting enough interest"?

kvbikes · ‎09-29-2022

Hi, I'm curious to know how this went? We used to id quite a few bikes in the shop I worked at years ago. We had a couple books to reference but I can't recall the names of them. Sometimes a serial number can help. For shipping, the fenders, and skirt guards too can be the most vulnerable. Taking them off and protecting those would be a good idea.