Selling My Bike - Advice

[silky666]

never sold a bike to the general populous before .... I have always traded them in or sold to mates.
So whats the best way ? ebay ? gumtree ? etc.
and what do I need to look out for ? eg: bouncy cheques , is paypal ok ? etc etc.

advice appreciated. Ta , Uncle Silky. xx
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There's nothing that shouts "Poor Workmanship" more than wrinkles in the Gaffa tape.

Gaffa tape is like "the force" - it has a light side, a dark side, and it holds the universe together.

[DrDonnyBrago]

Gumtree with cash is how I've sold and bought all my vehicles.

Ebay classifieds, PH, BCF classifieds etc work for some but I've only ever had people call me from gumtree. Expect a few offers of 10 ponds and a stolen xbox.

No cheques or paypal.

[Kris]

Do what most sellers fail to do; price it to sell.

You'll be amazed how quickly a bike can sell if you price it to. Ebay always seems to be full of people that demand high prices and offend easily if you offer less.
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NSR125RR - ZXR750H1 - ZX9R E1 - GSF600S - GSF600SK3 - VFR400-NC30 - SV1000N - ST1100-R - CBR900RR-R - GSF1200SK5 - GSF600SK1 - VFR1200FA - GSXR1000K2 - ZZR1400 D8F
www.prisonplanet.com

[TheArchitect]

For me Gumtree has always resulted in Nigerian princes being interested or pikeys looking to scope me out.

Always gone through ebay. It costs a tenner to list but it's worth it I reckon. Slightly more decent folk and you can see feedback before letting someone pop round to check it out.
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GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
MT09 - Almost stolen

[Val]

I have bough and sold all my vehicles on ebay. IMO no reserve very low starting price will give you the best possible price.
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Adrian Monk: Unless I'm wrong, which, you know, I'm not...
Yamaha Fazer FZS 600, MT09, XSR 900

[The Shaggy D.A.]

I've had most exposure via eBay, just mark it as "listed elsewhere, reserve the right to cancel auction blah blah blah". Biketrader tends not to generate any calls for a couple of weeks, then continues for a month or two after it's sold. Not tried Gumtree or Facebook, so can't comment.

Cash. Cold hard cash only.
____________________
Chances are quite high you are not in my Monkeysphere, and I don't care about you. Don't take it personally.
Currently : Royal Enfield 350 Meteor
Previously : CB100N > CB250RS > XJ900F > GT550 > GPZ750R/1000RX > AJS M16 > R100RT > Bullet 500 > CB500 > LS650P > Bullet Electra X & YBR125 > Bullet 350 "Superstar" & YBR125 Custom > Royal Enfield Classic 500 Despatch Limited Edition (28 of 200) & CB Two-Fifty Nighthawk > ER5

[The Shaggy D.A.]

[Rogerborg]

Cash, or direct bank transfer from a decent chap.

I'd only do an eBay auction if I were in no hurry and willing to relist it 2 or 3 times (because TIEM WASTARS!!!!)

Speaking of which, write your advert for the people that you want to attract. Nothing will deter rough buyers, but going off on one about tyre kickers and test pilots will repel decent ones.

All the facts and just the facts: MOT, service history, condition of consumables. Not "very reluctant sale, 2 many Xtras 2 list, frist 2 C will buy!!!!!"

Get a freebie up on Gumtree, be prepared to cheerfully ignore the mongs and scammers. Keep a local copy of your text and images in numbered sequence to make it easier to repost daily in best cheapskate stylee.

You can pay for eBay as well, and there's a lot less junk on there (stolen "field" bikes, quads, jetskis) so your advert will stand out more.

Whatever you do, don't rage out. Even a risible "offer" might be a genuine buyer trying to scope out what your real lowest price is (). Just give a brief friendly reply inviting them to come and view it and make a real offer.

And yes, if you price it right, you'll sell it quickly. If nobody is offering or enquiring, then it's not worth what you think it is, "all day long" or otherwise.
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Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[Ste]

Very much @ pricing to sell.

High resolution photos are very good when a serious buyer finds your ad.

Everyone wants to know what's good about the bike, other than listing what parts have been added, I don't need you to copy and paste the sales blurb from the manufacturers website.

I don't care that it's a reluctant sale. I don't believe you if you say it's never been out in the rain. I don't care about your sob story for why you're selling it.

Nothing is ever going to be perfect so what I really want to know is what's wrong with the bike. What's not quite 100% perfect, which consumables are going to need replacing the first, etc etc etc.

Under sell and over deliver.

I'm going to pretend that you didn't ask if PayPal is okay.

Bank transfer is preferable if they can't pay with bitcoin and if that's not an option then cash is king.

BCF, eBay and gumtree. In that order of preference.

[ajag]

Well that escalated quickly...

[Rogerborg]

[The Shaggy D.A.]

...and if you put "excellent condition", then the bike really should be in excellent condition. I should not be able to wobble the choke lever like a joystick instead of up and down, pull the front brake lever back to the bar with no resistance, pull the speedo off in my hands, nor should I be able to wobble the rear wheel left to right by an inch. I know I have bass player hands, but I'm not THAT strong.

Thanks, Mr YBR125 guy in Bedford, for my wasted trip Saturday.
____________________
Chances are quite high you are not in my Monkeysphere, and I don't care about you. Don't take it personally.
Currently : Royal Enfield 350 Meteor
Previously : CB100N > CB250RS > XJ900F > GT550 > GPZ750R/1000RX > AJS M16 > R100RT > Bullet 500 > CB500 > LS650P > Bullet Electra X & YBR125 > Bullet 350 "Superstar" & YBR125 Custom > Royal Enfield Classic 500 Despatch Limited Edition (28 of 200) & CB Two-Fifty Nighthawk > ER5

[BTTD]

It depends what you're selling.

If it's something older and unusual then car and classic website listing in the bike section has sold two bikes for me before (both older BMW's)

https://www.carandclassic.co.uk

If it's something more modern and everyday, then I'd go for ebay with a classified listing. I tried autotrader a couple of years ago and it seemed to be a complete waste of time.
I'd go so far as to detail how long I've owned it and why I'm selling it, a realistic view of condition, and then the usual history etc.
You may or may not get asked all sorts of idiot questions that you've already answered in the listing, have people so keen on the phone and totes eager that they don't even turn up and you waste an entire Saturday afternoon waiting in for them, or they do turn up just to look at the bike, and I mean literally just look, before deciding nah the seat looks too high for them, then ask you if seat lowering kits are available for that model. I'm not a dealer, I don't know.
That same guy might also grumble about how it isn't an immaculate garage queen despite your description stating that it isn't immaculate and has been used daily in all weathers.
You may have to suppress violent urges.

Or your first contact may be the chap who turns up, gives it the once over, agrees to a fair price, gives you the cash and rides off.

TL:DR Prepare to meet some idiots.

[silky666]

great advice. Thankyou so far.

I think ebay plus facebook plus BCF I guess.

Many people on here know how anal I am about keeping my bike in mint condition and how carefully and responsibly I ride it.



someone is going to get a great bike
____________________
There's nothing that shouts "Poor Workmanship" more than wrinkles in the Gaffa tape.

Gaffa tape is like "the force" - it has a light side, a dark side, and it holds the universe together.

[The Shaggy D.A.]

[CaNsA]

[Ste]

Selling on Facebook?

Swap for PS4 and a staffy pup?

[.....]

[silky666]

[silky666]

[silky666]

[ajag]

[Az]

FB pages such as The Bike Bay are good from my experience. Especially for buying, a lot of bargains to be had off that specific FB page from what I've seen.

For me it's FB and Gumtree and I always plan to use eBay if those two fail, but luckily it's never come to that.

I accept cash only, if it's a randomer buying my bike and I also check the notes to see if they're real before handing anything over.

For those in the know - If someone paid for a bike using online banking login details they had obtained fraudulently and the money stolen from that account was traced back to the seller, would the seller have to give the money back to the fraud victim's bank or is it within their rights to keep the money from the sale?

[rubyhorse2]

sold majority of mine via ebay, expect a lot of offers.

[Ste]