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Starting a second hand bike shop.

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Chris Cristini

Mon May 25 2009, 09:36PM

Registered Member #1749 Joined: Fri Oct 10 2008, 02:04AM
Location: Claremont New Hampshire
Posts: 497

I was thinking of getting bicycles from the dump and bringing the frame to the police station to check if they are stollen or not. And then painting the frame rebuilding every thing adding new bearings forks brakes tires tubes rims bottom brakets pedals handle bars and cable. And on the side tuning bikes like derailleurs and brakes adding ferrules to the end of each cable so they do not scratch the riders legs and so on. What do you all think?

HV Enthusiast

Tue May 26 2009, 11:54AM

Registered Member #15 Joined: Thu Feb 02 2006, 01:11PM
Location:
Posts: 3068

Its a good idea, although i'm not sure you'd make much money. Resale value of a 2nd hand bike vs. the labor (esp) and parts in rebuilding it would definitely minimize your profit margin.

Just my $0.02

Chris Cristini

Tue May 26 2009, 01:39PM

Registered Member #1749 Joined: Fri Oct 10 2008, 02:04AM
Location: Claremont New Hampshire
Posts: 497

What about fixing what they need and selling them for $10 to $15?

Plasma Lover

Tue May 26 2009, 06:52PM

Registered Member #1911 Joined: Mon Jan 05 2009, 06:30PM
Location: Salem, Oregon, USA
Posts: 165

Bike parts are very expensive compared to resale value. If the bike needs parts, you might as well forget fixing it and making money on it at $10 - $15 per bike. It would be a wise choice to simply bring the frames in to a scrap yard and see what you can get for scrap.

Cesiumsponge

Tue May 26 2009, 10:47PM

Registered Member #397 Joined: Wed Apr 19 2006, 12:56AM
Location: Western Washington
Posts: 125

It seems like you're going to put an awful lot of work into them and sell them for $10-15. Unless you can find, check, prep, fix, repair, and sell one bike per hour, $10 isn't even worth the labor. You'd be better off responding to odd job ads in the local paper if you're that hard on money.

Used bikes take a HUGE drop in value (at least in the MTB realm) and its difficult to turn a profit, even if you get them for free. For example, I purchased a downhill racing bicycle which retailed for $5000 in 1999 when it was released. Rockshox Boxxer DH forks, Fox RC Vanilla rear, full Shimano XTR, Mavic DeeMax DH wheelset, Hayes disk brakes, etc.

How much did I pay in 2001 for it? About $500 with two season's worth of wear on it. It still costs about $500 for USED Mavic Deemax rims, and they've been discontinued for several years! Forget about brand new parts...I priced out new Shimano XTR shifters since mine is cosmetically cracked...about $200 for one integrated unit. In order to change it from downhill to freeride, I had to spend about $300 to get the suspension looked at, rebuild the disk brakes, and to replace the DH chainring up front with a freeride chainring and slapped on a Blackspire chain guard. That's a lot of dough for a stupid gear and guard!

Buying a used bike is great because their value plummets very fast. Trying to sell one can be painful. Trying to repair one can be expensive too. Also keep in mind most box store, mass produced bikes don't really have readily available replacement parts or standard components.

Sulaiman

Wed May 27 2009, 08:16AM

Registered Member #162 Joined: Mon Feb 13 2006, 10:25AM
Location: United Kingdom
Posts: 3140

Financially bicycle repair has never been a 'big' business in uk, and I assume elsewhere,
your time could be much more profitable in other areas.

Recycling (ha ha) bicycles, repairing, upgrading, embelishing etc is environmentally friendly
and if you get paid for all required parts it could be a nice hobby
more importantly it's people friendly, you'll make many friends and contacts

You could sell add-ons (decals, lamps, bells, whistles etc.) to supplement income?
Pimp-my-ride for bicycles?

Steve Conner

Wed May 27 2009, 09:51AM

Registered Member #30 Joined: Fri Feb 03 2006, 10:52AM
Location: Glasgow, Scotland
Posts: 6706

Best thing you can do with cheap used bikes is turn them into choppers!

I feel Eric's pain on MTBs. MTB components take a huge hit in value on the used market, and the reason (well, one reason) is that being made of lightweight aluminum, they have a fatigue life. They tend to crack after about 5-6 years of hard riding, and the resale value vs. age reflects this.

I bought two rear suspension frames used, and they both cracked at about this age. So far I was lucky and spotted the cracks during routine maintenance: they never got bad enough that they snapped in the middle of a gnarly bit of freeriding, but they were bad enough that I didn't feel happy riding it any more.

I ended up buying a brand new frame and hope to get a good 5+ years out of it:

Chris Cramer, why don't you go round your local bike shops and see if they need a part-time guy?

Chris Cristini

Wed May 27 2009, 02:04PM

Registered Member #1749 Joined: Fri Oct 10 2008, 02:04AM
Location: Claremont New Hampshire
Posts: 497

I have tried asking the bike shops and auto mechanic shops around hear and they say business is screeming to a halt so they cant really hire any one. I explained my situation to one of the mechanics I talked to and he told me I just need to keep my head up and keep looking for some way to make it by and something about another great depression.

Scopeblog nice bikes is that crack from stress?

Steve McConner you free ride? I am practicing starting off real small and using a frame that probably can't take a 10 foot drop but it is fun even taking a small log and a 20ft two by four to make one of those sea saw's for bikes I have a 20" mountain bike that I have added a larger rear shock and BMX handle bars a three sprocket crank set so it is a 18 speed insted of a 6 speed I can ride wheelies all day on it

1243432688 1749 FT70121 Picture 018 Large

1243432688 1749 FT70121 Picture 020 Large

1243432688 1749 FT70121 Picture 021 Large

I wish I had income so I can buy these forks

and this bike for the rear sway bar

and new hubs for disk brakes I think it would be different to have 20" wheels with disk brakes adding a larger fork and longer sway bar would add some more distance between the two tires so I don't have to pull up on every little bumb I hit
here are the hubs I would love to have

and rims

If this bike works out than I could build a bunch to sell especially if rear suspension lock out can handle jumps it would be a BMX at the flip of a switch lol.

Bored Chemist

Wed May 27 2009, 05:16PM

Registered Member #193 Joined: Fri Feb 17 2006, 07:04AM
Location: sheffield
Posts: 1022

I think the only way you could make money from this would be to buy lots of "scrap" bikes and canibalise them.
Bikes lose a lot of value as soon as someone buys them from the dealer. On the other hand the second hand market for spares isn't that bad. I wonder if it's possible to buy wrecked bikes and strip them for spares then either sell the parts or assemble them into a working bike.
In any event, unless you don't value your time much this isn't going to make money. What's the going rate for garden labouring?

MinorityCarrier

Thu May 28 2009, 12:16AM

Registered Member #2123 Joined: Sat May 16 2009, 03:10AM
Location: Bend, Oregon
Posts: 312

I can't get the Monty Python "Bicycle Repair Man" skit out of my mind when I read this thread.

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