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I've been looking to pick up a bike for Jnr, so thought to go down the secondhand route. From what I can see the sub £1000 market seems to have normalised to pre-covid, nice bikes around 2016 with a good spec for £500-600 - picked up a Canyon Spectral from another forum member and very happy with the purchase. I also sold an Orbea Occam (2019) to a friend for £600 which seemed about right to me. I was looking at some 2018 bikes, and the pricing is way up there, a Canyon Spectral, albeit carbon, but spec pretty average being advertised at £1350, and a '19 at £1400 - approx 50% of their new price. The '19 has been advertised for quite some time looking at eBay completed items so suggests the price is too high and/or nobody looking. New bikes are so heavily discounted, recent Nukeproof pricing <50%, Specialized down 20%, now Santa Cruz discounting 20-40% Add bike to work giving a 25-40% discount and the secondhand market seems pretty unattractive unless pricing is realigned quite significantly. I'm planning to look at a bike soon, put the pricing discussion with the owner may be a little tense!
Saw something on a Dirt Shed show trailer about used bike prices hitting the basement.
I've put off selling my hardtail as I know I'd not get what I want out of it - going to sell the crappy bike that sits on the trainer for £150 (if I can get it) and put the hardtail on the trainer.
its a buyers market, make your offer, people tend to price in a bit of a margin.
people tend to price in a bit of a margin.
Everyone loves a bargain, so I always add on something to get knocked off in haggling...
Still seeing quite a lot of overpriced stuff. I suspect a few want close to what they paid back in COVID times. Plenty that are way too close to the new, sale prices around. You can make an offer but they not want to take the loss
I thought all the classifieds had been frozen in time to be honest. I've been looking at the same bikes and frames for about a year now.
Anything with 'gravel' in the title still seems highly priced on ebay, for example.
Prices have a ratchet effect. They're quick to go up, and slower to come down again.
I've just built a very nice Bird Aether and was planning to sell my 2013 Orange 5 with a high spec.... But I'm worried I won't see much return for a 10 year old frame, despite how good a bike I think it is!
The eldest might be getting forced into enjoying trail riding to justify keeping it
I've been looking to possibly replace that Spectral, although no real intention. I'm a fan of buying 2nd hand but the dive in new prices plus potential for C2W makes going for a new bike infinitely more attractive just now.
I like the ratchet analogy. Folk will just be accustomed to the market they know.
Plenty of overpriced bikes about but they are not selling. If you want to sell be prepared to get significantly less than you expect, even for popular stuff like gravel bikes.
I spent a while looking for an xc bike but had to wade through plenty of optimistically priced stuff. As new Procalibre for £200 less than you can buy it new anyone? £800 for a used and low spec 2017 Clockwork? Ended up with a 2022 carbon 29er Cube with full 12sp XT, decent forks and in ace condition for £600 which was more like it!
A few things I’ve noticed.
Very, very keenly priced bikes are still moving. Nobody wants 27.5 F and R bikes so they have a realistic ceiling price of about £1500. 90% of complete bikes are at least £500 overpriced.
Anodised tat and an Invisiframe wrap don’t magically make your bike worth more than a new one. ‘Excellent condition’ appears to be more often wishful thinking than a statement of fact. Asking strong money for a bike you haven’t even bothered to wash won’t cut it at the moment.
Many excellent components are practically ‘worthless’ or unsellable. SR Suntour, MRP or Cane Creek forks, Superboost wheelsets, steel full suspension frames. E-bikes are almost impossible to sell used at any price. DH bikes the same. Some bikes and components have been for sale on and off for over a year.
Ebay free listing means people not desperate to sell can just relist overpriced stuff again & again.
I've been looking (god knows why) recently and used prices seem pretty mad. Some places are doing a new Transition Spur for £3,800 with the basic spec. There's a used one online (from a bike shop) with a not hugely better spec. but fully serviced, new bearings everywhere and new frame protection - £3,200! It's a 2 year old carbon frame FFS, it's just not worth it, £2,000 tops, and it's a bit of a punt at that. You can currently buy a new Spesh Epic Evo or SC 5010 for £2,500 and £3,000 (ish) respectively.
Older stuff, non boost and especially 650b seems virtually impossible to sell.
>Add bike to work giving a 25-40% discount and the secondhand market seems pretty unattractive unless pricing is realigned quite significantly.<
I think this is a factor - if you have access to a C2W scheme, and even better a higher rate tax payer second hand starts to look like very poor value.
I bought an Arkose in 2017 - ticket price £1k, paid just over £600 via C2W - i sold it last summer for £550 - so 5 years of use had effectively cost me £10 per year...
@core, the thing is that until recently you couldn't get a Transition Spur for love nor money, so at that time, it made sense to have that price second hand. But not now, especially with Epic Evos being sold at such reduced prices.
A mate's got a Transition Spur, it's a lovely bike, but personally I think that the Specialized makes a better long term ownership prospect.
650b seems virtually impossible to sell
You say that but I haven't found any bargain 27.5 wheelsets for sale, still pushing about £300 if you want something half decent or not dented up. I was hoping by being a late adopter of newer standards that I'd be able to get bargain parts but haven't found much around yet! Maybe that will change in the coming months.
When it comes to parts Tom, I imagine people would rather keep them rather than give them away?
“You say that but I haven’t found any bargain 27.5 wheelsets for sale”
I’ve got some non-boost ones I’ve been meaning to sell for too long - but I presume you’re after boost? (They’re Hope hubs though, so easy to adapt).
I've got a 148*12 hope Pro4 for sale in 27.5
In what terms do you think the Epic Evo is a better prospect? Warranty, parts, resale, all three?
Warranty, durability and support.
I run bikes until they’re done, so resale’s not an issue for me.
The Spur’s a great bike, but I think I’ve seen on a few forums that the durability isn’t great. Specialized customer support is great, and it’s easy to find a dealer.
When it comes to parts Tom, I imagine people would rather keep them rather than give them away?
Yeah you're probably right there. I'm thinking of doing the same as I've had no luck selling my old hardtail frame even at a pretty low price - might just keep it and turn it into a turbo bike for the winter.