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So, ya say ya wanna sell a Klunker...

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Bendix

Look Ma, No Hands!
How the heck do you arrive at a value on something like that?

Heck, just the "labor" in sourcing frames and parts exceeds the cost of the average Walmart bike, add in the cleaning/overhauling/assembly/wheelbuilding and you're (theoretically) over the cost of a decent bike shop mountain bike. And we haven't even added in any value for the actual frame and parts yet!

Are there areas where folks will pay real money for a prewar Klunker? Because I have to say, I bet it would be tough to get even 300 bucks for a nice one here in Colorado...

Interested to hear what you guys think... ;)
 
I feel like I got real money for this when I sold it, although there are many times I wish I hadn't sold it.

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It's a labor of love. Building any bike from the ground up, no one is willing to pay you for the labor involved. IF they are they want to build a completely different bike than what you have built up.
On that '51 D-12, I hadn't planned on selling it, a guy kept bugging me, so I put up a really stupid price, really stupid, and he said yes.
It more than covered my time and money that I had in it.
 
I have to agree with all the previous posters. Sadly the price you will get will be less than the sum of the parts and your time is worth nothing to a person that is "in to" the Knunker sub culture.
Heck I bought a pre-war Elgin frame for about $350 back around Y2K, built it up into a very cool bike, rode it for a while... then stripped the parts to put onto a frame I built. Well, about 3 years ago I put the frame on Craig's list @ $350 and didn't get one bite. So 2 1/2 years later I sell the frame for $100 and the buyer HAMMERED me to take less!
Hobby's cost money... And ( in most cases) it is ludicrous to think you are going turn a profit ( or break even) for your "wheeling and dealing". Sorry bud it is just the cold hard truth!
Now that is out of the way... Let's hear about your next build!
 
LOL. That's what I figured.

At least with bikes we're not talking Barrett-Jackson level lo$$e$... 😉

That's why, after our 'downsizing' and move I still have 3 Klunkers in boxes in our storage unit.

I just can't make myself sell them to folks who think it's oh-so-simple because they saw some ghetto 'klunker' build online somewhere.

Someday it will be my wife and daughter's problem...😆
 
"Hobby's cost money... And ( in most cases) it is ludicrous to think you are going turn a profit ( or break even) for your "wheeling and dealing". Sorry bud it is just the cold hard truth!"

wheeling and dealing got me a free Phantom, and more cash in my pocket than I spent on the rest of my "collection'' and I still have a bunch of parts to sell from that deal, and I overpaid for the original purchase by a good $500.00 after a closer look at what I bought.. even discounting the Phantom I could sell my "keepers" one by one and at the very least, break even. my 41 Schwinn ended up being very close to free in a 3 bike deal.... under 50 bucks.

I never pay full price for anything, that helps in the end.
 
I haven't really built a clunker but I have started with a rusted frame and built it to what it used to be. Just the self satisfaction of building the bike is fun and relaxing for me. I can't put a price on that and usually need to pay for fun and relaxation lol! I suppose you could easily build something to turn a profit, but then it becomes a job and you worry about the profit.
 
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