How to list a bike for sale (with special notes for Bike Fridays)

I look at a lot of used bike postings for sale. Some would say, "too many!", and they would be right. In any case, a lot of these postings are crap. A typical example has a photo like this:

and no size or useful detail pictures. For some reason, Bike Friday ads are the worst offenders. They usually don't mention the size, and will only have one or two lousy, off angle pictures. A good bike ad should have six elements:

1. The make AND model of the bike

2. The frame size

3. Useful pictures

4. Component details

5. The seller's location

6. The price

 Let's tackle these one by one:

1. Make and Model:

Like cars, bikes have a make (the company that designed and maybe built the frame), and a model (the specific name of that bike within the lineup). My car is a Honda (make) Civic (model), and my bike is a Bike Friday (make) Crusoe (model). Usually both of these are labeled on a sticker on the frame somewhere, though Bike Fridays often don't list the model name. That takes a bit of inside knowledge of what you have then.

2. Frame size:

This is NOT the wheel size. Kid's bike are measured by wheel size (20", etc), but adult bikes are sized. A conventional bike has two key measurements:

2a. seat tube length: most bike makers list their frame by the length of the seat tube, or they use a "shirt size" S-M-L-XL designation... regardless, you can measure your bike for sale along the seat tube (the red line). This runs from the center of the bottom bracket (the axis the crank spins on) to the top of the seat tube (this is called center to top or c-t, some old road bike makers measure center to center (c-c), which would be bottom bracket to green line, resulting in a bit shorter size listed):

2b. top tube length (green line) is measured from the intersection of the top tube (green line) at the center of the headtube (the tube the forks goes into) horizontally to the center of the seat post or seat tube.

On an old bike like the Fuji above, the green line is parallel to the top tube, but most bikes these days have sloping top tubes. In this case, the green line is still measured parallel to the horizontal and it's called the effective top tube length:

In either case, measure from the center line of the intersection of the head tube/top tube junction to the centerline of the seat post or seat tube (orange lines).

Bike Fridays are measured a bit differently. Unlike most folders, they come in real sizes, but are measured differently than big wheel bikes. From my experience, BF measures the green line from the center of the head tube height, not the top of the head tube, horizontally back to the seat post or seat tube (UPDATE: most BF models have parallel seat and head angles, so you can measure horizontally from anywhere along the yellow lines)

3. Useful pictures: Notice the bikes above are almost dead on side shots. This is the best image for showing the overall bike size and proportions. Lean the bike against a neutral background, step back, and crouch down so you're level with the bike. 98% of lousy bike ads have a picture taken from a standing perspective (too high) and with a cluttered background, and usually not a true side view--see the Breezer at the top of this post. Do this for both sides of the bike.

Pro tip: back up several extra steps, and then zoom in to the bike. This can make the opposite side of the handlebars "disappear" behind the near side. It makes for a neater picture.

After the two basic side shots, take pictures of the parts and any damage or oddities of the bike. Especially for online pictures, lots of pictures will help the buyer understand the condition. Crank, rear drivetrain, tires name, controls, etc, are all pictures I usually take. If I have a bike for sale currently (pretty good odds), you can see examples in my for sale post.

And make sure the bike is clean.

4. Component Details: Your pictures should show most of this, but what derailers, wheels, hubs, tires, shifters, does the bike have? If you don't understand bikes, most of these parts will have their make and model printed on them somewhere. Look for names and take pictures or note this in ad... or both.

If anything in the picture is NOT included, be sure and note this as well. Often pedals, saddles, and accessories are kept by the seller. It's best just to remove these before taking pictures, but a bike can look odd without a saddle. I usually leave the saddle for pics and note if I'm keeping it.

5.  Your Location: especially for online ads, people want to know about where you are so they can understand how difficult it will be to get the bike. Can you meet in person, or will it have to be shipped? For security, it's best not give your actual address, but city and state is enough.

6. Price: don't expect sellers to make random offers, you should set a price. eBay completed auctions is the best guide to actual selling prices. Bicyclebluebook is completely worthless. In pre-COVID times, for a relatively recent bike, I would start at 40-50% off the new price and adjust from there. COVID craziness has made pricing bikes tougher.

Bike Fridays, like most folding bikes, seem to hold less of their value than other bikes. Riv fans claim their bikes hold their values better, but I haven't seen this in my experience. Rivs are just more expensive to start with, so they're pricier on the used market. Off brand bikes are worth less: A Surly or Specialized will sell faster than a Bikesdirect Windsor, for example. And no one cares "what you have into the bike," it's worth what the market will bear.

That's it! Compared to cars or motorcycles, bike are fundamentally easy to sell: there's no insurance, no registration, and you can move it around the country in a simple cardboard box. Have fun!