# What's gotten into Lynskey lately?



## Hill-Pumper (May 7, 2013)

I'm not sure what is going on, but Lynskey seems to be trying to dump a lot of product lately. They have crazy deals on frames on their website, and are selling through outlets like Chain Reaction Cycles for huge discounts as well. I don't know if they are trying to gain market share, or having trouble paying the bills. Either way it is killing the value on used bikes, which does not help when your are trying to sell one.:mad2: Sorry, that is my own personal issue, but still, one has to wonder.


----------



## BCSaltchucker (Jul 20, 2011)

I can only agree with that. Their business model just seems to suit that kind of marketing I guess. it does place them on a tier below shops like Seven and Moots I guess, though I am not sure their frames are lesser items.

I paid full price for two of my Lynskeys. And I picked a Lynskey helix-frame mountain bike frame for like 65% off on clearout. All direct from the factory. My latest bike was a custom rush order, and they did it fast and at a price lower than any other source of custom Ti with S&S couplers. So for that, I like the service and product quality.

And heck, I know some folks have bought late model used bikes for unbelievable low prices (eg a guy I know just bought a barely used 2016 Tarmac w ultegra Di2 for $2k complete). So depreciation and resale of bicycles can be a total crap shoot. No matter what you have, you are going to take a bath I think.


----------



## Hill-Pumper (May 7, 2013)

BCSaltchucker said:


> ....No matter what you have, you are going to take a bath I think.


The bath is being taken now I'm afraid. The bike has been on eBay 2 full weeks with a ton of watchers, but no bids. I started at 50 percent of new price, and nothing. So now it's at 33 percent and just got it's first bid. I have sold a number of other bikes in the past and never taken a beating this bad before. That said, I never consider bikes as an monetary investment. My time riding them is how I get my value out of them.


----------



## matt92037 (Apr 10, 2016)

I had had followed a handful of EBay auctions that Lynskey had on used frames about 3 months ago. They sold for CHEAP! I could not believe the prices. 

I totally hear hear you on their constant discounting will hurt your chances of fetching decent dollars for your bike though. 

They must be moving to a factory direct model as I could not imagine any shop would risk stocking them any longer.

On the other side of the coin I was happy to get mine heavily discounted and will never consider paying full price moving forward. I kind of like the fact that I don't feel like I need to drop serious coin on a Seven, IndyFab or Holland. 

My first Lynsky was a new Pro 29 I picked up for a steal several years ago. 







Hill-Pumper said:


> The bath is being taken now I'm afraid. The bike has been on eBay 2 full weeks with a ton of watchers, but no bids. I started at 50 percent of new price, and nothing. So now it's at 33 percent and just got it's first bid. I have sold a number of other bikes in the past and never taken a beating this bad before. That said, I never consider bikes as an monetary investment. My time riding them is how I get my value out of them.


----------



## plag (Apr 30, 2007)

Nashbar has them and their Discount codes work on them .


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Migen21 (Oct 28, 2014)

Wow, I did not know they take trade-ins.

I already have a Titanium bike I love (Volagi Viaje), but if they'll give me a reasonable trade-in on my nearly-new, too-big-for me Surly Straggler (Shimano 5700), combined with their discount, I might just have to pick up another one.


----------



## Hill-Pumper (May 7, 2013)

Interesting thoughts here. I too originally bought my bike on a Lynskey special. The local Lynskey shop said they could not sell me the frame alone for the price I paid, not talk about a complete bike with full Shimano 105. I remember they were running a huge pre order to make a run of frames. I guess that is how they are driving the cost down by producing in bulk. That is much different the the one build at a time that shops like Indy, Moots, Seven and other are doing. I don't think they of less quality then the other, just using a different means of production. 

Interestingly, my Lynskey ended up going for a better then expected price, as a couple of bidders pushed each other in last minute bidding. While not as much as I wanted, it was still considerably better then what I was expecting.


----------



## acckids (Jan 2, 2003)

It's not just Lynskey that has a low resale on eBay. I sold a solid 105 Trek Cronus CX that was in excellent shape. By the time I split the ridiculous UPS cost with the seller, I ended up with $650. ................ I've been enjoying my R150 that I bought over the winter. I purchased direct. 

I remember buying a Gunnar frameset about 6 years ago. The bike shop accidently gave me the invoice with my paperwork. The markup was about $425 which was pure profit for the bike shop because I still had to pay for the bike build, etc. Lynskey still makes money even with discounted price since they are selling direct.


----------



## Red90 (Apr 2, 2013)

I wonder what Lynskey's cost actually is. I was fortunate enough to pick one up off of ebay from the factory for under 600.00. I didn't intend to buy a Lynskey as they would normally be out of my price range, but at that price I couldn't resist. I thought I just got lucky that the factory was pushing out a few overstock frames, but it seems as though they are still doing a fire sale. Most of the frames are selling on ebay between 600-900, even the helix frames. If they are making a decent profit at those prices manufacturing in Texas, can you imagine the margins they make from their standard price.

I suspect there's something else going on.


----------



## BCSaltchucker (Jul 20, 2011)

Yes - a weak market for these products in general.

retail business is not a simple matter of: this frame costs us $400 to build so we must get $600 to be profitable or $1000 if the market will bear it. The marginal cost of each unit various considerably on volume. They might be able to be like Moots and sell a tiny number of them with custom geometry for $4000 a piece, and make a good profit. Or they can do equally as well selling tens of thousands of them for $1000 a piece.

And the realities of marketing bicycles cause the prices to be pretty elastic. They are not a crucial staple for consumers, they are purely discretionary. I suspect the market has grown VERY weak in the last year or three. Keep hearing rumblings of Shimano and SRAM being overstocked and not selling the volumes they anticipated. No doubt it has hit the frame makers just as hard. Specialized and Trek have a tighter grip on their marketing network, with tough contracts they enforce on dealers that small companies like Lynskey just are not large enough to enjoy.

I was surprised to get my Helix frame mtn bike from them for $1000 - when list price was $2800.


----------



## DaveT (Feb 12, 2004)

Lynskey and when they were Litespeed in the past has pretty much the same business model; full price then at the end of the season or when they had too much inventory, massive discount prices at the factory as well as well-known outlets; CC and Nashbar.


----------



## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

Yeah, I think it's end of season clean up - they had similar pricing the last couple years now August through end of the year, although this year is a little bit lower on frame sets with Forks.


----------



## bikerjulio (Jan 19, 2010)

I have a question after looking at a few frame photos.

The pics all seem to show a PF30 BB shell, but Lynskey consistently refers to their BB's as "standard English 68 mm". 

What's with that?


----------



## BCSaltchucker (Jul 20, 2011)

bikerjulio said:


> I have a question after looking at a few frame photos.
> 
> The pics all seem to show a PF30 BB shell, but Lynskey consistently refers to their BB's as "standard English 68 mm".
> 
> What's with that?


don't know for sure. but I advise: get the BSA (english)!

my Pro26 has the PF30. might be part of the reason is was on the loft on deep discount. what a pita to work with. but I eventually got it sorted. Was like it was not machined to the correct dia for the X9 press bit BB i had for it. Ended up with a WheelsMfg unit. I will always opt for BSA if at all possible!


----------



## jason124 (Jul 25, 2006)

I noticed the LynskeyPerformance seller on eBay is listing lots of R240, Helix and I think the Sportive frame with starting bids in the $500-$800 range. Sure makes it tempting to go that route than say... an XACD build. 

Also, does anyone notice the Lynskey Loft is a bit of an Easter egg? I can only find it with a google search, does not seem to be mentioned on their site.


----------



## DaveG (Feb 4, 2004)

Hill-Pumper said:


> I'm not sure what is going on, but Lynskey seems to be trying to dump a lot of product lately. They have crazy deals on frames on their website, and are selling through outlets like Chain Reaction Cycles for huge discounts as well. I don't know if they are trying to gain market share, or having trouble paying the bills. Either way it is killing the value on used bikes, which does not help when your are trying to sell one.:mad2: Sorry, that is my own personal issue, but still, one has to wonder.


I don't know what has gotten into them but I like it. I won a R240 frame last week on eBay with a minimum bid. UPS says they'll will be delivering today. This will be a fun project putting it together. If I can find a good deal on Chorus, I will go that route


----------



## jason124 (Jul 25, 2006)

DaveG said:


> I don't know what has gotten into them but I like it. I won a R240 frame last week on eBay with a minimum bid. UPS says they'll will be delivering today. This will be a fun project putting it together. If I can find a good deal on Chorus, I will go that route


Too many projects at the moment (not to mention finances need to settle down), otherwise I would be grabbing one of these to throw my Red grupo onto.


----------



## BCSaltchucker (Jul 20, 2011)

Hill-Pumper said:


> I'm not sure what is going on, but Lynskey seems to be trying to dump a lot of product lately. They have crazy deals on frames on their website, and are selling through outlets like Chain Reaction Cycles for huge discounts as well. I don't know if they are trying to gain market share, or having trouble paying the bills. Either way it is killing the value on used bikes, which does not help when your are trying to sell one.:mad2: Sorry, that is my own personal issue, but still, one has to wonder.


looks like their troubles have only deepened: lynksey frame | eBay

Lynksey selling pretty much all of their frames under $1000 now, even the Helix and 360 and sportive. sad to see it. Trying to sell my 26er lynksey MTB and not getting interest (double whammy: lynskey and 26 wheels !). but still loving and sticking with my R150.


----------



## burgrat (Nov 18, 2005)

BCSaltchucker said:


> looks like their troubles have only deepened: lynksey frame | eBay
> 
> Lynksey selling pretty much all of their frames under $1000 now, even the Helix and 360 and sportive. sad to see it. Trying to sell my 26er lynksey MTB and not getting interest (double whammy: lynskey and 26 wheels !). but still loving and sticking with my R150.


Are they in financial trouble? I assumed they were just selling excess inventory. Either way, I would not mind picking up one of their frames. They are selling quite inexpensively on Ebay, and they include Lynskey's warranty.


----------



## DaveT (Feb 12, 2004)

This is pretty much the way (Lynskey) Litespeed and Lynskey have operated for years; at the end of the season, a huge dump of their products through EBay (and previously Colorado Cyclist) and whatever other outlets that will shove their stuff out the door. No different than seasonal apparel.


----------



## DaveG (Feb 4, 2004)

burgrat said:


> Are they in financial trouble? I assumed they were just selling excess inventory. Either way, I would not mind picking up one of their frames. They are selling quite inexpensively on Ebay, and they include Lynskey's warranty.


They still are selling the stuff on their website at full price. While I am glad I got a great deal on ebay I dont want Lynskey to go belly up. 

One guess : perhaps the demand is for disk brake compatible frames. The ones I have seen on ebay were caliper designs


----------



## titaniumclyde (Sep 15, 2016)

Hey Guys,. Great discussion here and I'll add my thoughts. My thoughts are that Lynskey will continue to sell new frames on eBay and further alienate their longtime and current distributors. 
Nashbar, Chain reation, Merlin as well as their own website and many other LBS. 
I would imagine the buyers at these retailers are frustrated to be attempting to sell the Lynskey frames at 20% off of retail while the same frames are selling for 75% of retail on eBay. Hard to get answers from Lynskey on their focus going forward, but Mike who is now over the eBay sales for Lynskey told me the intent was to continue to sell direct through eBay. I have noticed a shift lately to higher min bid amounts. Just yesterday 2 R460 frames were listed with an $1100.00 min bid and the last ones started at $800.00.
So the best deals may be gone soon if the min bid amounts keep rising. 
I must say that I have taken advantage of the bargains and have bought and built 4 frames. The Helix Pro Disc, Pro 29 MTB, Pro Cross and an R240 Disc.
And also picked up a couple of Frames just for the heck of it. 
Rubber side Down Guys. Titanium is Forever! 🚴🚴


----------



## garciawork (Aug 14, 2008)

I have owned multiple Lynskey's over the years, and really like their stuff. Just picked up an R150 disc for $600 on eBay last week, very stoked about the price! I would guess they make a little off eBay sales, and that keeps some cashflow coming in and allows them to keep production up rather than stockpiling frames. Plenty of people HATE eBay and won't even look there, so they still have a market for closer to retail sales.


----------



## DaveG (Feb 4, 2004)

garciawork said:


> I have owned multiple Lynskey's over the years, and really like their stuff. Just picked up an R150 disc for $600 on eBay last week, very stoked about the price! I would guess they make a little off eBay sales, and that keeps some cashflow coming in and allows them to keep production up rather than stockpiling frames. Plenty of people HATE eBay and won't even look there, so they still have a market for closer to retail sales.


I don't see how they can be making any money on these eBay sales. Your R150 goes for $1350 retail on their website. The only two options I can see are Lynskey is losing money on these frames or they are drastically overcharging on their normal retail pricing. I think its the former. I am not complaining since I was able to take advantage of one of their ebay listings, but I hope this isn't a sign that Lynskey is in trouble


----------



## burgrat (Nov 18, 2005)

I was looking at a Lynskey on eBay and I inquired about changing the finish and adding etched graphics instead of decals. They said they would be able to make the changes for additional costs, basically the same additional costs they list on their website. Since the eBay sale is directly from Lynskey, you basically get the frame at a much reduced price and you still get the same finish/graphics options (if you communicate this with them beforehand) and you get the same warranty. This is a great way to get an excellent bike for a great price, however, people that purchased directly from their website or through retailers are getting somewhat hosed on the price. I like that there is a great deal available, but it seems kind of crappy for customers going through their distributors. I guess it pays to do your research when buying to get the best deal possible.


----------



## dnice (Jul 12, 2012)

I just bought a r255 for $585 off ebay, and i'm delighted. This seems to be a tough time of year to be selling bikes and bike gear, but an absolutely GREAT time to be buying bikes and bike gear.


----------



## MMsRepBike (Apr 1, 2014)

Nevermind.


----------



## jason124 (Jul 25, 2006)

burgrat said:


> I was looking at a Lynskey on eBay and I inquired about changing the finish and adding etched graphics instead of decals. They said they would be able to make the changes for additional costs, basically the same additional costs they list on their website. Since the eBay sale is directly from Lynskey, you basically get the frame at a much reduced price and you still get the same finish/graphics options (if you communicate this with them beforehand) and you get the same warranty. This is a great way to get an excellent bike for a great price, however, people that purchased directly from their website or through retailers are getting somewhat hosed on the price. I like that there is a great deal available, but it seems kind of crappy for customers going through their distributors. I guess it pays to do your research when buying to get the best deal possible.


I guess to make this process easier, they have the addons as additional items you can purchase now. So if you wanted etched graphics, you find the auction for that and hit Buy it Now. They also sell the forks this way as well.


----------



## wvucyclist (Sep 6, 2007)

Just got my R265, waiting on a fork and I'll be able to ride it this weekend. I'm with everybody else, great deal, but they're seriously devaluing the name.


----------



## jason124 (Jul 25, 2006)

I have been waiting until my finances were ready before pulling the trigger for a non-disc Sportive and now they haven't listed one in a while, only the disc frames.


----------



## Red90 (Apr 2, 2013)

When I bought my R315 off them from Ebay half a year ago, I thought it was just a seasonal off load of their extra products. However, it looks like they are continuing with this model of sales. I really can't see people willing to buy their off retail at the prices they are listing. I saw their top end R460 on ebay go for about 1000-1200. That's really just about a quarter of the price that they list for. Maybe we have all been duped to believing titanium bikes made in the USA are supposed to cost an arm and a leg.

Any which way, I'm still very happy with my bike. It might not be as light or as stiff as a carbon, but I still like riding it more.


----------



## DaveG (Feb 4, 2004)

Red90 said:


> When I bought my R315 off them from Ebay half a year ago, I thought it was just a seasonal off load of their extra products. However, it looks like they are continuing with this model of sales. I really can't see people willing to buy their off retail at the prices they are listing. I saw their top end R460 on ebay go for about 1000-1200. That's really just about a quarter of the price that they list for. Maybe we have all been duped to believing titanium bikes made in the USA are supposed to cost an arm and a leg.
> 
> Any which way, I'm still very happy with my bike. It might not be as light or as stiff as a carbon, but I still like riding it more.


I am on Lynskey's email list. Today I received an email that I could get 20% off a R350. 20%?? When they are unloading stuff for more than 50% off eBay, why would I do that?


----------



## Hill-Pumper (May 7, 2013)

DaveG said:


> I am on Lynskey's email list. Today I received an email that I could get 20% off a R350. 20%?? When they are unloading stuff for more than 50% off eBay, why would I do that?


I'm on the email list as well. If I read the email correctly, it is a additional 20 percent off the sale price. So it looks like close to 50 percent in total. Also, in the email they have the new GR250 gravel bike at $1300 off a complete bike. I wish this was available several months ago when I put together my steel gravel bike. The price is close and I like the GR250 geometry better. I guess I'll have to wait until they run a sale on frames only and switch everything over.:idea:


----------



## Red90 (Apr 2, 2013)

jason124 said:


> I have been waiting until my finances were ready before pulling the trigger for a non-disc Sportive and now they haven't listed one in a while, only the disc frames.


Lynskey Sportive Titanium Complete Road Bike Size Medium Large (33728) | eBay

Should check out this listing. Not sure what your sizing is, but it's a completely new bike and non disc.


----------



## DaveG (Feb 4, 2004)

Hill-Pumper said:


> I'm on the email list as well. If I read the email correctly, it is a additional 20 percent off the sale price. So it looks like close to 50 percent in total. Also, in the email they have the new GR250 gravel bike at $1300 off a complete bike. I wish this was available several months ago when I put together my steel gravel bike. The price is close and I like the GR250 geometry better. I guess I'll have to wait until they run a sale on frames only and switch everything over.:idea:


Reread the email. Its on a complete Ultegra equipped bike that was already marked down. I think that is a decent buy


----------



## jeffrey j (Jan 31, 2017)

Bid on a Medium Ultegra Sportive (non-disc) last week on eBay. No bidders 2 hours before auction end so I high bid 1600ish (started at 1500) and walked away...think it ended for just under 1800. Kinda wish I'd kept an eye on it, but who knows how high the winners max bid was.


----------



## matt92037 (Apr 10, 2016)

On top of their crazy eBay prices, how on earth are they charging $200 to have the frame configured for eTap?

I thought I got ripped off paying as much as I did to have them prep my frame for Di2 (a total of 3 holes in the frame which to me seems easier and less work than welding on cable guides).

Love my R265 disc though.


----------



## colnagoG60 (Jun 27, 2013)

Nashbar having another 30% off sale from 2/6 - 2/7...Lynskeys included.


----------



## pmf (Feb 23, 2004)

Red90 said:


> Lynskey Sportive Titanium Complete Road Bike Size Medium Large (33728) | eBay
> 
> Should check out this listing. Not sure what your sizing is, but it's a completely new bike and non disc.


The "winning" bidder paid way too much for that frame. A friend of mine bought a Sportiv frame for around $1200 from a UK vendor. Even cheaper than what they were on "sale" for at Lynskey. He called Lynskey to see if they'd price match. They told him it was a 2016 model. When asked what the difference between 2016 and 2017, the guy at Lynskey admitted it was the color of the decals. They also sell ENVE forks for $100 more than what you can get them from ENVE for. My friend noticed that the Lynskey ENVE forks have a 45mm rake while the ENVE forks on the ENVE web site have a 43mm rake. He called ENVE and asked about that and they told him they've never made a 45mm rake fork. Pretty odd.


----------



## Red90 (Apr 2, 2013)

pmf said:


> The "winning" bidder paid way too much for that frame. A friend of mine bought a Sportiv frame for around $1200 from a UK vendor. Even cheaper than what they were on "sale" for at Lynskey. He called Lynskey to see if they'd price match. They told him it was a 2016 model. When asked what the difference between 2016 and 2017, the guy at Lynskey admitted it was the color of the decals. They also sell ENVE forks for $100 more than what you can get them from ENVE for. My friend noticed that the Lynskey ENVE forks have a 45mm rake while the ENVE forks on the ENVE web site have a 43mm rake. He called ENVE and asked about that and they told him they've never made a 45mm rake fork. Pretty odd.


The ad was for a complete bike with Ultegra components. At 2K for a titanium bike with ultegra components and ENVE 2.0 fork and new... seems to be a pretty good deal to me.


----------

