[deoreo]

Ok,

Maybe I'm just grouchy because it's close to lunch,
but seriously, since this forum is so militantly against anything
that even smells like it may be an "ad"

Why not a "Vintage, Retro, Classic" Ad Category in the classifieds?

I mean there is a category for "trainers" with 3 things in it currently !!!!

It would be nice to have the "old-stuff" for sale all in one spot.

Sorry for the rant.

 

[laffeaux]

Agreed.

eBay provides that cetegory for road bikes, but not mountian. Maybe MBTR could be the first!

 

[Rumpfy]

Believe me, this subject has been discussed on more than one occasion.

Amongst other things, there are two reasons why there is no 'vintage' category in the MTBR classifieds.

1. The number of vintage oriented posts in the classifieds make up only a fraction of the overall posts. There are quite a few more DH or Single Speed related for sale items in the classifieds...yet they don't have their own category either. If anything, they'll get their own category before we will.

2. Having a nitch specific category (vs. a part specific category) thins out the categories and makes it more difficult for people looking for parts to find what they want. For example...If I'm selling a set of Ringle hubs, do I put them in the 'hubs' category, or the 'vintage' category? Chances are, that if someone is looking for 'hubs', the first place they will look is the 'hubs' category...especially if they have no interest in 'vintage' stuff. They miss what they're looking for, and I've wasted my $2.

Personally, I dislike the new format of the MTBR classifieds. I miss the old days when you could post as much and as often as you wanted. It made for a very active healthy market place. The problem is, that as this site grew, so did MTBR's responsibility to make sure it's users were not getting scammed or ripped of. Hence part of the reason for the current classifieds format.

As far as being 'so militantly against anything that even smells like it may be an "ad"'....well, check the forum rules and guidelines.
I like to feel that I let as much slide here as I can. I understand our nitch and how important the search for parts can be. Unfortunately, without these rules, this forum becomes a market place itself, and not a place to share info, our restorations, and our stories.

Trust me, I can be a lot more militant. It would actually make my job easier and eliminate the 'grey area' when it comes to posts with forum guideline infractions. I really don't want to go around editing everyone's posts and having to delete things left and right.
This forum has been a pleasure to be a part of and is grossly issue free.
But you can't make everyone happy all of the time.

 

[bushpig]

I have mixed feelings about a vintage category. On balance I think that minimizing the amount of marketing/selling in this forum contributes to vibrant threads. When there is a new thread it is usually something interesting. If it were the case that many new threads were of the form "Item X for sale, PM me" it could be tiresome.

That said, I think that middle road is possible. How about a "Sticky" for sale thread where members could post items for sale or wanted with the proviso that every post reference an MTBR classified. There would be some grey about how many items could be in one MTBR classified, but I think the forum policing and if necessary Mod's could take care of that. There would be the dual benefit of not undermining MTBR classifieds for users who don't visit the Vintage board but Vintage board readers would be able to immediately see what interesting bits were available.

 

[deoreo]

bushpig -

the "sticky" sounds like it could be a good idea.

I too, am not interested in seeing for sale ads in the forum, nor do I want to
somehow "get-around" the classified fee.

But I must admit that the only time I look at stuff for sale is when it
has been spam'ed or crosslinked to this forum from the classifieds.

I just think it would be cool, if you were looking to buy vintage stuff, to be able
to click one link, to check and see the new stuff.

Had some Burger-King for lunch so not so grumpy anymore - hehe.

 

[ScottyMTB]

Vintage Classifieds

Both vintage bmx sites I frequent have "wanted" classifieds as well. I love posting there when I need something or browsing the want ads to see what I can get rid of.

 

[floibex]

Agreed.

eBay provides that cetegory for road bikes, but not mountian. Maybe MBTR could be the first!

first IS mtb-news.de
there might be a battle for second

ciao
flo

 

[Rumpfy]

How about a "Sticky" for sale thread where members could post items for sale or wanted with the proviso that every post reference an MTBR classified.

We tried a thread like that quite some time ago and it was met with rather poor results. Perhaps it's time to revisit this.

I will broach the subject with the admins to see (how much) we can get away with without a classified ad...as well as a single place for all our 'for sale' type needs.

Give me time to discuss and craft an appropriate thread to stick up top.

 

[purdyboy]

That would be cool. Perhaps a sticky thread with a posting template which only allows a link to the MTBr classified location the reply 'title' can be where you put a short "heads-up" description eg...

"Original purple anodised Panaracer Smoke/Dart tire set".
Link: <<mtbr link>>

All other info/price etc MUST be in the clasified section.

 

[Rumpfy]

All good thoughts guys.

The good news is...a new MTBR classifieds is on the horizon. The best I can guess is 1st quarter of 2006. As nothing is set in stone, we are working on figuring a way to have 'nitche specific' categories for this classifies. I hope this happens as I feel it will be a nice feature for all MTBR users of various disciplines.

As a temporary solution, however, I can/will place a 'VRC Classifieds' sticky at the top of the page for us to use.

The caveat to this (and will eventually apply to the new MTBR classifieds as well), will be the move towards a 'zero tolerance' policy with regards to posts of or relating to 'wanted', 'what's it worth', 'I saw this on eBay/craigslist/not mine', and 'thinking of selling' posts and threads that wonder off topic.
The goal (I hope) is to get all of this type of topic in one place and eliminate any grey area there is to these types of classified posts here in the VRC.

So, that being said...I'll write something up with the guidelines needed and stick it up top for us to use.
Please be patient as this will be something that will more than likely evolve and be revised as we (MTBR.com/Admins/me) deem necessary or fit. All of your input and suggestions are welcome and heard.


I'll make sure to recap some of this information in this new thread when I get a chance to write it up.

 

[bikerboy]

How about having subcategories much like how ebay does it? I think some adjustments could be made, such as the addition of a VRC category. In order to circumvent the problem of a theoretical "ringle hubs," uses could be allowed to selection another category under which they wish to list their item.