Korean Job Discussion Forums

[senatorbigbird]

If anyone is selling or knows where I can find one, PM me. I live in CheongYoungNi (central Seoul), and hopefully you will live within 1 hour of me. I'd like to find a good dependable bike within the next couple weeks. Let me know if you can help.

On another note - start spreading the word that the Osaka Korean Consulate no longer does same day E2 visa processing. I slept on the streets last night. This wasn't the case last year, but it has been changed and there aren't exceptions. Apparently, a lot of people and their employers are unaware.

[antoniothegreat]

i dont live in seoul, so i cant tell you where, but just take a look around next time you are in a bus or taxi, and notice where a few used bike shops are. stop in every time you are in the area and ask if they have what you are looking for, "daelim VS beck ee ship oh cc ee seoyo?" or "daelim VS 백이십오 시시 있어요?"

my korean spelling might be off if anyone wants to help out...
but just drop in, that way they know you live in the area, in my experience, if they know you will be around, they wont sell you a junker, if you are from out of town, they might risk it, but they do not want you coming back making a scence because they sold you some carp.

like most other things, because you are a foreigner the shop owner will either not even talk to you or try to rip you off, or bend over backwards to help you and give you a great deal.

and honestly, if you are looking for something specific, dont count on this board helping, the selection here is not good (although the prices are sometimes) try http://www.auction.co.kr they have a decent selection, if you cant make an account or borrow someone's, try calling. i got my new bike by calling, offering a price, i met the owner, test drove it, he cancelled the auction (to my understanding that is ok here) and we were on our marry way.

anyways, good luck with the search, PM if you need any more help.

[Cynical Optimist]

Good luck finding a nice bike in that 300-400 range from a shop. I went shopping in Seoul in July and had some shops try to sell me some real junkers for around 600,000. I had to buy 2 bikes (1 for me, 1 for a visiting friend), and I needed them to be really reliable because they were to be used on a 1000km trip down to Geoje island. So I paid more than I probably would have if I'd bought from someone on this board. I had some time constraints and other logistical issues to deal with though, so I made that sacrifice. If you have time, I'd recommend taking advantage of a fellow teacher.

There's a street in Seoul with a whole bunch of bike shops in a row -- the street is something like "Twayguero" -- it's close to the Chungmuro subway stop (423 blue line / 331 orange line). I also went to some shops in Dongdaemun -- some of the sellers there said that the Twayguero guys are crooked. I'm sure it's hit or miss wherever you go. antoniothegreat's advice sounds good.

Anyway, I definitely paid more than 600,000 for each bike. But they both made the trip with no problems and they both look pretty darn good too.
By the way, might I mention that I'm trying to sell one? Either one, whatever you like... just don't take too much advantage of me.

http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=63619

[Zyzyfer]

I got a bike in 2002 through a friend's bike shop owner friend. Forget the year (maybe 98 or something, who knows), low mileage, not scuzzed up, 125cc Hyosung Mirage. It had a few hiccups at first (dealer forgot to check a few things, repaired at no cost), but once it was sussed, the bike was fine.

Paid 1 million for it.

If you go much lower than that from a dealer, buyer beware. Hell, even from another person, be careful.

[senatorbigbird]

So does anyone know other places than the auction.co.kr site I could check to find bikes and any other information about shops. Thanks for the info you all have given me thus far!

[Cynical Optimist]

If you're in the Busan area:
http://www.pusanweb.com/
Elsewhere:
http://www.passo.co.kr/