What generally happens to stolen bikes?

[mjbmikeb2]

Do they get broken down with recognisable parts such as the frame being ditched?
Facebook seems to be full of carbon wheels for sale which seems odd.
I can understand the plethora of cranks for sale as some people replace the stock cranks with power meter cranks on new bikes, but wheels, seriously who replaces one set of carbon wheels with another set of carbon wheels?
Do parents buy 'cheap' (no questions asked) second hand bikes for their kids to use?

[RonK]

I think many are sold on Gumtree or in pawn shops.

It's not surprising that there is a trade in wheels. It has always been common for keen riders to have multiple sets.

[10speedsemiracer]

Some end up in cash converters/pawn shops, some on Gumtree, some get stripped and sold as components with the frame getting chucked in a dumpster or a vacant lot.

[Shred11]

The local Police think someone steals them, stashes the bikes in a shed and then every few months they mix and match parts between all the bikes to make them unrecognisable. The new frankenstein bikes go on scumtree or FaceBook Marketplace.

It amazing how many of the “bogan on a bike” riders around here ride Bianchi and other high end bikes with the seat slammed right down and other things that make me think “you didn’t buy that bike, did you!”

[trailgumby]

The local Police think someone steals them, stashes the bikes in a shed and then every few months they mix and match parts between all the bikes to make them unrecognisable. The new frankenstein bikes go on scumtree or FaceBook Marketplace.

It amazing how many of the “bogan on a bike” riders around here ride Bianchi and other high end bikes with the seat slammed right down and other things that make me think “you didn’t buy that bike, did you!”

This and cash converters.

[AUbicycles]

Opportunity thieves like drug addicts or scum knick a bike that is easy to steal and aim to quickly sell for a bit of cash.

The others are the ones who plan more, from a scumbag who knows a nice bike is regularly locked in a specific location to organised criminals of different scales who, as described above, target bikes en mass.

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The pawn shops should, in theory, have an eye for stolen goods and do more to protect... sometines they do, sometimes they don’t. The classifieds are also popular option. But there are also bike riders who steal and use gear and sell / swap with friends.

On carbon wheels, there are a lot if legitimate sales. Aspiring racers upgrade or swap-out what us not perfect and a good brand / model can uphold value.