Funny thing is ... deals CAN be made on Craigslist. I bought my bike from a guy in Phoenix (NOTE: I live in Austin). The key ... talk with them on the PHONE first. Ask lots of questions. Usually you can get a quick sense whether they are serious or not.
I also helped my brother buy a bike off Craigslist. He got his in Dallas (again, he lives in Austin). This was after weeding out two other scams like those posted above. I check with eBay and they said they do not do business the way explained in the email. Plus both wanted him to go through "money bookers" or something like that ... stay far away from that place.
