I did see the ad, and it did get my attention. BUT, when figuring in cost of shipping/or time off from work to transport, any real good deal, even a suspect local deal, looks attractive. I guess one of the "rationalizations" I use to justify taking a risk with this local deal, is it's price. All things considered, a good deal 1500 miles away is the same as a fair to poor one locally; the difference being you get to physically SEE the bike locally and "takes yo risks".....so to speak.
Peter makes a good point though......with a newbie (read: moron) like myself, there is a price of admission to the Loopframe world which I am glad to pay. I have thought about Moto Guzzi's for 30 years and never acted on getting one. Why? I haven't figured it out yet. But, on the verge of my 50th B-Day, I finally decided to quit thinking about it and just do it. Maybe because my time is limited and these (loopframes) have always had a hold on me. If I get screwed on this deal, well so be it. But from all aspects so far, this seems to be the right decision. Hell, has anyone made a bad decision buying a Loopframe....HA! I don't think so......