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Christoff posted:I need to stop looking at bikes The EX500 is a better choice than either of those. The 600RX is an interesting piece of history but quote:Starts/runs well, some chatter coming from the top end. That almost always means knock of some sort. That katana is big, heavy, underpowered...the EX500 would be a much better choice.
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Dec 21, 2008 01:35
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Yeah, plus it's probably one of those things that people would fix and sell the bike for more if it was practical. Mileage isn't even listed. I think I'll shoot an offer for $1,000 for the 500 and see what happens. Will probably go $1,200 max.
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Dec 21, 2008 01:40
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I just got back from checking out the CB750. Man, those things are huge! I'd never seen one in person before. Seems like it'll make a nice 2nd bike though. I inspected it as much as I could without a test ride (owner understandably didn't want to let me test ride it without having the full amount in cash right there) but it fired right up from a cold start, sounds good. He did, however, ride it around the block for me while I watched. I plan on test riding it when I go back tomorrow with the rest of the cash before anything is finalized, though, just so I can feel it. visual inspection didn't reveal anything out of sorts, in fact it was very clean and well-kept. The first owner was an older gentleman who kept service records and all, which were shown to me. Oil was changed 600 miles ago. Tires, chain, brakes were all new. I'm heading back over there tomorrow to pay him the rest and to ride it on home. I'm really thrilled right now, I've always wanted a CB750! Finding one at a nice price that is in such good shape is.... totally tubular.
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Dec 21, 2008 03:50
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Datsun Honeybee posted:I just got back from checking out the CB750. Man, those things are huge! I'd never seen one in person before. Seems like it'll make a nice 2nd bike though. Cool! Post pics when you get it in the bike pics thread. Very clean and well-kept is exactly what you want when you buy a bike. That first impression you get about the bike and the owner usually says it all. I'll pass if the bike isn't clean unless I'm getting an absolutely killer deal on it, like..replace all the mechanicals and still come out ahead killer deal.
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Dec 21, 2008 05:05
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http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/mcy/957815556.htmlquote:The bike runs really good. I've never broke down anywhere for the 10K miles I put on it. It could use the valves to be checked by a mechanic. I was going to do that this month but got a different bike instead. When i bought it, the last owner had an exhaust, so I took it off when I got the bike and returned the jets in the carb back to stock and runs very smooth. The pic of the bike was taken the day I posted the add so those pics are a week old today. It has never been dropped it but a few things fell on the bike in the garage from the last owner. You can see in the front fairing a small chip covered with touch up paint. Also the side plastic which you can't see in the pic unless you are up close has a crack but has been fixed with epoxy on the back side, the rest is small stratches just from riding. Don't get me wrong the pics are what the bike looks like. The front tire is brand new. i put it on 200 miles ago. The rear has about 50% tread left. I don't have any helmets or jackets that are going with the bike. Last bike I'm considering I swear. Will probably check out the other ninja first though. This was has a lot more miles, is older, but no salvage title. Seems in better shape from the slight pics as well. Plus the paint scheme is sweet.
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Dec 21, 2008 20:18
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Christoff posted:http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/mcy/957815556.html Seems about equal, but use this one as a bargining chip against the other one...if the other one hasn't had certain maintenence items on it, use "Well, there's another one that I'm looking at that's really clean, so unless you can cut me a deal...". I've used that to good success before. 
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Dec 21, 2008 20:40
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Well, I settled on this 1993 Ninja 600! Apparently it's a ZX-600e. So whatever the "E" means. I had to drive about an hour and some to get it. The ride back wasn't all that fun. Hit rain about half way through and was getting used to the drat thing. The throttle and first gear is definitely sensitive. As far as I could tell it seems to be in good shape. My rear end is pretty tore up.    Sorry for crappy night time pictures. I'll take more during the day. $1,000. Low speed lay on right side. 7,500 original miles! It was a tough choice because the other option was this. http://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/mcy/967084744.html The guy didn't return my calls yesterday so I figured I'd call him before I checked out that one. The color was a bit of a deterrent. It's, well, purple and pink. And that's what made me lean towards the other bikes. The thing is a beast. A lot bigger than I thought it would be. -edit - More crappy pics.  
Nostalgia4Dogges fucked around with this message at 06:19 on Dec 24, 2008 |
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Dec 24, 2008 04:39
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That is a fantastic deal. I love those bikes, I rode a 93 in the less gay color scheme (Black and green) for 50k miles. They're fantastic bikes. They're big bikes, but a good rider on one can make it dance. I've done just about every bit of work you could do to one of those, so I'm pretty familier with the ins and outs of the bikes. Congrats on the bike, take good care of it and the engines will go 100k+. Feel free to PM, e-mail, or hit me up on zx6e.net with any questions. Z3n fucked around with this message at 10:47 on Dec 25, 2008 |
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Dec 25, 2008 10:30
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I'm going to look at a '93 Honda CB400 Super Four that a friend of mine is selling. She was asking £700 but then had to do a 100 quid's worth of suspension stuff to it, so she's now asking £800. Hoping to at least knock some of that extra 100 off, maybe even a little bit more. Is there anything specific about these bikes that I should be checking? Or just the normal run-from-cold, tyres, oil, rust, crash marks etc. Loving the insurance though, 3rd party fire and theft is going to be about 130 quid compared to the £450 I'm paying for my XR125L.
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Dec 28, 2008 00:30
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Z3n posted:That is a fantastic deal. I love those bikes, I rode a 93 in the less gay color scheme (Black and green) for 50k miles. They're fantastic bikes. Yeah, it was a lot bigger than I thought it'd be. I don't have any specific questions now but I'm thinking of doing most all my own work. Everyone seems to be stressing that I can do most of it myself. I don't know the first thing about motorcycle maintenance and know just a bit about cars. Let me know if you ever head down South!
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Dec 28, 2008 02:12
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Christoff posted:Yeah, it was a lot bigger than I thought it'd be. I don't have any specific questions now but I'm thinking of doing most all my own work. Everyone seems to be stressing that I can do most of it myself. I don't know the first thing about motorcycle maintenance and know just a bit about cars. I'm going to try to get a SoCal AI bike/maintenence/bbq day together where we can borrow someone's garage and go over the basics on bikes.
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Dec 28, 2008 09:18
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Z3n posted:I'm going to try to get a SoCal AI bike/maintenence/bbq day together where we can borrow someone's garage and go over the basics on bikes. I wish I lived in SoCal. I'd be all over this in a heartbeat.
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Dec 28, 2008 09:33
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Did a lot of reading on these forums but obviously didn't use any of it and made a bad first purchase. Bought a 98 Suzuki GSX600 for $1600 has 9272 miles on the odometer but owner said it was probably around 12000. (it's broken) After riding on the bike for the first day it started to stall out whenever I would stop and had to be push started. This continued to happen after I charged the battery overnight and tried riding again. Ended up taking it to a dealer, here are the notes they left me: quote:Fuel is bad. Petcock is leaking and knob comes off easily and dumps fuel. Countershaft sprocket is in need of replacement. As well as drive chain and sprocket. Rear rim is bent. Speed sensor in rotor is missing. Counter shaft sprocket cover is broken. valve cover gasket is leaking badly. Oil is very dark. Air filter is oil soaked. Recommend full service. Clutch pushrod seal is leaking. Unit needs a carb inspection/overhaul. With parts and labor they wanted $3236. No way I can or would pay that. Do you think a complete beginner can make these repairs or should I just sell it and forget about my motorcycling dreams? Edit: I own the Haynes manual but would be buying all tools that I need. Quick Draw fucked around with this message at 06:42 on Jan 6, 2009 |
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Jan 6, 2009 06:40
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Quick Draw posted:Did a lot of reading on these forums but obviously didn't use any of it and made a bad first purchase. Ok, that's a lot of work, but it's all doable by a new rider. Replacement petcock: To ebay. Chain/sprocket - time consuming the first time you do it, but not bad. Rear rim is bent - should get that checked by a professional...something like that can be really dangerous. Speed sensor...well, that's why your speedo isn't working. Sprocket cover damaged, no biggy, it's just there to cover the sprocket. Get a used one on ebay. Valve cover gasket just needs to be pulled, checked for leaks or tears, and replaced/reinstalled. Oil is dark means oil change. Air filter is oil soaked...just over lubed. May be exacerbating the stalling issue. Clutch seal leaking, not a big deal, just get a new seal, usually they just press in and out. Carbs, again, not that big a deal, but will take some time. Honestly, here your choice is if you really want to get into it. Count on spending a few hundred picking up all the new tools you need, and the parts you need. Maybe easier/cheaper to just get a new rim on ebay. Buy a multimeter, start the bike, rev to 4k or so, and check the voltage at the battery. If it's 14 or so, you're good to go. If it's spiking or below 13/over 15, you have a problem with your charging system that needs to be addressed. Luckily, that's relatively cheap to deal with. So...you've made some mistakes, but nothing too bad yet. Count on a total of around 500 or so $ to get everything fixed up and buy some tools, and you should have a nice running bike. Can you afford that? Edit: Quick breakdown of parts costs: 150$ for chain/sprocket 150$ of assorted tools. 20$ for the clutch seal 25$ for the countershaft sprocket cover Oil/filter - 30$ Petcock - 20$ or so on ebay Carbs - anywhere from free to clean, to 20-100$ in parts. Valve cover gasket - 20-50$? somewhere in there. Speed sensor...probably can be found for cheap on ebay. Most likely just a hall effect sensor. Maybe a part that needs to be replaced. Anywhere from 20-50$. Z3n fucked around with this message at 07:09 on Jan 6, 2009 |
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Jan 6, 2009 07:05
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Z3n posted:Ok, that's a lot of work, but it's all doable by a new rider. What Z3n said is pretty much bang on but I'd also like to add that your stalling at idle might be clogged pilot jets in the carb. Likely its disgusting in there and a disturbing amount of people will ride a bike doing no maintenance until the carbs are clogged and then sell it because its "broken". Can you keep it from stalling by turning on the choke?
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Jan 6, 2009 13:10
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Other than buying a bad first bike, (breaking the 70hp rule by a LOT) that GSXR isn't far off from my typical motorcycle purchase. You probally overpaid a bit. Nothing there is serious work. If I were working alone, that's maybe four evenings worh of work, including the usual snags and broken bits. It looks like you brought it to a good shop. And they gave you a complete, GOOD list of what's wrong. That's not common. I'd continue using that shop. :-) Time to learn to do an oil change, and clean the carbs. There's a CV carb thread. Use it. :-) Clean the carbs. Take a picture of the rear rim so we can see it. MOST of my wheels have dents, and it's really not a big problem. If it's severe, new rims aren't that expensive.
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Jan 6, 2009 13:38
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Nerobro posted:Other than buying a bad first bike, (breaking the 70hp rule by a LOT) that GSXR isn't far off from my typical motorcycle purchase. You probally overpaid a bit. Nothing there is serious work. If I were working alone, that's maybe four evenings worh of work, including the usual snags and broken bits. GSX600...Katana. Not a horrible first bike. Not a great one, but not a horrible one.
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Jan 6, 2009 16:48
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WHOOOPS. Yeah, GSX = ok. Though as mentioned either earlier in this thread, or a previous thread. This suzuki fanboy thinks katanas suck. Not that they break. Just they aren't good on any level.
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Jan 6, 2009 16:50
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What do you guys think would be a fair price for this Versys? http://www.tricitycycle.com/new_vehicle_detail.asp?sid=09662287X1K5K2009J4I18I54JPMQ2871R0&veh=61906&pov=1088343 Obviously the $6,600 they're asking now is pretty ridiculous for an '08 model with 5k miles on it, but what do you think would be good? I'm not really familiar with motorcycle dealership pricing but I know car dealerships put up prices way higher than they expect to get for vehicles. I assume it's the same here and these guys will likely be willing to haggle down quite a bit? I've had both a '77 Yamaha xs360 and a '71 Honda cb750 in the past, so it wouldn't be my first bike or anything.
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Jan 6, 2009 18:32
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trebuchet_tom posted:What do you guys think would be a fair price for this Versys? Those bikes aren't available in Cali yet so I don't have any idea on what used pricing on one would be. I'd figure around 5k, maybe mid 5k depending on condition, honestly. They probably paid under 4 for it as a trade in. And you should be able to haggle them down, hard. The versys has the rep ofbeing a great all arounder, and it uses the ninja 650 parallel twin, so it's not a monster powerwise, just a great daily driver in what I consider to be the best HP/engine size range (60-75 hp in a 650cc twin).
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Jan 6, 2009 18:43
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I'm a learner rider, I just got my license after a 2 day course (I'm in Australia). I'm looking at buying my first bike, and have come across a 1984 BMW R65. Its a print ad (so no pics yet) but is in good condition apparently. The asking price is $3800AUD (about $2800USD at the current exchange rate). - Is this a good price? Its higher than my budget but I can make an allowance for the right bike - Should I get it checked out mechanically before I buy it? Thanks
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Jan 7, 2009 00:12
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Prince posted:I'm a learner rider, I just got my license after a 2 day course (I'm in Australia). I'm looking at buying my first bike, and have come across a 1984 BMW R65. Its a print ad (so no pics yet) but is in good condition apparently. The asking price is $3800AUD (about $2800USD at the current exchange rate). That much $ in the USA would buy you a ~1999 YZF 600R (Thundercat) Whatever the market is like down there, make sure whatever you get for your first bike, you can turn around and sell quickly, for what you paid for it, when you decide to move up. Do you have tiered licensing there?
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Jan 7, 2009 04:01
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Prince posted:I'm a learner rider, I just got my license after a 2 day course (I'm in Australia). I'm looking at buying my first bike, and have come across a 1984 BMW R65. Its a print ad (so no pics yet) but is in good condition apparently. The asking price is $3800AUD (about $2800USD at the current exchange rate). I can't help with Aus prices from the land up over, but yes you would want to have a knowledgable person look over that BMW before you buy. I don't think R65's have the same issues with the final drives that bigger BMW's do, but they do have the same possibilities of leaking rear main seals (oils the clutch) the gas tanks are prone to rust right at the petcock, along with the normal items, forks, head bearings, wheels and tires, etc. You want to be a bit more cautious with this bike as parts and service will be more expensive. OTOH, parts and service will be more available, BMW tends to support their older bikes better than the Japanese do.
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Jan 7, 2009 04:09
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Bob Morales posted:Do you have tiered licensing there? While on an L and P license you are restricted to the types of bikes you can ride. No more than 660cc and a specific power/weight ratio. Fortunately that allows a lot of great bikes, unlike New Zealand (my home country) where you are restricted to 250cc. Gnomad posted:I can't help with Aus prices from the land up over, but yes you would want to have a knowledgable person look over that BMW before you buy. I don't think R65's have the same issues with the final drives that bigger BMW's do, but they do have the same possibilities of leaking rear main seals (oils the clutch) the gas tanks are prone to rust right at the petcock, along with the normal items, forks, head bearings, wheels and tires, etc. You want to be a bit more cautious with this bike as parts and service will be more expensive. OTOH, parts and service will be more available, BMW tends to support their older bikes better than the Japanese do.
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Jan 7, 2009 04:58
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I'm puzzled by the <100hp for a first bike rule that people are preaching. Take your MSF course and be responsible. A good first bike shouldn't be some 500 dollar heap off craigslist. Spend $2k+ and get something reliable and safe. (I had a 1993 Katana 750 for my first bike and it was perfect)
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Jan 7, 2009 06:29
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Z3n posted:Ok, that's a lot of work, but it's all doable by a new rider. Awesome, thanks for the info. $500 is doable and I will be ordering some parts and picking up some tools tomorrow. The charging system was checked as well and is working fine. 8ender posted:Can you keep it from stalling by turning on the choke? I don't remember trying this but when I would first start the bike, choke had to be on and it would need some gas right away to keep it from dieing. Can't test it out right now because the gas tank and fairings are off. Thanks again for the help.
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Jan 7, 2009 06:54
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Alright, after discovering in this very thread that a V4 honda was not the bike to learn the intricacies of motorcycle repair on, I have returned with a new possibility. A 1978 CB400T has been offered to me for $100. it needs "a head gasket and ignition". Now, I know a head gasket will be involved, and as far as ignition - electrical gremlins on vintage hondas aside, how difficult would this be? Are the replacement head gasket and coils going to be incredibly difficult to locate?
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Jan 7, 2009 07:16
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Prince posted:unlike New Zealand (my home country) where you are restricted to 250cc. What up. Embrace the 250cc of your spiritual homeland, you know you want to! Anyway, as with any used bike condition (and I guess mileage is important). I personally think $3.8k is a bit much as there is an R80 in in great condition and full touring trim with 57,500ks on the clock going for $3.6 NZ near where I live. If the bike has 100,000ks+ on the clock, I've seen those beemers go for no more than $2.5-3k NZ.
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Jan 7, 2009 07:37
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AKMOTOGP posted:I'm puzzled by the <100hp for a first bike rule that people are preaching. 750 katana makes a little over 80hp at the rear wheel, and weighs enough that it doesn't want to wheelie too bad. Add 25% more HP, drop almost 150 pounds off of it, and that's your typical modern 600. A responsible, adult rider shouldn't have too many problems on a Kat 750. Most of the people who are buying bikes are not responsible, adult riders, thusly the 80hp limit on bikes. Quick Draw posted:Awesome, thanks for the info. $500 is doable and I will be ordering some parts and picking up some tools tomorrow. The charging system was checked as well and is working fine. Good. The rest of it is honestly pretty minor stuff that's really not gonna be that bad. Start a thread about fixing your bike if you need help with individual things. quote:I don't remember trying this but when I would first start the bike, choke had to be on and it would need some gas right away to keep it from dieing. Can't test it out right now because the gas tank and fairings are off. Carbs are slightly clogged. Seafoam in the gas may help, cleaning them will help.
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Jan 7, 2009 07:48
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AKMOTOGP posted:I'm puzzled by the <100hp for a first bike rule that people are preaching. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt that you're new, and give you a summary.
Stick around, read, and you'll see exactly why this place recommends the things it does. Exhibit A 3 accidents prior to that (1 in the MSF), and not once did he listen to anyone here. You'd be hard pressed to find someone who feels sorry for his stupidity. Let's also not forget someone who got a fairly powerful bike, then screamed bloody murder that they weren't going to touch it 'til they took the MSF. What did he do? Rode the bike all over, started riding at night with wildlife nearby, rode in freezing temperatures, and hopped on the highway. At least we've finally seemed to be able to talk some sense into him. Still no wiki? If it's not coming back, can someone remake it? 
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Jan 7, 2009 08:16
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Maybe a quick explanation of the "Why isn't a 100hp bike a good beginner?" question should be put in the rules. I think it's great to explain to people, and if they are honestly curious it would be fine, but it comes up in just about every thread and usually ends up going back and forth for a million posts. The person asking isn't going to be denied that a R6 is a great set of training wheels until you get bored and no one here is going to let it go. Not saying anything to the guy who just asked it, but really, most people here preach safety because we don't want to see a newbie get killed. Some don't like it or have other ideas and that's fine but the numbers don't lie. Experience also doesn't lie and there's a lot of it here.
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Jan 7, 2009 08:27
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AKMOTOGP posted:I'm puzzled by the <100hp for a first bike rule that people are preaching. There's a couple of things I'd mention. One, although there are a lot of americans here, it's not completely american, and us non-yanks don't have the MSF course. So you can't just say "take the MSF" because it doesn't exist for us. Yes, the MSF is good, yes we have training similar, but it's just training and there's no substitute for experience. I'd also say that just because something is 500 dollars and came off craigslist/autotrader/friend of a friend, doesn't mean it can't be reliable and safe. Saying "spend 2k" just means you might have a more expensive unreliable scrapheap, and then when you target fixate on a corner and ram into a lamp-post, or drop it at some lights because you forgot how heavy a bike was, you're in just the same pickle, except it's going to cost more to fix. Hmm, that's sounding rather vicious, and I'm not meaning it like that. It does also depend on where you live. I live in Britain, in the Midlands, and I'm quite happy doing 40 miles on my 125 each way (note, I am insane enough to do 300 miles each way without ever hitting the motorway, but I am not an average representative of bikers). If I lived in the middle of a desert, where I had to ride 40 miles to my nearest shop, I might not have been as happy with my 125, but I'm not there, and I am happy with my bike. Yes, I can see your point. Yes, if you're responsible and lucky (you can't control other road users) then you can get away with a big(ish) bike as your first bike. Yes, there are many piles of scrap out there if you're looking at the cheapest bikes. Yes, some of them may fall apart when you sneeze. But the riding's not just about the power. My 125 has taught me all sorts of stuff, most of it that I'd not have learnt on my CB400. It's less powerful, so I can't get myself into as big as a mess. When it falls over I can pick it up without thinking about it. I can ride it far closer to the limits than I could on a big bike. Getting the entry speed and line through a corner just perfect gives you the same awesome satisfaction no matter what the bike costs, what power it makes, what colour it is or what it looks like. Bugdrvr posted:Maybe a quick explanation of the "Why isn't a 100hp bike a good beginner?" question should be put in the rules. Probably a good idea. At the very least, it would stop me going off on my "I started on a 125 and I had loads of fun" speech/rant/lecture every time. Everyone has their own bugbears, and that's mine, closely linked to people discussing only the power/engine size of their bikes. We're forced to start on a 125 over here, and although it is annoying at times (look at the price of 125s for a start), I am very glad I had to and I did. There's a reason I'm going to fix up my 125 and keep her for a long while yet. Orange Someone fucked around with this message at 12:44 on Jan 7, 2009 |
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Jan 7, 2009 12:41
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Z3n posted:Those bikes aren't available in Cali yet so I don't have any idea on what used pricing on one would be. I'd figure around 5k, maybe mid 5k depending on condition, honestly. They probably paid under 4 for it as a trade in. And you should be able to haggle them down, hard. Thanks, this is really exactly what I was hoping to hear! One more question: what's the general consensus on the v-strom 650? I know it's billed as a dual sport while the versys is under the "sport" heading, but they look quite similar in terms of power and riding position. Do they handle significantly differently or anything? I ask because there's an '05 v-strom not too far down the road with 1K miles on it.
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Jan 7, 2009 15:46
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They're big comfy bikes, that handle surprisingly well, considering their ground clearance. A lot of people poo poo on them for their looks, but if all you want is something utilitarian that will do pretty much anything you ask of it without complaint, you could do a lot worse. Sharing an engine with the second gen SV650 (fuel injection  ) means lots of spare parts availability. I think most people regard them as being a little more road oriented than other D/S bikes like the Kawi KLR650, but a good set of tyres should cure that.Oh, and 1k miles is pretty much not even broken in. Who the gently caress sells a bike after only 1k of riding? 
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Jan 7, 2009 18:13
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trebuchet_tom posted:Thanks, this is really exactly what I was hoping to hear! I love those bikes. The SV 650 engine used is my favorite street engine, with enough power to be engaging and quick, but not so much that you can't run it out and have some fun playing closer to the rev limiter. It's not a real dual sport. It's got long travel suspension, but not long enough to make it really capable offroad, it's got bigger tires, but they're street tires...it'll handle stuff like unpaved fire roads just fine, but don't count on it being easy to handle up in the nasty stuff. If I weren't rebuilding a SV, that would be at the top of the list for bikes to be looking for.
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Jan 7, 2009 18:16
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Simkin posted:Oh, and 1k miles is pretty much not even broken in. Who the gently caress sells a bike after only 1k of riding? I was going to say that maybe the previous owner tried it out and decided bikes weren't their thing but its an 05' which makes it even weirder. Its like someone bought it and immediately put it into a garage.
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Jan 7, 2009 18:38
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8ender posted:I was going to say that maybe the previous owner tried it out and decided bikes weren't their thing but its an 05' which makes it even weirder. Its like someone bought it and immediately put it into a garage. He bought it, was terrified, lived through 1k miles of assorted weekend jaunts and trips to the gas station and back, and eventually parked it and forgot about it. That's usually the story that ends up coming out. Or, conversely, their first big close call came up at 1k miles and they hung it up.
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Jan 7, 2009 18:45
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Z3n posted:He bought it, was terrified, lived through 1k miles of assorted weekend jaunts and trips to the gas station and back, and eventually parked it and forgot about it. That's usually the story that ends up coming out. Or, conversely, their first big close call came up at 1k miles and they hung it up. This seems to be spot on the money. Around here there's at least one posting a week for a low millage sport bike with features like: 123 miles Slight body damage and sometimes Will trade for a sportster. (For those guys who decide because their old fat boy had a 1200cc in it they're more then ready for "some jap bike with half the inches".) And at least once a month: Bike is pristine, my kid bought it, I'm taking it away. In fact there was an '08 R6 up for sale yesterday with less then a 100 miles on it... for 5 grand. Looks like the guy bought it, drove it for about 10 minutes and had a minor lowside (one fairing is scuffed). The thing still had the paper plate you get from the dealer on it. In fact that should be another reason to warn people off the more powerful bikes as their first purchase. If you don't wind up dead you wind up terrified of motorcycles.
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Jan 8, 2009 02:44
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TheUltimateCool posted:Alright, after discovering in this very thread that a V4 honda was not the bike to learn the intricacies of motorcycle repair on, I have returned with a new possibility. A 1978 CB400T has been offered to me for $100. it needs "a head gasket and ignition". The head gaskets and assorted o-rings and oil seals (do not forget them DAMHIK) should be available at the dealer for $100 or so. The ignition is kind of odd though. I would ask the seller how they came to the conclusion that it needs a head gasket and ignition. I would ask this because I was given a 80 CM400E that some DPO decided needed to have the head pulled and then never put back together. Why a person felt that a HONDA would need to have the upper end worked on a 6K miles I cannot say as I found nothing wrong with the head, or the bores, or the pistons, hone marks were clearly visible, rings were fine, the head was perfect...now possibly the head and jugs came off another bike but I don't think they did. The guy I got it from wasn't the guy who dismantled it so he wasn't any help. There were significant carb issues but mechanically the bike was OK. If it hasn't been taken apart, and if there is a title, $100 is a great price. You could bone it out on ebay and make that back. If it has been taken apart, do you want to be the guy trolling ebay for the missing parts? See if you can get some more info and get back to us....but if it is titled and unmolested I vote you pick it up.
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Jan 8, 2009 04:10
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| # ? Apr 23, 2024 11:17 |
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As for why a beginner should start with under 70 hp, and 50 might be even better, it has been said before but needs to be said again. A beginning rider really doesn't have the comprehension of just how motherbumpin fast a good modern bike is. You may have driven some fast cars but they do not prepare you for the sudden rush of speed that ensues when you twist that giggle grip and if you haven't expreienced it before you find the hazards are rushing towards you in an impossibly fast fashion. Suddenly the bike that tipped over so easily in the driveway has become an unturnable gyroscope and the brakes that threatened to toss you over the bars are impotent in the face of the shrieking fury that your bike has become in well less than the time it takes you to read this paragraph. And if you survive this, which chances are you will or their would be even more carnage among beginning riders than there already is, you will discover that the rush of speed and that narrowing of vision and the sheer feral joy of grip it and rip it is a shot of smack right to the brain that you will want to do again and again and again. So, while it is true that most riders survive the initial contact with a sport bike, the penalties for those who don't is so sobering and dramatic that it would be best to avoid contact until you've developed a sobering sense of survival.
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Jan 8, 2009 04:26
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