I Mean, How Hard Can It Be? (Calling Bikelopnik Oppo's)

"SVTyler" (svtyler) 01/11/2015 at 19:00 • Filed to: None

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$1000 buys !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . All it needs is a throttle cable adjustment, front brakes bled, and the taillight wired in, everything else has been rebuilt or fixed. Can anyone with experience working on bikes weigh in? Are these things something a person with zero knowledge about motorcycles and next-to-no experience working on cars could fix themselves? Famous last words I'm sure, but after some Internet research it doesn't seem like a huge job to get this thing roadworthy: bleeding the brakes are pretty straightforward, as is wiring (provided it's not a rat's nest under the seat, which judging from the pictures may or may not be the case), but again, as a dude with zero mechanical knowledge I'd love to not get in over my head here.

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Opposite Locksmith > SVTyler 01/11/2015 at 19:06

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seems odd that a seller wouldn't polish this up by doing these seemingly moderately easy jobs

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > SVTyler 01/11/2015 at 19:14

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Almost everything is easier on a bike. If you want to get into vehicle repair, that's about as simple as its gonna get. The great part is that a rat's nest is unlikely because there's very little electrical in there compared to a car. Hell. You could cut most of it out of there and rewire it in an afternoon if it was really bad.

64C10 > SVTyler 01/11/2015 at 19:15

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Ask him to finish the brake job and wire the taillight, then offer him $1,200 for it. Just my 2 cents, seems like anyone with access to the Internet could do it though, plenty of how-to's out there.

jkm7680 > SVTyler 01/11/2015 at 19:17

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Ask Mr.TheEngineer. He's done an awesome Bobber in the past and would be the right person to ask.

yamahog > Opposite Locksmith 01/11/2015 at 19:22

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YES. Any time I see something being sold with the disclaimer "in perfect shape, just needs blah blah blah, it's an easy fix," I wonder what kept them from doing it if it's so easy.

Have a motorcycle mechanic or someone with motorcycle repair experience give it a once-over and make sure that's really all it needs, especially since it's been rebuilt.

Justin Hughes > SVTyler 01/11/2015 at 19:56

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It could just be lost interest, no time, or something like that. I once bought a 1981 Suzuki GS1100L for a mere $350. In its previous life it was a full dresser - fairing, hard bags, the works. Then it had an unfortunate meeting with a moose, and the bike lost. (No word on the rider...) A couple bought the wreck, did 90% of the work to rebuild it, then put it up for sale. I bought it, added turn signals that worked, installed an OEM gauge cluster off a parts bike (wired it myself, gear indicator and everything), and rode it. The clutch slipped a little, but other than that it was fine.

McMike > SVTyler 01/11/2015 at 20:20

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That was my first bike!

I might pay $1000 for that thing if it didn't need any work and I didn't have to fabricate a better seat mount.

It's someone's project that they didn't quite finish and lost interest in.

Joel Ness > SVTyler 01/11/2015 at 20:39

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Coming from a light mechanical background, when I got my first bike I learned a lot about working on bikes. It's not hard to work on most of the things. Proper suspension setup and engine work is bit hard but everything else, especially what you mentioned, is fairly easy. What you don't know you can easily find out. Be sure to find the bike specific forum for it and ask away. Bike folk are generally good about answering noob questions

AdverseMartyr > SVTyler 01/11/2015 at 20:40

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I'd be a bit curious as to the running, but not right part. What's missing from the carb tune? Has it been re-jetted? The ad doesn't mention that and it says custom mufflers so I would think it needed it.

Doing the brakes, but not bleeding them. Running, but not right. New wiring harness, but taillight/brakelight isn't working.

It might be a basket case. It sounds like the guy kept getting bored, and every time he hit a snag just moved onto a different section of the bike. I'd offer him $500. I'd also put turn signals onto it.

I'd take it on, but looking at NADAguides.com it says it is worth maybe $600 in fair condition and be lucky to get $1800 out of it if you sold it in excellent.

SVTyler > AdverseMartyr 01/11/2015 at 21:45

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Emailed his last night but no reply yet so I'm going solely off his CL description. I'm assuming he did all the work himself which, as you mentioned, requires some follow-up questions to be asked. I asked in my email about the trans and engine so I'll see what what he says. Considering it's the dead of winter and it does need some finishing touches I was going to offer like $700 and go from there if everything checks out, but as you mentioned his price is a bit optimistic so maybe I could get it for even less if he really wants it gone.

SVTyler > McMike 01/11/2015 at 21:50

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Very nice-looking bike, wish there were ones like that on my local CL, seems like it's all scooters and basket cases for that kind of money. As far as price goes I was going to offer like $700 if everything checks out and see what he says, especially since it needs work and it's the middle of winter.

SVTyler > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms 01/11/2015 at 21:53

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That's what I've heard, that bike's are a great starting point for learning to work on your own vehicles which is another reason I want to buy one with some (minor) issues to begin with. I always see dudes on here rebuilding engines and fabbing up their own sheetmetal and stuff which is something I'd love to learn how to do someday, I just need a good place to begin.

SVTyler > 64C10 01/11/2015 at 21:54

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I asked in my email about a finished price but my guess is that if he's trying to offload it as-is he either needs money badly or just got bored of it and wants it gone ASAP. Either way I actually kind of want to buy it with the problems it has, always wanted to learn to work on my own vehicles and bikes are apparently a great place to start.

SVTyler > Joel Ness 01/11/2015 at 21:56

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That's what I was wondering, the things it needs seem super-simple but again, I don't know jack about these things so that's why I asked. I'd love to graduate to engine work and more complicated things like that but something easy like the aforementioned issues seem like a good place to start learning how to fix things up yourself. Thank you for the advice, I was definitely planning on joining the forums if I get this thing.

SVTyler > Opposite Locksmith 01/11/2015 at 22:00

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Same thought I had, asked him in my email why he was selling. Maybe he just needed the cash or got bored, I dunno, but I figured it was worth asking about anyways.

Opposite Locksmith > SVTyler 01/11/2015 at 22:01

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or the classic angry ex wife

SVTyler > yamahog 01/11/2015 at 22:01

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I was planning on taking it to a shop in the area before I buy it and just seeing if they can give it a once-over. For all I know he half-assed everything and it's a pile of junk, but figured it'd be worth asking about in the very least. I did ask why he was selling in the email so I'll be interested to see what he says. Could just need some quick cash or some space in his garage.

SVTyler > Justin Hughes 01/11/2015 at 22:03

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That's what I thought. It's winter, he's not riding it, maybe he just got tired of squeezing by it in the garage or something. If he did the work right I figure it's worth asking about at the very least, I'd kind of like to do what you did and buy something that needs a little work so I can fix it myself and just learn the process. Always wanted to know how to work on my vehicles, this might be a good place to start.

SVTyler > Opposite Locksmith 01/11/2015 at 22:04

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That too lol, may even be able to get a better deal because of it.

theandysho - drives a SHO > SVTyler 01/11/2015 at 22:39

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Pro-tips for a starter bike - never buy something that looks good to you, because when you wreck it you'll hate yourself - also, never buy someone's project. I applaud everyone who wants to learn to work / ride a bike, but take your time and find a Shadow that is running and proper and is more or less original at the important bits. Then when you drop it in a parking lot you can bend the bars back and go buy parts for dirt cheap that aren't cobbled together from four wiring harnesses.

SVTyler > theandysho - drives a SHO 01/12/2015 at 04:34

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Damn you and your common sense... Yeah, that's another thing to think about with it being a first bike, I'd hate to dump something that looked as nice as it does. This one would be more in line with what you're talking about but it's been constantly relisted over the past few months and I'm skeptical as to why. Those two are the only decent-looking ones I've found in months, most of the sub-$1000 bikes that pop up on my local CL are either basket cases that need major work or dirtbikes. Just wanted some input to see if the Shadow could be a steal provided I could finish it up myself, I know what people say about other people's projects, thanks for the advice.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > SVTyler 01/12/2015 at 18:02

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There is literally no better place to start than a Honda motorcycle. True story: I went with my uncle to pick up an early Honda CB...it was a tiny little 4 cylinder, maybe a 350. It was in great shape and had been sitting in a shed for a few years. We didn't bother kicking it over or anything because it was so clean.

We got it back to his driveway, went to pull the spark plugs...and there weren't any. The combustion chambers had been wide open for God knows how long. We kicked it over to see if it was free, and amazingly it was, but quite a lot of evil looking water shot out the spark plug holes.

We had it running and rideable that afternoon.

SVTyler > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms 01/13/2015 at 19:37

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I've heard Honda are great starter bikes for that reason, they're so easy to fix and they last forever. Been looking for anything half-decent-looking but have been more interested in Shadows and CB's than anything. Unfortunately this time of year there's really only projects and dirtbikes up, which is one of the reasons I'm so interested in the bike, it's one of two listed in the last month that isn't a total basket case.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > SVTyler 01/13/2015 at 20:54

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Yeah, you'll want something relatively solid. My first bike was a '75 CB750K I picked up non-running for $700 in decent shape. New gas and plugs had the bike running that day. The single worst thing about it, infact the only bad thing, were the brakes. The 750 is known to be underbraked, what with its single piston front brake and its silver dollar sized brake pad.

The end of the riding season is the time to buy. Naturally you'll see more out there in the spring, but the prices will go up.

SVTyler > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms 01/13/2015 at 21:44

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That's not a bad deal at all considering the junk I've seen on my local CL going for $700. I've been looking on and off since the summer but for under $1000 there really hasn't been all that much come up, maybe five or six really worth calling about, two of which were were sold within days of posting. Figured I'd look through the winter to see if I could snag something decent on the cheap but it seems like I'll have to wait until spring and deal with the inflation. The $1000-1500 range seems more promising so it could just be my budget, too.

bob and john > SVTyler 01/16/2015 at 21:31

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$1000? Id do it. wiring up a tial light/head light isnt that hard.
seems like a quick easy flip.

SVTyler > bob and john 01/16/2015 at 21:45

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That's my thought pattern. I know the whole 'don't buy other people's projects' deal but I mean, all the things it needs are super easy to do or learn how to do, right? Problem is dude hasn't answered any of my 3 emails so not sure what the deal is, I'd go see it this weekend if he'd just answer.

bob and john > SVTyler 01/16/2015 at 21:53

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brakes are easy to do, its a single caliper and no ABS.

brake light: its literally connecting a couple of wires.

seat: ehh. again, not that hard. get a buddy with a welder, a bit of sand paper and some metal tubes.

carbs: soak in pine-sole for 3 days. put in some fresh gas and spark plugs, and away you go.

take it from me and my fun on trying to get my SV650 suspension and brake swap done ove the summer: it could be a lot harder.

SVTyler > bob and john 01/16/2015 at 22:10

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Yeah, so not that bad at all, in theory at least. Thank you for the help, like I said I'm kinda lost in all this and looking for as much advice as I can get.

bob and john > SVTyler 01/16/2015 at 22:15

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even in practice


the most wrenching I had done before I did what I did to my SV was an oil change and pedal bikes.

make sure you have proper tools.
make sure you take pictures of where everything is
and MOST importantly: BAG AND TAG FUCKING EVERYTHING. you do NOT want to loos the one totally custom spring/nut from the carb that you will NEVER find again.