Misty Motor Collection

"Mercedes Streeter" (smart) 01/07/2019 at 17:11 • Filed to: Two Wheels Good

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I know I said I wouldn’t get another bike for a while...however a man in Wisconsin found my kryptonite, a barn find two stroke for less than the cost of a nice date night...

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I’m going to monetize my vehicle collecting. This is something I’m clearly in for the long haul, so why not turn it into a sort of business? I’ve always wanted to reboot my monetized YouTube channel and possibly go from there to develop a museum/dealership hybrid like the Volo Auto Museum here in IL. I’m thinking of being sort of a mix of Saabkyle with Mustie1, Fortnine, and maaaybe a dash of moto-vlogger. I’m more passionate about motorcycles than I am about cars (aside from smarts), and that’s saying something.

This can/will also be fueled by a career change I’m committing to this year, but that’s something I’m writing for a different day.

As for the name of this? I’m thinking Misty Motor Collection. Misty is a nickname of mine and would be less confusing than Mercedes Motor Collection.

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I started out this new plan of mine by further deciding the fate of the Ruckus clone. It’s on the chopping block. As I’m heading into Gambler season it’s not unlikely that I’ll end up with some sort of dedicated car  for offroading . I have no intentions on having 11 vehicles this early in the game, so something has to be disposed of.

Back to the barn find. Unlike my other projects where getting them running and legal were the names of the game, I actually want this little KE100 to be the initial flagship of my new YouTube channel with a full reconditioning.

This is a 1979 Kawasaki KE100. This bike was stored in a barn for who knows how long. Amazingly I’m actually the second owner of this bike. I was given the original title and original key. The bike was first titled to a woman in 82, rode 3k miles, then lived the rest of its life in a barn ever since. I now own one bike from each of the Japanese big 4!

The tank is in immaculate condition. The seller thought he would restore it and got started by creaming the tank. It looks better than new. The outside can be touched up and would also look new. It’s so clean you can eat soup out of it! Only missing parts so far as I can see are the brake light, rear turn indicators, and the carb cover. It has good compression and the spark plug is there, but it’s pretty weathered. Likewise, the throttle cable is unusable. But since the carb looks like it got varnished like ten years ago I can replace both the carb and throttle cable at the same time. Looks like it won’t take much to get it running! Madame DeLorean wants to make it into a mini cafe racer and that’s also something I’m happy to sign off on. After the success of the gaming computer project, building a motorcycle together will be even more fun. Now just to get it into my condo... Thankfully it only weighs like 180 lb.

shop-teacher > Mercedes Streeter 01/07/2019 at 17:27

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“I now own one bike from each of the Japanese big 4!”

Wait, did I miss something?  When did you get a Yamaha?  

E90M3 > Mercedes Streeter 01/07/2019 at 17:34

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for less than the cost of a nice date night

Nice date night, must be nice. 

Future next gen S2000 owner > Mercedes Streeter 01/07/2019 at 17:35

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Date nights can be pretty pricey if you get the happy ending..........not that I would know anything about that.....

Mercedes Streeter > shop-teacher 01/07/2019 at 18:01

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I got a DT175 back in October. lol

Decay buys too many beaters > Mercedes Streeter 01/07/2019 at 18:07

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I told you two stokes were dope ;) Wish they could still make them for road use. 

I’ve been feeling real regret lately for not starting a channel in the early days after I bought my Miata, between that and motos I’d have plenty of content.

jminer > Mercedes Streeter 01/07/2019 at 18:14

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Nice acquisition! I’ll warn you it’s hard to make a living flipping bikes. It’s easy to break even or come ahead but more like a hobby that pays for itself.

I’ve got it’s predecessor, a G5.

Its the yellow one, the two in back are F7 bikes.

I tried hard for about a year as a test for quitting my day job and the best I could do was netting $1k average a month. That was with paying the bills ourlt of my day job and zero overhead working out of my garage . I always made more parting out bikes in eBay than fixing and selling. My conscience wouldn’t let me tear up old bikes though that could be saved!

If you can, follow those dreams! Chicago is a bigger market than St Louis though so that may help you.

I still dream of retiring and opening a small bike shop though!

EL_ULY > Mercedes Streeter 01/07/2019 at 18:50

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keeeewl!

Mercedes Streeter > jminer 01/07/2019 at 18:50

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Thankfully I don’t plan on making it my main source of income...more just like a hobby that could bring in a little extra on the side/tax deductions as opposed to only costing me money. I wouldn’t get into the “museum” stage unless I’m already pulling in a decent income from somewhere, be it from my career change or YouTube. :)

shop-teacher > Mercedes Streeter 01/07/2019 at 19:02

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Ok then!

So we're at 6 bikes and 4 Smarts now?

Mercedes Streeter > shop-teacher 01/07/2019 at 19:30

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I will not confirm nor deny those numbers.

I really want to be at no more than 5 each, so the Ruck may get the axe.

shop-teacher > Mercedes Streeter 01/07/2019 at 19:34

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Uhhhh, girl, you already confirmed those numbers.

Yeah, off the Ruck in the spring.

Mercedes Streeter > shop-teacher 01/07/2019 at 19:48

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I’ve always had an issue with lying lol.

Yeah because I’m expecting some sort of vehicle for the Gambler this Spring and having 11 vehicles on hand (at least at this stage in everything) scares me. Though I guess since the bikes are cheaper to run, insure, and register than cars so the cost hasn’t been too awful. Progressive Insurance is also nice enough to let me switch what bikes are covered on the fly.

shop-teacher > Mercedes Streeter 01/07/2019 at 19:51

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11 does seem excessive :)

Good to know about Progressive. I have my scooter insured through them too.