1st time buyers

Hi all,
I am new to the group, but my wife & I are looking at geting into bikes
since the price of gas is around $1.75 now. We found 2 used bikes, one is a
1972 Honda Scrambler 350cl, & a 1978 Yahama XS100. The Honda needs a battery
& the front brake handle-starter switch assembly, & the Yahama needs the
seat covered. I can get both for about $1500.00. Is this a good deal? Are
parts available for these older bikes? Would this be a good deal to get us
into a couple of inexpensive bikes to make sure that we like riding before
we make th plunge into something nicer (I want a Goldwing). Thanks for any
help anyone out ther could give us on this subject!!!

 

Bikes that old could be horrendous money holes and you'll do much more
tinkering than riding. Find someone who really knows bikes to evaluate
them, by that I mean an experienced mechanic. If they look like
they've been cared for and run and idle well, it could be a good deal,
but highly unlikely.

If you want a Gold Wing, go buy one.

Bill Smith

 

Bill's right about the money hole thing. You may have seen my post on a
similar era bike that I just bought for $500. Mine's as close to perfect as
you could expect to find, but I fully expect to spend at least another $500
on it over the course of the summer. As I'm finding out, the maintenence
items are a little more extensive and in some cases more difficult then on
the newer bikes I've owned up to this point, and parts might take a few days
longer to get from your dealer. I have a newer bike as a daily rider, so
I'm in no hurry. $1500 bucks seems high for the pair unless the bikes are
ready to go and fully maintained. I'm guessing that you haven't had an
opportunity to even run the Honda at this point so there could be a lot left
to do there. Check out eBay, cycletrader.com and your local papers and I
think you'll find a lot of late 80's to mid-nineties bikes in the cc range
your looking at for $1000-1800 each. That's a little more up front, but
you'll be able to sell 'em for pretty much the same amount next year and you
will have spent a lot less on them in the meantime.

BTW, you might find that once you've got comfortable riding that a Kawasaki
Concours is a good halfway point to a Goldwing. It's not as big and
difficult to manuever at slow speeds, and you can pick them up reasonable
new or used. I've never owned one, but the guys I've talked to that have,
really love 'em.

 

If you want to save money, almost any motorcycle of 500cc or bigger will
cost as much to run as a car, in fuel, servicing and especially tyres
and chains and sprockets.

Buying old bikes and hoping to do them up on the cheap, if you're a
novice, is insanity.

If you want to save money, on short trips (anything 10 miles and under),
buy a moped.

 

I agree - however if the 70's and 80's thing is your style, buy a
Honda CX500/650 model. No chains (Its a shaftie), they need little
attention and are a good starter to give you the feel of motorcycling.
Also notice how damn cheap evern good ones are!

Owen.

 

Water pump seals are a bitch though.

Bill Smith

 

Yer... But luckily I've never had that problem... yet.
They never really need them until 40k miles; sometimes before,
sometimes alot after. Depends on what coolant you use etc.

Other than that, they are good... And I love the gentle rocking of the
pistons when you accelerate... (It is a Transverse V, though ;-)

Owen