Breaking a bike

I have two CX500's I am offloading as the bike is too heavy for my arthritic
old body to manhandle anymore, and my SR250SE now does me a treat. One will
be going on fleabay complete, with a new(ish) MOT, and I am going to break
the other one which doesn't have an MOT. The one I am breaking I thought I
would list the engine first, leaving it in the frame so prospective
purchasers could hear it running if they wanted to before bidding, even run
it up and down our garages road to check out clutch and gearbox, which is
all sweet. The purchaser then could help me remove the engine from the
bike. Is that the done thing, asking the buyer to get his hands dirty, or
should I remove it before listing. Haven't broken a bike before so not too
sure of the ins and outs. I know I have to keep the V5 for the frame, I
think.

Bill

 

Do exactly as you suggest. An engine that's a proven runner is always
worth more than one that's out of the frame and can't be tested.

I did exactly this when breaking an old XS650 a while back - the lump
fetched over £300 because I could prove it started and ran sweetly, and
the buyer, an XS freak, was quite happy to lend a hand removing it. With
two of you on the job, it shouldn't take longer than 45 minutes, maybe
an hour.

As an unknown quantity, I guess the XS lump would have been worth
£100-150.

For the other bits, clean them up so they photograph nicely, and bung
them on Ebay with a 99p start and no reserve.

Sooner or later you'll be left with a pile of theoretically unsellable
bits that you'd normally just throw away. Gather all these together,
photograph them as a pile, put a 99p price tag on them, and believe me,
somebody will come along and pay you for taking them away.

Working on this basis (desirable parts first, less desirable parts
second, scrap bits last), I reckon to dispose of a bike, completely, in
three weeks.

 

The email is good, but rarely checked, probably about once a week.

I am about as far east as you are west! I am in Sudbury, Suffolk. Pity, the
seat is excellent, no tears or cracks or scuffs. The base is a bit surface
rusty, but solid. My inlet manifolds are good, they wont get sold with the
engine, so once the engine is gone I will give you a shout on here, I know
you are a regular. I believe one dodge is to stretch a length of mountain
bike innertube over the rubbers, I guess you could go the who hog and use
puncture rubber solution to help lubricate the innertube to slide it on and
to secure it once in position. The silencers are not a lot of cop, solid but
rusty, and the collector box is starting to rot at the silencer connection
stubs. The front pipes however haven't done 200 miles since buying them new
(pattern parts) from Dave Silvers. They haven't discoloured at all yet.

You will have to make up a list of what you want and we can see if we can
sort something out.

Ride safe
Bill

 

Apologies, Loz H not Lozzo.

 

says...

Lozzo used to own a CX, with full Vetter fairng and panniers.

--
Lozzo
Triumph Daytona 955i SE (Black with added black bits)
GSF600SW (broked)
'I do not object to people looking at their watches when I am speaking.
But I strongly object when they start shaking them to make certain they
are still going.' William Norman Birkett, 1st Baron Birkett, Oct 1960.

 

says...

I take the piss out of a few bikes I've owned in the past. The CX was ok
for what it was, but I prefered sportier bikes back then and don't
really kow why the **** I bought it in the first place.

--
Lozzo
Triumph Daytona 955i SE (Black with added black bits)
GSF600SW (broked)
'I do not object to people looking at their watches when I am speaking.
But I strongly object when they start shaking them to make certain they
are still going.' William Norman Birkett, 1st Baron Birkett, Oct 1960.