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Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Cause and Effect

While driving home from The One Motorcycle Show on Saturday, Troubadour commented that he thought everyone and their dog was going to drag old motorcycles out of their garages, make up a price and list them on Craigslist for those that are now jonesing to customize or own a custom a bike.

He wasn't wrong.  The following are just a few of the gems that have been listed in the last week. Some neat, some just need a little (or a lot) of work.  Oh well, something for everyone perhaps.

**  I make no claim to have taken any of these photos.  They were all appropriated from Craigslist Ads.  I was going to link the actual ads, but it seems when I do that, half the time the ads are gone by the time someone clicks on them.  Hopefully I am not stepping on any photographic toes.**


Need a little iron in your daily riding diet?  How about the last of the Harley Davidson iron heads for a mere $2,200.
(1979 Harley Sportster)

Something with a little more off road capabilities maybe. Perhaps you want to make a flat tracker....  Look no further than this 1982 Honda XL 125.  It only has 4500 miles, but a lost title and it can be yours for only $550.
(1982 Honda XL 125)

Honda not your thing?  Rather have a Suzuki 125?  Mechanically inclined?  How about a 1973 Suzuki RV 125 Tracker.  Unfortunately he is parting it out so there is no price for the whole bike. This makes me think there is no title.  Looks like fun though.
(1973 Suzuki RV 125 Tracker)

Have your own engine and just need a rolling frame - Here is a Softail roller frame for $2,700.  No engine?  No problem - add a seat and make it a Strider bike.
(Softail Roller frame)

Don't want to do the work yourself and prefer to buy something already restored?  How about a 1967 Honda CB77 Superhawk for $5,500.  This too looks like fun.
(1967 Honda CB77 Superhawk)

Want something out of the ordinary?  How about a 1986 Honda custom 3-wheeler for $,3295.  I think this is just all kinds of ugly.  Must have been made for the sand dunes on the coast.
(1986 Honda Custom 3-wheeler)

This one is pretty cool, but I think he might want a little much for it.  A 1971 Honda SL 125 for $1,200.  He says it runs, has a clean title, but is a bit of a project.
(1971 Honda CL 125)

Looking for something a little older and more of an original.  Well here you go....a 1954 Allstate. According to the ad it was made in Austria and originally sold in Sears stores.  Only the second owner and it could be yours for only $3,900.
(1954 Allstate)

(We don't even see these at the vintage shows)

There are even bikes out there for the young budding two-wheeled hooligan.  A 1984 Honda Z50R for $600 would be loads of fun for little kids .....and big kids alike.
(1984 Honda Z50R)

If those aren't enough of a project for you, here is a real challenge.  Bike doesn't run, has a horrendously gaudy paint job that needs to be removed asap (unless of course you're into skulls) and could make a sweet cafe racer one day if you had the skills and patience - a 1980 Honda CB 650 for only $600 - at least they have a title to this one.
(1980 Honda CB 650)

There seem to be a lot of older Hondas coming out of hibernation.  Here is a 1980 Honda CX 500, yours for only $1,300 obo. The ad claims in runs and rides well and just needs a little TLC.
(1980 Honda CX 500)

For the low low price of $300 you can be the proud owner of a 1972 Honda XL 250 that doesn't run, nor does the back tire spin.  But it does come with a key - bonus!  Bleeding knuckles are not optional with this gem.
(1972 Honda XL 250)

Oh, but wait..... what is that I see? A 1970 Triumph Tiger TR6 with shiny gold paint.....  Apparently this is a numbers matching bike, strong daily rider and needs nothing.  It can be yours for $5,200 - ouch.
(1970 Triumph Tiger TR6)

That one too rich for you, but you still want a vintage Triumph, try this one on for size.  A 1970 Triumph 250 Trophy for $ 3,300.  The ad says it runs great and is quite the attention getter (what Triumph isn't an attention getter?)
(1970 Triumph 250 Trophy)

And yet another Honda.  But this one would be so much fun to ride to coffee on Saturdays and all the work has been done to it - a complete frame off restoration.  Bring your checkbook for this 1969 Honda 350 Scrambler for $4,200.  And it deserves two pictures.  I really like this one.
(1969 Honda 350  Scrambler)



Okay, this Suzuki looks like all kinds of fun too.  A 1969 Suzuki T500 for $2,000.  Oh the places you could go.  Apparently the seller is getting rid of it as he doesn't have time to ride it, how sad.
(1969 Suzuki T500)

These are just a handful of bikes that have been listed in the last week or so.  There really are too many to include.  As you can see, some are really nice and fully restored and some no one has time to tinker with they need so much work.  I do find it odd that I didn't see any older Kawasakis for sale.  Their owners must be hanging on to those.

Spring is in the air - are there any neat old bikes coming out of the woodwork in your area?

-Au Revoir

"  You don't get anything clean without getting something else dirty." - Cecil Baxter
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43 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Looks like you could have some fun rip snorting around on it doesn't it?

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  2. Replies
    1. Do you need a bib or just a big napkin?

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    2. lol! now that you mention it, im in the mood for a margarita, strawberries, and will probably need a bib now ;)

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  3. Trobairitz:

    I can't get over how "CHEAP" bikes are down there. You should look at our Craigslist sometime. I have always liked those Honda CX500's, shaft drive and looks sort of like a Guzzi the way the engine is mounted.

    That Scrambler 350 did look nice, BUT "It's not BLUE !"

    bob
    Riding the Wet Coast

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Nope, the Scrambler isn't blue but it was still my favorite of the bunch. It just looks so nice and like so much fun to ride.

      I know how expensive things are in BC, why do you think we moved to Oregon in 2001...... :-)

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  4. The 350 Scrambler does look pretty cool buy that 1884 kids bike is in good condition for its age...lol!

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    1. Thanks for the heads up on the typo, I fixed it.

      Did they even have internal combustion engines in 1884?

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  5. Nice collection, some are in a heart breaking condition though. And without a title, they should bring money to get rid of those...
    The 1969 Honda 350 Scrambler looks fantastic though. The price tag is a little high but somebody really has but hard work into it.

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    1. This will sound a little silly but we have found that when it comes to used vehicles (at least around here) people just don't seem to take care of them. I guess that is one of the reasons we've bought new with our last few cars. People seem to trash their cars when new so the used ones aren't in great condition. We didn't usually see that in BC and I think it was because they cost so much more.

      Looks to be the same with some bikes. Some are in great condition and are babied and others, not so much.

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  6. the CX500 is the one most turned into cafe racers here in the UK, they look great all stripped down, There's even a guy selling kits to convert them. Your prices are much cheaper than ours tho'! El Diente

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    1. The CX seems to really have the shape/bones to turn into a cafe. It is cool that they sell kits for them too. I can only imagine what the prices are over there. Higher in Canada than high and higher still in the UK.

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  7. The honda 350 has had a lot of work done. I'd never have the time or patience to restore and old bike. Why do that when I would rather be out riding.

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    1. You and me both Steve. A co-worker once said to me "There are those that do, and those that pay those that do".

      I personally just want to turn the key and go.I think that is one of the many reasons I appreciate fuel injection. Turn the key and go......

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  8. I guess I'm partial to the Honds Scrambler as well. It looks pretty nice.

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    1. I wouldn't kick it out of the garage for leaking on the floor, that is for sure.

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  9. That 350 scrambler is really nice. I had a CB350 of about the same vintage and loved it!

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    1. Some of those older bikes were just so neat. I wish they still made them - todays technology combined with smaller cc's and less plastic than we see on todays bikes.

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  10. I am always amazed at what folks post for sale ... quite a selection. I prefer the 'no work needed' models myself.

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    1. I too prefer no work needed.

      Some of the bikes listed were just total crap and I didn't bother reposting those. Just pieces - some (most) assembly required.

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  11. Trobairitz,
    You picked some really, really good ones to share. Between dad, my brother and myself, we owned and then shared almost too many of these! The most interesting one to me is the blue Puch (Allstate). I had 3 of them at once for a time, mine were original black but were newer. I've not seen any that were quite as old as these.

    Most surprising to me?? These images actually show the machines off rather well. Too many of our CL ads look like the photographer was running and fell in a dark room just as the shot was taken for the posted photos picked for the ads. All of these actually look appealing to the right buyers.

    I struggle mightily to not even look on CL these days.....every time I look there's something "I've always wanted"

    ReplyDelete
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    1. How cool that your family owned a lot of these bikes especially the Puch.

      There were some older bikes that I could have listed but the pictures were crap. I wanted to show the ones that you could actually see. Lately CL seems to have okay pictures around these parts.

      Some days CL is hard to look at, I'll agree. There are just so many neat two-wheeled machines out there and we don't have enough room in our little one car garage.

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  12. You called it ugly, but that's the first trike I've seen that caused me to go..."Hmmm."

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    1. It would definitely go places a lot of trikes couldn't. I do think it is fugly, but it serves a purpose. It would give the quads on the dunes a run for their money and even tear up the forestry roads I am thinking. More function than frosting.....

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  13. There are some "interesting" bikes there. I have to agree with your assessment of the skull bike. :)

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    1. Yeah, I am not really into the whole skull thing and you will never find me with flames on my bike either unless the damn thing is on fire. To each their own.

      Heck, I have a Smurfette on my right radiator guard so I don't have room to talk.....

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  14. I wouldn't mind having a go at restoring an old bike like some of those ... hmmm ya got me thinking now

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    1. Are you thinking of tinkering on an old bike. More power to you if you have the patience and know how. Even with a step by step manual I don't think I'd have quite the patience for it. But they look so neat when all done.

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    2. mmhmm .. kinda thinking along those lines, something I've thought about before, but first I have almost decided that a mechanic type course might help too ... ya got me thinking :)

      I love that feeling you get seeing something you have taken as a wreck and made pretty.

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    3. A mechanics class sounds good. I wonder if your local college might offer evening lessons on the basics. Around here I think they have car mechanic classes but nothing directly two-wheeled related. I know for the most part they can be the same but the engines do have their differences and nuances.

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  15. The Suzuki t500....that's the winner... Its 500cc of two-stroke twin terror...
    Probably had never ridden one and got ham fisted with the throttle and proceed to drop a deuce in his trousers.. And never rode it again...

    no time to ride it indeed....

    ReplyDelete
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    1. I do think it would be fun to ride. I am sure it wouldn't take much to wheelie. I have visions of Homer Simpson wheeling a bike into a roof after your comment. That is always what I feared when Brad put me on the KZ900.

      I'd have all kinds of time to ride, but the damn 9-5 keeps getting in the way, sheesh.

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  16. Hmmm, can't say that anything really appeals, although the CX will still be going next millenium.

    A good thing though, the postage would be a bit prohibitive...

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    1. Yeah, shipping would be a might expensive.

      I like to look at the old bikes, doesn't mean I'd ever actually own one, but it is fun to think of them and how they were ridden back in the day.

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  17. I used to watch craigslist for motorcycles all the time. It got to be too depressing. I got tired of seeing "no title, but easy to get one..." BS, I don't know about OR, but here, if there's no title, it's basically a parts bike! If it was that easy to get one, why didn't they! I also got tired of seeing "rare" used to describe some of the most popular bikes. Plus, add in the idiots that couldn't even get the name or model of their bike right... It made me sad, I had to stop.

    You found some very nice bikes! Maybe I'll check the local craigslit.... maybe.

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    1. Yeah, I don't get the 'no title' thing either. I believe it is quite difficult to get a replaced title as it is hard to prove chain of title and that the guy you buy it from was the rightful owner.

      Next time you are knee deep in snow, have a fire going, cat on your lap in your comfy chair - that would be a god time to surf Criagslist. If nothing else it might put you to sleep and you'll be napping by the fire - win win.

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  18. I think my fave is the Honda 350 and the CB77 superhawk. I looked at a hawk 305 it was in a Barnard the fellow was ancient, it was the bike of his youth and he used to court his wife on that bike and she thought he was James Dean-ish. He glowed when he told us stories of his youth. We decided not to get the bike. It was too much of a project and we passed, Imsure wish we had bought it though, it would have been a beauty restored. People don't get how much of a money pit project bikes can be.

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    1. I like the Honda Hawks well and the Hornets were nice too. Don't see many of those around any more. It is cool that you got to hear the story of the older couple and the bike, but man it sounded like it would have been a lot of work.

      I think with restoring bikes you'd have to take your $ estimate to repair and restore and at least double it due to hidden costs and issues you can't see right off the bat.

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  19. So many choices...my favourite is the desert trike...that would work here in the snow too!

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    1. Fun yes, but it makes me wonder what your insurance would cost.

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  20. The vintage show was bad enough... now you go and get a guy drooling to hitch up a trailer and take off for Oregon with a pocket full of dinero and eyes bigger than his energy to load up a garage he doesn't have any more with MC projects he should have started when he was 20! ;)

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    1. Does this mean I am a bad influence?

      I almost did a follow up post titled "Make it Stop" because so many cool bikes have been listed lately. Even a really neat restored 60's era Vespa.

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