Looking for input

[fallout]

I'm interested in possibly picking this up and fixing it for a friend.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1,1&item=4577561915&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT

I was wondering how hard or costly some of its listed problems would be.  Mainly what it might cost to straighten he forks if they aren't bent to badly or replacing them.  Was thinking of just taking all the front fairing/cowl off if they are in too bad of condition and make it a nekkid GS.

The place that is selling this obvisouly doesn't have a clue as to what it is.  Listed as a 600cc and am leary about there being some major issues they don't know about. IE: engine/frame.

[red_phil]

I'd say at $710, the bidding has already gone too high.

For not much more than that you could get a more reliable naked bike by getting a 2nd hand 2001 GS500E that has been looked after.

[roguegeek]

I'd say at $710, the bidding has already gone too high.

For not much more than that you could get a more reliable naked bike by getting a 2nd hand 2001 GS500E that has been looked after.

If by "not much more" you mean twice the bid price, then I think you'd be correct. Can't remember ever seeing a properly maintained '01 GS go for around $1k, but if you can find it, let me know cuz I'll pick it up right away.

[JamesG]

I donno. If it actually still has a clean title (not salvage) and the frame is straight, I might be tempted if I weren't stuck over here...

Looking at the pics it seems wierd. I don't see any rash on the cases and the front end isn't mashed like you'd see in a head on. I wonder if it got clobbered from behind of maybe a low speed high side?

[red_phil]

[Trwhouse]

Hello,
Here is how I look at situations like this, as a former mechanic and parts man at a motorcycle dealership back in the late 1970s to early 1980s...
A smashed motorcycle for cheap always sounds good.
You figure a few parts here and a few parts there, and presto, you'll have a great bike for half the cost of a new one.
The only problem is that it's the hidden damage that kills the economy of the deal.
On this bike, figure new fork tubes and seals (about $180 for each tube and $20 for seals, so $380 so far, plus). Then the frame could be bent, which can be straightened, but not in your garage with your own labor. You can't fix that at home, so off to the dealership for that.
Then the plastics are damaged (who knows how much at this point, but replacement costs will be $500 to $1,000 on their face.
Then there is a missing seat, $200 or more for a stock seat, and no Corbins replacements offered yet, I don't think.
But what really hurts are all the broken or missing parts they haven't mentioned, from cracked instrument housings to broken turn signals, lights, rear panels and more. They add up very fast, believe me.
You also don't know if the bike really runs or if the crash damaged electrical switches or the engine (if it ran while on its side or was over-revved on the ground, etc.)
It's one thing to buy a crash-damaged bike when you can see it and look over every part up close with your own eyes. It's another when it's on Ebay and someone is telling you that it "doesn't need much." Famous last words.
I remember in 1980 when my friend Michael crashed his sparkling, black, state-of-the-art year-old 1979 Honda CB750F on one of our Sunday morning rides through the Wisconsin countryside, totaling it. He sold the wreck for $1,000 to a mechanic I worked with at my Honda shop, who then bought parts to rebuild it. After buying a tank, fork tubes, a new front wheel, and a million other parts, it would have been just a few hundred dollars more for a brand new bike.That didn't include his many hours of labor and the frame straightening he had to do in the shop.
Lessons learned.
Be very wary and double or triple what you expect it will cost to fix. Then add in what the labor will cost you in many hours of time before deciding.
If a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is.
Good luck,
Todd

[fallout]

The bike very quickly shot out of the range I was willing to pay for it in the last few hours.  Bid wars suxor!

[RVertigo]

That thing looked like a handful...  of crap.

Looks like it was crashed to me...   :dunno:

[Alphamazing]

Definitely not worth the price. Look around, you'll find something better.

[davipu]

it looks to me that he rearended a car to bend the forks that far in. then laid it over to bend the bars/ kill the body work.   so basicly your getting a good motor and a gas tank and the gauges.  not worth 960 to me.

[Jake D]

I'd have wanted the motor and put the rest in the trash.