Looking to get a GS500F. I'm impressed so far what I've read read and seen. After some research and looking around on Craigslist, I came across an 06 with about 5900 miles on it. All stock. Called the seller up and ended up test riding down a small strip of road. The bike was in near excellent condition. The only things I noticed were a dirty chain, the rear brakes felt soft, very small scuff on the front fairing, and the tires looked to be original so they will need replacing very soon. Brought up to the dealer how long he has had it. He said an older man brought it in about a week ago and ended up trading it in for a Cadillac. He really didn't ride anymore, so it's been mostly garage-kept. Seller is asking $2100 but will settle for $2000. What do you think?

damn good deal imo. i got my 04 w/15k on the clock for $2000

bring him $1800 in cash and see if he takes it, if not then go "oh look i found the other $200 in my other pocket  "

Quote from: rayshon on September 07, 2011, 09:37:01 AM
bring him $1800 in cash and see if he takes it, if not then go "oh look i found the other $200 in my other pocket  "

I did this and it worked well. The carbs were dirty and it had a couple nicks on the fairings. Told him 1800, took it without question. Don't low ball, but throwing out a number 200-300 lower than asking (in this case) to test the waters wouldn't hurt. You can always offer more.

Only 5,900 miles and the tires need replacing? You should be able to At Least get double that out of the rear alone, more than triple that out of the front - unless the roads where you are are totally crap.

Michael

Quote from: rayshon on September 07, 2011, 09:37:01 AM
bring him $1800 in cash and see if he takes it, if not then go "oh look i found the other $200 in my other pocket  "

One step ahead of you.

Quote from: mister on September 07, 2011, 11:32:11 AM
Only 5,900 miles and the tires need replacing? You should be able to At Least get double that out of the rear alone, more than triple that out of the front - unless the roads where you are are totally crap.

Michael

I read somewhere that tires designed for racing bikes can last as long as 7,500 miles, but, on average, you don't want to go longer than 3,000 miles without changing your tires.

Michael
[/quote]
I read somewhere that tires designed for racing bikes can last as long as 7,500 miles, but, on average, you don't want to go longer than 3,000 miles without changing your tires.
[/quote]

What

I think you have that mostly backward and mostly wrong.....racing tires may last only one race or only a couple of races........a "good" road tire on a gs 500 (like the OEM Bridgstones) will go way over 10,000......I got 13,000 on the rear since new...and at 14,500 the front was still in good tread, but got "cupping" so I changed...........

Frankly $2000 is too low for that bike with that miles, unless something is really wrong....maybe odo was disconnected for 10K or so???   Or PO ran the snot out of it.....?

Buyer beware!!!

Cookie

Seems like a good deal. You could take it to a mechanic for an inspection if you are unsure.
FWIW, I got my 06 this summer with 4.8 for 2250, but it had scratched up fairings. I thought that was a fine deal.

I just sold my '05 with 5900 miles on it and some cosmetic damage for $2200, just wanted it to sell fast I'd say you're getting a pretty good deal there, but it never hurts to try the cash approach!

The rear tire on my 01 had very little tread left at 10k miles. I only replaced it because it got a nail in it.....otherwise, I would have ran it another 2-3k.

Quote from: mindraider on September 07, 2011, 03:24:53 PM

Quote from: mister on September 07, 2011, 11:32:11 AM
Only 5,900 miles and the tires need replacing? You should be able to At Least get double that out of the rear alone, more than triple that out of the front - unless the roads where you are are totally crap.

Michael

I read somewhere that tires designed for racing bikes can last as long as 7,500 miles, but, on average, you don't want to go longer than 3,000 miles without changing your tires.

You "read somewhere". Dude, stop passing on info you "read somewhere", unless you got a link. That doesn't help even though you are trying to be helpful.

The GS500 comes standard with Bridgestone BT45s. They last LOTS longer than a pissy 5,900 miles (9,400km). I changed out my first rear at 23,000km (14,000 miles) and my front at 30,000km (18,700 miles). My Sport Demon rear got me 10,600 miles (17,000km) but I did more commuting so the wear was more centered instead of spread like previous.

These are the kinds of distances a bike Should be getting. A tire change at 5,900 miles is due to either a very Soft compound in the tire or totally crap roads.

A lot of supersport riders choose softer compound tires for extra grip in twisties. I know guys who do this, and they get pathetic mileage. Like 3000 miles before needing to change. But they do track days, drag knees on weekend rides and basically think weekend riding is pseudo racing.

The GS500 is NOT such a bike.

Michael

Quote from: mister on September 08, 2011, 04:56:01 AM

Quote from: mindraider on September 07, 2011, 03:24:53 PM

Quote from: mister on September 07, 2011, 11:32:11 AM
Only 5,900 miles and the tires need replacing? You should be able to At Least get double that out of the rear alone, more than triple that out of the front - unless the roads where you are are totally crap.

Michael

I read somewhere that tires designed for racing bikes can last as long as 7,500 miles, but, on average, you don't want to go longer than 3,000 miles without changing your tires.

You "read somewhere". Dude, stop passing on info you "read somewhere", unless you got a link.

Okey dokey.

http://www.ehow.com/way_5164744_change-motorcycle-tire.html

That's a crock and I don't believe a word of it. Go by tire wear, not mileage.

At the end of the day mindraider, if you think it's a good deal you'll buy it. If you feel somewhat hesitant then don't buy it.  I just got my 09 F for $4800 with 7,700 miles on it. In Oz that's a pretty good price. It had a plastic weld in the front fairing from a garage drop but no other damage. It's had some good mods such as larger front sprocket, heated grips and pirelli sport demons but most of all I'm happy with my purchase. The bloke I bought it from was really friendly and didn't BS me in any way. Even told me more of her quirks .

So my advice, follow your gut and then you'll be happy.

Quote from: mindraider on September 07, 2011, 03:24:53 PM

I read somewhere that tires designed for racing bikes can last as long as 7,500 miles, but, on average, you don't want to go longer than 3,000 miles without changing your tires.

I'm assuming you are new to bikes and I'm glad to see you are doing some research before buying.  The GS500 is a great bike to learn on!  I saw the link you posted too and here is the text you read:

"Milage

    Keep track of miles you put on the tires. Tires designed for racing bikes can last as long as 7,500 miles, but, on average, you don't want to go longer than 3,000 miles without changing your tires."

I see where things got confused.  They are saying you may get 7,500 miles out of race tires but expect to get 3,000.  The GS500 is not a race bike and it does not have race tires.  Racing tires are made out of soft compound rubber that wears out quickly.  Street tires are made out of harder compounds that last longer.  Just like NASCAR tires are worn out after one race while a Toyota Corolla will go 25,000+ miles on a set of tires.  Car or motorcycle, tires are always some sort of balance between wear and traction. 

People around here are quick to call B.S. but most mean well.  As far as the bike, sounds like a good deal at $2,000 if it is clean and well maintained.  Good luck whichever way you go   

-Jessie

Quote from: mindraider on September 08, 2011, 05:04:23 PM

Quote from: mister on September 08, 2011, 04:56:01 AM

Quote from: mindraider on September 07, 2011, 03:24:53 PM

Quote from: mister on September 07, 2011, 11:32:11 AM
Only 5,900 miles and the tires need replacing? You should be able to At Least get double that out of the rear alone, more than triple that out of the front - unless the roads where you are are totally crap.

Michael

I read somewhere that tires designed for racing bikes can last as long as 7,500 miles, but, on average, you don't want to go longer than 3,000 miles without changing your tires.

You "read somewhere". Dude, stop passing on info you "read somewhere", unless you got a link.

Okey dokey.

http://www.ehow.com/way_5164744_change-motorcycle-tire.html

====
This decreases the lifespan of the tire from 3,500 miles for the average motorcycle tire, to sometimes as low as 1000 miles.

Milage
Keep track of miles you put on the tires. Tires designed for racing bikes can last as long as 7,500 miles, but, on average, you don't want to go longer than 3,000 miles without changing your tires.
====

What a crock of sheet.

3000 miles is 4,800kms. Wow, according to this "writer" my 30,000km is 6.25 times the life he reckons and I must have been skirting death for a very long time.

But like Jessie said and guys I ride with do, much softer compounds than the GS500 is designed to run with for riding around will have a Much shorter life span.

Also this...

====
Locate the wear bar on your tire. It's a horizontal bar that runs across the tire and is as deep as the deepest groove in the tread. Within this bar is a bump that comes up about 2 centimeters lower than the surface of the tire but 3 centimeters above the deep part of the groove.
====

What? I've read this over and over and cannot make sense of what he is saying... the bar is as deep as the deepest groove, this bar has a bump that come up to 2cm below the surface of the tire, but 3cm above the deepest part of the groove, thus the deepest part of the groove is 5cm deep. What?

There ain't a motorcycle tire anywhere that has tread that is 5cm deep or even half that deep. That's tread that's two inches deep. Baloney. Does this guy even own a bloody bike? Let me see his bio... "Simon Breedon has been freelance writing for Newspapers for the past 8 years. He has written for The Washington Informer, Edge Magazine, The Yeti, The FSView and Florida Flambeau Newspaper. He has a BA from Florida State University in Creative non-fiction/ Journalism and a Masters Certification in Editing and Publishing. He is currently attending Law School and studying for a computers science degree."

Nope, nothing there about riding a motorbike there.

@Mindraider, this is the Danger of reading things online from such places. You 'think' the info is legit when it is actually misinformed and misleading.

If you're concerned about the tires, then the Distance is in no way a useful indicator of whether the tire needs changing. At 5,900 it may or may not need changing based on other factors independent of the distance. In this case it is an 06 bike. That doesn't mean the tire is 06, the tire could be younger or older, you don't know by the age of the bike. In this case, you need to find the manufacture date stamp on the tire....

Have a look at the tire for a four digit number by itself - though it may be three digits if the tire is real old. The numbers will be somewhere near where it says DOT and may be in an elongated oval shape (rectangle with rounded corners). The numbers are the tires manufacture date. For instance...


What those 4 digit numbers mean is the Date the tire was made - first two is the Week Number of the Year, last two are the Year. So the first tire is made in the 42nd week of 2002, second one was made in the 14th week of 2008 and the third tire was made in the 51st week of 2007. If it's only 3 digits long the tire was made before 2000! 

You may find an 06 bike with a tire made in 04. That would mean it is presently seven years old. Once you know its age you need to look closely at the side wall for cracking. If the side wall is riddled with cracks, then it is time to put new tires on - regardless of the distance the tires have done.

Michael

While were adding pictures: wear indicators/tread bars.  There is usually an arrow (or a Michelin man pointing  ) on the side wall to help you find where to look on the tread   

-Jessie

Hate to say it, but most of this thread is 100% irrelevant. If the bike is on it's original tires, those tires are now at least 5 years old. Whether or not there is any tread on the tire, it's time to have them changed.

Check the date. Past 3 years or so, it's a good idea to change the tires.

FYI: I got about 3000 miles out of a BT003RS rear on my race bike at track pace. My K1300GT is unlikely to get more than 6000 miles out of a quality sport touring tire. How you ride and what kind of bike you ride will have a huge impact on how long the tire lasts. I'd expect a GS500 ridden at a street pace with sport touring tires to go 10K miles if pressures are maintained.

Quote from: burning1 on September 09, 2011, 02:22:44 PM
I'd expect a GS500 ridden at a street pace with sport touring tires to go 10K miles if pressures are maintained.

Do you consider the stock tires to be Sport Touring? Do you consider Sport Demons to be Sport Touring? Either way, I posted my distances - 23,000km rear oem and 30,000 front oem (commuting and weekend riding). 17,000km Sport Demon rear 90% commuting so it had uneven wear more so in the middle and its life was shortened prematurely compared to the previous tire.

Michael

Those numbers sound reasonable, especially since you seem to be into hyper-milling (going by the MPG figure in your sig.)