In another thread aussiegs asked; "A rich person walks up to you and asks how much for your bike?"
The thread drew some interesting replies, http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=57737.0

Surprisingly a lot of people simply asked for between $1200 and about $6000. (seems reasonable to me)
This led me to an equally important question. . .
Why did you buy your GS500 in the first place???
Obviously for economical transportation, but in the bike market there is a lot to choose from.
So why ride a bike that is frequently referred to as. . .
An entry level machine, Training wheels not included, etc...
Or as one Yamaha parts vendor I used to deal with in the UK summed it up; An outdated rust-bucket that's so underpowered its actually dangerous".
Personally, with several different bikes in the stable, I simply do not understand why the GS gets such a bad rap.

So all things considered, tell us, Why did you buy yours?

Cheap and parts galore available here.  I intended to make it a stock bike for my son to learn on and knowing the 500 wasn't known as widowmaker, figured it would be a good first bike.

best bang for the buck - 2004 moto for $2000 and $20 a month for insurance. 50+mpg and can still handle mountain runs

Quote from: cbrfxr67 on October 07, 2011, 08:58:46 AM
I intended to make it a stock bike for my son to learn on and knowing the 500 wasn't known as widowmaker. . .

Agreed.
As a daily commuter, I frequently ride home from work rather tired. It's nice to feel the simple stability of the GS on the ride home.
In general, my other bikes require a lot more input than the GS500.
Hence the GS is my daily driver. It's the workhorse, and it runs good all the time, unlike my fuel injected bikes and their annoying, seemingly unsolvable, behavior problems.
-Ej-

I purchased my GS500 for 1300.  I was a parts build, with a 1990 frame and 2001 plastics, and new tires.  Started up immediately, and pulls strong.  PO even delivered it to my house in his van.

It is my first bike, and I wanted something that was cheap, relatively light, and easy to repair. It is not too powerful to learn on, but has enough power to keep for a while and learn how to get the most out of it. 

Its value as a learning tool and reliable second vehicle outweighs its monitary value.  I would still consider selling it, though, if the price was right. 

I've been eyeing up the FI SV650s when my skills and finances can handle it.  Not yet.

Quote from: tialloydragon on October 07, 2011, 11:52:11 AM

Its value as a learning tool and reliable second vehicle outweighs its monitary value. 
I would still consider selling it, though, if the price was right. 
I've been eyeing up the FI SV650s when my skills and finances can handle it.  Not yet.

Rock solid reasoning right there! 

I'm no master of roadcraft, but it has been my experience that lighter bikes are confidence inspiring while heavy bikes can be quite exhausting.
I spend a lot of time in traffic (hilly terrain too) because that's what exists here. I also have the occasional need to traverse gravel roads and such.
Don't tell anybody over at StromTrooper.com but my GS500 is so much more manageable than my V-Strom on soft gravel roads.
The DL1000 has a tendency to dig itself a hole on the soft stuff while the GS500 seems to simply motor right over the top of it all.
Just sayin'
-Ej-

I bought mine for the looks, and I still think it's a sharp looking little bike...and it fit into the budget that I had set aside to buy myself a toy that year and left enought to purchase my riding gear  ...

It was the perfect bike to learn the skills of riding on without having to lay out serious cash...I sold it at the start of this year, and I still miss the "Little Guy"...  ...wish I could have kept it as a second bike (then I would still have something to ride...  )

Later.

For the same price at dealers and a few private sellers were trying to sell vtr 250's, hyosung gt250's etc. I found my k3 with a private buyer and fell in love with it. My mate advised me to go a naked bike first up because of insurance and repair costs if I dropped or crashed a fairing bike. Plus in my country it's the law that a learner can't have a bike that's over 650cc or 150kw/tonne. So yeah a 500cc cheap naked composed naked bike thats easy to maintain and fix, a good online following, and cheap to register and insure. Plus can get you moving quick without too much trouble.

My pre-requisites for a bike were...

Can be used as a commuter (liter bikes are not commuters IMO)
Can also be capable of doing weekend rides (250s are out)
Can handle occasional two-up (always figured nothing smaller than a 400 should be used for two up)
MUST have a large tank for extended riding range
MUST be comfortable
MUST be naked (I despise fairings. My first bike in the mid 80s was faired and they copped a heap of damage when it was crashed)
MUST be good Value For Money (this is, of course, subjective and based on comparisons)
Would be bought New (so my list of available bikes was shortened to only what was currently available)

Where we are, SV650s had stopped being available as naked bikes - it was the newer Gladius with a minuscule 14 liter ('bout 3.5gallon) tank and gawd awful looks. No naked 600 Hornets left when I was shopping (had seen some a few months earlier but none available at the time). And so the choice had come down to the CB400 or GS500. They were both Serious Contenders.

Performance-wise, they were close enough not to matter. But the CB was at the bottom of my two-up criteria, had a smaller tank, lower seat (I'm 6'2) - and - was $3k more than the GS500! Plus, it didn't come in a color I liked whereas the GS500, for the first time, had no decals on the tank other than an embossed S - I dislike chevron decals.

So the GS500 won out on what I perceived I received for my dollar - a bike better suited to my height, with a larger gas tank, that looked better, came with a center stand which I wanted anyway and was substantially cheaper. In short, better bang for My Buck for what I was after in a bike.

Michael

for me it was mainly oh cool a free bike

I bought it to help a guy make a few more payments and keep his family in their home.  He got a job soon thereafter, and while I had originally intended to sell the bike for a small loss I made the mistake of riding it and started tinkering with it.  It'll likely be here a while. 

My first GS:  I was sitting on my friend's porch in the city enjoying some drinks and watching his neighbor load a truck for a move to Texas.  He couldn't fit a pressure washer, a TV, an exercise bike and A GS500.  I had a little cash in my pocket and the rest is history...   

-Jessie

I was at a Yamaha dealer looking at an new FZ6 back in 2007.
My young Son called me over to a used blue & white GS500F and he seemed fascinated with it.
I looked it over and was repulsed: It was heinous!
I asked him "why this thing"?
He proudly replied "Its carbureted"
Note: Kids that grow up on 2-stroke machines (shy away from 4-strokes) and outright despise electronic fuel injection. So anything carbureted is a plus.

A few months later I found a black & silver 2007 with a mere 1200 miles on it for half the price of a new unit.
It's now 2011 and that GS500F gets far more usage that my Harley and my DL1000 combined! 

It's very interesting to see how some of you GSers got started.
Thanks for posting you story! 

The GS500 is the (old) Volkswagen Beetle of the motorcycle world. 

this is my first bike.
I wanted something "sportbike" looking
I didn't want something too powerful to learn on
I didn't want something that would be out of breath on the highway

the gs500f and ninja500 were the ones I looked at. found a killer deal on a new gs500f and jumped on it.

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Originally I wanted a ninja 250r, had cash in hand the dealer didn't have anymore, so I was SOL, I figured since the dealer kept mentioning how easy it'd be sell; that I would find one on craigslist, When a little add for a GS500 caught my eye, I got a 2009 with less than 500 miles on it for $1900 versus the ninja for around $3000, 

ive had 4 of them total. 2 of the same one, anyhoo. it wasnt known as a ninjette either

Who's the noob who voted that he wished he bought something else?

I had not ridden in awhile. I liked the look of a naked version. I thought about the Honda nighthawk 750 but decided instead on the GS500 due to its pricepoint, look, feel, weight, and availability. This forum sealed the deal for me!!!
On a side note: I almost bought a used Honda NT650 about 14 years ago and have regretted it ever since.