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Old May 14th, 2018, 01:28 PM   #9
jkv45
Rev Limiter
 
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Name: Jay
Location: WI
Join Date: Jul 2013

Motorcycle(s): '06 SV650n, '00 Derbi GPR, '64 CA77 Dream 305, '70 CL450 Scrambler, numerous dirt bikes

Posts: A lot.
MOTM - Jun '18, Oct '16
Quote:
Originally Posted by DannoXYZ View Post
People always overprice their bikes to give some room for negotiation. Bikes that don't sell for long time tend to get relisted at lower price.

Don't rush and keep your eye on market. I set up automated alerts for specific criteria in ads and let it search for me. Took about 9-months and my perfect candidate turned up. A 2008 with 3450-miles for $1000! Went to look at it, hadn't ran in 3-yrs. Guy dumped it in parking-lot, lost interest and parked it. Had cracked, but not rashed fairing, battery dead, ignition wouldn't turn with key. I got it down to $700!

Trailered it home, sprayed PB-blaster down key hole, put spare battery in, sent off carbs to Ducatiman and I had perfectly-running low-miles bike for less than $900. Patience is key.
My oldest son's first Ninja was a similar story. Guy bought it for his (now former) girlfriend in 2004. She put 250 miles on it, dropped it in the driveway, and decided riding wasn't for her. No major damage, just a signal lens.

We bought it in 2010, not running. Guy was asking $1000. Got it for $750. Needed tires and a carb cleaning.

The second Ninja was purchased from a member here that crashed it at 85 mph (had the wounds and ticket to prove it) for $150. No fairings, dented tank, but surprisingly fired right up after sitting quite a while. Also needed new tires (almost everything does IMO). Rode it over 5000 mi no problem.

This is not the best time to look for deals though. Cold/rainy weather is your friend.

Be quick - or it's gone!

Sounds like you can do mechanical work, so that opens-up a lot of possibilities. Non-running, but not blown-up (hopefully), bikes are common after storage without any prep. Just make sure they are cheap. If someone starts to tell you how simple it will be to get it running - forget it.
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