Posted by Snag on October 24, 2011, 8:01 pm
BryanUT wrote:
> Walking to the local Blue Plate Diner this weekend we passed a yard
> sale with an old Sportster. 1000cc?
> Q. What year? A. 1977. Q. Is that an Iron Head? A.Yes. Q. How much? A.
> $2500 but I'll take $2000. Q. How long have you owned it? 1 1/2 years.
> Q. That is not very long. A. I inherited it from my uncle, it runs
> great.
> So I get the dudes number and go home to do a little googling. Hmmm,
> it seems these are underpowered, poor brakes, and vibrate and shake
> everything loose.
> This one is complete, relatively unmolested, dirty, rusty (par for the
> AMF years) and seems to be leaking oil (hmmm, no real surprise).
> In other words a money pit. Quick estimate says $1500 to rebuild the
> motor, another grand for electrics and another $500 for assorted
> parts(brakes, fork seals, shocks) to be put on by me. So easily $3000
> to create a "reliable" bike after purchase. No comestics like paint,
> just a good cleaning.
> I wish I had taken a picture. Dang it.
> I think I should offer $700. And then regret it for the next few years
> and then sell it for parts to recoup some of my cash.
> What do ya'll think of 70s sportsters? I guess I should post to the
> Harley group.
> Common sense says just buy a rubber mounted Evolution 883 and ride it.
> It took me 5 years to get the old VW drivable.
The old ones need constant maintainence . You wouldn't like it . Stick
with a newer bike that you can just ride - BTW , a lot of shops won't work
on these anymore . Like as not you'd need to find a place run by a guy named
Bubba who's lost most of his teeth , and the ones he's got left are half
rotted . His shop will be somewhere you wouldn't go after dark , and when
you arrive there , half a dozen of his buddies will be laid out on the couch
in the corner stoned .
But he'll treat you right , and his work will be superb because he has an
honest love of old iron . Seriously , an Ironhead Sporty can be a great ride
. Yes , they need some work to perform and yes they vibrate . The stock
brakes aren't as good as machines today . But Bryan , those old machines
have soul , and once you own one you'll be hooked . Now I love my '90 Ultra
, but if someone offered to trade me my Shovelhead bagger in the shape it
was just before the last wreck , I'd be on that bike and gone before they
got the last word out .
--
Snag
R.I.P.
Bag Lady
Posted by krusty kritter on October 24, 2011, 10:51 pm
> Common sense says just buy a rubber mounted Evolution 883 and ride it.
> It took me 5 years to get the old VW drivable.
Common sense tells me that you should sell all your motorcycles and
get out of the sport because you aren't a real biker.
You're just thinking about buying a Harley because some virtual
strangers on the internet like them and you think they will like you
more if you own one too.
Posted by Ronald O. Christian on October 25, 2011, 9:43 am
On Mon, 24 Oct 2011 19:51:52 -0700 (PDT), krusty kritter
>> Common sense says just buy a rubber mounted Evolution 883 and ride it.
>> It took me 5 years to get the old VW drivable.
>Common sense tells me that you should sell all your motorcycles and
>get out of the sport because you aren't a real biker.
I dunno, there is something to getting a bike you can ride and then
riding it until you can't. Personally, I tend to buy used and do my
own work, but I don't think there's any shame in just wanting to ride.
I have a friend who only buys new and won't even change his own oil. I
still ride with him. He kids me about the various maintenance
adventures I've had, and I kid him about not knowing what a spark plug
is for.
Incidentally, I saw a really sharp 100th anniversary 1200 in the
showroom just yesterday, for a little over $5000. It was like the
younger brother of my bike. Man I wanted that. I guess I haven't
gotten over trading in the Sport.
>You're just thinking about buying a Harley because some virtual
>strangers on the internet like them and you think they will like you
>more if you own one too.
It's true I don't know everyone here, but that strikes me as a bit
unfair.
Ron
-
2003 FLHTCUI "Noisy Glide"
http://www.christianfamilywebsite.com
http://www.ronaldchristian.com
Posted by krusty kritter on October 25, 2011, 10:06 am
> On Mon, 24 Oct 2011 19:51:52 -0700 (PDT), krusty kritter
> >You're just thinking about buying a Harley because some virtual
> >strangers on the internet like them and you think they will like you
> >more if you own one too.
> It's true I don't know everyone here, but that strikes me as a bit
> unfair.
Reeky isn't fair.
It's an organized game of "jump on the new guy and run him out of the
group."
Bryan bought a motorcycle to be part of a group, but almost nobody
around SLC
wants to ride with him.
So he had to ride to Colorado to meet argumentative Troy Cook and he
had to ride to Arizona to meet angry Bob Nixon.
He was *so happy* when he went on a ride with an anonymous somebody
from another forum that he proudly announced the ride just as if it
was a grandson beeing born.
But nobody cared and Bryan went back to sulking...
He's been looking for approval from the Reekyites for some time, but
he can't afford to buy a Ducati to impress Tim Morrow.
But he could buy an older Sportster, they are cheap.
Then he would have to trailer it to a location near one of the Reeky
ride destinations, hide the trailer and tow vehicle somewhere and meet
the Wild Hogs and claim that he'd ridden all the way from SLC...
Having to buy a motorcycle in order to cultivate friends is a very
expensive proposition.
Posted by tomorrow@erols.com on October 25, 2011, 11:13 am
> > On Mon, 24 Oct 2011 19:51:52 -0700 (PDT), harry kritter
> > >You're just thinking about buying a Harley because some virtual
> > >strangers on the internet like them and you think they will like you
> > >more if you own one too.
> > It's true I don't know everyone here, but that strikes me as a bit
> > unfair.
> Reeky isn't fair.
> It's an organized game of "jump on the new guy and run him out of the
> group."
Ron's own experience as a new guy in reeky should help him gauge the
veracity of your claim.
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> sale with an old Sportster. 1000cc?
> Q. What year? A. 1977. Q. Is that an Iron Head? A.Yes. Q. How much? A.
> $2500 but I'll take $2000. Q. How long have you owned it? 1 1/2 years.
> Q. That is not very long. A. I inherited it from my uncle, it runs
> great.
> So I get the dudes number and go home to do a little googling. Hmmm,
> it seems these are underpowered, poor brakes, and vibrate and shake
> everything loose.
> This one is complete, relatively unmolested, dirty, rusty (par for the
> AMF years) and seems to be leaking oil (hmmm, no real surprise).
> In other words a money pit. Quick estimate says $1500 to rebuild the
> motor, another grand for electrics and another $500 for assorted
> parts(brakes, fork seals, shocks) to be put on by me. So easily $3000
> to create a "reliable" bike after purchase. No comestics like paint,
> just a good cleaning.
> I wish I had taken a picture. Dang it.
> I think I should offer $700. And then regret it for the next few years
> and then sell it for parts to recoup some of my cash.
> What do ya'll think of 70s sportsters? I guess I should post to the
> Harley group.
> Common sense says just buy a rubber mounted Evolution 883 and ride it.
> It took me 5 years to get the old VW drivable.