You guys got anything to say about this bike?
http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/mcy/1213061397.html (http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/mcy/1213061397.html)
clean title 18,000 miles, $600 bucks!
Offer him $500. ;)
You can do some nice things with that.
I would have offered 4 and work from there. Yeah, it's all black, but how does it look up close? You'll probably have a lot of re-work to do...
tried to see it today, got confliced with my scheudle with school, but i will try and see it tomorrow afternoon.
Black out? who cars, I have a powder coat oven designed to fit a 999 frame. a little bit of work will make it fit a whole honda CB frame.
I was thinking about $500 cash, but maybe ill try $400 and work from there. Still depends on how it looks, i hope he didnt spray paint the freaking forks. that would just be dumb as brick balls. i saw a Suzuki GS1100 once that was spray painted black.... like he just hit it with a spray can and watever he didnt feel like covering was left original. so behind hte forks were still bare!
Show him 4 x $100 bills to start and have 5 $20's in reserve.
Fork legs (or at least the important parts of them) don't APPEAR to be painted, but its a craigslist ad so all bets are off.
If you end up getting it, we'll need a build thread to see what you do with it.
One that gets updated every once in a while so's we can follow what you're doing.
Yeah, that's right Stu, I'm callin' you out! >:(
;)
he's not expecting to get $600 for it, that's a starting price.
he will take 500, offer him 400
tell him the paint has ruined the value. it has unless you're just going to tear it down and redo the whole thing.
it really depends too, check the engine case well.. i rarely see a NYC bike without a good number of "drop bruises".. those honda side covers are prone to cracking
what do you plan to do with it..
the 400 is not my favorite, i'd prefer a 440F, but those are pricey.. any of the 400-550cc I4s are hawt
those little bikes can be a lot of fun. I still have my 1978 CB400A. Learned quite a bit owning a bike so cheap I didn't care about wrecking it while learning how to work on it ;)
+1 on the $400
I see much potential here, young jedi
anytime ive ever checked out a bike thats been spray bombed like that it has been a total mess. black bbq paint can hide alllllotttt of shit.
here's another in portland for comparison
http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/mcy/1215384027.html (http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/mcy/1215384027.html)
Not quite sure where he gets "cafe style" I guess when you put something in quotes it means you're just kidding
Okay, finnaly set the time to see the bike tomorro 430pm!
is there a difference in the type II and Type Is? or if there are more?
Also, was thi year like other years as in a CB400T and CB400F? Is there a big power differnce between the F and the T? smoothness? I dont mind waiting for more bikes to pop up.
One thing to watch out for. They made a CB400 with a two speed automatic. The F is a four cylinder. There is a bigger following of the F, might be easier to get parts and advice.
the F might have a little more power, but power is not what you get one of these bikes for
But mo'powah don't hurt! twin or four, im just looking for a smooth ride and a low price.
Ive heard of the "hondamatics" just the idea of an automatic bike is terrifying to my left hand.
Any idea where i can find a reliable source of parts for this thing? Ive checked a few sites out, most of them are the older wirespoke wheels or for the F.
The Hondamatic was actually fun. I had a CM400A for a while and it was heavy, underpowered, rode like a overeating Rhino, but the shifty thing was fun. It was like riding a 400 lb scooter. rofl
Check ebay for parts. They come up a lot. Thre is a lot of interchange with the other CB models, but look around. Honda made 12 billion of them.
The CB400F rules them all.
I'd love to find and restore one, as it was my very first bike back when dinosaurs roamed the earth.
i have an '81 400t. bought it two years ago for $650. it is in pretty good shape (much nicer than the one you showed on CL). bike bandit still sells many oem parts, and the aftermarket has been fine. so far i have replaced the head bearings, clutch, and o'hauled the front brake (ever see 27 year old brake fluid?). the clutch was EBC, bearings were All Balls, and everything else including lots of little bits not mentioned were oem honda.
oh and power wise, it does great on city streets, still quick compared to most cars. it gets a little winded above 75 n the freeway, although i have had it up to 90.
i went to see it today, the bike kickstarts right up, the starter hangs and will buzz. he says he spoke to a guy and the pistons are fouled up cause the bike runs rich (plus the dude revs the crap out of hte bike to warm it up with the choke on) so i should either take it down and sand the pistons.
I figure you can just rejet it, sea foam straight thorugh the carbs and let it run for a bit at high RPM, and a new battery should get the starter spinning?
Front brakes are non existent, inspection revealed NO BRAKE FLUID! The dude spray painted EVERYTHING with no predijuice. Wires, and part of the fork leg too :(.
Says $500 without the cargo stuff.
Also is it normal for the shifter to continue to move after you shift into first? Its like it wants to go into 0th gear, but it doesnt click in.
THe bike almost smokes a hella lot when he kick started it with the choke on.
im not willing to pay $500 for this. Maybe $400. but thats it.
WHats your recommomendation? wait for another or jump in and negotiate @ $350?
With all the stuff that's wrong, and potentially wrong, $350 would probably be a good start. Make sure you tell him why you're only offering $350...
starter problem may be the sprag gear.. not a huge deal, but requires pulling off the flywheel. try putting a battery directly to the starter and see what happens. if you are careful, you can disconnect the starter's wires and connect an external batter directly to see if it will start that way. best to have 2 folks to do this.
decoking the pistons can be done by putting water down the carbs. it's ugly and sounds horrible, but it works. search around on the net for how to do it.
the shifter sounds like either the bearing is shot or the selector forks are loose. i would want to check that out first. it shouldn't be surgical-tight but it shouldn't move more than 1/4-1/2 inch.
I might pass. I doubt he took care of it. No front brakes? WTF?
by no front brakes i mean they dont work at all (might as well not be there is what im tyring to get to)
wont even hold the bike from falling down the hill.
(http://imgshack.info/images/vy5vh5fpz8t9zsslueo.jpg)
i guess the consensus is 1/2 buy 1/2 dont.
$350 offer. not sure how high im willing to go. I think 400 is my max.
Yeah, I would just start to walk away if he even hints at asking for more than $350. Those forks are crap too....
he wants $500-600 or else hes gonna part it. Just called in, dropped an offer and he sounded pretty upset. oh well. keep looking?
that sucks. he is going to go through the work tear that bike apart and will be lucky to get $400 for all the bits.
thats if someone doesnt steal it. dude doesnt have a garage and lives in an apt on the upper west side. you see how close that car is parked up against the bike? lol
I'd walk, unless it was $350.
My first bike was a 1975 CB400F! that looks like the first Honda Hawk that came out way back when, I rode it in 81' and it is what it is for a 2 cylinder dont expect too much I agree 3-400 is about right make sure all the electricals are ok those items will be hard to source but lots of other parts from hondas of that era will cross over.
It makes you wonder, what could have been the internal dialog going on during that paint job. ???
the same thing that goes through people who buy darks. :P
Quote from: He Man on June 12, 2009, 10:14:00 AM
the same thing that goes through people who buy darks. :P
buying a dark is totally different from spray bombing your forks and wiring etc..
one is style, the other is laziness. looks like he didn't even tape off anything at all.
i would pass man. no telling what demons lie inside that crankcase. that is one unloved bike.
i'd offer 250 and tell him to have fun parting it on the sidewalk if he doesn't take it. i seriously doubt he's got a shop on the UWS.
I think it was more like:
1. "I'll just spray this little bit here"
2. "oops, got some over spray on that thing there"
3. "better spray that part I got the over spray on"
4. GOTO 2
what i meant was, some people wnat a dark really bad they go hunting for one without thinking about any other color.
this dude was just lazy in the approach. :P
regardless, i found an ad for a 72 BMW r75/5 the seat is all torn up and it looks like its been sitting in a backyard for worms to consume for the past 2 years.
http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=25209.0 (http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=25209.0)
wish i could of saved the pics
paint job looks like what you see on a stolen bicycle! >:(
I'd pass on that honda. :P
What a sad sight. He completely butchered the bike with that paint job. Total idiot. He painted over the very thing that makes 70's bikes so beautiful - all the chrome! I have this exact bike, it's my first bike and I love it. I've fixed mine up and even without a butchered paint job like this it's a LOT of work. You would spend a fortune and hours and hours to get this bike to look respectable again (assuming you care to restore or fix it up). Personally I would pass on this bike - I'm sure you will find a better one elsewhere for that price range. If you do happen to find one in decent condition, they are a great bike to ride around the city and to learn on.
My '78 CB400TII
(http://www.oblius.com/images/blogs/1978_Honda_CB400TII_med.jpg)
very nice [thumbsup]
im still looking. there is a nice bmw 75/6 on CL, but the dude is missing some major components and its detering me from buying it.....like triples and guages major.
Love that orange man. freaking awesome color!
I was looking for a CB for $500, and no more than $500 to fix it up. most of the money would be spent on the seat and clubmans though!