Ducati Monster Forum

Looking at getting the mrs her first bike. Her cousin has offered his old bike for really cheap.... a 1978 honda cx500.

It's in pretty good shape, needs a few things including a voltage regulator, rear brake work, throttle cable and some other cosmetic type work. Clear title.

Good first bike? Easy to work on? Parts available? General opinions?

TIA   [beer]

No help on the CX, but I would look at the 250 Ninja.

See, the thing here is we have a very, VERY small budget.

My cousin is offering his for $100.

That being said....a ninja is a liiiiiittle spendy:)

Ok, well then, you can't go wrong for $100.

Mr. MinnesotaMonster's 600 is free, isn't it? :)

Seriously though, for $100, you can't go wrong.  That is a fantastic deal if the bike runs.  You can call Sportwheels in Jordan, MN to see if they have any parts you need before you buy the bike.

The good news is that when you drop the bike --- like my wife did on her first ride --- you won't really care if you dent or scrape anything.

Don't spend a lot of money on a first bike -- unless you have money to burn -- because you will HATE yourself when you make a beginner mistake and dent your gas tank. :)

My brother has an 82 FT500 that is the easiest thing ever to work on.  I don't know about the CX500, but it should be pretty easy.  My first bike, a 20 year old 1984 Nighthawk 650, was pretty straightforward too.

In my opinion, an old Honda or Suzuki is the best starter bike as you can get -- after all, it's what I learned on!

Exactly- $100 is great. Like minnesotamonster said, it needs a little work, but we found someone local parting out the same bike and will sell us the regulator and throttle cable for $30 for both. It's going to be cheap to fix, and it'll give him something to do;)

The bike has been dropped before...my cousin low sided it so its beat up which is just fine.


The 600 is free...but not until a)he gets a new bike and b) I learn how to ride. Not allowed to drop that one;)

Already found a voltage regulator and throttle cable from an 82 cx 500 on cl. $30 for both  [thumbsup]

the 600 will be hers after she learns on this one  [thumbsup]

you going on the ride in the morning filter?

Yeah, I'll be there!

It sounds like you've found a perfect first bike for the Mrs.  I love old Honda's; there's just something about them that makes me happy.  My old Nighthawk was a fantastic bike and I probably should not have sold it -- I sold it to a friend for a discount; he loved it, but his friend promptly crashed it into the side of a parked car.

Can't wait to see the "new" bike, assuming you go for it.

Dude-my first bike was a $100 Honda-buy it! You'll find with a little bit of proper cleaning up, it'll start and run like a little flawless top. It's sort of disgusting. I won't have enough power to be terribly dangerous, either. Can't go wrong for the cost, either.

Sounds great, go for it!  And don't forget to post pictures too. [thumbsup]

CX500 has that Guzzi-esque cylinder layout doesn't it? I think it's a cool bike, even cooler at $100.
That's cheaper than most bicycles.

[thumbsup]

I think it's a cool bike actually.

my first bike was a $100 '82 CX 500. it had ammunition boxes as hard saddle bags, Awesome. I kept it for a few years then sold it and bought my Monster. The cx is a cool little bike, the motor is bullet proof, and parts are still available.

it has an unfortunate nickname thio.   the Maggot.

The thing that  concerns me about using it as a first bike tho is that it is so old fashioned.

even compared to a  late 90's cb500 the cx is going to be slooooow. And more importantly its heavy. depending on how dainty your Mrs is.



But $100 cant be sniffed at tho. even if you have to spend twice that soting the brakes and suspension etc out as a precaution.

That was kind of my thought too, but per her post, mrsminnesota has seen the bike and likes it.  In this country the bike has loyal following and is on some level considered a classic.

I'm still a believer in a 250 or so street legal dirt bike like an XT225 as a first bike. Light and maneuverable, which is conducive to perfecting basic skills, practical,  fun, and a keeper when the rider graduates to a larger street bike.

But for $100 I don't think I'd be able to pass the Honda  up.

And, last but not least any new rider planning on riding on the street NEEDS to take an MSF course.

I had a CX both the 500 and a 650.

Bullet proof bikes.

Super easy clutch pull and very easy to work on. [thumbsup]

A $100 500cc Honda motorcycle?!? You'd be a fool not to buy it, especially since it sounds like it needs very little.

I'd probably buy it at several times the price.  :)

Thanks for everyone's comments:)

We decided to take the bike. Aside from a little attention, it needs very little work and we have found the more expensive parts for very, very cheap.

It is old fashioned, but that's what we have been looking at for the last couple months for me. I think they're cute. Not to mention, I'm pretty short and I was really hoping for a bike that I can flat foot...a ninja and other bikes of the sort seem really tall for me...not something I want to learn on. PLUS, the "old fashioned" bike are the only ones that fit under our budget.

Slow isn't a problem, being that I've never ridden before. And "slow" is a relative term...it's the same hp as the 600 minnesotamonster currently has;)

The cx500 is about the same weight as the 600 also, which is ok with me.

The plan is for me to learn/take my MSF course and then when I am ready to upgrade, I'll get the hand me down 600 and he will get a new(ish) bike.

And, most importantly, it's only going to cost us $100 for the bike (family discount ;) ) and another $100 (TOPS) to fix it up. Can't really pass that up right?

Bullet proof is a nice quality also [thumbsup]



 [moto]

Pics or it didn't happen. :)

Congrats!