So this happened yesterday.
As you all know, I recently bought a '73 Honda CB350 motorcycle to restore.
Build thread here:
http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=45162.0
Well, ever since then, a number of my friends expressed their interest, and one in particular said he had his wife to the point of not killing him, should he get a bike. Well, he was looking at $2,000 CB's that needed work, which is absurd, so I quickly jumped on SearchTempest.com and began searching regionally on Craigslist. Lo and behold, I found a really nice '73 Honda CL350 that caught my eye. It was in great shape, a few small dings, but ran like a top and in overall great condition. So I got to thinking...I should buy THAT and sell the one I have.
New bike: $1,000
My bike: $500 + A LOT of additional necessary costs which would be WELL north of $1,000 all said and done.
My wife had a half-day at school, so she calls on her way home, and I let her know that we're going to jump in the car, rent a trailer at U-Haul, and go 3 hours northwest to a TINY town in Warren, Indiana.
Fire up the trusty steed, grab a trailer, and get some gas!
*Side note: U-Haul is a great deal. Motorcycle specific trailer for 24 hours only runs $14.95. Not bad AT ALL, IMO.
Ok, so we drive 193 miles to Warren, which is a sprawling metropolis of 1,239 people and covers an area of 1.15 sq miles.
Aerial shot of Warren, IN.
Satellite:
Ok, so we get close, and the folks Im meeting call me. Really nice couple, and I tell them we're about an hour outside of town. Cool. The lady tells me "once you get to the blinking red light in downtown, we're the white 2-story hours on the corner". What she didn't tell was that the red-blinking-light was the ONLY light in town. :laugh1:
THE intersection:
That's their neighbors house. Almost all the homes we saw in this town were old, big, well kept, and beautiful. This is a small town, but it has a lot of pride. Pretty cool.
Well, we finally get there, and I meet the owner who, come to find out, works on and sells over 40 bikes a year to fund their vacation budget. Mad props. He shows me to his garage and the CL350 is up on the list. Everything looks as it should and then I see a beautiful blue paint job on a bike out of the corner of my eye. It's a 1976 Honda CB360T. I ask him about it, and he says it's also for sale, for the same price. And it's beautiful. My wife said it's beautiful. My wife rocks.
CB360 up on the stand while he installs a brand new battery for me:
Same deal with the CB...it's MINT condition. Everything works. All new carbs, new tires, battery, carbs, engine overhaul, etc. The paint is all original, 1 tiny dent, NO rust on the tank, seat is mint, etc. I was sold. I hand him the money, we sign the title over, and get her all loaded up! Went there for one bike and came home with another!
Back on the trailer:
At this point Im giddy beyond belief, but my wife and I are STARVING. Well, turns out there is a Chicago Style Pizza place in the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE that is pretty well-known, somehow. The guy I bought the bike from vouched for it, so we figured let's take it in the local scene and give it a whirl. Oh yea, it was about 200' from their front door. I actually took the 'intersection' pic from the front door of the restaurant. :laugh1:
Here we go!
Gotta love the plastic menus! Hmm...what to order!?
Super thin crust hawaiian it is!
So. Good. So we eat, drink, be merry, piss, and leave. Time to head home!
Dark outside by now, but the bike is still beautiful!
That's all from last night! Fast forward to today, and Im trying to figure out how to sell my old bike quick. Had a few nibbles, but I had e-mailed the guy I bought it from to see if he was interested...and he wanted it back! :crazy: So today I loaded it up, drove 30 minutes and delivered it back to him for $20 more than I bought it for originally! :laugh1: (increased price due to reupholstered seat). Fair price, and nice I could sell it so quickly! Now to begin ordering some parts for the new bike!!!
Anyways, that's all for now, Ill do another small build thread with the new bike once I decide what I want to do. For now I just have to get my license and some gear! :w00t:
Thanks for tagging along!
-Matt
As you all know, I recently bought a '73 Honda CB350 motorcycle to restore.
Build thread here:
http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=45162.0
Well, ever since then, a number of my friends expressed their interest, and one in particular said he had his wife to the point of not killing him, should he get a bike. Well, he was looking at $2,000 CB's that needed work, which is absurd, so I quickly jumped on SearchTempest.com and began searching regionally on Craigslist. Lo and behold, I found a really nice '73 Honda CL350 that caught my eye. It was in great shape, a few small dings, but ran like a top and in overall great condition. So I got to thinking...I should buy THAT and sell the one I have.
New bike: $1,000
My bike: $500 + A LOT of additional necessary costs which would be WELL north of $1,000 all said and done.
My wife had a half-day at school, so she calls on her way home, and I let her know that we're going to jump in the car, rent a trailer at U-Haul, and go 3 hours northwest to a TINY town in Warren, Indiana.
Fire up the trusty steed, grab a trailer, and get some gas!
*Side note: U-Haul is a great deal. Motorcycle specific trailer for 24 hours only runs $14.95. Not bad AT ALL, IMO.
Ok, so we drive 193 miles to Warren, which is a sprawling metropolis of 1,239 people and covers an area of 1.15 sq miles.
Aerial shot of Warren, IN.
Satellite:
Ok, so we get close, and the folks Im meeting call me. Really nice couple, and I tell them we're about an hour outside of town. Cool. The lady tells me "once you get to the blinking red light in downtown, we're the white 2-story hours on the corner". What she didn't tell was that the red-blinking-light was the ONLY light in town. :laugh1:
THE intersection:
That's their neighbors house. Almost all the homes we saw in this town were old, big, well kept, and beautiful. This is a small town, but it has a lot of pride. Pretty cool.
Well, we finally get there, and I meet the owner who, come to find out, works on and sells over 40 bikes a year to fund their vacation budget. Mad props. He shows me to his garage and the CL350 is up on the list. Everything looks as it should and then I see a beautiful blue paint job on a bike out of the corner of my eye. It's a 1976 Honda CB360T. I ask him about it, and he says it's also for sale, for the same price. And it's beautiful. My wife said it's beautiful. My wife rocks.
CB360 up on the stand while he installs a brand new battery for me:
Same deal with the CB...it's MINT condition. Everything works. All new carbs, new tires, battery, carbs, engine overhaul, etc. The paint is all original, 1 tiny dent, NO rust on the tank, seat is mint, etc. I was sold. I hand him the money, we sign the title over, and get her all loaded up! Went there for one bike and came home with another!
Back on the trailer:
At this point Im giddy beyond belief, but my wife and I are STARVING. Well, turns out there is a Chicago Style Pizza place in the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE that is pretty well-known, somehow. The guy I bought the bike from vouched for it, so we figured let's take it in the local scene and give it a whirl. Oh yea, it was about 200' from their front door. I actually took the 'intersection' pic from the front door of the restaurant. :laugh1:
Here we go!
Gotta love the plastic menus! Hmm...what to order!?
Super thin crust hawaiian it is!
So. Good. So we eat, drink, be merry, piss, and leave. Time to head home!
Dark outside by now, but the bike is still beautiful!
That's all from last night! Fast forward to today, and Im trying to figure out how to sell my old bike quick. Had a few nibbles, but I had e-mailed the guy I bought it from to see if he was interested...and he wanted it back! :crazy: So today I loaded it up, drove 30 minutes and delivered it back to him for $20 more than I bought it for originally! :laugh1: (increased price due to reupholstered seat). Fair price, and nice I could sell it so quickly! Now to begin ordering some parts for the new bike!!!
Anyways, that's all for now, Ill do another small build thread with the new bike once I decide what I want to do. For now I just have to get my license and some gear! :w00t:
Thanks for tagging along!
-Matt