carnivorous chicken
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River City Rocker said:Let's throw in some variables, what if the engine is fully rebuilt, what if it's tuned correctly, what if it's nothing exotic but aesthetically pleasing, yet fully functional and user friendly? I mean, you can "what if" all day. But hearing that someone would only dish out $2500 for a bike that runs just as good as it ever did--that doesn't even seem worth it. Hence, why I've never sold my bike to try out something new--I have way too much time and money invested into it, I'd never make it back.
I'm also seeing people that are basically doing nothing to a bike and flipping it for twice as much, driving up the price for basically unrestored bikes. There has to be some worth and differentiation for something that has been rebuilt from the ground up--a margin of more than just 1 or 2k.
There are a ton more variables: make and model, engine displacement, stock or modified, rarity of bike, age of bike, mileage, location, etc., etc. There are no general rules, except, perhaps, by specific make, model, and year. CB350Fs, for example, usually sell from somewhere between $1500 and $3000 for a nice running bike, depending on cosmetics and factors above. Some people pay more (location, customization, other factors), but paying much more doesn't make too much sense. CB550s are generally in that range, but a little more expensive (displacement), CB750s even more (maybe up to $5k? maybe more? Depends where you are, I guess, and who's doing the buying). Other makes and models kind of follow the same pattern.
Flipping bikes is a whole other kettle of fish. Some guy got pissed on me here last night because he was trying to sell a chopped up CB550 that need wiring and some other stuff for $1800 that hadn't run since (supposedly) two owners ago. I pointed out that was ridiculous, asked some questions, he got pissed, and he took his post down. Part of his (or his friend's) argument was that that was a reasonable price in "SoCal". For shits and giggles I looked up CB550s on CL in LA, and found running examples for $1500 and $1800 that looked to be in decent shape and not all hacked up. I'm guessing that he bought the bike for a grand or two and thought he could flip it without doing anything to it to make money. Maybe he can, but not here.
That being said, what I and most others here, are looking for are barn finds and nice bikes that people don't know anything about or care about at all, who sell for cheap. My range in AZ was up to $750 (for a 1978 CB750F that just needed carbs cleaned and tank relined). Here in MA it's up to $1200 for a very nice CB350F that's in great cosmetic shape with low miles, and just needed a few bits and pieces, battery, carb cleaned (this one is for my wife, so I'm not going to try to sell it and make money). That being said, there is a nice, running CB350F that has been on CL in my area for 6+ months for $2300, with no buyers. The $750 CB750 I sold to a guy from LA for $1800. He was going to bring it back to LA and sell it for more. When I fix up bikes and resell them, I do it to make a little money, for fun, for the experience of working on a new bike, and frequently to hook up a friend who wants to buy a bike but who doesn't have experience. I've only once bought a bike and sold it for more without doing anything to it, but that's because I got a 350F and a CB550 for $500, both complete, and sold the CB550 for $500 for money to work on the 350F. Dude who bought it got a great deal, and I got a 350F for free.