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What do you guys think about going to a bike salvage yard picking out a frame and engine (compatable) and just building a bike from the ground up literally from nothing. Would that be hella more expensive than just buying a complete and repair/restoring/modifying it? I thought that would be an enlightening experience. Possibly with a CL250 or CB750.
My local salvage yard in San Diego is Stocker's Motorcycle Salvage. It's like a city block japanese moto warehouse and I don't know how much they charge...
BTW what do you guys think about this MS Paint Chop Idea???
Yea especially now that old bike parts are in demand. Salvage yards and parts houses are charging more than ever for engines, frames, forks and wheels.
On the flip side, you can still find cheap bikes on Craigslist for $300-$600 that run and ride.
However, if you've got more money that patience then go ahead and put a basket of parts on the road. It'll just mean that those old parts are less likely to go to scrap.
Ya man, its definitly doable, but wont really be cheap at all. Plus theres a lot of custom bits you'll have to figure out to make everything work.
As far as the chop pic...
Youre losing all of the rigidity at the rear of your frame. Theres no lateral support at all that I can see. The "shock towers" will twist and bend as you have them. Add some more bracing and you would probobly be ok. Not sure why you want to cut it up though.
And quick question. Why dont you have a shirt on in your avatar pic? Hahaha
That would be probably the most expensive way to build a bike. I know that because it's how I built a couple of bikes over the years. Start with one part and buy the rest as the bits become available.
It's really just a payment installment plan but it's rarely cheap, but you can end up with a lot of surplus and intresting parts.
The Phat Trakka started out with a pile of parts from other projects, a frame and title from MI and then way too much money filling in the missing pieces - and it's supposed to be a budget build.
Buy a bike that runs and looks good and work on making it your own.
I've been to Stockers and they are quite pricey. You'd be better off building a bike from E-bay parts in my opinion. I'm always checking craigslist to dream of new projects I can't afford and there are decent deals to be had quite frequently. Also, being in San Diego, don't forget to look at O.C. and L.A. c-list; not too far and brings more possibilities.
"And quick question. Why dont you have a shirt on in your avatar pic? Hahaha"
Hey man! It gets HOT in Cali....don't be hatin' ; )
I drool on e-bay and c-list all the time at the cheep, rust free, running old bikes in Cali. I swore I would never go visiting my in-laws there again.....but if I do, I will definitely take a truck.
Not to mention, if you buy a complete bike with some decent stock parts, you can always sell the worthy stuff off to fund your build. Maybe not "fund", but at least help out a bit.
That's cool. It reminds me of johnny cash's song psychobilly Cadillac about all the stray parts. Well I agree with you guys.. ebay and Craigslist running b's are cheaper, and my shirt... I just sit Indian style in the garage at night and I snapped that one off my notebooks screen. Idk... thanks for the responses. I'm not even done with one bike but I have a lot of ideas clawing their way up.
you a fan of lucero? or just like the expression sixes and sevens
anywho, my first build involved digging a bike out of the ground at a salvage yard
it taught me a lot of lessons.. including how expensive it is to build a bike from the ground up like that. a bike's parts definitely cost more than buying a complete or almost complete bike. whatever direction you decide to go with this build, best of luck!
Man not just parts are expensive, but what will also get you right where you don't ever want it is the cleaning supplies. Degreaser here, sandpaper there, and a whole lot of trips to the hardware store really adds up! Ask me how I know...
I drool on e-bay and c-list all the time at the cheep, rust free, running old bikes in Cali. I swore I would never go visiting my in-laws there again.....but if I do, I will definitely take a truck.
I've done alot of projects. The part by part method always costs more. If the chase is important to you than it should be considered. I try to buy the most complete unit that I can find to start with. If you can't find anything you can afford, it might be wise to save more before buying. Take your time to find the right start. Makes no difference what the project is. Cars, bikes, houses, you pick.
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