Bike advice please - 81 Shadow

[bones135]

Hey all just like some advice, my sons looking at buying an 81 cx vtwin shadow as a bit of a do up, needs a bit of work but his question is what might it sell for once its been painted & fixed up to as close to original condition as he can get. I know this is a longshot but any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers

[FJRider]

Probably not a lot more (if any) than you paid for it. They are not exactly "investment" material ... sorry.

They are good reliable bikes, but keep it tidy and legal and it shouldn't give you grief.

[CookMySock]

I was tempted to cafe one of them, just for something to do. I reckon the big inline twins look phat cafe'd.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3275/...ca132cd5_b.jpg (image is large, 600k)

I don't think there is much of a culture surrounding a plain 'ol CX, even if it's mint, so it is a matter of developing some appeal from it..

Steve

[bones135]

Thanks for that, kinda what i was thinking too. Going to get him to keep looking & saving.

[tigertim20]

out of curiosity, whats his budget? there are a lot of good project potentials out there, but depends on your budget!

[bones135]

As low as possible, hes been looking at a lot around the $500-$900 mark & really he should be sticking to the 250s as hes still on a learners hoping to have his full by the time the bikes ready to ride. Hopefully around that $ area to start & work on it when the money comes to hand. sounds a bit mickey mouse way to do it but hes dead set keen to get something, young buggers aye,lol

[hospitalfood]

yeah the CX is not really popular. they are a bit rare which makes the job harder to get done as well, and it would cost heaps more than it would return.

there is a guy on trade me that sells customs he makes from low end jap bikes, may be worth looking for his stuff and trying to contact him to get his advice. last one of his i saw was a gs400 bobber. i think you end up with a cooler bike and it costs less than getting it back to mint original sometimes.

my advice would be save for an old bmw r series and custom it, heaps of examples on the net.

[smoky]

If he goes a head with it he'll probably get more for it if he turns it into a cafe racer - I've seen them going for about $3000 - $4000, but how easy they are to sell I wouldn't know, and what it would cost to customize?

[bones135]

Yea thats true, what would it cost is the big thing. Basically he just wants a cheap bike he can ride & gain the confidence & some experience before upgrading to something bigger & better. I havent had too much to do with cafe racers so not sure exactly.

[popelli]

Hey all just like some advice, my sons looking at buying an 81 cx vtwin shadow as a bit of a do up, needs a bit of work but his question is what might it sell for once its been painted & fixed up to as close to original condition as he can get. I know this is a longshot but any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers

best advice ride and abuse it like all the london courier riders did 20 years ago

do the bare minimum to keep it roadworthy and legal

and when you get some money invest it in a better bike

[bones135]

Exactly that, he rides a crusty old farm bike on the farm & gives that shit at the moment but yea something that doesnt matter too much if he drops it so long as he doesnt do too much to himself,lol

[tigertim20]

tell him to keep looking for now, he should get a good roject ike for that money. I not all that long ago bought a 1990 FZR 250, only missing ignition (failed theft attempt) running sweet as for $500.
There are heaps of projects out there if you are patient and look around heaps.
Is your son wanting/expecting to profit or just learn and have some fun? project bikes are awesome ways to learn stuff, but dont always profit, especially when you are just starting you often get unexpected costs.
If he just wants to learn, Id say get a piece of shit and go for it, but if he wants to upgrade to a better bike, just save the money, alot of bikes are hard to sell at the momment, and having cash is king, especially when dealing with a desperate seller

[bones135]

tell him to keep looking for now, he should get a good roject ike for that money. I not all that long ago bought a 1990 FZR 250, only missing ignition (failed theft attempt) running sweet as for $500.
There are heaps of projects out there if you are patient and look around heaps.
Is your son wanting/expecting to profit or just learn and have some fun? project bikes are awesome ways to learn stuff, but dont always profit, especially when you are just starting you often get unexpected costs.
If he just wants to learn, Id say get a piece of shit and go for it, but if he wants to upgrade to a better bike, just save the money, alot of bikes are hard to sell at the momment, and having cash is king, especially when dealing with a desperate seller

Thats the kind of thing hes looking for & yup something he can give a hard time & practice etc, not necessarily make a profit just something to play with & learn at the same time & not going to cost mega dollars while doing it

[bones135]

Theres an rg150 on trade me for $450ono which i think could be a great little project for him, he thinks its to small,lol But could be a good bike as a start