just my opine obviuosly.
A secondhand bike has no less than six values I reckon. three lay with the seller.
1 what its cost/how much they have tied up in it
2 what its actual realistic value is
3 what you are actually gonna get dependant on factors like time of year/whether people are spending or tightening their belts/ desirability etc.
the other three values lay with the buyer
1 what its actually worth to you
2 how badly you want it
3 your budget
examples.
three years ago I wanted either a fazer thou or early vfr800 carbed. I had a budget of two grand. it was November, snow on the ground. There was a nice vfr800 near me on ebay for 2500. I offered my 2000. got a bit of a snotty reply. then a fazer thou came up on here for 2200 I think, a long way away but nothing to spend, nice colours (black engine/frame, silver bodywork) nice condition, good extras (mct sorted suspension front and rear, Ti race can)
again I offered two grand. Bloke agreed, drove straight over in me van, no fannying about or nit picking, he got his money, I got a brilliant bike I still have.
That vfr never sold, and every week it would be relisted on a seven day sale for 100 less. Eventually he messaged me offering it for 2k, but it was obviously two late It finally went over Christmas for 1800.
It goes both ways doesn't it.
I just sold my mint cb1300. the first value, the one it owed me, was 5800 :'( and thats just the parts, not all the hours and hours of meticulous work. but that, as we all know, is totally fucking irrelevant.
the second value, what it was actually worth was probably closer to 4500. But its getting near the end of the season. and they dont sell that well. so again, irrelevant.
its third value, the one I was likely to get, was probably 3700-4000. so I put it on for 4300, and after over 1200 views finally got a solid offer of 4000 cash, which I snapped up. Despite losing a good amount I genuinely think I was lucky it went.
Anyhoo, now I was on the other side of the fence.
I initially wanted a second fazer thou, a real minty one. but...I know I would want a full mct set up with different spring on the stock rear shock (£660) and anew set of bt016s (£140)...so had to budget for eight hundred quid on whatever I bought. This put all the genuinely nice thous out of my reach, as I dint want to spend all the money I got for the honda.
So I decided either another FZ1 (simply because they are a brilliant bike that dont sell well for whatever reason) budgeting at around 2500, or back to why I really got rid of my cb1300 (I wanted carbs and aircooling) so a nice early bonnie or xjr13.
I offered 500 less on several bikes on e bay (the third value
) and got knocked back every time until I contacted a feller with a last model (06) xjr in that nice shelby ac cobra paint with carbs and twin pipes that he had on e bay for 2500. again I went 500 less.this bloke was very like me, meticulous with his three bikes, and he had spent a lot on the yam. new seat, new carb inlets and carb rebuild, new mirrors etc all genuine yam, then hagon shocks, new battery, new tyres, chain and sprockets yada yada yada. And like me, he understood the real value of stuff, ie its not what you think its worth, rightly or wrongly its what someone will pay for it.
He agreed a price we were both hppy with, I went straight over to Wolverhampton in the van last night (he as polishing it as I rocked up), no messing each other about and hes got money, ive got my bike sitting in the workshop next to my brother in laws 02 1300sp.
Im not gloating about it whatsoever...im far more out of pocket with the cb than I am in pocket with the xjr.
Just making an observation. And I would quite happily bet money that for the most the bikes on the bay I made an offer on will sit there as the season counts down towards the winter.
but then what do I know. apart from ive got a luverly xjr in the workshop so im happy
