Another ebay special

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I could have 15 bikes in a few years if I don't break my ebay addiction soon. :shock: All those great looking classic bikes.

Right now I have my eye on that 1957 Goldstar on ebay. Wow, what a great looking bike. And it's a 1957, my birth year. I want it! But what a bad purchase that would be. I wouldn't even be able to start it let alone maintain it. And the parts prices. I'd go broke in no time. Must resist...

Debby
 
This looks like a breeze compared to my '59 Bonneville. Previous owner completely disassembled it and let it sit in his shed for 12 years. Had to bring new boxes to take it home. The ones holding the parts had disintegrated. I was particularly fond of the skin a snake had shed in the gas tank.

By the way, 15 bikes is a good manageable number. My buddy had 22 rolling chassis Nortons at my last count and many more disassembled. Now he's gotten started on Z1 Kawasaki's! This quickly turns into a sickness.
 
ebay Commando

If this one were close by, I'd be tempted. The gas tank looks to me to be Commando roadster and faded out metallic blue. The side covers are correct for '70 and the tailight fairing looks silver which means it probably is an original Type S. Good thing my wife has a baseball bat with a union jack on it just in case I get serious.
 
22 Nortons!!! And now Z-1's. He probably has a yearning for Sporsters and triples also, if he would admit it. I recognize the mold.
So many bikes, so little time.
 
I'd probably be tempted too, if it was close by. But what would I do with another Commando? I already have one :)

Debby
 
Debby
Don't worry the bidding has 6 more days and I can assure you that based on previous experience there is someone out in Ebay land that has more money than sense who will bid it up to at least $1500 or more. Add to that shipping, taxes, title, tag and any finance costs and your well over $2000. Now throw another $2000 to $4000 (assuming you do the work) at it and you'll have a sweet bike. Thats assuming there's nothing seriously wrong other than the usual decay that takes place from sitting and rusting for 30 years. Still want it?
I do know the temptation though of seeing all of those bikes on Ebay but on the few occassions where they've been close enough to go look at, in every case I was disappointed. The pictures, no matter how good just can't show enough. it is fun to watch though and I'm always surprised that someone will bid up a bike without actually seeing it. I'm also suspicious that there may be collusion on bidding but how would you know :? .

Scooter
 
Scooter62,

I too am suspicious of collusion between the seller and the "ghost" bidder; I'm quite sure it happens all the time.

Does anyone have any experience with a Moto Guzzi 850 Le Mans?

Jason
 
Jason Curtiss said:
Scooter62,

I too am suspicious of collusion between the seller and the "ghost" bidder; I'm quite sure it happens all the time.

Does anyone have any experience with a Moto Guzzi 850 Le Mans?

Jason

You just never know about the shill bidding. There's also people who bid for the thrill of it, driving the price up, with no intention of following through. I've seen them bid on six bikes at the same time. I think they get off by pretending to buy bikes.

All the more reason to place your bid in the last minute of the auction. Or not at all if you see one of these jerks bidding.

Jason - Are you getting into Guzzis now? Is the Le Mans the sporty one? A guy I worked with a few years back had one. It was a very cool bike. Looked and sounded great.

Debby
 
Debby,

Yes, the Le Mans is the sporty, cafe-racer-looking Guzzi. I've always thought these bikes were good looking. The V7 Sport is also a sporty Guzzi but it's a bit older and probably more difficult to come by at a reasonable price. However, I saw a beautiful old V7 Guzzi at a bike show here in Houston recently and it sure looked enticing.

The thing that scares me about buying an old fixer-upper Guzzi is the cost and availability of parts.



Jason
 
$1425.00.....And six days left... :shock: Geez I`m starting to like my $300.00 find better every day. BTW..... Six days till delivery :D
 
In addition to not being very good at putting things back together, the seller is not too swift on Norton history. The bike is not a '75 model, as he claims.

Jason
 
Jason,
It's a '74 probably purchased as a leftover in '75 and titled as a '75. More interesting is the claim of original paint. Perhaps it's just the quality of the picture, but the '74 blue metalflake was much more brilliant than this appears.
 
Ron,

That bass-boat-blue metal flake paint caught my eye as well.

Also, I noticed that the gas tank is fiberglass, as evidenced by the rubber band nubs on the seat end of the tank. Did '74 Nortons have fiberglass gas tanks???

Thanks,

Jason
 
Jason,
Good eye! I hadn't noticed those. Definitely not an original as '72 was last model year for 'glass tank and side cover. Could be original blue gel coat from '71-'72 (and a bad picture), but not a '74 tank and side covers.
 
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