What a Waste?

I'm still fairly new to Motorcycling, and very new to this forum, so I don't know it all yet. I have a question about a trend I've noticed since joining XJbikes.
Why did so many people buy XJ's only to park them after 20,000 miles or so, never to ride them again, then sell them 20 years later for almost nothing?
It seems every other day I see a new post in BSTS by someone who found an ad on Ebay or CL for an old XJ for sale that still runs but hasn't been ridden in many years, some in good condition, some not so. I found my bike on cycletrader.com with 21,000 miles for $2k, and in primo shape.
Do these people just not know what they have? Or do they know something I do not? I'm not complaining about the deal I got, I'm just puzzled by it. I know parts are becoming harder to come by, but most of the routine stuff is still available. Are XJ's really the red-headed stepchild of the moto world?

 

I park my bike right in front of the auto parts store where I work. I mean like 6 feet from the front door on the side walk. I constantly get people coming in and asking, "Who's bike is that?" Of course I tell them it's mine. Most tell me how they used to have one back in the '80s and loved it but had to get rid of because of this or that. I think at the time they were a pretty nice bike, but crotch-rockets were coming onto the scene and peoples attentions was turned toward them. Who knows? I'm just speculating. But what I do know is that most people who had them liked them because they were powerful and generally pretty reliable. However, when they broke down, most people were stymied by the multiple carbs and how to fix and tune them. That's why I think many ended up sitting in garages, barns, and under tarps. Again, just speculating.

 

Most ran into a mechanical or electrical issue and got "Sky-High" estimates from the Dealer. Not being able to ride it on leaking fork seals or an ignition or Carb Related issue ... they parked them.

Most of us don't get too excited having to rebuild a Caliper, Fork, Headset Bearings or Fix a flat Rear Tire.

Those, who have NO Tools and cannot wrench ... even a little bit ... balked at taking their bikes in for needed service.

That's when the "Sitting and Not-Running Bug" bites them all in the back-side.
Now, it's not just Fork Seals they needed and wouldn't pay for. Now, it's:
Seals
Battery
Tires
Carb Cleaning
Trouble shooting the electrical ...

BIG BUCKS!!

So, the Magic Marker hits the cardboard and people like us get fabulous deals on Motorcycles that are a pleasure to own and ride.

We can Wrench.
We ride other people's troubles.
Too bad somebody didn't show them how when they were kids.

But, I'd venture to say ... most of us riding what somebody sold us -- cheap, ... or, just flat-out gave-away to get out of their hair ... are smiling about it.

I can't wipe the crap-eating grin off my face, sometimes ... like earlier this month when I put the 750-Max a guy gave me for hauling it off his property right on top of Mount Equinox, in Vermont ... mid-way through a 600 mile weekend!

 

I got my 550 from a friend who admitted that even though he absolutely loved the bike, he couldn't keep the carbs from clogging up or detuning. then, money got tight and he couldn't afford to keep everything up to date. so, it sat in his barn for 17 years.

I paid $300 as a "it might run some day" deal. Now the bike has 5000 more miles on the clock... At ~50mpg it's easy on the wallet too. It makes me grin seeing some soccer mom shell out 80 bucks for a tank, right after I paid $7. :mrgreen:

All in all, XJ's are awesome bikes that can be crippled by relatively simple problems... Which is great for tinkerers, but bad for the mechanically-challenged folk.

my $0.02...

 

If you start reading the motorcycle want ads you'll see lots of bikes 5-10 years old with only 10-20 thousand miles on them. Like Gamuru said with newer bikes coming onto the scene riders turn out their old rides for the latest bike, nothing like BIGGER, BETTER, FASTER to get riders off their current ride and onto a new bike. Plus like Rick said, once a bike breaks and it sits around for more than a season even the most well intention owner will have a hard time justifying repair costs for a bike that is in most cases just a recreational vehicle and not a daily driver.

 

RickCoMatic and Gamuru really summed that up. Many owners of complex Japanese multis were intimidated by the repair costs.
Older bikes were as easy to work on as lawn mowers. I have often told the story of my James Captain, where I kept a spare engine on the bench, as it was quicker to change motors than troubleshoot the one in the frame. You could do the ignition timing on most British bikes with a chopstick and a cigarette paper and gap the plug with a beer can.
The Honda 754 and the Kawasaki 900 changed all that! People got out of the habit of doing their own repairs. Also, as bikes got more and more reliable, I think young blokes preferred to be out riding, rather than hanging around in a mate's shed with a few beers "working on the bike" (and learning a lot of mechanics on the way).

As for people admiring our bikes; I was out on the XT500 cafe racer yesterday and a kid of about 19 pulled up alongside on some sort of Suzuki Super Sports, all fibreglass and decals (Probably 100kph or more faster than the XT. Bet it cost him an arm and a leg). He looked down, turned to me, and without any hint of sarcasm said "Cool, Dude."
I rode home one very happy 62 year old "Dude".

 

Of course the people who can afford to pay someone to wrench on their bikes all the time own Harleys, right?
Hey Don, I was in Granite briefly today. Rode as far as I could up the Mt. Loop, stopped for gas at Stanley St. Shell on the way back. We should hook up sometime.

 

I think it's very basic.

Cruisers, standards and sport bikes are(were) primarily purchased (in the US) as recreational vehicles. Ride a bit on Sunday when the weather was good. Then go off to school, get married, start a family and it sits. You can see this on eBay and Craigslist. These bikes almost always have stupid low mileage regardless of make or age.

The touring bikes on the other hand got ridden. Look at the mileage on the Ventures, Voyagers and Gold Wings from the early 80s. Unusual to have less than 50K on them.

 

I will tell you the story of mine(85' xj700n), my mom bought it new in 85/86 and its got just shy of 20k, mom lost interest in riding about 97' and stopped maintaining the bike around 99', I started nagging her about 2003 that it was a crime to let that nice bike rot in the shed with gas in the tank...(btw i dont live near her) so finally this year she shipped the bike to me here in FL and I put it on the road and ride it a bit. hopefully this winter when mom visits we can go riding, sure I still like my electraglide better but that old xj is a runner, and I cant sell it cuz its "moms bike"

mileage comparison, I bought my 2001 E'glide new in nov, 2000. I have 37k miles on it....

 

There are several comments here that I think are right on the money. My case is probably a good example

During Desert Storm I vowed that when I got back we were going to do things differently. Buying a bike was one part of that. I found my '82 Seca 650 with about 5000 miles on it (in 91) for $700.00. We rode it some and had a lot of fun, but that wasn't the only thing that I wanted to do and we dabbled in other things too. When my job forced me to move I stored the bike at a relatives where it was not protected as it should have been, it was knocked over and a fair amount of damage was done. Up to that point, I had always kept it where it was good for an afternoon ride. Now it would take a couple of weekends work and some money to fix. Very much like RickCoMatic talked about. I bought a fixer upper house and have not had the time or money to devote to the bike until recently. Even with me doing the work, cost would have been a bigger factor if I'd had to go to a dealership and pay list for the parts I needed. The internet has made that much more affordable and of course info is more readily available now too. This board will help keep my bike more reliable and I will spend much less time troubleshooting than I would have working on my own.

I doubt that my bike will ever get very heavy mileage on it, but now that I have more time, I can keep it in good repair and part of my remodel project was a great garage so it can be properly stored.

Mike

 

i parked mine at 11,900 because it wasnt big enough for my wife and i and it didnt run right...

i got back after it this summer because a couple buddies started riding (more)...

after throwing about $300-400 at it (carb rebuild, parts carbs, more parts carbs, battery, oil, plugs, new exhaust (oem-ish) it still doesnt run...

it DID right after i put the carbs on but not right. i put the exhaust on and it doesnt run at all now. well, okay, if im lucky i can get about 30-45 seconds out of it then 10-20 more minutes of nothing...

im recuperating from from minor surgery right now, have lost interest in it because im beating my head against the wall with it and i dont have the stupid $1 rubber boots that go on the brake caliper float pin. oh yeah and it STILL doesnt run, so is it a waste? maybe...

if things dont improve here shortly, there will be a ton (okay, 430lbs) of maxim parts for sale...

d

 

How's this for a spin. I am not mechanically inclined (I would not attempt an engine or transmission overhaul) but I come from the school of thought that you should go with used and pay cash rather than buy new on credit. So, after responding to an add in craigslist, I purchased a 1985 XJ 700 Maxim for $1500 with just over 13k on the clock. Mint condition. Most of the miles were put on by the first owner. The second owner only rode it on occasion. I believe he sold it because he felt it needed major work. All it needed was a new airfilter. I changed the fluids, replaced the airfilter, put in new plugs, and rebuilt the front brakes (not much different than those on my mountain bike).

Of course, I couldn't do all of this w/out the help from the folks on this website. I posted pictures of the spark plugs and airfilter and got great advice from the experienced wrenchers on this site. With their suggestions, I purchased, off of ebay, the owners manual cd. Realizing the next step was something currently beyond my skill level, I then contacted my local independent motorcycle shop and they adjusted the carbs/valves and gave it a thorough once over. I think I spent around $160 or so.

Sure it would be nice to have a new bike, but if dropping a few hundred bucks every couple of years for the assistance of a professional mechanic, to maintain a bike that is paid for, is worth it for a guy like me.

FYI - When I first got my bike, my neighbor came over to take a look. He had the biggest grin on his face. Come to find out, he had one back in the day.

 

Firstly: Hey, Big Ross ... you are older than I am. I thought I was the Senior Citizen in residence. You scooped me by a couple of years. The young guys don't know what to make of us tired, old gray-hairs ... do they?

Secondly: As I stood by the bike at the Mini-Mart ... a guy stops and just wants to tell me all about his bike. He was a Maxim owner when they were new.
Loved what I had done with my bike and then puts his Pizza in the Pickup and comes back with a camera!

I'm glad he didn't ask how much I wanted for it! I'd have given him sticker shock.

 

Rick,
I don't know what it's like in other parts of the world, but here in Australia it seems an unwritten law that if you're over 50 you must either ride a Hardly Driveable, some incredibly weighty version of Hitler's Revenge, or a V Twin bigger than the satellites of Uranus.
It is very rare indeed to see a "senior citizen" on anything even remotely resembling a sports bike.
One interesting thing I have noticed here is that over the years, the spare parts counters in dealers have shrunk to almost nothing, and the "accessories" areas have expanded greatly. I think that backs up my idea that fewer and fewer people do their own servicing these days.
The fortyish guy I bought my XJ900 from was quite scared of the bike. He had convinced himself that it had "bad handling", when all it needed was a new front tyre!

 

Well Big Ross I have to agree. In the eastern part of Chilly Beach most of the 50+ crowd are riding HDs or Shadows and accessorising like Paris Hilton at her daddy's parties. Makes me wonder if they are true riders or fashion plates looking for attention.

My old rig gets similar reactions to Rick's in that everyone seems to have a memory of having or wanting one just like it. At least when my mid-life crisis hit, a Maxim was the perfect choice - very affordable, inexpensive to run, maintain and insure and easy to fix, even for space-challenged (and wife-challenged) people like me. Fear of fixing a complicated machine was soon replaced with some confidence, as it really isn't that complicated.

Cheap fun has fueled many huge successes. Ours is one of the cheapest and funnest in motoring history. Let's enjoy it for a long time. (Raise beer here).