"New" 1983 750Maxim

Not trying to steer the thread or go too far off topic but I also doubt there's a dealer out there that will touch this. Why? Liability. Any dealer with a brain is going to know that without replacing most of the rubber parts this bike isn't going to be safe to ride.

And the cost of setting this bike up will be very high I would have to think. There's the previously mentioned brake components and don't think for a minute you're going to put a battery in and a splash of gas and this will fire right up. The carbs will need to be thoroughly cleaned at a minimum. Very likely the seals are in need of replacement as well. And who knows what the inside of the gas tank looks like. It may be pristine. But I doubt it. Going by what the OP said this was stored in Japan, California and now sunny Florida. Now I realize that doesn't mean it was necessarily near a coast (salt air) but the humidity alone will do a fair amount of deterioration. Thirty years is a long time.

That being said open that crate Harry! Let's have a look.

 

carbs cleaned on a brand new bike? gaskets. will most likely need replaced. ill agree there. but the carbs?

 

I feel like your (HarryT3) Dr. Zahi Hawass finding a royal tomb in the Valley of the Kings, and your about to pop the sarcophagus open. We're just waiting for you to crack it and examine the mummified remains.

 

^I feel the same way. Very exciting! Watch out for scarabs

 

They do run these engines at the factory. I suspect that they would drain the carbs before crating but there's still going to be residue that after this amount of time has blocked some passages.

Remember, this really isn't a 'brand new" bike.

 

Just the fact of having a 30 year old untouched anything is remarkable. Being that it is crated, it was likely packaged for vessel shipment and exporting. But... that packaging is just as susceptible to deterioration as the components of the bike itself. I highly doubt it would be in pristine, assembly line condition, but it is possible. My curiosity of wanting to see what condition it was in would be most overwhelming. But I would talk to antique collectors and Yamaha before I so much as waved a crowbar at it. You may have an exceptionally valuable collectable on your hands if you chose to go that route. I am one of those people that would research the real value before I touched it, as it will certainly be worth more in it's current state than it would be if it were assembled and titled. If I just wanted to have a good condition 83 to ride, I would just restore one (oh wait, that is what I am building with my 82 :wink: )

 

I checked Kelly and NADA, but they were no help. I agree, this might be a major operation. I'll try to get some photos thru the crate before I pop it open. My son-in-law and I did pry on the crate a little several years ago to see if anything was there. It was. In pieces and plastic. It was never stored in a climate-controlled environment so I'm certain there will be problems with rubber and seals. At least it was never outside. Thanks for all your advice and input.

 

oh man. do us a favor and reduce the drool factor. go open it right NOW! lol

 

X2 - pop that box.. let's see this bad boy!

I think, unfortunately, no matter how much we here at the site might love these bikes.. they're not very valuable. Even something as rare as what you've got on your hands might only sell for what you've already got invested into purchase and shipping costs over the years (especially if you figure in the cost of inflation).

http://www.usinflationcalculator.com/

I thought this was interesting.. based on the inflation calculator if you paid $2,540 in 1983, you'd have to sell it for more than $5,900 today just to break even.

Pop the box!!! :lol:

 

and when you do....video... and pictures..... LOTS of them, hehe

 

Oh, and above all else.. make sure you tear out that crappy factory airbox, slap some pods on there, hack the rear-end off behind the shocks, and slap on a solo seat and some drag bars ASAP! :lol:

 

I highly doubt anyplace but a museum or an auction house might be helpful with something this unique.

 

I have to agree with this. Due to the rareity of it.

I would deffinately get an evaluation done before opening that crate. Only then will you be able to make the decision on wether it is of more value as is, or not.

For all anyone knows. That crate could be a 5, or 6 figure deal. The one thing that is guaranteed is that the value will go down the moment the crate gets opened.

As much as I would love to see the bike also. Take the time to get the information first.

Ghost

 

I think if you opened up the crate, the bike, rubber and everything, would be just like new. If you put fluid, fuel it would start right up. You could drive it and it would drive like new. I think everything would check out OK, like new.
I am not saying you should do it, just that I think that is what it will be like.
Chris.

 

Howdy HD500, in case you were unaware of the phenomenon, TIME changes MATTER. The reason is very simple; Oxygen. The gas reacts with almost everything, metals, plastics, fluids, inorganic solids, then there are other more disruptive forms of Oxygen, like Ozone and the free radicals of Oxygen.
The only way this bike could remain like it was the day the crated it up, would be to vacuum packed, or placed in a vessel that could hold a noble gas such as Argon.

 

How about neon?

 

I bet the bike is pristine too.

Most items assembled over seas and packaged for shipment over seas is sprayed with cosmoline. This would seal the rubber and keep it like new. The plastic is usually placed over the parts for easier handling. I have seen firearms and antique cars/parts that had been stored in cosmoline and they are as new.

My 2005 FZ1 came shipped with cosmoline, was a bitch to get all of it off!

 

Trust me, the '82 Maxim is NOT "hermetically sealed." Back in ~'80/'81/'82, Yamaha had a problem with rust in the gas tanks from the bikes sitting on the docks (near the Pacific Ocean) for an extended period of time. Had they been "cosmolined" or otherwise sealed up, it wouldn't have been an issue.

It's just in a big plastic bag inside the crate.

 

Yeah if your speaking of that lovely caramel colored stuff that comes on new bare steel parts to keep them from rusting.. I highly doubt they would cover a bike with that nasty mess.

 

Just open the danged thing up and post some pics already!!! :wink: lol