What is this??

Hi all,
I am looking at an ST and I have a question or two from the great and powerful ST-Owners. . .

I have been looking for one with low miles and close to home and I found this:
03' ABS with 37,xxx, clean, the fastest color, black wheels, close to home. . . What more could I ask for?

What at do you think this circle below the windshield is? It is between the size of a Nickle and a quarter. In the picture it has a Honda wing sticker inside the circle/ hole and in person it is painted to match with what looks to be a thumb print. . . Hmmmmm. . . .

I have not seen this on any other ST in my research. Could it be a mount for a go pro or something of this nature??

Also, I am new to the ST, so what type of things should I look for when considering buying an ST?

Anything obvious for the new buyer?

I have been riding bikes for some time, just looking for anything specific to ST that may not stand out to a newbie buyer.


Thanks in advance for all the info and support. This forum is a wealth of info.


Cameron

Can't tell from the picture what it could be. Maybe a close up would help.

ST's are great bikes. You can look through the maintenance threads to find issues but there really aren't too many.
Coolant leaks are common, usually easily fixed with simply tightening or replacing the various hose clamps.
The secondary master cylinder on the front wheel is a common source of rear brake problems. A bike of that age needs to have this serviced with new a piston and seals.
The large fuel hose between the upper and lower gas tanks will need to be replaced. These can fail suddenly with dramatic leak of gas.
Check the brake pads, ST's are heavy bikes with good performance and these get used up fairly fast.
Next time the rear wheel is off need to check the flange bearing, it often need replacement. The wheel bearings seem to last a long time.

That is my off the top of my head list. Don't let it scare you away. These items and their repairs are all well documented on this site.
Welcome...

It is a ST coin made by Tom Mac a member here. He made a couple of colors they look great!!! Yes some riders painted them any color they liked. They were $5.00 each. Don't think Tom has anymore left.

Jay

Thanks for the info guys!!!! I will look up the coins and see if I can get a better idea.

thanks again,


Cameron

Cameron, the thread about those 'coins' appears to be gone (I just looked). I too think that is what is glued to the front of that '03 you're looking at.

I just tried looking also. . . I found some mention, but no pictures or anything of note.

My my concern was that it was a hole in the cowel and someone tried covering it up and then water would infiltrate into the wiring, etc.

if it's just something stuck on the outside, I'm good with that.



Cameron

From my understanding decals can be removed easily with a use of a heat gun or hairdryer. I had one on the rear fender of my bike and I was able to remove it with a heat gun and a putty knife. Monitor the heat, it doesn't take much to scrape it off.

The pic is from a dealers website and when I rode it, the circle looked as though it was painted and then touch bye a finger or thumb. Possible just some touch up paint.

shouldnt really be a big deal. I will have to see what they wil give me for a trade in. If they can give me enough and if it's still there in spring, I should be able to pick it up.

Cameron

I have an '03 ST1300A that I bought in 2007. First thing I did a day after I got it home was take it to a Honda dealer so they could look up the VIN in their database to verify that any recalls had been addressed. There were a couple of recalls on the '03 models, and the bike I had purchased had been taken to a dealer by the original owner to have them taken care of. As far as I know there is no time limitation on having recall notices verified and addressed by a dealer if no action has been taken on them previously. I certainly wouldn't hesitate to ask a dealer to check it out, even if it is a 12 year old bike. It won't cost anything but you're time, and that will be worth the time for your peace of mind. As for maintenance, I've done all my own maintenance so far, with the exception of tire changes and a couple of wheel bearing replacements. When a tire replacement is due, I remove the wheel and take it somewhere to have a new tire mounted and balanced. As for the LBS (linked brake system) and SMC (secondary master cylinder), I have never (yet) had a problem with either of them, so I don't plan to rebuild the SMC as long as it is functioning properly, but that's just my personal choice. Same line of reasoning for the gas line connecting the upper and lower tanks in my case. The upper tank has never been removed in the 7+ years that I've owned the bike, so I'm gambling that it won't fail since it hasn't been exposed to the elements and has been subjected to very little stretching or flexing just from raising the tank for routine maintenance, etc. Again, this is a personal choice. If I ever remove the upper tank for any reason, I will plan on replacing the hose at that time.
Another maintenance item to be aware of is the rear shock preload adjuster. This system adjusts the shock preload hydraulically, and the hydraulic fluid tends to leak out over time, requiring the system to be flushed and refilled with jack oil. This is an easy service procedure if you do it right. A search on this site will help find it. Some owners have gone through all kinds of complex, convoluted procedures to do an easy task, but look far enough in the thread and you'll find a way to perform this task in 30 minutes or less. I think I may have told you more than you wanted to know at this time, sorry for getting a little carried away...

Thanks for the tips. I thought the same thing one the gas line, wait until I have to take the tank off.

I have an 02 ST1300 and I have never had to do any of those things yet