Question about buying/selling a high mile ST

[Yohan]

Thinking about older bikes and previous bikes from years ago gives me a good excuse to ask my question. I had a CBX 550 and had to spend a lot of time tidying up the wiring layout under the steering . No electrical faults but obviously the left to right handlebar movement seemed a bit restricted by the cables. The chunky manual indicated where each wire should run . I had my doubts about the original mechanic that opened the crate when it was delivered . Or did somebody tangle up the wires on purpose before I bought it ?
So ; Are new bikes completely assembled and wired up before they are put in the crate in Japan (Or whatever country applies ) ?

 

[red one]

Thinking about older bikes and previous bikes from years ago gives me a good excuse to ask my question. I had a CBX 5500 and had to spend a lot of time tidying up the wiring layout under the steering . No electrical faults but obviously the left to right handlebar movement seemed a bit restricted by the cables. The chunky manual indicated where each wire should run . I had my doubts about the original mechanic that opened the crate when it was delivered . Or did somebody tangle up the wires on purpose before I bought it ?
So ; Are new bikes completely assembled and wired up before they are put in the crate in Japan (Or whatever country applies ) ?

It depends. For the most part it is my understanding that they are whole with very minimal assembly required. In the summer months I knew one dealership that had high schools kids putting new bikes together so it could not be that big of a deal. The problem comes when you have to install accessories on bikes like the new Goldwing. A whole lot of disasembling is required that is best left up to a senior technician and sometimes even that can be a crap shoot. That's why i've been lucky enough to afford new motorcycles because buying used where an owner has done wiring and don't understand how to do it correctly is headaches i don't need.

 

[TMF]

I'm reading this thread with interest having purchased a '92 ST1100 with 82K on the clock just before the weather turned cold. It had been used as a commuter for the last 5 years or so then left sitting for about 6 months before being sold to me. My instincts told me to walk away considering that every bolt was rusted and the paint was weathered. My friend along for the viewing was enthusiastic, the price was $900 and the bike shifted and accelerated well so I bought the old beast and rode it home. Immediate problems included a raw gas smell and starting required a partially open throttle. It also lost a cylinder or two after idleing for a couple of minutes. There's a good ending though. The raw gas smell went away with some miles and fresh gas, idle was stable with a fully charged battery. I've begun to thoroughly go through the bike - splines, fresh rubber, LED conversion, Q Tip level detailing, cleaning brake pistons, adjusting valves (most in spec), new Gates belt, red wire bypass, plastic fixes, filters, oil, etc. and see no red flags just a bulletproof design that can shrug off neglect. My time investment is roughly 150 hours so far and I suspect there's another 50 - 100 before spring. You have to enjoy motorcycle wrenching or have some deep pockets to buy a 29 year old ST. The result can be roughly equivalent to a 20 - 25K new bike (in a wishful parallel universe) and that is highly satisfying.