Topic: '71 CB500 - value?

[Oddjob]

In UK with a MOT (annual inspection) that bike would fetch over £2000 (over $3000 to you)!!

Its got all the early K0 parts that i can see and might have the very early single piece scraper rings and not so good velve stem seals(hence the smoke), I cant quite make out the frame(vin) number and i would love to know the date and number from the plate(plus engine if poss) to put into my list for reference. I could then also tell you what mods might need doing. PM me with details if you can.
Cheers
Bryan

Definite K0 bike Bryan, has the old style seat lock for one. Build date looks to be 8/71 with frame number 1031653 from what I can see. Looks to me to be a decent buy, engine could just be smoking due to being fired up after standing for so long and the rings having to scrape off some surface rust, may only need a re-ring. I'd buy that bike just for the colour, got a NOS Jade Green side panel in a shop clearance and whilst the UK never got Jade Green I always fancied doing a restoration in that colour.
As Bryan says, in the UK that bike would fetch a minimum of £1500 and more likely above that price, a really good restoration can fetch over £3500 in the UK, be a real shame to break a nice bike like that, all you really need is there for a good start. Buy it.

[Greggo]

Did you end up getting it Leemata?

[Leemata]

Location Location Location

That bike wouldn't last a day at that price in California. 

But would you buy it?!?

I know a little more about the bike than most buyers (maybe, and only because of this forum).  So, I think a grand is a good starting point, and I would give him a gigantic laundry list of things that need fixing, then offer six hundred.  Clean title, nice original paint.  Shoot, IT RUNS.  At 37k miles, I'd want to know if it had been rebuilt.  If not, I'd work even harder to walk away paying six hundred, knowing the engine is probably ready for a rebuild.

I think you're referring to the eBay bike, not the one I asked about in the original post.

Terry

Nope.  That's the first mention of any ebay bike in this thread...unless I'm missing something.  I was referring to the green 500/4 in the OP that smokes (which of course means she pokes!).

Nope, the bike I asked about (the green one in the OP) has under 8k miles.  Somehow you're mixing the 2 bikes.

As I said earlier, I'm not that interested in buying the bike.  The owner asked me for some idea of it's value.  So far I'm hearing $150 to like $800.  I'll talk to him again to see where he wants to go from here.  It will likely to end up listed on this site for sale.

I do appreciate all of the input.

Terry

[Greggo]

Location Location Location

That bike wouldn't last a day at that price in California. 

But would you buy it?!?

I know a little more about the bike than most buyers (maybe, and only because of this forum).  So, I think a grand is a good starting point, and I would give him a gigantic laundry list of things that need fixing, then offer six hundred.  Clean title, nice original paint.  Shoot, IT RUNS.  At 37k miles, I'd want to know if it had been rebuilt.  If not, I'd work even harder to walk away paying six hundred, knowing the engine is probably ready for a rebuild.

I think you're referring to the eBay bike, not the one I asked about in the original post.

Terry

Nope.  That's the first mention of any ebay bike in this thread...unless I'm missing something.  I was referring to the green 500/4 in the OP that smokes (which of course means she pokes!).

Nope, the bike I asked about (the green one in the OP) has under 8k miles.  Somehow you're mixing the 2 bikes.

As I said earlier, I'm not that interested in buying the bike.  The owner asked me for some idea of it's value.  So far I'm hearing $150 to like $800.  I'll talk to him again to see where he wants to go from here.  It will likely to end up listed on this site for sale.

I do appreciate all of the input.

Terry

Looks like there's only one bike's value being talked about in this thread.  I think you may be confused because I mistakenly thought the green bike in the original post had 37K miles, not 7k and change.  I thought the zero was a 3 on that odometer.

[Leemata]

OK Greggo.

[bryanj]

If it is 103**** that fits with 8/71 (my eyes and 'puter aint good enough to read the pic!) which puts it after the gearchange mod but still in the modded stem seal area