Mind if I brag a little?...

[RoostRider]

Went to a local red-neck flea market fest today. An event in Minnestoa called Hay Days. It's officialy a snowmobile grass drag, but it always has a plethera of things, notably, lots of used dirtbikes.

I wasn't really looking for a dirtbike, but I had two friends (and they had two friends) who had decided it was time to really look.

Well, we canvased that whole place in one afternoon (nearly impossible on foot, but we had bicycles... <--- experience)

We ended up loading 4 dirtbikes into a mid size pickup at the end of the day.(all four will be new riders!) I think we came away with some of the best deals going.

let me know what you think of the deals we made.

we had 4 people looking-
Ben- $2,000 range
Carl- $2,000 range
Tracy- $1,500 dollar and
Amber- $1,000 range

heres what we got-

Ben- '99 YZ250 stock except Pro Circuit siliencer (very clean and very well kept, what I would call 'pretty good' shape)- $1,800

Carl- '01 KX250 Stock except graphics (the cleanest 'used' bike I have ever seen- literally, we cannot find any scratches on the bike, not on the plastics, not on the frame... it looks as though it has been ridden all of MAYBE 100 miles- what I would call 'mint'
shape)- $2,000

Tracy- '98 KDX 200, Pro Circuit exhaust (ridden hard, but seems decently cared for.. what I would call 'decent' shape')- $1,050

Amber- '92 CR125- Pro Circuit exhaust (ridden hard but still has some juice left in her, what I would call 'ugly but runs decent')- $650

I think we did pretty good... and now I have 4 more ridding buddies!!! <--- that was my payoff for speending a day in the blistering sun mulling over the deals.

I really could not believe the deals that were out there... we had a hard time deciding which were the best for the price ranges we were in... (the '01 KTM 200 MXC for $1,800!! the guy had painted the plastics or he would have gotten a whole lot more for it.... the '98 XR250 for $900!!.. on and on and on.... but we finaly settled on what we thought would be the most reliable (read, less beat) for the money...

I was the 'brains' behind the decisions, because I am an avid rider, they put a lot of wieght on what I had to say about the bikes, but they made their own decisions, and I thin they did very well for themselves. It was a lot of fun to see the excitement on these guys (and gal) faces as we loaded 4 nice rides into that truck and drove away. And it was a lot of fun to be able to help them into a sport I know they are going to love.

We are going riding tommorow.. well, today I guess (late night making sure the filters and oil and etc.. are done).... Now I have to take them out and teach them to ride... (yes, I made them all get helmets and promise to get boots ASAP).... I hope it all goes well... wish us luck...

 

[YZ165]

Good job Roost, Have fun tomorrow! Try and get them to keep the rubber side down! LOL!

 

[dirt bike dave]

Good job on finding the new bikes! Make sure the newbies know how to use the brakes. ;)

 

[rob129]

Thats cool! I hope you guys enjoy your your riding.

 

[CaptainObvious]

Cool story. I guess you'll become the group mechanic too!

 

[elf]

Now is a great time to buy a used dirt bike.I dont know about other parts of the country but here in MN. used bikes are selling dirt cheap.

 

[pace]

The KX in particular sounds like a steal. There's never been a better time to buy a used two-smoke! :cool:

-pace

 

[RoostRider]

no doubt the deals are flying on the 2-strokes these days.

We had a good time, but I tell you what, trying to teach 4 people how to ride at the same time is about as trying on the patience as anything ever could be. If it wasn't x's bike not starting, it was y's bike fouling a plug, or z's not knowing how to use the clutch and killing it 15 times in a row.... at some points I just wanted to rip out my hair from repeating myself... 'let the clutch out slowly', 'follow through on your kick starts or that bike will never start', 'you need to keep your RPM up, or your going to foul a plug'.

I think they got somewhat frustrated with hearing the same advice over and over too :) ... but it seemed that everytime I quit saying it, they would revert back to thier old ways (which weren't working)

I was surprised by Amber (absolute rookie, 130lb 5'8" female on a '92 CR125)... she got the hang of the clutch better than most of the guys and actualy paid attention when the guy who had been riding for 20 years gave her advice (me). A couple of the guys were being too headstrong and would just ignore me.. It was kinda fun though, because I would help her out, because she appreciated it, and then we would ride around while the guys who ignored me beat themselves up trying to do it all wrong and not taking advice well.

One of them even got so cocky that he started talking smack about how he could keep up with me (fast open trails).... we settled that quickly.. lol... I kicked his but when he and I were both on KDX200's.... then he started riding the CR 125 (he fouled his plug and Amber was too tired to keep riding)... then I REALLY burried him... then he blamed the bike, so we switched and he was on my KDX 200 and I took the CR 125... and I kicked his butt with that too... lol.. then he shut up and started listening to my advice about cornering... lol...

Nonetheless, we all had fun, and nobody took any serious injury, and nobody talked so much smack as to make anyone mad, just fun ribbing mostly. We will be going out again very soon.

Pace- The KX was, without a doubt, the best deal we got that day... what a machine that thing is. (it never fouled a plug when I was on it.. lol).. The YZ a close second though.

One last thing.... Are 90% of the bikes out there not jetted correctly?... I swear, every one of these bikes was running so rich that, if you weren't on the pipe, the performace would drop off noticably (noticable to someone riding next to you) in a matter of minutes... and two bikes fouled plugs (they were being ridden well below thier limits)

 

[wasted]

no doubt the deals have been out there lately...

I bought my '97 RM250(in excellent shape) a while back for $1000...
one of my brothers bought a '90 RM125 a while back for $800(a little beat up though, mostly just lack of matinence)...
I just recently bought a '94 CR250(in excellent shape) for $650...
my other brother paid $1000 for his '92 quadracer way back when...
the brother of a guy who street rides with us came over about a week ago with a '93 RM125 and asked if I'd give him $600 for it... it was dusty and a little rusty and in need of a little basic matinence, but in very good shape considering its been sitting in the back of his shed for a few years, it started up without much effort, ran strong, and didnt leak anything anywhere...

I also know where theres a '94 YZ250 that was involved in a mild collision with a four wheelier, the motor is in need of a rebuild, it needs a pipe, right radiator and a few various smaller things(new bars, grips, brake lever, ect.) but other than that its in pretty good shape and the guy wants $200 for it... I figure with a little effort I should be able to get it back pretty solid for around $1000, including the cost of the bike...

I also just missed out on a local deal on a KX60(which I've been on the hunt for), it was the liquid cooled model but I never knew the year, but it was in great condition and the guy wanted $800 for it...

man... I'm going to have to get a second job here pretty quick... :)

 

[YZ165]

Wasted, sounds like your second job should be buying and selling used bikes.

 

[RoostRider]

Wasted, sounds like your second job should be buying and selling used bikes.

I should say so , those are some great deals (thanks for bursting my bubble... lol)

This should be nothing but encouragement to people getting into the sport, cheap bikes in good shape!!

Don't take my complaints wrong in the above post. I love helping people get into 'active' sports and the cheaper it is, the easier it is to get people to try them. My one freind confessed to me on the way up to ride- he is an avid Mtn Biker- "the tree-hugger side of me kinda feels like I folded on this one"... my reply "the tree hugger side of you should vote for people who will go after the real polluters... the corporates". When we were ridding home after he said "you were right man, the tree hugger side of me NEVER surfaced all day"... :) ... (don't take this as a bash on 'tree-huggers'... I have the same feelings sometimes, but I honestly believe that going after the recreational user is a sad compromise to what should really be done)

 

[wasted]

yeah making a profit would be nice... but it always seems like my "good deal" always transfers to someone else's(family/friends) "good deal"...

I do alot of work on bikes in my area, mostly street but now that I've gotten back into dirtbikes(just this summer) there is actually an amazing amount of dirtbike work to pick up also(I quite working on dirtbikes when I got out of it in the mid '90's)... so I run into more than a few deals here and there... so far there is an amazing amount of deals in my area floating around, but unfortunately, so far I havent seen too much of a profit on any of the deals that I COULD rollover... or for most of the work I do, although I always seem to be in a constant supply of beer when someone wants something done... :)

that '94 CR went to my brother... actually I basically traded him for his '90 RM, which I now have torn right down to the nuts&bolts replacing all that needs replacing, my hope is to find a deal on a KX60 for my son and work some kind of deal out with that... thats my plan as of now anyway...

that '94 YZ is on a back burner for now, I'm going to wheel that guy with the '93 RM and see if I cant get it for a little less... which if noone in my group wants it, I should be able to make a decent profit on it...

I guess I COULD be an ass about things and just go for all the money I COULD get(which would probably be a pretty fair amount if I charged people what everything is worth, both bikes and work) but I really dont mind if I make much of a profit out of all of it or not anyway, as long as it doesnt cost ME anything to be a nice guy, I guess I'd much rather see the guys and kids out riding with me and having a good time...

besides...I love wrenchin', and wheelin'& dealing, and finding deals... making a little money is just a plus...

its all fun... and as long as everyone is having fun thats all that matters to me :cool:


lol, didnt mean to burst your bubble if I did RoostRider... how about I cut ya a good deal on a '93 RM125... :) :think:

 

[RoostRider]

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: no harm, no foul...

I'm in your EXACT boat. I got a good deal on my bike, but I got a GREAT deal on everyone elses... lol... and now I get to wrench them for them.. lol

maybe wo should start a used dirtbike shop on the Minnesota/Wisconsin boarder?.... say, Stillwater or Taylors Falls?... lol

 

[inutero11]

yeha,i picked my bike up on a steal aswell....


got a 1996 cr125 with new top end,bills pipe and silencer,bigger jet kid,pwoer reeds,new sprocket and he included a oneil helmet,scott gogles,oneail gloves and thor boots


i picked all that up for 1050...not bad uhh?

oh yeah,runs great

 

[pace]

Glad I sold my YZ when I did. It was a 1995 Eric Gorr YZ144. 8/10 condition and I sold it at the beginning of the year for $1,400.. The thing ripped, though.

-pace