Help needed with an article "Why 2nd hand is not 2nd best"

[Bob]

Guys (and girls of course),

I'm just about to start putting together a feature for the bike magazine I write for. Subject is "Why 2nd hand is not 2nd best". Idea is obvious - it may not be brand new, but buying 2nd hand can often be as good an option as buying new.

Ideally, I would be looking at 10 reasons to buy 2nd hand - so far these are the ones I've got:

"1. Depreciation

2. Someone else gets all the recall letters

3. Previous owners has added expensive and highly desirable extras that do not add much to the actual value of the bike but improve it no end

4. You can use your skills (mechanical electrical, paint) to add value to a bike that's going for a song because of a fault/defect.hatever that you can easily rectify

5. Cash in hand gets you a bargain in private sales

6. Reliability established with previous ownner paying all those initial services charges.

7. With the money saved, it allows the new owner to do things like buy new kit"

Any (serious) ideas for three more?

What I also want to do is back up the ideas with 'anecdotal evidence' - or to put it another way, real-life examples.

So... anyone bought a bike off someone who reckoned "It was a real dog", only to find all it needed was a $1 washer replaced or thicker fork oil used to transform it into a top bike? Or how by waving cash in someone's face, they got a massive reduction in price? Or any other tales that back up the above?

If you do, then about 100 words on what you did/bought/improved would be fantastic (don't worry about being accurate with the word count - that is my job to sort out).

I have no idea when this will be used - I was only asked today to put this together! - but when it does appear, I'll find some way to scan it and show it in here somehow (I don't think you get Used Bike Guide over there).

One last thing - I'd need to use (real) names - don't worry, you'd not be identified in any other way! - to support the stories. So if you can let me know what name you want used (And I don't mind, I'll use whatever name anyone gives me!), that will be what appears.

Thanks in advance as always for any help you can give on this one - getting real-life stories always makes this kind of article work, so the more the merrier!

Cheers,

Bob.

[PeteThePom]

Hey Bob,

How about this, my mate back in the UK, turned a chicken chaser (Honda C90) into a ZZR1100, without using any magic at all. It's a good illustration of how you can turn a pile of shite into something worth having. Basically he started out by buying a C90(£30 I think is what he paid for it), which needed work, selling it and using the money to buy something a bit better/bigger and over a two year period managed to trade up to buying a second hand ZZR1100 that needed a damn good service and a few bits and pieces plus about a weeks detailing work to turn it into £3500 resale. Admittedly he had the advantage of being a skilled bike mechanic with access to full workshop facilities but most of the work he carried out in his garage at home. So if your halfway handy with the spanners and have half a clue with a polishing cloth, anyone should be able to achieve something similar!!

[FROSTY]

It seems ya got it covered. an angle might be the bang for your buck
I reckon I got almost the fun guys on 15000 bikes do

[bgd]

No VAT on 2nd hand (generally)

[clint640]

A lot people buy bikes and don't ride them. 'Used' is a word that hardly applies to a bike that has only been ridden carefully for 3000 km, but ya pay a lot less.

Not that I can really comment, I got my bike new, with a few extras, for less than I had seen a 2nd hand, 1 yr older example advertised for :bleh:
Big thanks to AFC in Palmy :spudwave:

Cheers
Clint

[Motu]

I'm a bottom feeder,I've only had 3 new bikes in 34 yrs of riding,the last one was 26 yrs ago and I still have it.To me working on bikes is 50% of the experiance,it's what I do,fix em up and ride em.People often give me bikes because they know I will give them a good home,as payment for work done,or just plain give me a bike cause they don't need it anymore.I may buy a non runner,turn the slide in the carb around and get it running,sort out carbs,ign,brakes,whatever,spend weeks repairing lack of TLC,swap parts from other bikes.To others it may be their worst nightmare,to me bottom feeding is rich in nutrients to help me sustain life.

[Blakamin]

I'm a bottom feeder,I've only had 3 new bikes in 34 yrs of riding,the last one was 26 yrs ago and I still have it.To me working on bikes is 50% of the experiance,it's what I do,fix em up and ride em.People often give me bikes because they know I will give them a good home,as payment for work done,or just plain give me a bike cause they don't need it anymore.I may buy a non runner,turn the slide in the carb around and get it running,sort out carbs,ign,brakes,whatever,spend weeks repairing lack of TLC,swap parts from other bikes.To others it may be their worst nightmare,to me bottom feeding is rich in nutrients to help me sustain life.

The perfect life.... and you get to know every little piece of your bike well...

If i've had it more than half an hour without pulling bits off "for a look", its too long!
I could never own a new bike... what would I do at nights? cant clean whats already clean (and new), cant fix whats not broken (and new). riding is just 60% of the fun. playing and TLC is the other 40%

[Dodgyiti]

Second hand is not second best because by the time you buy a second hand bike, all the problems and recalls have been sorted, plus any faults that happen in the first ..oh say 50,000 km, you will know about from other owners, and be prepared for. This might also steer you towards a bike, or away from one depending. Plus when a new bike sells heaps of units in your country, and you buy one second hand, you know that there will be plenty of spares around. :done:

[Posh Tourer :P]

It has already been run in by the first careful owner.....

[scumdog]

Quote:"If i've had it more than half an hour without pulling bits off "for a look", its too long!
I could never own a new bike... what would I do at nights? cant clean whats already clean (and new), cant fix whats not broken (and new). riding is just 60% of the fun. playing and TLC is the other 40%"

I agree with the mr Blakaman above, part of the joy of owning a bike is the therapy of cleaning/polishing it and adding those 'extras' to make it 'MY bike'

It's a good way to relax - polishing your scoot while supping a bourbon and listening to the radio/stereo while reflecting on the last/next trip on the beast.

[Blakamin]

It's a good way to relax - polishing your scoot while supping a bourbon and listening to the radio/stereo while reflecting on the last/next trip on the beast.

OOohhh yeah... and only having had this bike for a week, the mrs is spewing on the amount of bourbon!!!!! :apint:

[scumdog]

OOohhh yeah... and only having had this bike for a week, the mrs is spewing on the amount of bourbon!!!!! :apint:

Ah well, such is life, we all have our burdens (bourbons) to bear :msn-wink: :killingme

Hopefully she is part of the bourbon consumtion equation? :calm:

[Posh Tourer :P]

Hopefully she is part of the bourbon consumtion equation? :calm:

Hence the spewing.....

[trevf]

I was at a motorcycle club meeting on monday night and the guest speakers were one very knowlagable suspension expert and one of New Zealands top road racers. They said motorcycles are basically built by accontants-meaning any little bit of money saved by skimping on cheap parts is all good for the company.
So my theory is a well maintaind second hand bike is probably a better buy as most of these cheep parts have been replaced and put back on by a human rather than some bloody robot.
And if new bikes are so good why do racers strip there brand new bikes and rebuild them .
:banana:

[VivaVee]

Second hand is not second best because by the time you buy a second hand bike, all the problems and recalls have been sorted, plus any faults that happen in the first ..oh say 50,000 km, you will know about from other owners, and be prepared for ...:

I rate this as the biggest plus. I bought my 'old' VFR750 because a good mate recommended it and I could trawl the web for info on what the bike was really like. I bought it when it was already ten years old - everything that will ever go wrong with this bike is well known and all figured out. You CANNOT say that about ANY new bike.

[Blakamin]

I rate this as the biggest plus. I bought my 'old' VFR750 because a good mate recommended it and I could trawl the web for info on what the bike was really like. I bought it when it was already ten years old - everything that will ever go wrong with this bike is well known and all figured out. You CANNOT say that about ANY new bike.

Totally valid point... I looked up all the cbr400 quirks before i said "GIMME"

all you get for new bikes is some journalist's (who may or may not have been plied with booze) review of what it was like for 30 mins to a week... doesnt mean in 4000k the wheels wont fall off!

[pete376403]

Popular bikes which still exist in large numbers (eg GS Suzukis) have good supplies of parts available, both factory and aftermarket.
With new bikes you're generally stuck with factory (= expensive) bits

[Pwalo]

Second hand bikes are great. As my esteemed colleagues have already intimated you can get a much better of what a bike is really like after it's been out for at least a couple of years.

Before I bought the GS I spent a lot of time trawling through the net reading owners reviews etc. This certainly semed to give a more realistic view of a bike's ability and also any weaknesses. Also gives you an idea of what owners consider are good upgrades/fixes. This in itself can save you a whole heap of cash.

Also from the accountants view depreciation has taken it's major bite, and any initial recalls etc (not on a GS) have been done. If you choose carefully you can get a bike that's been treated well, maintained properly etc so you get the best of all worlds.(No one crashes GS' though).

Besides always parts available in the wreckers etc for the more popular used bikes.

It's a bit of a bugger it's so nice today and I'm stuck in the office.

[Ms Piggy]

Well for me I have never regretted buying my bike 2nd hand. In fact I wouldn't have a bike if I had try to buy brand new.

My bike only cost $1000- and I have ridden it miles! It has so far cost me very little in maintenance and upkeep - I think that's partly luck & partly b/c I have tried to take care of it as much as possible - lubing the chain once a week, getting the oil change every 6 months & checking all the other little bits and having friends who have been able to help me too. Thanks KBers :)

I think also b/c I am a new rider it is a great little learner bike and I've also learnt a little bit about maintenance. I think if I had a new bike I may not have been so adventurous as a new rider, I may have been a lot more concerned about the amount of money I spend and trying to keep it looking good. I don't think I'd buy a new bike (one I'm a rich social worker raking in the $$$) until I've been riding a bit longer.

I hope that helps Bob - Cheers Cathy :niceone:

[Blakamin]

It's a bit of a bugger it's so nice today and I'm stuck in the office.

Yup... and my office window looks out over the factory :(

but tonite i'll have a 6 pack of VB, sit in the sun and pull the can off... for a look and a polish.
wouldnt do that to a new bike!

[Skyryder]

Good luck on the article. Use to write the odd story for a now defunct fishing mag. Just make sure you get paid for the story. Wont be much but do not write for nothing.

Skyryder

[TwoSeven]

Well, I have a 1991 cbr 250 rr. Its worth more now (trade in) than when I brought it - simply because I keep fixing the bits that go bang and its gradually improved - they tend to go for about $5.5 in the shops, so trade in price - slightly less.

What that kinda means is that for an extra grand I can trade for a '92 400, 600 and even a 954 was within range (but someone else beat me to it).

Then there is the pick the bike up from japanese auctions and bring it back. You get later models for a little more - maybe the 7-10k range.

Considering there isnt much performance difference between bikes that are a few years old and new ones - that cant be sorted out by a bit of tuning.

As the insurance people pointed out to me the other day. There is a point at which the bike no longer depreciates and considering they only do replacement value - you generally wont lose on it. It kinda means you're most likely to get a $10k replacement for a $10k bike than you are $20k replacement for a two year old $20k bike.

Oh, you dont cry so much when you crash a second hand bike. :)


Just my thoughts.

[Jackrat]

I bought my old GS850G second hand with 12000 kms on the clock.it had a new BMW puncture repair kit under the seat.
The cop from Tuakau that I bought it from rang me about three months later wanting it back as he'd taken it from his work bike an the boss?? wanted it back. :innocent: :bye:

[Bob]

Both here and PM'd messages. It always helps to have some genuine 'case notes' - proves what is being said.


Good luck on the article. Use to write the odd story for a now defunct fishing mag. Just make sure you get paid for the story. Wont be much but do not write for nothing.

Skyryder

Thanks for the words of advice, but I've been writing for this magazine for some time now - so I even know the rate of pay! This is nice as it is a commission from them (Bob, please write an article on this), so not even a case of submit and hope for the best.

Once this is written up, submitted, inevitably edited to fit the space and published, I'll work out some way of letting you all see it.

Just one thing - I think I'll need some 'real names' to accompany the advice you've all given (I'm not 100% sure my editor will go for KB names). So if you want to PM me, I'll happily note them all down from there.

Thanks again,

Bob