Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

*DISCLAIMER: I'm a newb. I consider the fact my experience has been great to be more due to my bike being an "easy fix" and my engineering past than any motorbike wisdom or experience. Thus there are many shortfalls in my knowledge and this is in no way an exhaustive post.
*I'm in NSW, check your state for local regulations.


OK


There's been a few requests, so here it is.

(Apart from the potential financial benefit, I found great deal of joy and pleasure in the challenge and satisfaction of bringing "susan" back to life which is unquantifiable. Your experience could vary dependent on your ability to accurately assess your scrap heap, cost of parts, and your skill level).

1. Find and assess your potential scrap heap.

Your best realistic estimation of what you need to buy & do to make your scrap heap fully functional and to your acceptable standard of apperance.

From a financial and time/effort perspective, here's a simple equation to assess the heap.

$(Street price of comparable purchase with rego & greenslip, eg bikesales with full year rego)
SUBTRACT
$(Cost of your scrap heap)
SUBTRACT
$ (Cost of parts)
SUBTRACT
$ (Cost of any labour too hard for you/friends)
SUBTRACT
$30 (Blue Slip)
SUBTRACT
$411(VIIU Check)
SUBTRACT
$(REGO)
SUBTRACT
$(GREENSLIP)
SUBTRACT
TIME & SANITY (Your effort)
ADD
PLEASURE & SATISFACTION (how much you enjoy the process)

EQUALS

Benefit.

Do the math.


2. Buy your scrap heap.

I combined limited knowledge and experience, research, a wise uncle, a technical background, common sense, a lucky find and bargaining.
CHECK IT ON REVS (especially if you don't have a guarantee from reputable motor vehicle dealer!) (Call REVS if not sure, they clarify verbally)
GET receipts with correct details and contact details! Check them.
BE WARY OF ANY DODGIENESS, FLAKY STORIES, "TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE SCENARIOS", "I'M SELLING IT FOR MY MATE/UNCLE/BROTHER/I STOLE IT"


3. Fix your scrap heap.

Enlist the help of mechanical friends/relos if required, but don't overstep the mark, this is YOUR scrap heap.
Use forums for advice, findapart.com.au, find out where to get your bits, and check genuine vs aftermarket vs 2nd hand prices.
KEEP ALL RECEIPTS for parts (VERY VERY IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!!).
If 2nd hand parts get VIN numbers of bikes they've come off if possible, and the sellers name/company/contact details.

DO MAINTENANCE TASKS/CHECKS AT THIS POINT! YOU'RE NOT GOING TO WANT TO DO THEM AFTER YOU GET YOUR PLATES AND BEFORE YOU RIDE

4. Get your BLUE SLIP at a servo. (~$30)
Provide receipts. Get rego papers filled out and get blue slip

5. Take blue slip to RTA, book your VIIU inspection ($411)in person at an RTA, and turn up on time with your bike, Rego papers and all receipts. (Silverwater, Penrith & Botany in Sydney. If you're away from a VIIU a blue-slip garage can do it, ask RTA).

They check chassis/engine numbers, and for evidence of tampering with such, and history of parts used on the bike.

If it passes.....

6. Get greenslip.

7. Get insurance of your choice.

8. Head back to the RTA with all paperwork and walk away with REGO, numberplate and a big smile on your face. Purchase nuts/bolts at hardware store on the way home for your numberplate.

9. Tighten all bolts. Do all the regular pre-ride checks. You're off.

Good write-up Tim, well done.

Good writeup Tim.

Can't stress enough the importance of doing your research. And don't try to kid yourself on prices. Work out your projected costs with new prices, because sometimes that will be the only option. If you buy something for less than retail its a bonus.
I keep finding stuff on the 11 that needs replacing ... that I didn't know about when I bought it. If nothing else you will gain a whole new insight into why insurance companies write them off.

Don't be like the knob I watched on ebay the other day. He paid $305 for a pair of brake calipers. I already priced them at several wreckers, through findapart - at $100 each.
Do the research.

Nice write up mate. Have you been riding much this week with the rain etc?

We'll probably catch up on the weekend to check out the newest addition too

All input noted. thanks fellas

It helps to put it in to perspective and justify whether to invest in a money pit or not...i guess

Good write up Tim........ A lot of people including myself only think about the actual $$ costs (cause i'm a lazy bastard)..... so with your included time, your stress etc and with the time you spent away from your family (and not mowing the lawn, yeh I saw the pic's) how did it come out in the wash up dollars wise ?? worth it or not ???

obviously the whole experince would be worthwhile, just wondering after you "did the math", if you could have bought a similar bike for similar money ??

Yeh i think that's the go smithy. like tim said unless you were mechanically sound it'd probably be the same cost or not that much difference. After buying tool, parts etc

But on the plus side at least you wouldn't have to worry about going down the road seeing sparks come out your ass and wondering why your rear wheel is over taking you at 90km/h cos you could only afford a shifter, 2 sockets and half a roll of duct tape...like me

smithy5 wrote:obviously the whole experince would be worthwhile, just wondering after you "did the math", if you could have bought a similar bike for similar money ??

I guess I'm a romantic about it and the process really appeals to my nature to fix things and bring them "back".
I'm able to get on MUCH better bikes than I otherwise would be able to afford.
The hard numbers are as follows.
----------------------------------------------------
BIKE1: 2006 GS500 15000km
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$3400 on the road all inclusive with a years rego.
Could have sold it then for $5,000
I've ridden it for a year, put on 15,000km and will sell soon for around $4000.
To buy a clean bike with same k's on it back then would have been $6000 private. (extra $2600)
----------------------------------------------------
BIKE2: 2008 ZX6R 9000km
----------------------------------------------------
Looks like it's gonna cost me a total of $6600 on the road all inclusive with a years rego
(including 2 big "unexpecteds" because it was interstate and I didn't inspect it - 2nd hand subframe out of the states and new sump)
I estimate I could sell it now for $8,000, equivalent 2nd hander would be $9,500 to $10,000 street price. (extra $3000)
----------------------------------------------------
For similar money I guess I could have got a 03 with around 40,000k on it.
Using it as a commuter putting 15k on it in a year I'd rather low-k bikes for reliability etc, I've had enough high-k cars.
----------------------------------------------------
Basically, doing this got me onto an awesome 2 year old 500 twin for my first year, and now I'm gonna be on an awesome 2 year old 600.
If I hadn't have done it I was going to get an old GPX/ZZR for LAMS then probably now an older 6.
----------------------------------------------------
SO THERE YA GO!

The sub frame you couldn't of found if you did look at it yourself not being able to dis assemble the bike, and the sump you got pics of and knew it was touch and go

Pm sent Tape.