Hi Everybody,

I'm a newbie living in Austin, TX. I have ridden my friends' 883 and 1200 Sportsters before, but they were both 2006 models.

I'm getting my first bike and have found a 2001 xl1200s with 35k miles that is awesome looking. It fits me great (I am 6'4", 225 lbs.) actually better than a lot of bigger bikes I've been on.

I need help though. I've got the price down to $3,850 before tax, and the mechanic there put a new battery, belt, and carb on it about a month ago. Here's the problem: It is cold out right now and they hadn't started it in 3 weeks - so it took a few tries to start even with full choke. Then when it was warm, I tried to start it again and apparently I flooded the thing.

The salesman told me there is a trick to starting older Sportsters. Is he yanking my chain? Or is this true?

I'm looking to commute on this bike so I really would like it to be reliable. Is this going to be a reliable bike? Apparently it belonged to an older man who rode it 35k miles between '01-'06 and then let it sit for 6 years before selling it. That kind of worries me.

Any help/advice you can give on what is likely to go wrong with this bike, what the next thing I will need to fix might be and when, what kind of regular maintenance I need to do, etc. I really like this bike and want to get it, I just don't want it to be a money pit.

Thank you all, and I'm happy to be a part of the forum.

Sean

 

i've got an 02 sporty and there definitely is a trick to starting it when its cold. it will just take some getting used to for you to learn the 'trick' for that particular bike.

the 04s up are rubber mounted engines, don't vibrate\buzz nearly as much and have a little bit bigger frame.

a lot of folks will try to dissuade you from the sporty, saying that you'll be wanting to trade up to a larger bike in a short time. i rode my sporty for 4 years before going to the road king. it will all depend on you. do an honest assessment, not based on emotion, and you'll be able to figure if the sporty is a good buy for you.

maintenance wise, sporties are easy. you can do a 'service' in less than an hour.

 

There has been a "trick" to starting every carbed engine I've ever had. They can be finicky in cold weather. Just how cold is it in Texas?
Doesn't sound like a bad deal on the bike. I do wonder why it would have needed the new carb and if it is set up correctly.