hey all,
just started looking for my first bike (again)
i had my motorcycle license when i was 22 but quickly found out that insurance is more than the bike when you are that young... so 6 years later im getting my license again and buying a bike. (insurance is now just under $600/year for me)

so im looking at getting a 883 to learn on for this season, and ive decided that i was EFI so im going for 07+
ive found a few, some have issues with previous owners not paying for them so they have a lein on them, then i came across another one.
im in canada and its a US bike, its been canadian certified and owned here for 2 years.
now, heres the only concern... the engine "jugs" heat fins (or whatever they are called) are bent on the front cylinder.
the engine fires up and runs great, i dont see any oil leaking, and he said he has had it like that since he got it. he seems like a trustworthy guy, doesnt seem pressed for cash at all (nice big house, lots of big boy toys kicking around, and some newer vehicles) he did mention most his vehicles are from USA, so it looks like he imports them, keeps them for a couple years then sells.

the bike has a 100% clean title, and no damage on it other than this. i ran about 4 different background checks on it before i went to see it.

heres a pic of the damage. also the clutch leaver has a barely noticeable scuff on it. doesnt look like it went down while in motion as there are no cat scratch grind marks. im wondering if it tipped over and landed on something.
anyone foresee this as a potential engine problem?

all the bolts and screws look to be original, and i dont see any tool marks on them, so i dont think that anything else was changed.




i am planing on doing a HD 1200 upgrade over the winter, weather it happens or not we will see.
i also want to put in a power commander and have it properly dyno tuned.

 

sounds like the bike was dropped... not necessarily a big deal, but should lower the price- just make sure to inspect closely to be sure that you can tell all of the damage. if you dont see any leaks at the head gasket or anywhere else then the damage is most likley cosmetic.
welcome to the board (and to a new bike soon)!

 

thanks for the reply!

how hard is it to bend these fins?
other than this the bike really does look like its out of a showroom.
i looked at the leavers and the bar ends first to see if there was any scuffs and didnt see anything, it wasnt till my 3rd time going over every inch of the bike that i noticed the clutch leaver had a tiny scuff on it...

ive got him down to 6grand for it, it has about 4miles on it. in canada this is a good deal(whats that worth in the states? its not a custom, and it has the peanut tank,all stock mid controls). he had it listed at 7grand, and ive seen others listed around the 8 grand mark with 20,000km on them.
last week i got sick of looking at crashed bikes so i went to the dealer to just buy a new one, but the on the road price is more than double the cost of this one. if it was 9 grand on the road ide buy new..maybe even 10. but for a first bike thats even pushing it.

i also want to get a km/hr speedo for it.. i cant see it costing more than $400..i saw a autometer one that also has a tach built into the same gauge but it was in mph.
this is secondary, ill probably start off with a wax stick and mark 40,60,80,100,120 kmph on the bezle till i sort out what to get. or just slap my gps on the handlebars and use it as the speedo for now.

 

man im going to have about a million questions...sorry in advance...

where can i get a nightster rear fender or something similar and im yet to see how their brake lights work... are they tied into the signals or is it a under tail?

what kits should i be looking at to make this bike have forward controls? and any idea where to get them? i saw one on ebay that was about $300 and it said it was made in the same factory as HD OEM... i dont know if i buy that...

 

the bike has 4 miles on it???? sound fishy to me....are you sure you are not looking at the trip meter???? also the fins are easy to end...just very hard to bend back without breaking them off..I don't recommend you try it....and I believe if you go to the hd dealer you can get a speedo sticker that goes on the glass that will read in kph...

 

Welcome.
Why not buy a 1200 to start with?

 

thanks, i wont try messing with the fins then.
4000 miles (i think it said 4186mi)...so about 7000km give or take.
the 2008 i looked at only had 2000km, but thats the one the guy decided to hide and not pay his bills.....


insurance mostly...
my insurance company told me that the 1200 is only $50/year more than the 883, however... in 3 years they have doubled the cost of my car insurance slowly... im still not paying much considering what my friends pay, but they seem to like to give introductory rates for new vehicles then the price goes up.... ive gotten quoted on the 883 and 1200 on a few other companies, and yes i could afford to pay for the 1200, but its not worth it... ide rather buy the 883 and then do a proper conversion on it...ill end up saving the cost of the kit within a year and a half just on the ins rate.
also, the 1200's go for 8-10 grand with similar km on them here, so i have at least 2 grand to put into the bike for a 1200 conversion before i even come close to the cost of a 1200...from what ive heard the kit from harley davidson is about $1000 for the parts.
im good with tools but new to bikes... ill do some reading on the how-to's but im 90% sure this is going to be a winter job for me. i read if i change the pulley it changes the gearing to the same as the 1200 on the transmission, so ill be doing that too.

 

I'd walk away, he is a curber, if he is buying & selling bikes he knows what it's worth, he is selling it below current market value so he knows something you dont.
Your much better buying a used bike locally from someone who has looked after it and can varify it's history, preferably an original owner.

 

hes not a curbsider. he bought it for himself 2 or 3 years ago, i ran the history on it, hes telling the truth.
hes put about 1000 miles on it i think it said.
the other cars he bought from the states were also for personal use, but he, just like many other people, only keeps them for a couple years.
there are very few 07+ harleys for sale, and even less with under 10,000km on them. one of the other 2007's i saw has 23,000km on it, it had been down many many times, and it was blowing blue smoke out the exhaust.

this one looks the best... i think im going to grab it on friday.

 

if you're like me, I'd just go straight for the 1200. Harleys are already slow and the 883 on the highway just seems like a joke status. WOT to keep 70mph, lmfao. it doesn't matter how fast the bike is you learn on, you can crash a damn 250 the same as a 1200.