It's a 1982 Honda CX500. It's got a 500 cc v-twin, 5 speed gearbox, shaft drive, and a little over 30k on the clock. Don't worry, the fairing has already been removed.
Riding a motorcycle was never really something I would have thought I'd get so excited about. After graduating from school a little over a year ago, I had always planned on getting my endorsement, and then finding a bike whenever the mood struck. I ended up taking a basic rider course through the local MSF chapter with a buddy of mine, and even though we only got to 20 or 25 in the parking lot, I was hooked! I had an absolute blast - way more entertaining than I thought it would be. I've always been of the, "4 wheels are the only way I'll go" camp, but not so much.
So anyways, after taking the course, I REALLY wanted a bike, like RIGHT NOW! I starting hitting CL hard, and came across this one after about a week of looking. The max I really wanted to spend was around $1k. I knew this would get me a bike in the 1980s, and I knew for that price I could find something decent. As I was discovering, most bikes for this price had a catch (they needed some sort of major work; clutch, brakes, electrical). It seemed like everyone had that ONE thing that would really need work before it could be ridden reliably. Those that didn't, were sold before I could even take a look at them. I didn't want a fixer-upper, I wanted something I could go out and learn to ride on, build up skills, and build up confidence.
So, when I found this one, I knew I couldn't wait, or it would be gone. I ended up looking at it twice. Once to give it a once-over, see what it was all about, size up the seller, and get the low-down on the general condition, and the second time to take it for a ride. Mechanically, it was great! Started right up, and ran without a hiccup. I took that night to research as much as I could about reliability history, reviews, and what to look out for with these bikes (which there isn't much to be honest). The next day I had a buddy drive me to the test ride, and I said that if it rode well, I would by it (had cash in hand). Well, it did, so I jumped on the deal. Even talked the guy down a bit from his asking price.
As I stated, it runs great. It has plenty of power for someone just starting off riding. It is a bit top-heavy, but I've started to get used to it, and it's really not that bad. It's pretty comfortable for riding an hour or two at a time (that's the longest I've gone so far). It's not the prettiest bike out there, but it's not bad by any means. It should make a great winter project to tear down, clean up, and tinker around with in general. The biggest thing I've learned so far - I have NO IDEA HOW TO WORK ON CARBURETORS!!! They are completely foreign to me, and it makes me upset.
I've got the obligatory safety gear to go along with it. I bought a nice helmet and jacket, and am using my shop boots and gloves for the time being. I still don't understand folks who ride around without any protective gear, especially a helmet. I've been hit with so many bugs, that alone would make me want a helmet (aside from the obvious head protection). Whatever... to each their own I guess.
Current plan is to ride this bike for a year or two to get a good foundation skill set. Then I'll look at getting something a little bit... more. Maybe a sport bike of some sort, because I've never really like the cruiser/chopper look. We'll see....
Long story short, I'm beginning to understand this whole motorcycle thing. So far, it's been an absolute blast, and I'm looking forward to many miles ahead.
