New and looking at an 82 650 Seca

Hi Everyone!

I am looking to buy another bike. (have an 06 vstrom 650 and an 80 kz440). I found an 82 Seca 650 for sale... 15k on it. The owner has had it since 1990. He's asking 1700. There is a tad bit of rust... some on the pipes... a couple bolts... oxidation etc. Help me out everyone... what should I look for, is it a decent deal? I just want another solid older bike that i can pile the miles on and make it look nice.

I have included a couple pics as attachments

Brent

 

Looks nice, very original.

 

Do a compression check. I can't remember what the actual number should be, but, as long as they are over a hundred (150?) and are all in the same range, that is a good sign.

How do the plugs look? Burned? light tan? Oily?

Take off the brake fluid reservior and see how the brake fluid looks. Is it rusty or clear?

Does it start with minimal effort? Does it smoke? How does the oil look?

Look in the gas tank, is it rusty?

These are just some of the things I looked at when I buy older bikes. Not an exhaustive list by any stretch, but, a good start.

 

All good suggestions. Pay particularly close attention to the condition of the fuel tank. If it's rusty, you will have to replace it, and they are very hard to find in good condition. Another rust-prone spot on these bikes is the collector/crossover unit. These are also difficult and expensive to replace, so keep that in mind.
Mechanically speaking, the Seca 650 is about as close to bullet-proof as any bike can be. I put 80,000+ miles on my first one, and there is close to 50K on the one I have now. In all of that time, I have yet to experience any kind of system failure. Engine, brakes, clutch, tranny, final drive...all have performed flawlessly. The carbs are a bit hinky and hard to get just right, but other than that, there is very little to be afraid of with these bikes. If it starts and runs well, buy it. You won't be dissapointed.

 

bergmbr,
don't take off the fluid reservoir! If the screw breaks in you might end up buying the bike. A lot of them are seized up and hard to open up. The seller will not be responsible if you break things.

 

The bike looks good. May be you could get it for a little less than the asking price. Hard times make it a buyers market.

 

Agreed. You'll want to replace the stock brake line anyway so wait until then to worry it. Get some good penetraiting spray and soak the srews for a couple of days. Also dont worry if the gas tank has rust, worry if it is rusted threw. If it isn't rusted threw then there are many methods of cleaning it (i prefer the electrolysis method personally). You definatly want to check the compression before making a final decision though.

 

If it starts and runs (seemingly OK) do a compression test; if it's good offer the guy $1200 and see what he says. Nice example, you can always "bargain up" a bit but I wouldn't go over $1500.

I would poke about underneath and ensure the exhaust collector is solid as mentioned above; don't worry about tires (you'll want to replace unless new within the last 2 years) or brakes (you're going to go thru those right away anyway.) A complete and solid stock exhaust system is a definite plus.