This confirms it: I've lost my mind.

Today I went and bought this, with the intention to [try to] restore it and sell it. I had to. The price was begging me to. They only wanted $150 for it! I can give up on it, part it out, and still come out way ahead.



Seat is in great condition. Pipes are missing. One side cover is missing. EVERYTHING has rust on it, even the plastic. It turns over, it has good compression, and aside from that cover and the pipes and a battery, everything is present.

I plan on keeping it stock. There are still some leftover parts from my first bike that I can swap out. I'll start a new build thread for this bike elsewhere, but just wanted to share my insanity with you guys here.

Oh, and supposedly it's an 1982 XJ650, but the VIN doesn't seem right. There was no title, only a bill of sale. I'm thinking it might be an 83. I'll look it up later to confirm.

 

Looks like fun!

 

I know, right?

 

JYA 5N800 6CA 023220

Ok then. So it is an '82. Cool.

 

That's not insanity. What you have there is a sound financial decision. Call it an investment (esp. if you have a Significant Other to answer to!) You weren't planning on spending anything more on it, right?

 

Ps That John Deere in the background says "FREE"... Wanna talk about shipping that to Canada? Got a bigger new lawn to mow soon, and with all the XJ lovin' ahead for you, you won't have time to ride it!

 

That's a great parts bike right there!!! I'd have grabbed it too ....you'll put $1000 or more into it to make it a $1000 bike. Part it out, save the best bits, and sell the rest --- make some money, take her out for dinner, then start over with the next one... Let the hobby feed itself

 

I suppose the insane part is that I'm going to go for restoring it first. I don't really have anywhere to store those parts. I'm trying to slowly convince the wife that a two car garage isn't enough room and we need to get one of those backyard sheds. Also, she turned to me and noted that it's a two seater, and maybe she can go for a ride with me on it. Ha! Now I can get her with the ol' bait-n-switch. "But it's so nice to go on rides together... maybe we should just keep it."

That's the wife's ride. She actually enjoys mowing. I don't get it. That free sign has saved me MANY trips to Goodwill.

 

As long as you can jump through whatever hoops you need to in order get a legit title! You can make a nice ride out of it---

 

I checked online, and it seems the first step is to call the State of Ohio Titling Support hotline within 30 days. They don't specify hours, so I'm going to assume bank hours. I'll call tomorrow during lunch.

 

Good luck getting a title in Ohio. It's near impossible.

 

I haven't called yet, but I have a plan B. Seems Vermont is very open about vehicle registration, and you don't have to be a resident or even present to register a vehicle. If it's over 15 years old, a bill of sale is all you need. Check out the FAQ for proof!

After that it's just a matter of transferring the registration from VT to OH.

 

Update: called the hotline. They said talk to your local Court of Common Pleas. I called them and got transferred to someone who was on their lunch break, too. Waiting for a call back. So far none of this has been of the "forget it, you're screwed" variety.

For the record, I'm jumping through these hoops:

1. to document it for other Ohioans looking to title "parts" bikes, and
2. because I'm betting it'll be cheaper to re-title in state than it will be to register in VT then transfer.

I'll probably copy it over to a "How To" thread later on, whatever my results are.

 

Got a call back. I'll need to track down the person with the original title. Court of Common Pleas can only help if the person with the original title is deceased. I didn't realize I'd need to kill anyone.

The place I bought it from is closed today, so I'll call them tomorrow to see if I can contact whoever they bought it from. For him to get a replacement title made up, he'd have to visit the DMV, fill out a form, show ID, and pay $15. I'll offer to pay the fee and meet him there.

 

I'd offer to pay for gas and buy the guy a nice lunch too.

 

I agree that would be the decent thing to do, but logistically he's got a decent competitor in the State of Vermont: if I'm reading everything correctly, I think they only want $44 to register the bike.

Huh. I may just go ahead and go the VT route. First things first though: try to get it running to see if it's worth titling.

 

Good condition seats alone go for $150 on eBay so you're already even if you decided to part it out.

 

I'll sell you my seat for 125

 

Interesting about Vermont! At least one of our states hasn't gone full jerk.

 

"Live free or die." Oh wait, that's New Hampshire.

"Freedom and unity." That makes sense, too.