The Dream is a Reality - I Bought a 2002 Dyna Wide Glide!

After an unproductive road trip to Connecticut last week to look at a couple of used Harley prospects (see http://harley-bound.blogspot.com/2010/01/hunt-moves-to-connecticut.html), I was a bit discouraged. I scanned motorcycles for sale on Craigslist every night, and scanned eBay every few days, but there were no other decent prospects nearby for any of the models I wanted (Wide Glide/Low Rider/Softail Custom or Standard) in my price range. A Harley dealer in New Jersey had a nice 1998 Wide Glide listed online for $7,800, but when I factored in shipping costs (about $500), the deal wasn't as attractive. Besides, I really didn't want to drive that far to look at a bike.

Then, I decided to see if the 2002 Wide Glide I had looked at in Massachusetts last month was still available. It was listed on eBay and Craigslist for $7,900. After I went to see it on Dec. 29, the owner rejected my offer of $7,000. He counter-offered to sell it for $7,750 - no less - adding that he could sell it for much more in the spring (see http://harley-bound.blogspot.com/2009/12/tale-of-two-wide-glides.html). The eBay auction ended without the bike selling, but I didn't see it re-listed on either eBay or Craigslist. In the meantime, I had saved up some more money, so I emailed the seller on Jan. 14 and said I would be willing to buy the bike for $7,750, if I could test ride it. But there was still sand and salt on the roads where the bike was, and the owner said the salt would damage the chrome. I didn't want the salt attacking the chrome, so I agreed a test ride was not a good idea.

Next, I had to find someone with an enclosed motorcycle trailer to help me transport the bike. I put out the word among my Christian biker network (and even my Facebook page), and chased several leads. I also considered renting a U-Haul truck. Then Mike Laplante, a Christian biker and member of the CMA Kingdom Kruzers chapter in East Bay, R.I., offered to use his pickup truck and enclosed trailer to get my bike. After coordinating schedules with the seller and Mike, we arranged to get the bike Saturday morning.

On Friday afternoon, I went to my bank and withdrew most of my savings account, asking for mostly $100 bills. I have never held so much cash in my hands in my life, and I was nervous. Needless to say, I didn't get much sleep that night.

I arrived at Mike's house at 8:00 the next morning, and his truck and trailer were ready to roll for the 90-minute drive to New Braintree, Mass., where, unlike Rhode Island, there was still quite a bit of snow on the ground, as well as sand and salt on the roads. The seller, Don, had plowed the road to the shed in back of his house, where the bike was being stored. Also, Danny, the owner of the bike, met us there. (Don and Danny are friends, and Don is selling the bike for Danny, who works a night shift job.)

Danny gave me the title, bill of sale, owner's manual, two keys and stock exhaust pipes, and gave me a quick rundown on the bike's controls. Then, I counted out $7,750 in cash, and we loaded the bike onto Mike's trailer. Mike had the bike tied down in less than five minutes, and we were on our way back to my place in southern R.I., a two hour, 90-mile trip.

We unloaded the bike in my driveway, started it up and I rode it into my garage, as Mike, who was just as excited as I was, took pictures to commemorate the occasion.

The whole thing felt like a dream, and I literally had to pinch myself to realize this was indeed real. My CMA Romans 8 Riders chapter president, Spike, a diehard Harley guy, knows quite well what I'm feeling, because when I saw him today, he asked me, "So ... how many times have you been out to the garage to look at it?"

I just have to thank God, through Jesus Christ, for blessing me with the bike of my dreams - right down to my first choice of color! God is awesome!

The Hunt Moves to Connecticut

Today I took my hunt for a used Harley to the neighboring state of Connecticut. I had a fairly long drive, but I planned to look at two bikes that happened to be located fairly close to each other.

My first stop was T.S.I. Harley-Davidson in Ellington, Conn., about a two-hour ride from my apartment. I had printed out driving directions from Mapquest.com, but made a wrong turn as I got near the dealership. I don't think I have EVER had a set of Mapquest directions that got me to my destination without an unplanned detour, or at least some uncertainty. I would have kicked Mapquest to the curb long ago, if it wasn't free.

Anyway, at T.S.I. Harley, I met Kevin, who had a 2001 Dyna Wide Glide for sale on Craigslist. It was around lunchtime, so I followed Kevin (who works in the dealership's service department) to his house nearby to look at the bike, which was black, my favorite color. Kevin told me he had bought the bike cheap from a guy going through a divorce, with the intention of reselling it for a profit. The bike had about 18,000 miles, but it was not what I'd call a clean bike. There was some pitting and corrosion on the chrome (including the spoked wheels), and flaking paint and rust on the lower frame. There were also some questionable wiring splices that looked like they used a good portion of a roll of electrical tape. The engine sounded good and the exhaust (Vance & Hines Short Shots) was loud, and as I revved it and let off the throttle, it had that backrap sound I always associate with hearing Harleys in the distance.

Kevin was asking $7,900, and I offered $7,500, but he said the price was firm, so I shook his hand and went on my way. Truth be told, I wasn't impressed enough with the bike's condition to even pay $7,500, but I was curious to see how flexible he was.

After stopping for lunch, I went back to T.S.I. H-D to look at their used bike inventory. I sat on a few bikes, but they had nothing that interested me. I decided I don't want a Heritage Softail or a Fatboy, because I don't like floorboards or the angle my knees were bent while sitting on those bikes. I like the leg position of the forward controls on a Wide Glide much better.

Next, I drove about 10 miles to Shark Cycle, a Victory motorcycle dealer in Stafford Springs (and got lost again - thanks, Mapquest!). They have a 2002 Dyna Low Rider listed for about $7,300 on Cycletrader.com. I had called about it a few weeks ago and the dealership's owner, Bob, said someone had put a deposit on it, but was unable to pony up the rest of the money, so he said if I wanted the bike, it was mine. I got busy and forgot about this bike, until I decided to go look at the other bike and figured I'd kill two bikes with one stone, as it were.

My first impression of Shark Cycles, was, well ... not too impressed. The used bikes were crammed so close together that I could not sit on one, or even closely inspect it, without the salesman having to move other bikes. And when I told the salesman that I wanted to start the engine, he tried to see how serious I was about buying it before he walked it outdoors so I could hear it run. C'mon guys ... looking at a bike shouldn't be this much work, should it?

The bike, which had about 15,000 miles, was clean and had forward controls, and its engine also sounded fine. The rear tire didn't have much tread life remaining, but I wondered if the bike had been dropped in the past (the dealer took the bike as a trade-in). There was a dent in the left side of the gas tank; the stock handlebars had been replaced; the rear fender was off-center; and the front tire was worn more to one side (although I've been told that any one of these things doesn't necessarily indicate accident damage).

I noticed something else a bit odd: The tachometer and speedometer housing on the gas tank was crooked, and the rubber gasket was cracked, faded and loose - it didn't fit the general condition of the rest of the bike, and something seemed "off," even though I couldn't quite put my finger on it. Just intution, I guess.

Of course, the owner and salesman tried to get me to commit to the bike with at least a deposit, but I told them I would have to think about it. They would not lower the price. Before I left, I used their bathroom, which had perhaps the weirdest sign I've ever seen posted in a rest room. It read, "Please don't go #2 in here. Ask us about a more private bathroom."

I returned home, having logged 200 miles on my van with no Harley to show for it. Tomorrow, the hunt continues ....

Wide Glide Didn't Sell ...

Well, as expected, the 2002 Wide Glide that the seller declined my offer of $7,000 (http://harley-bound.blogspot.com/2009/12/tale-of-two-wide-glides.html), failed to sell on eBay. (The bike was also listed on Craigslist, and the seller had the right to end the auction early if the bike sold locally.)

Bidding in the seven-day auction, which also had a "Buy It Now" option to purchase the bike for $7,799, started at $150. There were a total of 10 bids from seven bidders, and the high bid was $6,000, which failed to hit the reserve price, so the bike did not sell (even though it has been listed at least twice previously, and had its price reduced for the third time, according to the listing). I don't know how much the seller has been dropping the price, but he was only willing to drop it $150 for me.

The auction's results didn't surprise me, since the bids on the majority of Harleys listed on eBay fail to reach the reserve, so a low percentage of bikes listed are selling. From what I've seen, people are only bidding up to around $5,500 or $6,000 for Dynas. I can sort of understand that, since I would not be willing to pay a lot for a bike if I did not see or inspect it in person, and it had no warranty (this was a private-party bike). In that situation, you are basically taking the seller at his word on the bike's condition (I once saw a classified ad describe a car as "mint condition," only to go find the car looked like it had sat in a junkyard the last five years). Of course, photos help, but they don't tell the whole story.

Personally, I would not buy a motorcycle that I did not see in person (this particular bike was less than 100 miles away from me, so I was able to physically inspect it). I will keep looking on eBay in case there are other prospects that are fairly close to me.

Tale of Two Wide Glides

Well, I've decided that Harley's Wide Glide model is my first choice, so the hunt is now on full swing. My first try at one ended in failure (read my last post) and soured me on dealers a bit, so, after taking a break, I decided to look at private seller bikes. I saw a 1999 Wide Glide on my local Craigslist, and a 2002 Wide Glide for sale in Massachusetts (the '02 was being listed on both Craigslist and eBay).

After a flurry of emails and phone calls, I managed to coordinate the schedules of three parties - not an easy task. I can't thank my CMA brother Roland Caron enough for offering his time and resources to help me look at Harleys. The plan yesterday (Tuesday) was for me to stop at Roland's house, then the two of us would go look at the '99 bike (which happened to be less than five miles from his house), and then go look at the '02 bike in Massachusetts.

But the guy with the '99 WG called me a few hours before our appointment and said he just sold it. I wasn't disappointed, because the '99 (and some 2000) Harley twin cam engines had issues with cam bearing failures. This bike had fairly low miles (about 15K), but the seller (who is not the original owner) didn't know if the bearings had ever been replaced. I would have felt like I was riding a time bomb ... I'm avoiding 1999 and 2000 model years, unless I found one at an extremely low price. But this bike had sold, so it was a moot point.

Roland and I drove over an hour to Massachusetts to see the other bike. We plugged the seller's address into Roland's GPS. Even with the aid of satellite navigation, we had trouble finding the house, since it was dark and it was in the boonies. The seller was not much help with navigation, since there were so few landmarks, but, after some aggravation, we found the house.

After nearly breaking my neck sliding down a snow and ice-covered hill in his back yard, I saw the bike, crammed into a shed next to another (metric) bike. It was so cramped in the shed that we had to do the limbo to inspect the bike. It was very clean, with low mileage and no leaks or evidence of damage. Although the seller had warmed up the engine prior to our arrival, Roland said the engine sounded good.

The ever-helpful Roland even brought his helmet and coveralls in case the seller allowed a test ride (it was around 15 degrees that night - what a trooper!). But with the snow and ice on the roads, a test ride was obviously out of the question. Still, Roland gave the bike a thumbs-up.

Since the bike passed muster, the next issue was price; the asking price was $7,900. The eBay listing said the bike's price had been reduced twice. Seeing that most bids on similar motorcycles on eBay only go as high as $5,000-$6,000, it was doubtful it would sell this time either.

I would have been satisfied to get the bike for an even $7,000, but was reluctant to offer more on a bike I couldn't test ride and had no warranty, so that's what I offered. The seller did not actually own the bike; he was selling it for his friend, so he called his friend and left a message for him. This morning, the seller sent me an email saying his friend would not accept $7,000.

"He will drop to $7,750," he wrote. "It will fetch that in the spring no problem."

I emailed him back telling him he might as well wait until spring, since I was not willing to increase my offer.

So, I'm back to square one again ... as much as I love riding motorcycles, I sure hate shopping for them.

My First Serious Harley Prospect - Lessons Learned

(Disclaimer: Normally, I try to be as specific as possible in my writing, but I am being intentionally vague on certain details in order to protect the identity of the 'other party' in the story. Read on and you'll see why.)

This tale began a couple weeks ago, when I had to run an errand. It happened to be near a place that sells motorcycles, so I stopped there to look at a Dyna with mid controls that was within my price range. The Dyna didn't grab me, but I saw a black, older twin cam Wide Glide I really liked. It was a bit more than I wanted to spend, but I was told I qualified for financing.

I returned to the sales outlet a couple days later to put a deposit on the bike. Although I was pressed for time that day, my intention in putting the deposit down was to hold the bike until I could return a few days later, when I would have more time to give the bike a thorough inspection and possibly take it for a test ride. Before I plunked down my deposit, I made sure to ask if it was refundable should I change my mind about the bike. I was told yes, it was refundable.

So, when I was able to return five days later, my friend Roland and I closely inspected the bike. As sharp as the bike appeared upon first glance, it had some significant problems, including an engine seal that was leaking a fair amount of oil (plus some oil seepage from the bottom of a cylinder head) and some bare electrical wires where the wire insulation was worn away. There was also evidence that the bike had been down (scrapes on a mirror and hand control lever). The salesman, of course, downplayed the problems and suggested that perhaps I would be better off buying a new bike, but he would not come down on price.

At this point, I asked the sales manager for my deposit back, but he balked, and said he would have to run it by the owner. Needless to say, I was not happy (this was the very same manager who assured me the deposit was refundable). I waited three days (it was over a weekend) and called the manager. He transferred me to the salesman, who offered to include an extended warranty at no additional cost.

But they did not offer to fix the problems with the bike (ideally, you would think they would have gone through the bike and corrected any problems BEFORE they put it on the sales floor). Nor did they offer to reduce the price. So I said "no, thanks" to the extended warranty, and requested my deposit back. The salesman called me back a few minutes later and said I could come by that day to get my deposit. I drove up a few hours later and the sales manager gave me a check in the amount of my deposit, but he said that I "basically wanted a new bike at a used bike price."

I disagree with that statement, and so do my CMA friends. This sales outlet was trying to get top dollar for an older bike with problems, when bikes much newer, with much less mileage, are selling elsewhere for very close to the same price. I'm not expecting a perfect bike cheap. I'm just expecting a bike fairly priced.

So, this incident left a bad taste in my mouth, and they lost any future business from me. I did learn from it, though. Trying to do things in a hurry is never a good idea, and I will never leave a deposit on a bike without thoroughly checking it out first.

Getting closer to a Harley

"You have caught Harley fever ... an affliction that causes a normally sane and sensible man to turn into a wide-eyed, drooling, impulsive, overspending, freak ... although there is no known cure, other than a HD purchase ... God have mercy on ya." (a member of HDForums.com)

Well, this past week, I have begun shopping in earnest for a used Harley. I've scanned the Internet for bikes for sale at Harley dealers; independent dealers; online classifieds; eBay and Craigslist.

I'm finding that most Harley dealers have a limited selection of used bikes, and most of their used bikes are late-model years. Few H-D dealers in my area have 2000-01 or older model years (I saw a sharp 2001 Wide Glide at a dealer, but it's a bit more than I had hoped to spend - more on this bike to follow).

Online classified sites like Cycle Trader, Chopper Exchange or HD4sale.com, have few bikes I like in my price range.

I've seen some Harleys in my price range on eBay, Craigslist and some independent used motorcycle dealers. Buying a motorcycle halfway across the country through eBay doesn't appeal to me for obvious reasons, so I made a few calls on bikes listed on Craigslist. None of the bikes I called about sounded promising, though. There was a 1993 Wide Glide near me, but I didn't want to look at it since it had a heavily-modified engine and had probably been ridden hard (it sounded like a young dude on the phone).

Other Craigslist bikes in my price range were either a bit older (late '80s/early '90s) than I'm looking for, or else the owners knew little about the bike's maintenance and repair history. I was kind of hoping to find a one-owner Harley that had been lovingly cared for, but apparently there are few out there when you're talking about bikes between 1995 and 2001. At least I didn't come across any so far in my search.

There are two used-motorcycle dealers in Massachusetts and one in New Hampshire that have some used Harleys within my price range, but they tended to be higher-mileage bikes or had some minor damage. One of the Massachusetts dealers had a really clean 1998 Softail Custom advertised for $5,995, but the listing didn't mention the mileage. I called about the bike and was told the odometer was inoperative, therefore, the title was listed as "total mileage unknown." I knew there had to be a reason for the low price. Next ...

Besides calling dealers, I've been doing research on Harley-Davidson discussion groups about the merits of the Evolution (Evo) 80-inch Big Twin engines (pre-1999), versus the 1999-up Twin Cam 88 engines. I'm told the 1999 and some 2000 twin cam engines had problems with cam bearings, so I'm avoiding those two years. Another weak link on twincam Harleys is the cam chain tensioner shoes, not limited to any particular year or years.

Then there is the decision of carbureted versus fuel injection; all Harleys 2004 and newer are fuel injected.

It's enough to make this newbie's head spin, so thankfully, my brothers in CMA - Spike, Roland and Cameron, all Harley guys - have been helping me sort through these issues. All of them have been more than helpful in schooling me.

I was on the phone tonight with Cameron and told him I'm finally about to join the "club" of Harley owners.

"It's the ONLY club," said Cameron, who rides a 2002 Road King. "I'm excited for you!"

At least I've narrowed down (somewhat) the particular models I like, and have even ranked them in order of preference. My first choice is the Dyna Wide Glide (FDXWG), followed by the Dyna Low Rider (FXDL), Softail Custom (FXSTC) and Softail Standard (FXST).

I would consider some other models, such as a Dyna Superglide or Sport; a Fat Boy; a Softail Springer; a Heritage Softail; or possibly a Road King. But for me to choose a bike in this second group, it would have to be an extraordinarily good deal.