1971 Kawasaki H1

[RDryan]

Hi, has anyone seen the Ebay auction on this bike? Well I certainly have and as of now I am the highest bidder ...but the reserver still hasn't been. However I just got an email from EBay saying the seller lowered the reserve further and again the reserve still hasn't been met? Seller claims it's all original with low miles and it looks to live up to that claim. It's a really clean bike in really nice shape. There's approximately two days left in the auction. What do you guys think it's worth? Any further ideas on this bike? I really don't have room for another bike so not sure I wan't to entertain a higher offer than the 4,544 ferns I'm willing to part with but if the seller was willing to sell at that price (I suspect not) then I believe this bike would be a steal. It looks to be investment quality but of course I would have to enjoy it

Please check it out and let me no what you think, cheers!

https://www.ebay.com/itm/283517843441?ViewItem=&item=283517843441&category=6710

[RDryan]

Well I got cold feet and retracted my bid...and it's not because I can't afford it. More like I have no room for another bike and I guess I was stunned by the proposition of maybe owning it, I would own it gracefully. I mean I would just have to build a bigger shed which I need anyway. I guess I do worry a bit about having money tied up in something that may succumb to rust/corrosion. 

Honestly though I really like this year, paint scheme of the Kawasaki triples and this seems like a great starting point/example.  I think its up and coming in terms of collectable value but I feel biased since I obsess over em. Not sure what the future really has in store in terms of collecting value so I guess one just buys out of passion and accepts this lust?

Thoughts on this bike are still encouraged and I will be engaged in keeping this conversation going, cheers.

[m in sc]

its a nice example. bet it goes over 6500

[Hawaii-Mike]

Looks like a good rider, a few scratches and dings but that's okay to most of us.

[RDryan]

its a nice example. bet it goes over 6500

Yeah that's what I was thinking, maybe as much as 7k...One of the selling points of that bike is that it was so close to me locally.  I know they're around but it seems like a Unicorn in my backyard and Ma. is a title state so the seller clearly stated their was a clean title which is a huge plus.

On that note I've been getting in a bad habit of sticking the plate from my gixxer on to my RD for my little backroad blasts. Pass by cops all the time and it just seems like they never want to bother with stopping bikes. Of course the day I do get stopped or heaven forbid I get into an accident that's when the crap will hit the fan, just thinking about the importance of titles and all that boring legal stuff. I know it's not smart but heck I even throw the plate on my little Honda Ruckus. I just like to use my stuff when the weather is nice. The other thing that kinda shys me away from wanting this awesome ride besides a lack of proper garaging is that our nice riding weather has been really spotty. It just seems like the bikes collect too much dust.

[m in sc]

.. i actualyl got a speeding ticket on an rd maybe 12? years ago that had my 99 sv plate on it. cop never caught it. paid ticket, no issues. 

[RDryan]

Ha,ha that is awesome! So much for the devil in the details

[RDryan]

Well I kept her on my watch list and bidding ended with reserve met at 5,500$. Not too shabby a deal.

[m in sc]

WOW, NICE.   

[RDryan]

WOW, NICE.   

Oh I hope I didn't give you the impression that I actually bought. I kinda wish I had but alas no I just kept an eye on her during the closing hours and followed up at the end to see what she sold for. I really think someone got a great deal for their money so yeah I kinda have bidders remorse :(

Probably for the best though as I have more room to keep the bikes I have as well as capital to keep them in good running shape. Had the best time yesterday in very sunny 75/80 degree weather riding my RD. It's funny the little 250 certainly doesn't make the power of a 500 but it's just very easy to keep on the pipe and really shift it thru the gears. Easier to make her sing and in that respect I would guess more fun.

[pdxjim]

I've owned a KH400, '70 H1 and a '69 H1 with '72 H2 engine and frontend.

They're very cool.  They sound awesome and can make good power.

That said, Yamaha's are just better all around.  Handle way better, way better engineered, way easier to work on, way easier to setup, way better factory parts support, and way way better aftermarket parts support and parts cross reference.

Plus, with triples, there's one more of everything.  One more of everything gets expensive quick.

[paul1478]

I tend to agree with you but I still would LOVE to ride a 750.

[RDryan]

Yeah that's how I feel, I would love to ride either the 750 or 500 just see what it's all about.

However it's uplifting to know that I'm not really missing out on that much. Most of the roads I ride and really wanna ride you feel like your flying at speeds approaching 60 to 70 mph. So I guess a bike truly light on its feet that invites me to row the gearbox just seems to make sense. I actually got the 250 up to 85 mph the other day on the highway and boy did it feel squirrely,backed off the throttle pretty quick upon seeing those numbers, probably had something to do with the tires being modern tubeless Avons with tubes in em. I dunno just a guess. If I want warp speed I just go ride my gixxer 1k

[m in sc]

ive had a few s2s, a 400, a few 500s and 2 750s. they all were good, out of all i liked the s2 the most as a bike. the yamahas are just better bikes, agreed. I liked the triples but, meh.  I sold off my last triple 2? years ago, dont miss them at all. 

[RDryan]

Wow that's interesting to hear. Well those S2's I imagine are the most affordable to get into rather than the H1 and H2's. That's the thing that kinda makes em a bucket list bike for me. They just seem like they are too much money for what they are but then again I don't see them for sale too often so I'm always intrigued as to their growing investment value.