One of the biggest challenges here at heartbreak is saying no. This is especially hard when that "no" applies to taking in another vintage bike in need of love. We have enough bikes on site to keep us busy for years, and space is a constant issue. Sometimes though, when the deal right, you stop thinking "no" and start thinking about how you're going to make more room. Here is an example of Tim making that compromise yesterday.
Following a lead on a running xs650 for 500$ brought me out to the rural farm land west of Ann Arbor. Upon my arrival, the homeowner lead me into a nearby barn and showed me the 1975 xs650 in the background. It kicked over with good compression, and was in decent shape. I was happy to lay the 500 bills on the barrel head for what I considered to be a fair deal. Then she says "hey are you interested in junk motorcycles"? My interest was of course peaked! She tells me that she has another bike "kind of like this one" in another barn. I am "welcome to have it" she says, "to go along with this one". She stated that she was planning on taking it to the scrap yard anyway. I was lead to yet another barn where I found what appeared to be another inline twin. This one though, had so many years upon years of bird poop and guano on it, that its make and model were almost unrecognizable! My intrigue quickly outweighed my disgust. I shrugged my shoulders and declared "Ill take it"! I carefully loaded both bikes onto the trailer and somehow avoided getting covered in bird excrement. Upon arrival back at the heartbreak lab, I pulled out the hose and got busy washing away those years of digested bugs and worms. Slowly I reveal the bike in the foreground. The tank alone, with its era specific font and time earned patina, was worth the monies spent on the whole package deal!
-Tim
Posted on
Sat, August 18, 2012
by Tim Roe
filed under