Looking for advice, as a prospective buyer
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I've been keeping tabs on the obvious places like ebay and gumtree for a dt 125, are there any other decent websites/sources for second hand bikes that are worth checking out? I have googled a bit, but a lot of the sites I've come across seem to be dead with 2+ year old ads.
Also looking for tips on things to avoid and any red flags when dealing with second hand bikes. Any and all help would be apreciated. I've got about £600 cash spare, and hoping to sell my ps4 with 9 games for £270 console and overwatch alone is worth that so I think I should get it fairly easily, so all in all £870 so far which from the prices I've seen won't get me anything that is get on and ride away kind of condition. Getting a rough figure in my head of what I should expect to pay for various condition DT's would be helpfull.
Say running but no mot needs a few odds and ends doing.
Non runner needs rebuilding, but rest in reasonable condition.
Complete shed non runner missing parts needs a lot of work.
Thanks in advance.
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It's a tricky one. They do come up sometimes cheap. But remember tbis is a classic two stroke that is rapidly rising in value. I can't say You will find mich for 800 running. And the ones are aren't reqrequire a good sum of money for a nut and bolt rebuild.
I see it time and time again people buying these bikes cheaply as a mode of transport, only to slate the bike weeks later because its constant fault after fault.
My advice is to either get something less desirable as a commuter. And a dt as a project. Or save more mobey and get somethig that has been loved a little more.
As far as what can go wrong. Thete are no real common faults. Unless they haven't been built properly.
Everything can fail. It's just a case of what's gone wrong on the bike you're viewing. The bikes have useless brakes.
Head gaskets go when using cheap pattern ones. Otger than that they're solid
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Yeah I figured as much I've seen a couple of interesting bikes. A 1998 dtr for £600 that runs but sounds a bit fishy dont think it comes with v5 it looks in reasonable condition from the pics only thing missing i can see is indicators, and a 2001 dtr project that's completely stripped down and in bits for £375 but its nearly 300 miles away in scotland somewhere
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@John1 Sadly as with everything in life, you only get what you pay for. If Ducati's and Ferrari's were as cheap as chips then we all would be buzzing around in them. You would be better off to continue to save up and then buy the best bike that you can. The decent instant ride away DT's go for around the £1500+ mark, for an average condition bike you would be looking at £1200+ and anything below £1000 will need a fair bit of work doing it. Having said that all DT's are getting on a bit now, so parts will wear out and need replacing, but that's part of the fun of owning a classic bike!
I bought the best one I could find with a clean HPI and the lowest mileage, I searched for 3-4 months and she still needed some work doing to her. Just don't rush in and buy with your heart, ignore the demons and wait for the right one to come along. eBay and Gumtree are about the best places to look, but check your local ads too. Have a long chat with the seller as that will tell you how well they have looked after her and ridden her too. Plus I wouldn't buy anything without a V5 and do a HPI check before you hand over any cash!!!
I would focus on finding a good runner with a sound engine and suspension, as there the most costly areas to fix. It doesn't matter if it looks tatty as new plastics, decals and a couple of tins of spray paint will make her look sharp again and that's easier work to do, rather than rebuild an engine or forks. So if I were you I would just keep saving up and searching for one and when a good-un pops up you will be in the best position to go get her!!! ;O)
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@John1 That's a good plan dude! You can speed things up by having a good clear out and sell as much unused stuff as you can. Hell you can even sell old clothes and shoes for cash these days. For example if you sold 4 items for £25 each, then that's an extra £100 towards your new ride. ;O)
You can now also do some free vehicle checks before you make contact with the seller, which will give you an insight into the bikes history. The DVLA are running Beta version's of a vehicle's ownership and MOT history, all you need is the reg no# and make, so you can get some details of the bikes past etc.
Links are here;
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@John1 Just the MOT checker alone gives you quite a lot of details about the history of the bike and how well it's been cared for. It tells you a story about it's life and how the owners have treated her. Such basic things like worn tyres and brake pads suggest she's been ridden hard. Failures for high emissions and excessive smoke suggest lots of high revving and infrequent servicing. Worn chains and sprockets suggest heavy handedness on the throttle. Faulty headlights, indicators, brake lights etc. suggest wiring problems. Parts will naturally wear out over time, but an owner who cherishes their bike will check all of these prior to a test and fix any problems if need be, so that she stands a good chance of passing first time. Regular servicing and spanner-time will tell you how well the bike has been looked after. Also look at the reasons for failure's and the advisory's too, if the same one's reoccur then it's safe to say that the bike has had a hard life.
Try this little test and see for yourself. This is a bike I was looking at today, I was quite shocked when I ran the MOT checker. Just click the link above and enter these details below and you will see why.
Check the MOT history of a vehicle
Registration number: DX56BYO
Vehicle make APRILIAIn comparison enter these details of another bike and you will see a vast difference.
Check the MOT history of a vehicle
Registration number: DX57FXZ
Vehicle make APRILIAAlso check the yearly mileage recorded, the top bike readings are pretty shocking and it looked really good too!!! :O(
