1911 Indian

[harry76]

Im not going to guess the value of your bike, because it depends on the buyer on the day i guess......... Question is, whats it worth to you?

If you need the money or room to complete another project thats one thing, but if you dont need the money, and someone doesnt offer you ridiculous money is it worth selling? Its always going to look good parked next to the Cobra and if i were allowed to ride your bike on the road like you can then there would be no way in **** id part with it.

I think you should keep it AND start a new project, i know you wanna

 

[cobrafreak]

Yeah, I don't "plan" ,"need", or "want" to sell it, but some of the best laid plans can go awry. I'm going to be at the bike show with 20K people there in two weeks and it's inevitable that someone is going to ask. If I don't think about it before hand and just throw a random number out it probably would be the wrong number. But everything has a price and thank you for helping me find mine.

 

[zean]

Hi cobrafreak. Where is that bike show you will be entering in two weeks? The location of the bike show could help determine the price of your motorized bike, also if your bike is displayed next to a $50,000.00 original board tracker with a $5,000 asking price (which is very fair considering the frame, fork, tires, wheels, gas tank, labor) you may have to sell it by the lottery system. Thankyou.

 

[corgi1]

I think 5G's(or better offer) is a fair price if u do, and it would answer the question when its asked at the show,u've done a lot of work to build it and it looks like great!!!

 

[brett7777]

Definitely 5K. Especially as there are many people who dont have the skills to do this.
In the current economic climate, actual selling prices have more to do with this one thing than anything else: how desperate the seller is.
People who are desperate to sell something in this climate lower their price to meet whoever is immediately interested. That's why people will talk about 2.5K. Because bikes have been put on ebay for low reserves & that's about what they got. That is not an accurate reflection of a bike's value, it is just a reflection of what someone got when they only waited 2 weeks to sell the bike.
I sometimes build bobbers as a side project to our bobber parts business. I recently sold a 1985 250cc bobber for 5.5K. It took 5 months on the market to get that price.
During that time many 'desperados' who had credit card debts etc sold their bobbers that were somewhat similar for amounts like 2 to 3K.
So if you were desperate, yeah, 2.5K.
But the real value is 5K, if not 5.5K. That is based on how the bike stacks up against the real thing (pretty well), how authentic looking it is (pretty authentic looking) & how well built it is (pretty well built).
Also remember, the bike is worth more than what it would cost to build it. That's because some bikes become MORE than the 'sum of all their parts'. Your bike has definitely done that. The end result is a bike that really looks a heck of a lot like an old Indian.
Besides that you have put in thought, labour time, passion, design. So don't sell your abilities off for cheap!
If you sell at 'bottom feeder' prices you will only sell to bottom feeders.
If you sell at it's 'more than the sum of all it's parts' value, then you will attract people with plenty of cash who know exactly what they want & who will appreciate all the work you put into it.
I know who I'd rather sell to

 

[cobrafreak]

That makes a lot of sense Brett. Why sell it at all if I don't need to, especially if I would kick myself in the process. I didn't build it to sell anyway, just enjoy.

 

[harry76]

Yeah id vote to keep it. Its been a long continuous build, with many changes along the way. And you designed it, handmade many parts and assembled a great looking and performing bike with over 40,000 views on this site alone..... i know id regret selling it if i didnt need to.

And if i were to sell it, it would only be after i had nearly completeted another build to take its place, these bikes take a lot of time to build and you dont want to be left without a ride.

 

[harry76]

I think you should start another build and get that lathe you have into action. Id love to see what you come up with for a second build.

 

[Mr.B.]

Keep the bike.
Build another.
Race your son.

"-)

-Kirk

 

[Bike Monster]

what comes to my mind would be 2500 to 3000 but if you did try i would start at 3500... it is such a beautiful bike... i wish i could fabricate.

 

[cobrafreak]

Buy a wire feed non gas welder from HF with coupon. $75 or so out the door and just practice welding pieces of steel together. This is how I learned. Fabricating is just being able to have an idea in your head and then making it real.

 

[Bike Monster]

something like this?
Flux Wire Welder - 90 Amp

 

[cobrafreak]

Yes! That is my Wire Feed gas less welder. I did my whole bike with this unit. It's really easy. You plug it into a 110 and connect the ground clamp to the metal and you just pull the trigger and it feeds wire through the nose of the grip. If you have one of these you can do almost anything on a steel framed bicycle.

 

[harry76]

You have been discussing what price your bike might fetch. Heres another Indian replica with a whizzer. Im not sure if a whizzer or your modified clone engine would be more more desirable and yours is a little more like a replica whereas this is more Indian inspired...... but worth a look anyway

Other Makes : INDIAN | eBay

 

[Bugthunder]

You can often find short courses on TIG & MIG welding at your local CC or technical college. TIG is a nice skill to have and personally I think it is easier than stick or MIG once you get the hang of it. MIG is also a little easier than wire feed as the argon gas shields the weld in progress leaving a much cleaner bead than gasless flux-core wire feeds, and less metal spitting everywhere on your work. If you can lay a bead with wire feed flux-core you will find MIG welding like riding in a Cadillac.

 

[corgi1]

your bike is better

 

[cobrafreak]

You can often find short courses on TIG & MIG welding at your local CC or technical college. TIG is a nice skill to have and personally I think it is easier than stick or MIG once you get the hang of it. MIG is also a little easier than wire feed as the argon gas shields the weld in progress leaving a much cleaner bead than gasless flux-core wire feeds, and less metal spitting everywhere on your work. If you can lay a bead with wire feed flux-core you will find MIG welding like riding in a Cadillac.

I agree. But you can't complain about the price. For about $80 (with 20% off coupon) you can start to make your own things instead of relying on pre-fabbed pieces. I couldn't live without my welders. I had a crack in my head lamp bracket a couple of days ago. I needed two small additional braces put in to make it bullet proof. It took me 10 minutes to cut the metal, weld it in, fix the crack, and paint it. If I needed to go to a welder every time a little matter came up I would go broke. I'll get a welder upgrade myself in the future. I really need to be able to weld aluminum as well as steel.

 

[curtisfox]

My opinion is to buy a good welder to start with because. You sooner or later going to up grade anywhy. Save all the time and money and do it right away. I have read on the forum were they have bought the HF welders and had to take them back right away and get better..............Curt

 

[RickS]

My opinion is to buy a good welder to start with because. You sooner or later going to up grade anywhy. Save all the time and money and do it right away. I have read on the forum were they have bought the HF welders and had to take them back right away and get better..............Curt

I'll 2nd that. 20 years ago, I bought a HF mig, it lasted all of 15 minutes. I spent days going back and forth over the phone with them to get a replacement. They wanted to send me a replacement circuit board for it. Finally they agreed to just take it back. I went to the local welding supply shop, bought a Lincoln mig, and have never looked back! I just put wire and gas in it and keep going. You only cry once when you buy the best!!

 

[silverbear]

Last summer my building buddy in Minnesota and I got the cheap welder at Harbor Freight. Steve is an experienced welder, not his profession, but knows what he's doing. He was having a lousy time with the HF so we packed it up and returned it, went to a tractor supply outfit and bought the 110v Hobart on sale. Wow, what a difference!
SB