Tips for a New Blast Buyer?

[CapitolRider]

Thanks for checking in on this post - for a few years now I've been itching to be a part of the Buell community.

I've been a rider for 6 years, when my 16th birthday was a spent with dad taking an ABATE course. At 18 he handed me the keys to a refurbished 1977 Honda CB750F Super Sport. It was a great first bike to learn on - forced me to ride big (I'm 5'7") and learn to solve problems on the fly (idling issues, testy first gear, etc). I moved to Washington DC and just recently sold that old girl for $1600 to pay for a more reliable bike.

I'm in the market for a Buell Blast as a daily commuter bike - I hear they are incredibly simple bikes with great gas mileage and reliability. And while I'm a rider to the core, I don't have much experience with bike mechanics and think this is a great bike to learn with.

I've read up on good practices when scoping out used bikes (I highly recommend this buyers guide: http://goo.gl/vMr31), but wanted to get some insight from the Buell community. What are your best practices? What are some things with the Blast that I should be wary of? There are a lot of 2000s for sale, but I'm worried about buying a first-year model that hasn't had the kinks knocked out. I hear neutral is hard to find, and that the first gear drops hard, but is there anything else I should quiz the seller on? What about price? I saw a 2002 Blast for sale with 1800 miles listed at $2,000 - what would YOU pay for it? Should I buy now with the winter coming and pay for indoor storage, or should I wait till the spring comes along and not worry about storing it outside under canvas?

Any wisdom you can offer a new Buell member and first time used M/C buyer is helpful - I'm really looking forward to being a part of this community.

 

[Dizzy]

If you're going to be in the DC area, unless you get a really bad winter, you might be able to ride all year long. I'm north of there, in Jersey, and unless it's below 40 or really cloudy and windy, I ride. Just bundle up good.

Can't answer the rest of your question cuz I let hubby handle the mechanics.

 

[Hooker]

i know this is a late post, and im not sure if you bought the bike already, or are still in the market for a Blast, but my dad had a early 80s suzuki GS750t, that RAPED my blast in a race, and probably would have held it's own against my XB9. That thing was lightning quick (he sold it to get a 99 super glide) and a honda CB750, even from the 70s would probably be a lot faster than a blast. My dad's friend has a 77 CB550 and it has 55k miles, leaks oil out of every hole, is covered in rust, and it was about equally as fast as my blast was. That was the main reason i got rid of it, and i had V&H exhaust, rejet, K&N filter, perelli mt75 tires, and a rider mod (160lbs and raced dirtbikes for 3 years)