whatta yuns think of this deal?

[stuntdouble]

On my way into work this evening I passed a house that had what I thought to be (at first glance) an XS650 sitting in the yard with a for sale sign on it. I turned around and pulled up to get a better look. What is was not an XS but a 1966 BSA. Sign said $1000. But before we get all excited about a vintage British chopper, let me describe what we have here. I'm not up on my BSA's so bare with me.

The frame appears to be factory but with the rear hoop cut off (Bratstyle). It has a generic solo seat. Wheels appear to be factory with drum brakes front and rear. Not sure what the forks are but I think I can safely say, they are not factory due to the fact that they are 10 or so inches longer than what I would expect them to be. Sportster tank and generic handlebars. And now onto the engine.

The engine is in the frame but is only the bottom end. No jugs, no head, no cam/valve/rocker assy. No exhaust or carbs. The pistons are there but look like they have seen better days. Overall Id say that it may be a good project for someone who knows these bikes and where to source parts from. But is $1000 a fair asking price for what is described above? Keep in mind, all I know about BSA's is that theyre British, old and somewhat hard to come by, and highly sought after in the right condition. So whatta you guys think? If I could work out a deal, I might be interested in having a project on the back burner, or at least make a few bucks parting out what is left.

 

[Mister Mellow]

BSA's are sometimes a pain to sell because there were oodles of them around (not as ubiquitous as the Triumph, though). But the good side of that is there are still plenty of parts to be found in flea markets and online (like tanks, emblems, side covers, top ends, carbs, etc.). Older ones can be quite valuable, so it wouldn't hurt to see what it is. Below is a link to model I.D.'s. Of course, matching numbers are best. The closer to 1972 (their last production date), the less desirable (my personal pref). Oil-in-frame models are less desirable (as is the case with Bonnevilles).

If you can find out what it is, and do a little online research as to value, etc., it might be worth it.

BSA Model I.D.'s

 

[stuntdouble]

Thanks Mellow, I'll look into and try to snap a cell pic if its out tomorrow morning when I get off.

Cheers

 

[Mister Mellow]

You could be this guy...

(Where was that address again?)

 

[stuntdouble]

The bike was spotted in Colonial Beach VA.

 

[jd750ace]

I wouldn't put myself into a BSA that was not at least a running Gold Star, but that's me.

 

[Irish_prick]

i ride with guys that have brit chop's and i have some myself. projects 67 trump 500 daytona and a bsa lighting thats a rusted 70's chopper. the BSA's are some pretty good scooters as long as u get them tune rite. much like trumps have that cool vintage look. i dont no bout ur state but if it didnt have a title id only give him $500 if the frames cut on and half the motors gone. BSA's are nice but dont get in over ur head on old british iron. good luck

 

[stuntdouble]

Pic in case anyone cares to see 'er...

 

[jamesgs4]

poor bike ,a cut off rear loop is definitely not bratstyle...

 

[Mister Mellow]

Yeah, not really enough info to tell what model it is. There were at least four twins in 1966. I think those are the stock lowers, but not sure, so everything below the tank, fork extensions and seat looks stock. The rear seat loop was not a loop, but two rails, flanged for the fender.

It only now occurs to me to ask, but what became of the top end? In a box? At a shop? In a landfill? Has he been parting it out? If you didn't talk to him, no biggie, I'm just curious. If I was really hankerin' for a BSA project, I'd probably be willing to pay $500 for it if the bottom end wasn't seized, the numbers matched, and there was a nice full basket of parts to go with it. But it would be a risk because even fully restored, these don't go for all that much. You'd be lucky to get $4,000 or $5,000 for it. Maybe more if it was a rarer model. They just aren't as in demand as the other British marques of that era. I'm not really sure why that is, actually, but to me, they just weren't as purdy back then as the Triumphs.

 

[Mister Mellow]

[Double post]

 

[hmusket]

eBay Link: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1966...4868809?pt=US_motorcycles&hash=item27c8ef9449

 

[itrguy]

I would grab it if You can get it cheap..

 

[yamaman]

Do yourself a favour, post your 1000 bucks to me and have a good sleep. When you wake up, you wont have a piece of crap in your shed, no nightmares and you wont have to spend another penny on it!

Posted via Mobile

 

[BruceDeuce]

not sure how its going to track down the road! The trail on that is all messed up.

 

[nj1639]

A way to measure........the value in that is what you could get if you parted it out. Not too sure what sentimental value brings these days. I'd pass but wonder where all the other parts and pieces were......looks like there's some B left but not much SA.

 

[jd750ace]

Does it come with any "brand mystique"? That shit's about 6 bucks a pound at your local HD shop!

 

[avenue]

if you didn't know anything about yamahas and saw a similar xs650 on the side of the road, would you trade $500-$1K for it? I'm not sure I would.

I think BSAs have cool looking frames with a handsome engine, to boot, but I have no idea what parts go for. If original front ends are hard to come by, that alone will eat up a lot of your budget/ROI before you even touch anything else.

and from the looks of it, I don't imagine the seller had the foresight to bag-and-tag any of the missing parts for the future.

 

[Purplezinger]

Run away, run away, run away.

 

[650Skull]

Sold on ebay......$514