Picked up my first motorbike

[Saabhat93]

After wanting a bike for years, I finally bought one. A 1982 Honda GL500 Silverwing Interstate. Picked it up on Monday for a mere $1200 and I finally had the chance to ride around today and get a feel for it. This being my first bike and having ridden for two days I'm still getting used to the nuances of it all, but so far I'm very happy with it. Some pics before I go any further.











Decent condition considering the bike is older than me. It was originally from Canada, so the odometer and speedo are in kilometres, so it has about 20,300 miles on it. It runs fantastic, and other than needing what I think is fork seals (anyone familiar with bikes able to describe it?) and tires it is ready to ride. Because a previous owner lived by the ocean, the chrome isn't the prettiest and one of the exhaust pipes is patched with some sheet metal and hose clamps, but it works.



I like it.

[nordwulf]

Very nice bike! Can't beat it for only $1,200.

I used to have a CX500 which was basically the same as yours but without the luggage and fairing. Those engines are very reliable and don't need much. The cylinder arrangement is quite unique and I think it was one of the first bikes with shaft drive. I also had a CX650 Custom which was just a bit different style and larger engine. That one I picked up at a garage sale for $125. Just needed new tires, exhaust mounted, new battery and some cleaning and it ran fine.

Mine weren't show quality but you can have a lot of fun for just a little bit of money.

The fork seals on my CX500 were leaking as well. I removed them from the bike and had them replaced at motorcycle place because I wasn't comfortable dealing with the springs and I didn't have the right equipment and knowledge to take them apart at the time.

Love the vintage 80s look.

My 1982 CX500



My 1984 CX650 Custom



There also was a CX500 Turbo version but I think they are quite rare these days.

[Saabhat93]

Nice bike, Wulf. I love the look of these. I've always been drawn to the 70's CB series and these and I'm glad I picked this one up. It's still running great after a few days and starts right up every time with very little choke needed. It cruises at about 6.5k rpms on the highways, so I have to get used to that, but it's a lot of fun. I'm going to take it in on Saturday for new tires and change the oil.

I actually saw a CX turbo for sale on my local CL. They wanted about 4k for it, and I'm guessing they don't make great beginner bikes.

[Aero]

Congratulations on your purchase, Saabhat. I hope you enjoy your new motorcycle as I do with mine. Fully!!.