I'm going to look at one tomorrow. The owner says that it needs a new battery and a tune up. He says the bike has been sitting under a tarp for a year and a half... outside. His wife said that she didn't want him riding anymore so that's why it sat there.

It has 9965 miles on the clock. It needs mirrors (not sure what happened to them).
The bike has been laying on it's side at least one time. I know because I uprighted it after a heavy rain storm. Before I uprighted it I say that the underside had rust on the pipes.

He says that he wants to give me a good deal because I called him. Can someone smell BS in here?

Any suggestions on what to look for specifically on a Katana?

I would say that if you are near me I have a 2000 katana 600 that has 5000 mi on it and I just put a D&D slip-on, dropped one tooth off of the front sprocket, re-jetted the carbs, K&N air filter, smoke wind screen, carbon fiber levers, ignition advancer and choped the shovel already so it looks better. I want 4000$ out of it. The blue book is 4600 with 10600 mi on it and with out all of the accesories. So it is worth about 5300$$. """"only time that it was down was in the drive way, kick stand did not go down all the way, minor scuff""""

Honestly, if it has been sitting that long, you can cound on having to get the carbs cleaned because they are gonna be gummed up big time and your can of carb cleaner is not gonna get all the passages cleaned out! That one comes from experience restoring bikes. More than likely, the chain will be rusted up as well and the tires may be dry rotted. You also have the battery to get and mirrors. So far, that comes to about $670 alone. Another $10-$15 in oil change and brake fluid change. Hope the calipers are not froze up also. You don't mention how mechanicaly inclined you are. If I were to run across this bike for $500 to MAYBE $700 if all the plastics are good, I might buy it to get running and resell. I don't half ass it either. I make sure they are right before selling.

You can find early model Katana 600's fairly cheap in exellent running order. I ride mine on almost a daily basis and it is pristene and well cared for. Look around and you can find one that needs no major work. If you are looking for a project though, and have the abilities to work on it AND can get it on the cheap, then go for it.

Oh yeah, when you go look at it, make sure to take a flashlite to shine in the tank to see how much rust is in there.

Meanstrk,

Thanks for the insight. I have no problems with working on a bike. My intent would be to restore it and then ride it. I'm just looking for something to knock about for now. I don't have the money to go buy something that's in good shape. However, I would have the money and time to fix it and get it running right. It looks like a good opprotunity right now. If it gets to be too much of a fix up then maybe there's still some good pieces to part it out.

I took a look at the bike over the weekend.
It needs:
TUNEUP
2 new tires
Exhaust
windshield
2 mirrors
right side indicator light (crack lense)
Battery
Gas tank is rusted inside.
Rubber gasket on front shocks is cracked and falling apart.

He showed me the KBB.com retail value but that's BS to me because it's based on what a dealer would sell it for. He even eluded to selling it for $2K. No way man considering he couldn't start it and what needs to be done.

Oh well...next.

It sounds like $500 on a good day.. http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif Keep looking and you'll find another one!

ken