A guy stopped by my workplace with this bike on a trailer. He said it was on it's way to the metal recycler across town. "75 bucks and you can have it" he told me, so I whipped out my wallet and he delivered it to my house. My son, Andrew has called "dibs" on this one!
Try to be realistic. That guy knew the bike better and was scrapping it, so don't expect miracles unless you're ready to throw lots of time and money into it with unpredictable results. Good rides are very seldom cheap; aggravation and frustration are. Andrew could teach himself alot about bike mechanics--if he's interested-- by starting with in-depth study of the Honda service manual before turning any wrenches, and searching here for common VF700 problems and consulting our well-experienced specialists. It's maybe not be a good first bike for anyone now considering the troubles in-built due to some faulty design and manufacturing. Unless the bike was well maintained, it may be beyond redemption but still useful for a few parts, but that petrol tank is a rust-out. Don't start buying any parts until you confirm the engine is OK by testing compression or leak-down. On the other hand, you could always get lucky and find a clean one under dirty clothes, put back on the road and "save" that motorcycle's "soul" like a kind of devine savior, have the satisfaction of rescuing a worthy bike whose original performance was the best of its time, but when it comes to riding quality and reliability, better, newer used CL bikes could easily be found needing no new parts It's good to own well-restored antiques in the garage if you have the space, but for riding you need the newest bike you can afford, with modern elements all around, especially tires.
