New member and questions

[bandit1200]

Howzit,

Don't own an XS yet, but looking to buy one. Matter of fact, I'm going to go look at one tonight.

Want it basically as a second bike, along with my Bandit 1200 'ratfighter'.

Don't have a car drivers licence, and sometimes I need secondary transport. Also need to keep some mileage off my bandit. It's 2 years old and already got 60000+km on the clock.

Anyway...

Guy is advertising the bike as a 1986 model, which means he's already a bit confused about his bike. Just wondering what else I should look out for when looking at the bike.

Cheers

[blaise]

Hi Bandit 1200,
http://www.xs11.com/faq/neglectedxs.shtml
this is a link within this site which you should find helpfull.
I have owned my xs 11 for what seems a lifetime and all the other bikes that I have owned just do not compare. A somewhat bias opinion some might say, but what do they know.
Hope all goes well.
regards
Blaise.
May the road be long and wide.

[sixtysix]

Jake,

Several of us here have Bandits and XS's, check out some of the Bandit posts under 'other bike discussion'.

If you are sure it is an XS, you check all the same stuff you would on a normal bike. Plus some XS's have the 'second gear problem', look in the tech tips for more info.

The proper link is, only tips on the forum are updated.

http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread...=&threadid=792

[bandit1200]

Thanks,

Bike was definitely not worth what the guy was asking for it (though he seemed convinced it was a bargain )

Very badly done puke pink/purple sprayjob with chips and cracks everywhere. Homemade (upholstered) side covers held on with nylon straps. Exhaust leak (could see it puffing), with some sort of aftermarket 4-1 job badly welded on. Oil leak at the front of the drive shaft, Badly worn tires, and wiring that made the lights flicker on and off when he revved it.

Mechanically it sounded quite healthy and it seemed to pull quite well, just not worth the price.

Anyway....

Better luck next time.

Cheers

[Wayne]

Hey bandit, just out of curiosity, what was the asking price?

Ride Safe.

[bandit1200]

ZAR8000.

Currently translates to just over USD1000.

For that price I can get one in much better condition. To give you a better idea, I could pick up a very decent GS1000 (only other bike I'm considering) for around ZAR6500.

Cheers

[blaise]

Bandit 1200,
I am originally from Cape Town, South Africa. If you are near Cape Town drop me a personal e-mail. I have a contact number for a restorer of XS 11. He does not work on any other bikes.
Good luck with the search.
regards
Blaise Alexander
May the road be long and wide.