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Buying Guide - Questions about buying 700 Nighthawk S

Slow4

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I've been aggressively researching the 700 Nighthawk S, but there doesn't seem to be a lot of available information regarding what to look for. My questions are as follows:

-What price point should I be looking for? I'm thinking $2,000 for a well sorted bike
-What are the common faults? Rusty spots? Weak points?
-How big of a deal is the paint? Is it usually pretty worn for bikes of this vintage?

I'm new to vintage bikes, so I want to make sure I'm getting into something that is going to be reliable. Any info would be great!
 
For that price you should get a decent running bike with decent cosmetics, but beware that if the bike has sat for an extended period of time you will need to attend to a few common things:
1. leaking vacuum petcock, which causes fuel to fill the crankcase. Open oil filler to check.
2. Rotted tires.
3. Congealed brake fluid in front brake and clutch MCs, and in the clutch slave cyl. Cheap to fix but will require some of your time.
4. Gummed up carbs. Its takes some patience to complete this task, but with proper care and feeding, a newb can do it.
5. Broken starter chain- not all but some. If the bike is not running you may want to quiz the owner about this. If the chain is broken, the engine must come out and you have to split the crankcase to fix. About $200 in parts and gaskets to fix. Straightforward with a manual, but time consuming and usually more than the newb wants to tackle.

In my opinion, the cosmetics on these bikes hold up very well, unless it was left out in the sun for 20 years. If you are not willing to learn how to wrench on these, be prepared to pay a lot for a mechanic to fix, if you can get one to work on such an old bike. But the good news is, these are Hondas and most run for a very long time. I have several!
 
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