What do you think of this CX500 build.

[twowheeladdict]

https://huntsville.craigslist.org/mcy/d/decatur-1980-honda-cx500-custom-cafe/7353036308.html

I think he/she did a good job on the build, but I could buy a lot of bikes out there for this asking price. 

[Mayor_of_BBQ]

I think like 99% of CX builds, this guy dumped a ton of time and money into it and ended up with a 35hp 35yr old bike that looks pretty cool but 'couldnt pull a greased string out of a mule's ass'

[wrbix]

Might make $12k on BaT, but probably not on CL.

[JJ]

Best line to start off the week:  "...but 'couldnt pull a greased string out of a mule's ass"   

Again, agree with the others..."The Japanese Moto Guzzi"  - - only liquid-cooled!

A lovely build... but will take a very special buyer to purchase at $12,000 LARGE!

[yogidozer]

Would have preferred it was left closer to stock.
Liked the 650 and 500 cc series, but never owned one

[dxhall]

Puzzling to me that someone would put that kind of time and money into a bike which, bluntly, was and is a dog.  If it’s the bike of your dreams, by all means go for it, but don’t think that because you’ve put $12,000 into a bike, it’s worth $12,000.  The market value of a bike is what a buyer is willing to pay for it, not what the seller has spent on it.

[Snowman]

I rode a CX500 in the mid 80's as a dispatch rider in London. We called them Maggots, slow, ugly and void of personality.  Why builders choose this drivetrain for a sports cafe is beyond me.

[JJ]

I rode a CX500 in the mid 80's as a dispatch rider in London. We called them Maggots, slow, ugly and void of personality.  Why builders choose this drivetrain for a sports cafe is beyond me.

"Maggots" - Never heard that one before....

"Slow, ugly, and void of personality" - - Geesh...were they really that bad?!?

[Moparnut72]

I remember when these came out. I think I test rode one but it made such an impression I don't remember.
kk

[fotoguzzi]

won Best of Show at every show it's been entered into including a two time winner at Barber Vintage Bike Festival"

Crazy..
What were they thinking? If they were thinking?

[guzziart]

Don't know why they did it but I think they did a nice job on on it.  Yeah, a lot more invested than maybe it is worth...don't know.  I guess we'll see if it ends up on BaT & goes for some outrageous amount.

[twowheeladdict]

I'll contact the seller and let him know that the consensus here is that he should list it on Bring a Trailer. 

I am not interested in buying it, just thought it was a cool build.

I remember one time I stopped by a car show a long time ago, and talking with one of the guys displaying his creation I got schooled on the difference between, "What do you have in it?" and "What is it worth?". 

I think it is cool that he created it, and won shows with it, but would someone buy something someone else created and enter it in shows?  That would just seem strange to me. 

[dirtiegirtie]

IMHO: It's a gorgeous work of art.

Many people commission custom shops to build the bike of their dreams. If I dreamt of a cafe styled cx500 and was seriously considering having one made, then yeah, I could see paying $12k for one that is already done (assuming it matched the image in my head) and not waiting 2+ years.

It's a very small market he's looking to sell to. But I would assume the market of potential buyers doesn't consider $12k a lot of money.

[Stevex]

"Maggots" - Never heard that one before....

"Slow, ugly, and void of personality" - - Geesh...were they really that bad?!?

Actually, I remember it being 'plastic maggots'.

[SIR REAL ED]

Luv it!  There was recently a beautiful custom CX 650 for sale in Norfolk, VA for about $5k IIRC.

Interesting bikes, but heavy and lacking in horsepower.

[berniebee]

 It says in the description that the bike has GSXR600 front fork swap. Just swap the frame and engine from an GSXR600 and you would really have something.
The little CX500 compressor was never meant to fly.

[Perazzimx14]

i too like it. While not the best choice as a base bike it turned out nicely. It looks like a lot of custom work not just bolting pre-made things on out of the JC Whitney catalog like the Teutul abomination of the 2000's.

[Zenermaniac]

Had one. Not impressed.

[Frulk]

Beautiful bike. Nicely done. He’s got a Shelby on the driveway. $12K is probably a check book error for this gentleman. My daughter would love that bike. She’s still trying to talk me out of the V7R.

[Stretch]

Cool bike.

Lots of nice detail touches.

                          -Stretch

[ratguzzi]

I rode a CX500 in the mid 80's as a dispatch rider in London. We called them Maggots, slow, ugly and void of personality.  Why builders choose this drivetrain for a sports cafe is beyond me.

Then the 850T3 must have really disappointed you! The CX500 had faster 1/4 mile times.
I had a few along with a CX650, that was comparable to any 1100 stock EV I have owned.
JB

[pete mcgee]

I owned a cx 500 for 2 years just before I bought my lemans 3 in 87.
Brillant motor in search of a decent frame and suspension.
Id say hes nailed it.
Will it beat a modern sports bike?  Provably not. But would surprise a lot of them.
Nice build.

[jwinwi]

Looks better than most *custom* CXs I've seen lately but that's not saying much  . Must be popular with builders because they are cheap and plentiful?

[sidecarnutz]

A 78 CX500 was my first street bike in 1980. I remember it as kinda meh. Smooth, but not a lot of power and just average brakes and suspension. Not a bike I wanted to hold onto.

[twowheeladdict]

A 78 CX500 was my first street bike in 1980. I remember it as kinda meh. Smooth, but not a lot of power and just average brakes and suspension. Not a bike I wanted to hold onto.

Looks like this guy solved all of your complaints about the one you owned.  Obviously this bike also has a higher HP to weight ratio.   

[Canuck750]

I think it’s the nicest CX500 custom I have seen, very well executed. Is it worth $12K? Not to me but it only takes one person who wants it to make a sale. I like customs and built a couple XT and TT500 customs but never came close to recovering my investment. Customs should be done for the love of the work and never to break even.

[Solorider73]

I’m not much into show bikes, but this one is definitely a nice looking bike.

[Turin]

It's an absolute jewel, but it's also a CX500....

[paul in rochester]

Worth the money? No way in hell.
Drop dead gorgeous, with amazing details? Yep.
Just fitting a spoked rear wheel with a disc to that swingarm would give me fits.

I thought the 650 engine was much better-more torque, still pulled well, had the automatic cam chain tensioner (the only weak spot on the 500, getting past the HP for the power hungry), super easy to work on...
When I was working at a Honda dealer in the 80s, I was jonesing for a CX650E, sold in Canada. Looked like a 650 turbo with a CB1100F fairing. Really thought it was cool.
And, of course, my GL650 got me interested in the engine architecture, which lead me DIRECTLY to my Jackal.
/

[Scout63]

It’s a gorgeous build.  Now only if he had started with a rat Commando, or GS1100, or Sportster, or GPz550, or ...