[bigwayne3000]

Ok so I'm looking to buy my first bike and found a Ninja 500 a guy is selling on Craigslist for $500. I think the price is great and am interested in it. I would naturally take it somewhere to get checked out before finalizing anything but in the ad the guy mentions that he thinks the engine is suffering from a "low compression on one cylinder".

I have no idea what this means so I'm just wondering what your all opinions on this are in terms of how bad this would be and how much money this would be to poor into fixing if it is just this one problem. Like I said, I would only purchase this if I could get it looked at first by someone to determine what else if anything may be wrong. If anyone could offer any suggestions or insight, I'd appreciate it. Thanks!

 

[Masta Squidge]

Low compression on anything could mean it needs a valve adjustment, or it could mean it needs new rings.

If you take the head off, you have to lap the jug and the head, otherwise you will blow a head gasket every time you start it up because they NATURALLY warp due to so little material being there.

Good news is that motors for them are cheap, just make sure you get a 2nd gen motor as the first gen has serious issues. You could buy the bike, sell the motor for parts, and buy a good working engine and have a good bike for a under a grand.

 

[bigwayne3000]

Ok thanks for the input. If I decide on just fixing it if the problem is just the adjustment or new rings, is that expensive? I'm really hoping to pull the trigger on this bike soon as its the perfect color for me in orange as it'll go great with my orange '11 Camaro. I was looking at the 250 before this one, is 500 still a good fit for a beginner? I've never ridden a bike before but I will be taking a motorcycle safety course offered by the state. I'm open to all suggestions. I just think $500 is too good to pass up on this bike though.

 

[bigwayne3000]

Meant to mention that my dad works on engines and cars all the time so whatever valve work that MAY need to be done he can do so hopefully it isn't anything really serious.

 

[Masta Squidge]

nothing is expensive about a 500R if you can do the work yourself.

Don't buy a 250. Just trust me. The 500 is fast enough to be fun while still getting 50+ MPG and is comfortable. I put 5500 miles on one in just a few months.

In fact, its the bike I rode to and from my MSF class each of the 4 days.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2009-NINJA-...es&vxp=mtr&hash=item2ebb288abe#ht_1166wt_1163

For example.

 

[Masta Squidge]

even better:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2003-NINJA-...es&vxp=mtr&hash=item27c300ad92#ht_1166wt_1163

 

[bigwayne3000]

Damn, you're right. Thanks for the help, I really appreciate it. I think I will pull the trigger on this bike as soon as my tax refund check comes in. I emailed the guy to make sure it was still available so hopefully I'm in luck. Thanks again for your help, I really appreciate it.

 

[Masta Squidge]

Just stick around here and post.

 

[clarkmanning]

Holy Crap !
$199.00 for a low mileage engine. I had no idea.
That would make a good home-built kart motor.

 

[Masta Squidge]

Yeah, 500R motors are dirt cheap.