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March 31, 2008
Relief
I did not win the auction for the 1986 Ducati F1. As much as I would have regretted not having bid on it, the overall feeling is one of relief. I can say with some justification that I have been responsible for driving the price of two used Ducati F1's upwards by several hundreds of dollars.
The auction being concluded, I can focus on waiting for the 1990 750 Sport to return from the shop. We have long since passed the 2-month mark, and we are fast approaching 3. Every once in a while, the service people will call with a question about the battery, whether or not to spend an extra 20 dollars or not, or how they are sending the brake lines off to be duplicated in stainless. Then I hear nothing from them for a while, because they get busy with other things. The duration of service times for Ducati's explains the saying "I have two Ducati's: I have one to ride while the other is in the shop!" It also explains why many Ducatisti tend to take on their own servicing.
At this point, what I lack more than anything else is time. Though I enjoy tinkering, my past experience demonstrates that I have many tasks to consume my leisure time. Some of these, such as tending Higglety-Pigglety Farm, have rather inflexible timetables. After all, one must sow and reap according to nature's schedule.
Posted by Underblog at 8:08 AM | TrackBack
March 4, 2008
Fair Market Value
A recent discussion over at ducatipaso.org has had me thinking about the market value of the inventory in the garage. First, a couple of observations: Many bikes never make the reserve price the seller has set for them on eBay. This means that the seller thinks a local buyer will spend more (true, if they save on shipping) or that the seller more simply has unrealistic expectations about what the market will bear. Several makes of motorcycle appear to be more prone than others to this high reserve phenomenon, including Harley-Davidson and Ducati.
EBay sellers appear to be trying to sell their "old, used" motorcycles as "classics." Alternatively, it may be that sellers have so much invested in their bikes both in terms of initial investment and accessories (chrome for Harleys, carbon for Ducati's) that they have inflated for themselves the worth of the machine to anybody else. As was pointed out on the message board, sellers often find that the value of the parts is greater than the motorcycle they have assembled, and decide to strip off the goodies before selling.
Some motorcycle-wheeler-dealer types watch the eBay auctions with an eye to estimating the present net worth of our fleets. As buyers, we are interested to know when a "bargain"—ie a bike selling for less than similar ones have recently sold for—comes up. From Econ 100 we recall that the value of something is no more or no less than what someone else will pay for it: the supply and demand curves intersect at price.
While motorcycle purchases are seldom rational, they often need to be rationalized. I recall each of the home purchases I have made. In each instance, the house would have been perfect if we could have paid less for it. But each time, the decision was in the final moment an emotional one. We bought because it just seemed right. And while motorcycle purchases are not driven by necessity, the same rule applies. As long the bike is one we really want, we can be fairly sure that we are not overpaying for it (meaning in almost all cases that the seller feels we are underpaying for it), and we have the necessary ducats, we will go forward with the sale.
Posted by Underblog at 6:00 AM | TrackBack
March 1, 2008
Reflections on a Garage Full of Motorcycles
I like having multiple motorcycles. Even more disturbing, I enjoy the thought of having even more. I understand that ownership and upkeep on a veritable fleet is difficult for non-collectors to understand, and indeed I struggle with the idea myself. One rationalization for having several bikes is that they serve different needs. I can ride my Trail 90 to work and back comfortably, since the traffic flow speed between there and home seldom exceeds the 90's top speed. (Every once in a while, I am slowed by a headwind.) However, I wouldn't dare ride the 90 to Cuba and beyond, much less Taos. I have reported here that it is nice to have a spare for a guest to use while they are visiting. This means that a pair of the bikes have to be suitable for the same kinds of roads.
Some bikes (in my case, the Benelli 250 SS and the Morini) simply deserve better than they have now. The Benelli I purchased as a potential lightweight commuter, and the Morini has served me for so long that getting rid of it now would seem more like a divorce than a business arrangement. Come to think of it the Morini has been with me longer than my wife, and it was hardly new to me when we were married. The Maicoletta is my retirement project, should I ever be so lucky as to (a) retire and (b) find the source of its mysterious inability to downshift.
So each bike in the fleet has its purpose, right? Of course not. I can ride only one motorcycle at a time, and as anyone who has bikes (plural) will tell you, there is one bike that ever gets the real miles put on it. In the past year, that is the 851. On the other hand, if I kept the 851 and ditched the others, the battery would go flat, the tires square, and it would seldom get beyond second gear. And rationalizations as above are no help in figuring out why I feel the need to compulsively review the eBay listings for F1's (too expensive so far) and early 90's 900 Supersports.
I will tell you this: When I walk through the garage, snaking between the bikes, I am thrilled in a beaming-smile-on-my-face kind of way. And that is worth something, I think.