Buying a bike with lots of former owners, bad idea?

[primalcarl]

Looking to buy an '08 Honda Cbr600rr tomorrow and have noticed that the bikes had 7 former owners. Should I be concerned? Seems like a lot to me (bike's done 18k).
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Bikes: Honda S-Wing > Honda Varadero XL125V > Yamaha XJ6N > Honda Silverwing> CBR600rr > VFR 800 FI > R1200gs

[BTTD]

10 years and 7 owners would concern me, but then I keep stuff for years rather than months.

[Shaft]

In the words of Tom Jones, it's not unusual.

Bikers are not like car drivers, they don't tend to keep bikes for long, quite often they have them for a season, then swap them for something else.

600 sports bikes seem to particularly fall into short term ownership, probably because they are often a first big bike, so you buy it, get used to it (or hate it) then punt it on for something bigger, or faster, or more laid back.

A 10 year old bike with 7 owners wouldn't put me off, so long as the condition is obviously good.
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[Courier265]

Has the bike in question got a full service history? if it has lots of documentation, worth considering, if not...

[primalcarl]

Thanks, that put my mind at rest a little!

The bike has service history and I will check how extensive it is tomorrow, along with a good checkover of the bike too.
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Bikes: Honda S-Wing > Honda Varadero XL125V > Yamaha XJ6N > Honda Silverwing> CBR600rr > VFR 800 FI > R1200gs

[Teflon-Mike]

Only takes one 'bad' owner to thrash a bike to death or crash it....
Would having less owners give any more confidence that it hasn't had that 'one' numpty take un-care of it?
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[adam277]

I had my cbr600rr for like 2 months.
It was using it for a daily commute. How I still have a licence is beyond me. Also it wasn't very comfortable and pissed the neighbours off.
Also I had to bring it through the house as I was always paranoid about it being stolen.. That sucked a lot and got tedious fast.

Would I get one again? Probably.


I wouldn't worry too much. Just means service history is more important.
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Bikes: Previous Bikes: Piaggio x8 125: 2012/2013, YBR 125: 2013/2013 BMW R1150GS 2013/2017, Honda CBR600RR 2017/2017, Honda CB500 2018/2018, Suzuiki Address 110cc 2019/2020, BMW R1200GS 2021-2023
Current Bike: Honda CBF 125: current

[DirtyT]

All my bikes I bought used. Two of them turned out to have been thrashed, wrecked, and rebuilt somewhat. I have a habit of thoroughly dismantling them to ensure they're in good, safe rideable condition. I found bent, broken, and even missing parts that were not seeable until I took them apart (my CB1000 Big One for instance).

I've had some bad experiences with so-called professional mechanics, so I've learned to do all or most of my own maintenance and repairs (hence subscribing to motorcycle forums). I'm not going to pay good money for s__t work and shortcuts.

If there is such a thing in the UK, check on the computer to see if this bike has been in any reported accidents that repairs and a less than honest owner won't admit to.

All that said, all my Honda CB bikes have had multiple owners and overall, I'm very happy with them (until they break). If you are not that knowledgeable about these bikes, perhaps you could bring a more experienced friend along to check it out? Good Luck!
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'02 HD Dyna Wide Glide, '96 Kawasaki Vulcan 1500, '94 Honda CB1000 Big One, '83 Honda CB1100F Super Sport, '82 Honda CB750F Super Sport, '81 Honda CB750K Custom
HAD: Triumph Trophy 250, '80 Honda CB750F Super Sport, '84 Kawasaki Ninja 900

[Rogerborg]

[primalcarl]

Thanks all! Has put my mind at rest a little. It will be my first sportsbike if I get it. I already have a Vfr and Silverwing scooter so it will purely be a bike for enjoyment and nothing else.

Just hope the bike is good!
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Bikes: Honda S-Wing > Honda Varadero XL125V > Yamaha XJ6N > Honda Silverwing> CBR600rr > VFR 800 FI > R1200gs

[adam277]

https://coubsecure-s.akamaihd.net/get/b73/p/coub/simple/cw_timeline_pic/20165f2f380/463abea905ce256d47a25/big_1472086902_1382484369_image.jpg

first time on a cbr600rr after swapping my R1150GS which was my first big bike for it.
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Bikes: Previous Bikes: Piaggio x8 125: 2012/2013, YBR 125: 2013/2013 BMW R1150GS 2013/2017, Honda CBR600RR 2017/2017, Honda CB500 2018/2018, Suzuiki Address 110cc 2019/2020, BMW R1200GS 2021-2023
Current Bike: Honda CBF 125: current

[Polarbear]

A lack of service history wouldn't particularly worry me after the first few as a new bike.

Bikers in general are much more machine savvy than their 4 wheeled counterparts and servicing a bike is so relatively simple most do it themselves.
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[c_dug]

My old 1994 600f had 13 previous owners. I added something like 25-30,000 miles to it without it ever leaving me stranded.

It did lose second gear but they're known for that.
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