I was working at a Honda dealership as a Service Manager for a few years, and this GL500 Silverwing comes in for service.
It needed attention, with less than 30,000 miles on it, it needed some help.
The largest expense for the customer was the water pump seal - a not so uncommon problem on these machines, and it requires engine removal to to the task properly.
Ultimately, I ended up with the bike for a few hundred bucks and got to work on it.
Full tune up, replace the water pump seal, fork seals, steering head bearings w/tapered units.
New battery, carb kit, front brake pads and rear shoes.
Stainless steel brake line on the front, and a new reservoir.
Silverstar headlight bulb, new handlebars (after trying nearly a dozen bends, a set of $12.00 ATV bars "felt" the best!), grips -
Exhausts, how about some fishtails positioned horizontally?
Tires, new tires front and back - well, if a shop had done all the work, the costs would of been astronomical.
Paint - the paint was faded, and the decision was made to rattle can it with -
Truck Bed Liner Paint.
I've ridden this bike for two years and put thousands and thousands of miles on it. More than a few 700 mile weekends, the bike it utterly reliable.
It deliveres about 45 MPG when flogged, and it is comfortable enough to ride ride ride through more than a few 5 gallon tankfulls.
Some call it ugly, others as what it is, some do not care.
At a ride last summer, one in which this beastly bike lead more than a dozen new machines, a rider made the comment that made my day -
"Well, you've proven the point, it's not the bike that makes the rider".