Throughout my ownership of my 1974 CL125S project bike, I maintained careful records of my investments—money-wise, if not time wise. The total cost, including the bike, was $3673.23. Of that, only $2315.78 worth of stuff actually ended up being a part of the bike when I sold it.
Here’s the final tally:
| Purchase price | $ 750.00 |
| Sales tax, property tax, title fees, inspection, licensing, scheduled maint. | $ 267.74 |
| Exhaust | $ 134.01 |
| Speedometer | $ 50.79 |
| General chassis repair parts | $ 490.21 |
| Money spent restoring old tank that was eventually trashed | $ 156.79 |
| Parts purchased that ended up broken, unsuitable, or not used | $ 735.93 |
| Subtotal | $ 2585.47 |
| Upgrades | |
| 12V/LED/AGM electrical upgrade | $ 380.50 |
| Fuel tank & fittings | $ 271.91 |
| Carburetor | $ 238.36 |
| Subtotal | $ 890.77 |
| Other | |
| Parts for aborted front brake and stator upgrades | $ 196.99 |
| Overall Summary | |
| Total Expenditure | $ 3673.23 |
| Sale price of bike | $ (1450.00) |
| Estimated market value of serviceable parts on hand | $ (350.00) |
| Net loss | $ 1873.23 |
| Cost per day over 1,977 days | $ 0.95 |
Did I lose my shirt? You can clearly see that I did. But look at that last number. For less than a buck a day, I had some great fabrication practice, lots of mental exercise thinking up solutions to unforeseen issues, and even though I didn’t really intend or desire for this to be a 5-year-plus project, a lot of rewarding moments along the way. When it was all over, the cruises I took around town, with the bike starting on the first kick and purring perfectly, were totally, absolutely, 100% worth the investment.
So, I guess that closes out the story of the CL125S. What’s next? Well, I might finally have a chance to pull my long-dormant Bultakenstein out of the back corner of the garage. Then again, I might not. Right now, I can’t say.
