For sale - 1986 R65 - mono, black, 19,3xx miles, running fine

[drhooves]

I'll be putting this for sale out on Cycle Trader in the next few days.  Moving soon, and have to sell at least one of my two bikes (the other is a 2020 Kawasaki W800).  In case there's some interest here, I'm thinking of asking $3500 for it:

1986 BMW R65, mono shock, black, 19,367 miles at the moment, runs fine. 
Purchased in September of 2018 with 14,1xx miles, was told I am the third owner, and seller had bought it up in Wisconsin about a year earlier.
Mostly stock, as far as I can tell - appears saddle bags were attached at one time.
Rear Tire:  Michelon Pilot, 120/90 - 18, about 50% tread remaining
Front Tire:  Metzler Laser, 100/90 - 16, about 25% tread remaining
Serviced twice by dealer in Champaign, repairs made to front bearing, rear brake and tail light, rear turn signal.  Fuel lines replaced.

Starts and runs fine, doesn't burn or leak oil.

Imperfections and known issues:
Fuel cap has been jimmied, lock doesn't work, but seats and screws in tightly
Light on tach is burned out, speedo light works fine, both gauges themselves work fine
slight nicks on front of gas tank where it may have been "tank slapping", covered with electricians tape when purchased
small tear in seat, a replacement seat was ordered and given to me by previous owner - have not installed it.
front brake is sluggish to fully retract, and turn off brake light - may be issue with inner portion of the brake line not allowing fluid flow, or the master cyclinder may need replacement.  Both brakes function normally, the issue is just turning off the rear brake light afte release of the front grip.

Comes with extra seat, owners manual, National Cycle windscreen, tool kit.

Located in Paris, IL.

Please message me for more details, questions and/or contact info.  I have some higher res pics available, but here's a few to get started.  Thanks!

[drhooves]

Posted out on Cycle Trader now for 6 days, and has gotten a lot of views, a couple of nibbles, but no offer.  Asking $3250, and will putting my other bike up for sale tomorrow.  Which ever one sells first determines which one I keep.  Where I'm moving to I'll have access to a friend who can help me tackle the higher TLC with the R65.

If it doesn't sell and I keep it, I'll be tackling the front brake "very slow" return issue first, then some new tires and maybe send off one of the seats for replacement of the foam and cover.  I'm amazed at how comfortable it is on longer rides - more so than my W800 by a long shot.  If I get real crazy, I'll take more steps to turn it into a scrambler, which is most of the riding I do (back roads, plenty of gravel).  That was one thing that made me nervous when I was riding my 2015 GS off-road or on gravel - tipping over a $20K bike, which I did a couple of times - paying for those crash bars in one easy flop...

[dogshome]

Hiya, price seems similar to here but without defects such as brakes. Likely a simple caliper rebuild (new seals) and clean of master cylinder (might as well put new seals in that too). R65 is pretty low to the ground - short swingarm, shorter forks and biggest sump compared to other models. So not sure about being best choice for offroad activities!

[drhooves]

Thanks for the tip on a caliper rebuild.  I know there's plenty of posts on this forum for all sorts of repairs, and hopefully the parts I'll end up needing are not hard to get.  I've listed the known issues to help with the "restoration project" buyers, to help determine overall costs.  Needless to say, it's not hard to pour $5K of work and parts into a $3K bike that can then be sold for $4500.

As for being off-road, I should probably qualify that.  I'm getting a bit long in the tooth to be very aggressive, and have four ribs and a collarbone still catty-wampus from hitting a deer on my wee-Strom back in 2009.  But I enjoy riding the back roads, which in many parts of the country can alternate between blacktop and gravel/stones/brick/sand/dirt in the more sparsely populated areas.  Just a couple of weeks ago I rode through a creek bed with perfectly fine gravel on either side but rocks and sand overflowing with water in the dip, and was glad the bottom wasn't mucky.  The R65 has okay ground clearance for light or medium off-road, but could use a skid plate, engine guards, and maybe a headlight cover (though I usually ride alone).

I've found the boxer configuration makes it much easier to balance in gravel, compared to vertical twins, and unfortunately BMW doesn't make a smaller boxer for those of us not needing 100+ HP.  Though I must admit, the GS was handy for those days of barreling a 100 miles down the Columbia River Gorge on pavement, then spending six hours on fire roads, and then barreling a 100 miles back home.  And back in 2017 at the Touratech Rally in Plain, WA, I somehow made it up to the top of Sugarloaf Peak  on it, though the ride down was very hairy and I was glad to be riding with a couple of other guys that day.

The Honda CB500X or maybe the Kaw KLR might work for me as well, but I'd really be cackling if BMW came out with a new 650 airhead in an off-road / scrambler configuration....