If it were me, I would try and find a way to keep it.

 

You need to find the right buyer that wants a really clean one-owner Evo. They are out there. The last one I bought was a 1991 Electra Glide Sport, in 2007. One owner, very clean, only a few mods, paid $7200. It was a bike I always wanted. Sure I could of picked up a crappy one for $5500- who wants that? Save chump change to own nothing but frustration. If the bike still looks like it does in the pictures, with one owner, I'd be happy to pay $5000 to $6500. And 'yeah' I realize I could pay less if I wanted a crappy one. Why would I want that?

 

Dealers don't count accessories as even having any value. So you get ZERO credit for anything added. Reason being, all the accessories added may be things a potential buyer would NEVER put on their bike. Sad but true.

 

You and your dad live in different states keep it at his house insure it and register it in your name then when you visit him you have a bike to ride and he will know the right person has it. And down the road when you do have room you can decide. As it sits now it ain’t eatin any hay as they say

 

I would never sell that bike for 5k. Find a way to keep it, it's your fathers, some day you will be happy to have it. Good luck!

 

I'm going to have to add that I'm in the keep it camp. Not trying to be a smart *** but if your Dads wealthy enough to be a snowbird the few thousand this bike would bring really means nothing in the end. It's worth much more to you or your Dad for the sentimental reasons.

 

And this is why I love web forums, so much good hearted advice and straight talk. Really appreciate everyones thoughts. It really helps me work through what I should so. Here is a little more background on the situation....

My parents are in Minnesota and I'm in Seattle. My wife and I (no kids) live in the city with no garage. I have to have a storage unit to store all my stuff, fishing, hunting, hockey, golf, keepsakes, etc. To store the bike I would need another unit or a bigger one. Which is doable. Now we won't live in this house forever but lets say its another 5 years, thats close to $10K in storage fees. An option I've thought of is finding a storage until outside of the city that is less expensive, I've seen heated 5'x10' units for $100 a month, thats an easier pill to take than $200+ in town. If I went that route what would I need to do in order to leave the bike for sit for 10 years? And after it did sit what would need to be done to ride it again?

He bought the Road King, or "Pig" as we call it, as a life long dream after my sister and I were out of school. He waited like 18 months for it to be built, back then the dealer charged like $6K over MSRP just to get on the list of an in coming bike. It was so cool to see how excited he was. I was with him the day he brought it home, so special! He had a couple of bikes in his 20's but this was a whole new experience. 6 months later he went on a 500 mile rally ride around Oregon, halfway in he was on a 30 MPH corner with some sport bikes close on his tail, he lost focus on his line and slipped into the gravel. Kept the bike upright until the end but fenders, tank and bags suffered some cosmetic damage. He wanted it back to like new condition which meant waiting on HD to send all new fenders, tank and bags, which took another year plus. For the next few years he would spend hours installing new chrome and having the dealer do all kinds of performance upgrades while maintaining the stock look.

Each summer he would take 2 weeks for a ride, many times to Sturgis and Milwaukee. He was an electrical engineer by trade and is the most detailed person I've ever met. Everything he owns is flawless and maintained to the moon. The bike is stored in my mom's stained glass studio because it is temperature controlled all year. And thats the rub. It takes up too much space. She has wanted it out of there for years but she knows I don't currently have a place for it so she deals with it and works around it. When I was home this last fall they asked what are my plans for it and thats when I broke it to them that I don't think I want to take it. So hence why I'm on here asking guidance on selling it.

In the end I want to have it. My wife and I won't be having kids but I do have 2 nephew's that will be inheriting a number of my dad's things once I'm ready to let them go many years from today and giving one of them the bike would be so cool. I'm not really a rider and the thought of me on a bike freaks out my wife. Where I sit this morning is trying to plan out how to preserve/ store it for now. In 15-20 years I could always sell it, its not like its going to be worth much less than it is today so its not a financial decision. My top concern is putting it in storage for 10+ years and what would need to be done to get it back on the road after sitting that long. I just keep envisioning all the seals and gaskets going back and needing to be replaced. If I was confident that it could be stored without a costly process to get it back on the road I would be open to keeping it.

But with all that being said if a younger guy appreciated the bike for what is is and would give it a good home I don't think I would be hreatbroken to see it move on. The real bummer that keeps coming to mind is all the stock parts mentioned above and if the back had those it would be worth more. A couple of summers ago I was home, each trip back I take a day or 2 to "clean up" and try to get rid of stuff my parents will never need again. When the built the house they had the attic above the car garage finished and filled it full of everything they wanted to keep but don't use. Crazy amount of stuff. I was able to get more than half out of there, lots of donations, sold a number of items. He saved everything from the bike. All the damaged tins, every stock part he had replaced, etc. I laid it all out on the driveway, took photos and emailed to a few dealers. 45 mins later I had a guy there picking it all up, handed me a handful of cash and we took it as a win/win. Now I wish I didn't do that....

Feels so therapeutic to type out my feelings here. Really helps me make the right decision, glad I'm doing this research now then in April and feel rushed to make a decision. Bottom line is the market value is $5-6K if I'm lucky, meaning a dealer wouldn't mess with selling it for a commission. They would pay like $1500-2000 for it and either sell it whole or part it out. Which would just make me feel sick. I want a positive outcome for something that has brought my dad so much joy.

Thanks again for letting me work through this with you guys.

 

Well, with your more in depth explanation, I'm changing my mind and thinking you should sell it. You'll take a loss for sure, but I'd rather the bike got ridden than see it sit for 10-20 years. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

I'd take the windshield off, get some lower bars and make a glass tabletop for it and make it into a bar or dining room table. That's just me though.

Something like this but better: https://www.jaspershome.co.uk/produc...w-998014942193

 

Hard situation for sure. If there is no means of you keeping it for yourself, I think the value of it will be a hard sale for 4-5k. It’s a clean bike for sure. I would love to find a RK in my area that is like this one! Good luck with the sell or if you decide to keep it.