1981 xs650

Hi all, so I'm a complete rookie to the biking scene. I'm in that situation where my grandparents rode for almost fifty five years, but because of my parents i was always kept well away from bikes. However, I've gotten my hands into some greasy projects before, working on restorations of several cars and all manner of welding and mechanical projects, so I figured it's about time to get into bikes. There's what looks to me to be a pretty good deal near me, a 1981 Yamaha XS 650 project that looks to be in decent condition, it was a project someone started then never got around to finishing. I was wondering on any input on how the bike itself is, rideability, quality, all that sort of stuff. I'm looking for something to strip down and customize some, so for me at the moment it is slightly more the build than the ride that I'm looking for, but I want a good ridable bike when I'm done. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

I've heard that the Yamaha 650s were a pretty good bike.

Not a bad beginners bike and fairly easy to work on plus parts are still pretty easy to track down - but if you decide to get it - the first thing you need to get for your ride is a shop manual. best money you'll spend on it.

Very popular bike!! If you get the bike, post some pics!!