Is this a good buy? 89 Ninja for $500

Wondering if this is a good buy. Sounds like it to me. But it also sounds like it might be a lemon.

http://boise.craigslist.org/mcy/614852577.html

Not familiar with any older bikes. What exactly is a Ninja 6 1000?

He says it just needs carbs cleaned? How much would that run me, about? Or could I even do it myself (I've installed cold air intake on my car w/ custom heat shield, so I have a little experience).

I'm looking for a bike that will get me thru licensing and safety classes, and will last me about a year after, at which point I might be ready for a new bike.

Thank you all!  

Glad to see you want to start riding  I am know expert on Ninjas, but you might want to look for a different starter bike.  From the graphics it looks to be a ZX10, which is a 1000cc sport bike.  That is a heck of a lot of bike for a beginner.  I also remember my friends with sport bikes needing to borrow other bikes to take their test on.  Sport bikes do not handle well at extremely low speeds, and tend to have poor a turning radius.  This bike also looks to be marking it's territory pretty aggressively (pool of oil under bike).  I would want to get that checked out as that could be an expensive fix.  Also, used sport bikes tend to be beat to hell Especially after 20 years) as that is why they are usually purchased in the first place.

I would also recommend taking a beginning riding class.  In my state (WI) passing it gives you your liciense, and usually a discount on insurance.  If your taste lean toward sport bikes that discount could be necessary epecially if you are young.

Dave