Picking My First Motorcycle

Off Topic
1

hi everyone

i finally have the money to buy a bike, and it will be my first. i am still shopping and looking around but im pretty sure im going to buy a suzuki katana 600. anyone here own one? or a suzuki bike in general? any other opinions about other manu. (kawasaki, honda, yamaha)? good or bad is welcome.

im really looking for a good reliable bike, minimal repair costs and fun to ride as well. any help is greatly appreciated. also if anyone knows of any sources on the web for consumer and or rider reports(that are free) please post as well.

thanks

2

[quote]lynxx wrote:
hi everyone

i finally have the money to buy a bike, and it will be my first. i am still shopping and looking around but im pretty sure im going to buy a suzuki katana 600. anyone here own one? or a suzuki bike in general? any other opinions about other manu. (kawasaki, honda, yamaha)? good or bad is welcome.

im really looking for a good reliable bike, minimal repair costs and fun to ride as well. any help is greatly appreciated. also if anyone knows of any sources on the web for consumer and or rider reports(that are free) please post as well.

thanks[/quote]

Any bike can kill you if you act like a jackass on it. I have a Yamaha R6 and will eventually get an R1 or possibly a Honda. This was the first bike I ever owned so, essentially, it is what I “trained” on.

They say most accidents occur within the first 4,000 miles of riding a bike and are generally due to either other drivers in cars acting like assholes or the guy on the bike deciding that doing a wheelie down the freeway at 90mph is a great idea before he really has the skills.

The newer 600’s get up just as fast as older 1,000’s. I think they are great “first bikes” and I will probably hold onto mine even after I move up. In fact, unless you are racing or are going for looks, a 600 can do just fine. They still get looks from girls driving by (who often want to ride on it with you…I swear this has been the easiest route to panty access) and little kids are fascinated by them.

I personally don’t like the Katana, but that’s just me. I put Yamaha and Honda above them anyday in terms of performance and handling.

3

i second prof x and just have a few things to add. My first bike was a 97 honda cbr 600. I learned to ride on it and found it had enough power for me to learn on. I now have a 2002 zx 6r and its amazing.

My buddy has a katana and really enjoys it, but its a diff bike completely from the crotch rockets. Not alot of low end torque, but im sure comparable at higher speeds. I would recommend any jap bike in terms of reliability, also are u thinking of buyin new or used?

Just be careful out there and like prof said, alot of times its the other drivers on the road u have to watch out for. I also took a safety course for aweekend prior to getting my license and i think this helped alot. check to see if your state offers it, b/c i would HIGHLY reccomend it.

good luck and enjoy the ridin

4

I will definitely have to agree with the professor on this one. The new 600’s are a much different breed than the older ones. I was “trained” on a '92 Yamaha seca and it was a blast to learn on. I got around 4000 miles under my belt on that baby before I bought my brothers '99 Yamaha YZF 600. What a diference. Glad I waited as long as I did to upgrade to a newer bike.

If this is going to be your first bike, I would highly recomend buying a used bike first and upgrading at a later date. I bought that first bike for $800 and loved it. If you decide that riding isn’t your game then your not out much.

The prof is right though, any bike will kill you. Be carefull and ride safe whatever you do. Gotta watch out for the dickheads out on the road to busy yapping on their damn cell phones to see ya. Fucking soccer moms.

BTW, rocked my first wheelie tonight.

Life is good.

5

I have to echo the suggestion to take the Motorcycle Safety Course: TAKE THE MOTORCYCLE SAFETY COURSE! This is an invaluable experience as far as safe motorcycle usage as well as training in the mentality needed to be a good motorcyclist.

As far as a first bike, I have a 2003 Suzuki SV650S. It is perfect for my needs. It is plenty fast for an average rider looking for a great time. One of the greatest advantages is that I can insure (liability and collision) for less than $200 a year as a 22 year old male. My friend with an R6 pays over $100 a month!

My only complaint for the SVS is the comfort level. Higher bars and lower pegs would make the bike a lot more comfortable for rides over an hour.

Keep asking questions and welcome to the club!

Jeff

6

(First time posting, long time reader)

Personally i’m not a huge fan of the katanas. I own a '97 Kawasaki ZX-6R, bought it back in '02, and it’s a nice starter bike. You could ride any of the jap 600 bikes and be fine with it as your first bike. I don’t know if you’re planning on buying used or new, but if you think you’re going to want something bigger (which most riders do) than i’d buy a used bike so you don’t lose a ton of money when you go to resell it. Also, if you’re going to buy used i’d stay away from salvaged bikes. I don’t like to put my safety on the hands of someone else who rebuilt a bike for me, dealing with other drivers on the road is enough for me. Also, assuming you?re going to get insurance for your bike, you should get quoted on a rate before you buy, for sure.

7

im thinking about getting a bike next summer.

i am a little shorter, how does this effect my bike handling skills?

8

get a new “naked” bike, someting like a duke 804 s4, if you can afford it. they look great, v twinny power and flexibility and sound.

if not, a suzuki sv 650. I have a gixxer 600, and its peaky as hell. get something with torque, it will make the smooth rapid ridin easier to achieve as you can concentrate on riding and not frigging around with gears so much.

i can only mirror what has been sai previously.

or you can get a 125.

9

480×640 37.5 KB

as a fellow rider for over 10 years (never had an accident, at least not yet) i would NOT recommend a Katana, like Prof X, i would get a Yamaha R6 or a CBR 600RR or a Kawi 600 or a GSXR 600, but NOT a katana, they suck donkey dick. if its ur 1st bike ever get used, dont think twice about it (get a semi used but in good conditions Honda F4i or Yamaa R6, excellent bikes) , also insurance on new bikes are crazy, plus u being 1st time bike rider will get raped with the insurance rates.

i got a couple of questions for u.

  1. How much are you willing to invest?
  2. how big are you? height? weight?
  3. will this be a main source of transportation or weekends only?
    4.how fra do u live from work in case u use it as daily transportation?

with this i could recommend a bike and give u an idea of monthly expenses $$, i’ve been riding since i was 16 (gonna be 27 in june) and have had bikes as my main source of transportation forever, dont like “cages” (also known as cars for those who dont ride bikes).

hope this helps, PM me if you have any further questions

good luck

ps. the guy in the photo is NOT me

10

[quote]Colombian wrote:
as a fellow rider for over 10 years (never had an accident, at least not yet) i would NOT recommend a Katana, like Prof X, i would get a Yamaha R6 or a CBR 600RR or a Kawi 600 or a GSXR 600, but NOT a katana, they suck donkey dick. if its ur 1st bike ever get used, dont think twice about it (get a semi used but in good conditions Honda F4i or Yamaa R6, excellent bikes) , also insurance on new bikes are crazy, plus u being 1st time bike rider will get raped with the insurance rates.

i got a couple of questions for u.

  1. How much are you willing to invest?
  2. how big are you? height? weight?
  3. will this be a main source of transportation or weekends only?
    4.how fra do u live from work in case u use it as daily transportation?

with this i could recommend a bike and give u an idea of monthly expenses $$, i’ve been riding since i was 16 (gonna be 27 in june) and have had bikes as my main source of transportation forever, dont like “cages” (also known as cars for those who dont ride bikes).

hope this helps, PM me if you have any further questions

good luck

ps. the guy in the photo is NOT me[/quote]

If there is one thing you’ll get on this thread is alot of opinions, alot of which are just baseless. Yesa 600cc bike is a good sized bike to start out at BUT ask yourself why do you ride? Why do you want to ride? Because you love bikes? Because you love attention? You want to look cool? Be honest and then pick your bike from there. Just realise the different categories of bikes.

  1. Sport, these are the race replicas you see with the bumble bee sound. Bikes like the CBR 600, RR, R6, gsxr etc… You get the idea. Personally i would stay away from those and i generally stay away from them for the following reasons.
    a.) Their geometry, this is the bikes handling charasteristics, you know stuff like how will it respond to input and how fast. these bikes are NOT setup for the street, they dont fare well on potholes, oil slicks, gravel and emergency maneuvers. Especially for a new panicked rider where grabbing a handfull of brake can sent the bike end over end, so generally these bikes are better for more advanced riders. What i’m saying here is that yes you can ride them but it’s waayyy easier for you to fuck up on those, trust me on that one.
    b.) These bikes are decieving and get young riders in trouble all the time because it’s easy to forget how dangerous they are and their whole being just predisposes you to go fast and get silly. I know riders of these bike will argue this but hey this has been my experience. Most riders of these bikes are posers anyway.

  2. Sport touring. Now this is my favorite class of bikes. Here’s why.
    These are the bikes that LOOK just like race replicas but are actually specifically designed for street use. These are bikes like the Katanas (600 and 750), CBR1100XX, Kavasaki ZX12, Suzuki SV 650 etc… These bikes are a little bigger, some slower and easier to NOT fuck up on compared to their sport class brothers but still hella fast. For this reason i think that choosing a katana 600 actually IS a good choice for you, logic just dictates it and you’ll have a good time on it.

  3. Cruisers. Nuff said there since i don’t really like them.

So just get the bike you’re comfortable on, they’re all good and pretty reliable and have some fun. Definitely go to the MSF course, it may save your life. Ride nice and ride safe and don’t be a poser thinking you’re a racer or a stunter on the street. This is guaranteed to get you in trouble fast. Like the professor said, get through the first 4000 miles and you’re all right.

I have been riding for about 5 years now and love it. My bike of choice is the CBR1100XX blackbird, very tame and fun on the street, scrapes pegs in turns and accelerates like a bat out of hell even in 6th gear. And i have a one thing to say to all you race replica riders. If you don’t scrape pegs on your bike, you aint shit. Popping wheelies is not skilfull riding, just visually impressive but not good riding. Learn to scape your pegs in turns, then you can call yourself indoctrinated, till then you’re posing, meaning if you have chicken strips on your back tire ( and you all know what i mean) It’s time to learn how to take it down low. It’s just a mind game.

11

[quote]Gregus wrote:
a.) Their geometry, this is the bikes handling charasteristics, you know stuff like how will it respond to input and how fast. these bikes are NOT setup for the street, they dont fare well on potholes, oil slicks, gravel and emergency maneuvers. Especially for a new panicked rider where grabbing a handfull of brake can sent the bike end over end, so generally these bikes are better for more advanced riders. What i’m saying here is that yes you can ride them but it’s waayyy easier for you to fuck up on those, trust me on that one.
b.) These bikes are decieving and get young riders in trouble all the time because it’s easy to forget how dangerous they are and their whole being just predisposes you to go fast and get silly. I know riders of these bike will argue this but hey this has been my experience. Most riders of these bikes are posers anyway. .[/quote]

I disagree with just about all of this. Most new 600 series street bikes are very responsive in emergency situations. By new, I would probably relate that bikes made after 1998 (Mine is a 2004). In fact, the only problem I ever had was in the first few days of getting used to how sensitive the torque was.

These bikes shut off and stall should you let go of the clutch too quick, which keeps you from killing yourself to begin with. This is why new riders often have this problem of their bikes shutting off on them when they stop for red lights as soon as the light turns green.

What gets young riders in trouble is trying to do stunts. You have kids thinking that the goal of a sports bike is to do wheelies and stoppies. Between that and taking corners too fast, that is much of where the problem lies.

No matter what bike you ride, your safety is dependant on your awareness and how level headed you are in the first place. If you are a fool on the road, you will pay for it. Fools in cars simply get away with it more often because they are protected by a few feet of metal. (For the record, I think there are far more idiots driving cars today than any who have ever picked up a bike).

12

I learned to ride on an old Indian of my grandfathers. Learning to ride a cruiser is easier and safer than a sport bike, in my opinion. Also, a smaller engine with less torque will be less apt to slide out from under you if you goose it too much in a turn.
Whatever you do, just do be one of the yahoos around here I see zipping down the intersate in deck shoes, khaki shorts and a cotton t-shirt… with a full face helmet. Wear appropriate attire.

13

Dude! That’s cool, congrats & wear some leather & a hardhat!

14

Katana is actually one of the most beginner friendly 600’s out there. Also look for a Bandit, GS500 or an SV650. (all Suzuki). I think a bunch of people don’t like them because they are funny looking and lower performance than the newer 600’s.

I would recommend against any repli-racer 600 as a first bike. (CBR, R6, GSXR…) While they are great machines it is too easy to get in over your head with 100 HP on tap and little experience. Insurance can also be pricey depending on your age, etc.

Also consider the Kawasaki Ninja 500.

There are a bunch of 250’s out there, but you will outgrow them in a week.

Take the MSF course and get good gear!

Buy used if possible for first bike.

15

Can’t resist further comment.

All bikes are good now. Do not worry about the brand.

Save the dragging your knee and scraping pegs for the track. Do not ride that close to the edge of traction on the street! I pulled that kind of shit in my younger days and was fortunate to survive, but I lost a good friend to that kind of riding.

Now I ride The Pace. It can be quite challenging to do yet you still have a margin of error when there is gravel/oil in the road or some asshole crosses the double yellow coming the other way.

http://www.fjrowners.ws/pace.html

16

Ok, you guys may know a hell of a lot more than this twig about lifting, but your reccomendations for motorcycles for this guy are scary at best. Frist off, have you EVER ridden a motocycle before in your life? A dirtbike, a Harley? Anything?

Something that goes 70MPH in first gear(the new 600s go at least this fast) is not the best thing to learn to ride on. Sure if you want to look cool and be a squid go ahead and buy a crotch rocket. Then come find me on a set of twisties and I smoke you on a moped. Take a MSF course, hear a helmet, buy a bike that is cheap to insure, cheap to maintain, and cheap to fix after lowsides in the parking lot while trying to impress girls.

17

[quote]Professor X wrote:

I disagree with just about all of this. Most new 600 series street bikes are very responsive in emergency situations. By new, I would probably relate that bikes made after 1998 (Mine is a 2004). In fact, the only problem I ever had was in the first few days of getting used to how sensitive the torque was.

These bikes shut off and stall should you let go of the clutch too quick, which keeps you from killing yourself to begin with. This is why new riders often have this problem of their bikes shutting off on them when they stop for red lights as soon as the light turns green.

What gets young riders in trouble is trying to do stunts. You have kids thinking that the goal of a sports bike is to do wheelies and stoppies. Between that and taking corners too fast, that is much of where the problem lies.

No matter what bike you ride, your safety is dependant on your awareness and how level headed you are in the first place. If you are a fool on the road, you will pay for it. Fools in cars simply get away with it more often because they are protected by a few feet of metal. (For the record, I think there are far more idiots driving cars today than any who have ever picked up a bike).[/quote]

Prof x.

What i was getting at is that it is because they’re so responsive, they’re a bad choice IMO… I rode 600’s before and if there’s one thing you need is stability, stability is offered by weight and it’s distribution. If you even cruise going 45 and slam your font brake in an emergency your R6 will pop a stoppie, don’t believe me? Go do it and see, mash it as hard as you can and see.When you have a newer rider they havent yet learned the fine touch that’s required to controll a bike properly and they invariably over react. So the very thing you see as an advantege on your R6 i see as a danger to a squid.

BTW: I spent some time in the cockpit of the R6 and it’s a great 600cc bike. One i would surely like to have for cruising through twisties but not street or especially highway riding as it was all over the place with any cross wind. The R6 is a purpose built bike for the track and i love the way it just wants to fall over in turns.

And all bikes stall when you let the clutch out too fast, even my 1100. Cars all do it too that does not make them safe or unsafe but if you want to go that route i oblidge. Take your R6 rev it to say 7,000 rpm and drop the clutch, watch that beast jump out from under you in a wheelie. Saw it happen first hand.
Do the same on a purpose built sport tourer like my 1100 and you get rear wheel spin and a drift to either side for a few inches, same with a heavier and less powerfull Katana 600. So like i said bike like yours are easier to screw up on but inherently dangerous, in the end it’s all in the rider.

18

A better article on the Pace

http://www.ridehsta.com/html/safety.htm

19

thats really interesting.

I would go and learn on a 500 for a year, or a naked 600 (hornet or the like). develop confidence and smooth riding. me, as we can only ride about 3 weeks a year, am ragged, snatchy and bottle it into corners. the result of having too big a bike too early.

i was short term gain for long term pain.

20

if you have the money, i’d go with the Honda VFR… awesome bike to learn on. not too much power, but more than enough. and pretty light and great handling.