Need motorcycle advice

[Rgun]

Im not sure if you recall my previous post about buying a beginner bike. I stated I was going to buy a Kawasaki ZZR250; however, every salesman I have spoken to have tried to steer me away from them. They say I will get bored of it in a week and it wont be fun anymore. The local Kawasaki dealer recommends the EX500, I dont really like the looks of that bike though, would a ZX6 be too much for a beginner? The local honda dealer recommends the CBR600 F4i, would that be any better? Any suggestions as to what bikes I should be looking at, and which I should be avoiding would be appreciated.

Thanks

Rob G

[heath]

well depends...

big bikes aren't good to start off on...you won't learn how to control a bike as well as you might if you started on a smaller bike say a 250. Also there is the factor that if you get on a big bike you're gonna wind that throttle on and you really won't know how to control it properly...so there is the saftey issue....

big bikes are heaps of fun, but more fun if you can get the most out of it...ie having started on a smaller bike and worked your way up...and they're only saying you'll get bored of it because they've most likely been riding for ages and gone thru the whole thing of getting a small bike and then working their way up from there, which is in my opinion the best way to become a better and safer rider.

[mindgam3]

Indeed, start on a smaller bike and keep with it for a year or two.... then when you're confident and everything becomes completely natural then upgrade to a 600 or similar

[noosee]

Anything with less than 600 cc is good for beginner.

If I would begin now I would go for Suzuki SV650 as first bike It does everything you'll ever need

But really it doesn't matter what to start with if you have some BRAINS in yr head

[sikx5]

Yes thats all true.

Its good to start on a small bike and all...but which is the question, the bikes you mentioned i have never seen in australia, except for the CBR....but you should rule out a few bikes such as the aprillia rs125, rs250, cagiva mito 125, suzuki rgv 250 and such, they are small and all....but increadibly quick....

a good learner bike in my opinion would have to be the suzuki bandit...very nice bike, easy to handle/control and open up a little.

but as noosee said...if you have some brains it wont really matter what bike...but still its very hard not to open up and let rip..

[PaulGT2164]

most fo my friends started out wiht 600cc bikes....the yamaha yzf600r and the honda 600s
they are fast, quick, easy to ride, and if you use your head then you wont get in too much trouble

personally the first bike i ever owned was a harley sportster lol

[TransAm]

Originally Posted by sikx5 aprillia rs125, rs250, cagiva mito 125, suzuki rgv 250 and such, they are small and all....but increadibly quick....

I think 2 strokes are banned in the US and probably Canada :cry: so he won't have to worry about those!

SV650 best choice so far IMHO, not much quicker than the EX500 but much nicer looking, and not a 20 year old design. The bandit is a good choice too.

What about a dual porpoise? DR650, XR650L (single cylinder trailies). Good bike to learn on if you are tall enough for it (5ft10 or taller) easy to balance and manuver

[Rgun]

no good, 5' 7"

[jz04r1]

I would say yzf600r, f4i, older gsxr, sv 650 are all great first bikes.

[e46drew]

Originally Posted by noosee Anything with less than 600 cc is good for beginner. If I would begin now I would go for Suzuki SV650 as first bike It does everything you'll ever need But really it doesn't matter what to start with if you have some BRAINS in yr head

This is the perfect bike, lot of fun, not to overwhelming, can do great weelies, it's perfect

ps you should have some previous experience i.e. dirt bikes

thes is comming from 11 years in the motorcycle buisness

[kenezzite]

I just sold my EX500 this past summer, it was a great beginner. I think that 600cc is also a good beginner bike, put you will definatly lay it down, i am 99.9% sure. So be warned. If you never rode a motorcycle before be carefull and take it very easy on corners, no matter what speed you are traveling. If you buy a EX500 (great bike) you will love it, but in 6 months you will start looking at 600cc bikes, like zx6r or cbr 600rr or R6. I currently own the CBR 600RR. My advice is that you should start on the EX500, but if you really want the 600cc bike, be warned, you will drop it or lay it down. It's like learning to ride a bike, you can't just hop on and ride, but if you do either way you will have a misshap on the way. Trust me I know. I layed my ex500 like 6 times when I was learning.

[kenezzite]

I found a picture of my EX500. Brings back memories.