CAR Two Completely Different Bikes v.First Bike

[GuiltySparc]

So i've wanted a motorcycle since i was in college and i'm soon to get a promotion at work that will allow me to finally get my license and snag a bike. I've always liked sport bikes more so than cruisers and had settled on a ninja 650R, SV650, or something in that vein as my first bike. Then yesterday i was dicking around on the internet and came across Harley's Iron 883 and man, something about that bike really grabbed me.

I know they are two very different kinds of bikes so can someone break down things like reliability, riding comfort, cost to insure, etc. between the two? Most of my riding would be on the highway to and from work (about 30 miles each way). I'm 5'10", 165lbs if that matters.

 

[apman0000]

i owned a sport bike in HS and college, and have owned harley's ever since

i'm strongly thinking about buying a sport bike again even though i'd be the creepy older guy on a sport bike lol.

it's simple, i love my harley's, but i watch guys on sportbikes run those fuckers faster than fuck at the blink of an eye and i feel a bit of envy and miss the crazy speed.

if you just want to tool around cruising harley's are tough to beat, if you want some high rpm fun then go with a sport bike

just buy lots of protective gear and don't be 1 of those stupid fucks who end up dying in a wreck that could have been walked away from with some good gear

 

[GuiltySparc]

word, i'm sparing no expense on gear.

 

[apman0000]

ok so gear is taken care of (most important purchase for a rider)

so now ya just gotta figure out how much power you're gonna want once you are used to the bike, i'm assuming since you said first bike you don't have a bunch of riding time under your belt.

if that's the case sportbikes can be tricky cause if you fuck up and give to much gas as you let the clutch out to fast that ratio of power to weight combined with a common beginner mistake = the bike leaving you behind lol.

that being said, imo if a rider is very cautious and realistic with their abilities and experience and take it very slow and easy without letting their ego or peer pressure etc get in the way then a newer rider should be able to control the power.

just remember, doesn't matter how much experience riding somoene has, it's not a matter of "IF" but a matter of "when" we'll go down.

i've been lucky so far (not counting dirt bikes when i was younger) and i havent' had a wreck (knock on wood) and i've been riding street bikes for just under 20 years, but even with about 20 years of street bikes and several years of dirt bikes under my belt i know that at some point i'm gonna hit the pavement, so as a newer rider don't let yourself think you've got it all down and your an expert after 2 weeks and start acting crazy on whichever bike you buy, especially with a sportbike since i think the temptation for riding crazy is higher with them.

ride like you have an old woman on the back for a long while before goosing the shit out of it.

god i'm really craving a hayabusa or zx14 lol, i wanna ride like a maniac once in awhile

do you have friends with sport bikes and or cruisers for you to see which you enjoy more before making a purchase?

 

[GuiltySparc]

I have zero riding experience. I may have ridden a moped once...lol

Being a little older (27), married, and a generally well disciplined person i dont think i'll have trouble respecting the bike. With that said, as much as i'd love to grab a used supersport off craigslist, i'm definitely not going to go that route. There are a boatload of SV650s in my area though for $3-4k.

Unfortunately i dont have any friends that ride, but that was a great idea. I thought about renting from a harley dealer before i made a purchase. I'm not sure if i can find a place that rents SV650s/Ninja 650Rs but at least with the harley i can see how i like the cruisers.

 

[apman0000]

that's the way to go, rent a harley, and many harley dealerships have demo days where they bring out a couple bikes and let people take demos and pretty much make you give them all your info and then they try to sell you the bike and call you etc etc, but they'll do the same thing if you rent so you might even be able to save the rent $$$ cause it's that time of year that many harley dealerships make huge pushes trying to get people in the door and blow out a ton of bikes before summer, check to see if any area dealerships are doing a demo day.

 

[Frequency]

Demo days are great for giving a harley a try.

Being a little older (27), married, and a generally well disciplined person i dont think i'll have trouble respecting the bike.

All the discipline in the world wont help you in a panic situation and you grab an ass-load of throttle. But with that said an older SV650 should be an ok bike to start on

 

[GuiltySparc]

All the discipline in the world wont help you in a panic situation and you grab an ass-load of throttle. But with that said an older SV650 should be an ok bike to start on

Right, i was more saying i'm not going to go out on day 1 doing wheelies and racing ferraris through school zones.

 

[CKMustangCobra]

Do what I did and buy a bike that is a good blend of the two.

Muscle Cruiser.

I bought a Yamaha Roadstar Warrior. Great engine/power, handles extremely well for its size, awesome looks, decent comfort.

Harley has the V-Rod, Victory has the Hammer, Suzuki has the M109.

Go check them out. You won't be hanging with sport bikes on top speed runs, but you will give them a run for their money up to 90mph.

 

[GFlem]

Do what I did and buy a bike that is a good blend of the two.

Muscle Cruiser.

I bought a Yamaha Roadstar Warrior. Great engine/power, handles extremely well for its size, awesome looks, decent comfort.

Harley has the V-Rod, Victory has the Hammer, Suzuki has the M109.

Go check them out. You won't be hanging with sport bikes on top speed runs, but you will give them a run for their money up to 90mph.

Better idea: don't do any of this.

Bike that is fast, heavy, hard to control at very low speeds, AND expensive? Como se dice "worst starter bike ever."

 

[swedishstar]

I have zero riding experience. I may have ridden a moped once...lol

Being a little older (27), married, and a generally well disciplined person i dont think i'll have trouble respecting the bike. With that said, as much as i'd love to grab a used supersport off craigslist, i'm definitely not going to go that route. There are a boatload of SV650s in my area though for $3-4k.

Unfortunately i dont have any friends that ride, but that was a great idea. I thought about renting from a harley dealer before i made a purchase. I'm not sure if i can find a place that rents SV650s/Ninja 650Rs but at least with the harley i can see how i like the cruisers.

I have an 01 FZ1 for sale for 3k. It's in Florida...

But just to let you know. I would look for bikes like the FZ1, SV1000, Maybe Bandit 1200/1250s?

My father has had an SV650, FZ1, and a Bandit 1250's.

He like's the sportiness/speed/comfort of the FZ1...same for the Bandit but add a boatload of torque to it.

He liked the SV650 but didn't think it was as friendly for long trips and riding around town because the throttle is a little more twitchy.

 

[swedishstar]

Better idea: don't do any of this.

Bike that is fast, heavy, hard to control at very low speeds, AND expensive? Como se dice "worst starter bike ever."

I would agree with this. I've ridden a lot of stuff.

I tell beginners with control... it's not the power the bike makes, but how the bike makes the power and the weight of the bike. A bike many people would look over is the Bandit 1250s. Pull the throttle in first going 10 mph and it will pick the front end straight up...stock. It is pretty friendly though. Not too heavy. About the cutoff point though.

A big cruiser is not really ideal.

 

[swedishstar]

Demo days are great for giving a harley a try.


All the discipline in the world wont help you in a panic situation and you grab an ass-load of throttle. But with that said an older SV650 should be an ok bike to start on

Depends on the bike and how he rides it. If he keeps a 600 revved down, there is now way he could ever get in trouble by grabbing a lot of throttle.

 

[droopz]

Ducati Monster.

 

[GuiltySparc]

Thanks for the input sweedish, i'll take a look at the FZ1.

 

[AVengeance]

Honestly, I started out on a Kawi Ninja 250R, and I'm glad I did. Cost of ownership was low, and I traded it in with almost 12k and a little over one year on the clock for a good price, and stepped up to a 650R (sport, but not a supersport). The 250R is plenty quick enough to get you around town and even on the highway. Maintain it well, and it'll last you until you've gotten some miles under your belt. Because it's a sport (but not lay-down SS) riding position, you can determine after that if you want something more relaxed, upright, or sporty. The 250R is VERY forgiving, and I never dropped it while riding. I would also suggest buying a NEW 250R. I didn't want my first experience on a street bike to be fixing broke stuff, and I wouldn't wish that on anyone.

 

[GuiltySparc]

I've looked at the 250R also and while i'm sure it would zip my 165lb ass around pretty well, i'm not as sure about the price. There arent a lot of used ones around here (at least on CL) and used SV650s are plentiful and cheaper than a new 250R.

Though i am concerned about buying someone else's problem bike. I'll noodle a new 250 around a little more. How is it on the highway? Most of my riding will be there.

 

[AVengeance]

I've looked at the 250R also and while i'm sure it would zip my 165lb ass around pretty well, i'm not as sure about the price. There arent a lot of used ones around here (at least on CL) and used SV650s are plentiful and cheaper than a new 250R.

Though i am concerned about buying someone else's problem bike. I'll noodle a new 250 around a little more. How is it on the highway? Most of my riding will be there.

I actually put taller gearing (larger front, smaller rear sprockets) on my bike to increase the MPG, and it still did well over 70 on the highway, and I weight about what you do. With the stock gearing, it has plenty of pep. I commuted 50 miles ONE WAY every day it was nice out in '09 and '10. That's how I racked up 12,000 miles in such short order. It was comfortable enough- not like a Vulcan, but not like a dirtbike or supersport, either. I liked how I could tuck down like I was on a supersport, or sit upright and ride casually.

The Kawi engine makes a good amount of power and over a reasonably long powerband. It's also a i2, rather than a bigger single-cyl., which I think makes it smoother. I chose to start with the 250R in part because I already owned a Jet Ski STX 15f and a John Deere lawn tractor with a Kawasaki engine in it. The 250R did not disappoint, which is why I own a Kawi 650R now instead of a 'zuki or other brand.

The resale on used, good condition 250R is great, which will be a good thing when you go to trade up.

If you're thinking sport or supersport someday, the 250R is a great way to "figure it out". I was able to be more objective sitting on a 650R and a ZX6R having been on the 250R for a over a year.

 

[GuiltySparc]

Cool, thanks for the advice AV.

 

[GFlem]

I have an 01 FZ1 for sale for 3k. It's in Florida...

But just to let you know. I would look for bikes like the FZ1, SV1000, Maybe Bandit 1200/1250s?

My father has had an SV650, FZ1, and a Bandit 1250's.

He like's the sportiness/speed/comfort of the FZ1...same for the Bandit but add a boatload of torque to it.

He liked the SV650 but didn't think it was as friendly for long trips and riding around town because the throttle is a little more twitchy.

Come on, man....




It's like you guys are TRYING to kill this kid.

Racing twins? 145-HP literbikes?

Come on.

 

[GuiltySparc]

Come on, man....




It's like you guys are TRYING to kill this kid.

Racing twins? 145-HP literbikes?

Come on.

Its all good, i'm pretty much sold on the 250 after reading AV's post and trolling the kawi forums for other 250 owner experiences.

 

[Frequency]

Its all good, i'm pretty much sold on the 250 after reading AV's post and trolling the kawi forums for other 250 owner experiences.

I love messing around on my g/f's 250 and it drags my fat ass around with no problem

 

[GuiltySparc]

I love messing around on my g/f's 250 and it drags my fat ass around with no problem

Word. Its slower than my STi but i'm sure it will be a significantly different perception of speed.

 

[AVengeance]

I love messing around on my g/f's 250 and it drags my fat ass around with no problem

It's such a cakewalk to toss through the twisties, and is very forgiving. That alone kept me on the bike, dispite it's small displacement, through the sharpest part of my motorcycle learning curve. Before my 250R, I hadn't been on the street (eh, legally) on a motorcycle ever, and had only ridden small dirtbikes.

 

[GuiltySparc]

Hey AV, what did you pay for yours out the door?