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Just putting some thoughts down and maybe some goons can give me a sanity check. I started out with a 250 Ninja as my first bike about 6 years ago. I loved the economy, I loved just being able to rev the nuts off it and go. It was good enough that I could take my wife on the back no problem. The only problem I had with it was that it sounded like rear end in its default cruising speed/rev position. That, and though it was a nice bike, it definitely felt cheaply made. I got rid of it about 3 years ago and got a Honda VTR1000F (depending on which part of the world you're in, you might know it as a Firestorm or Superhawk). Probably not the wisest thing to go to a bike with 4x the displacement of my first bike but IDGAF. I could listen to that thing rumble all day and if it weren't for the fact that the riding position and weight make it physically fatiguing to do so, I would. That, and it has a hilariously short range. The power is something to behold, and I love just being able to leap away from the line and get away from all the cars effortlessly. It turns heads. It also runs hot. Like, really loving hot. As in, cook your nuts in hot weather hot. Its taken me 3 years to realise that what I've done is take a weekend warrior fun bike and press ganged it into commuter duty. I've got nobody but myself to blame, but the love affair is coming to an end and now I'm looking to buy something that actually makes sense for what I actually use a motorcycle for, rather than what I'd like to use a motorcycle for. Since I'm too poor/cheap to have 2 bikes so I can have a dedicated commuter and a specialized weekend warrior, I'm looking for something that'll do double duty. Something that'll commute effortlessly but can be thrown around the corners on the weekend on the odd occasion I can get out and about to do it. I've also decided I want a naked bike. I've done the faired bike thing, and now I want something without. Only problem being that I hate a lot of the modern styled naked bikes and don't much care for cruiser style bikes. All the edge styling makes them look like wasps and it just does nothing for me. I started looking around and my eye kept getting drawn to the 70s era bikes like the CB750. The style appealed to me, but a walk through a dealership that sells bikes of that era was enough to convince me to stay away. While I love the style, I'm not a black thumb and don't really have the inclination to do what it takes to keep a 40+ year old motorcycle running. So after all that I came away with some criteria for the bike I'm after: Naked, with retro-ish 70s styling. Round headlights a must. No streetfighters, wasps or half sucked lozenge lights. Moderate displacement for lightness and better fuel economy. No more lugging a big bike around the petrol bowser every 150km. comfortable riding position Japanese Relatively modern (no older than 15 years old) Good for commuting but good enough for fanging on the weekends occasionally. After all that there was only a couple of options that I could think of. In fact, I could only think of two. The Suzuki GS500 and the Honda CB400. If anyone else has good suggestions that meet the above criteria I'd love to hear it (Not the CB 900 though. Too big). Both these bikes are Learner legal in my country and carry a bit of a stigma as a baby bike because of it. However, I've got my litrebike merit badge and I'm secure about the diameter of my testicles so I don't give a gently caress about that. After a while I dismissed the Suzuki. There's just something about the styling that doesn't sit right with me. I think its the frame making the engine look small and spindly in its cradle. That and it looks kinda cheap. I can't put my finger on any specific part, but there's just something about it. Possibly the exhaust profile and the swing arms being squared off or something. The back end is a bit bland compared to the CB400 in general. So that brought me to the CB400. This bike is a bit of an odd duck in my country and my skim reading of the internet suggests that its somewhat out of place globally in that I don't think its ordinarily available except in Australia, some parts of asia and in Japan. As I understand it, its very popular in Japan, largely due to the draconian licencing regulations for larger displacement bikes. Its learner legal here, and a larger displacement than the swath of 250 and 300cc learner legal bikes, but smaller than the increasing number of 500-600cc learner legal bikes that are turning up. Its also one of the most expensive learner bikes with the exception of the restricted street triple triumph, and a handful of others. So there's not that many of them around. I know I considered one when I was buying my first bike, but I dismissed it as too expensive. I couldn't justify several thousand dollars on top of what my Ninja cost. Plus, being a learner, I couldn't test ride any of the bikes I was interested in! I couldn't take a punt on a $10K bike only to find it was an unsuitable option. Anyway, the more I looked around the more I came back to the CB400 and I managed to find a dealer which had one and was happy to let me have a test ride. I rode my VTR down to the dealership today and checked it out. It was a hot and horribly humid day today and I was already tired and uncomfortable by the time I got there. The dealer lead me out to see a red and white, high mile example. The highest mileage I'd seen locally in fact. The first thing that surprised me was just how quiet it was. Seriously. I didn't even realize the thing was running when I came out until I was standing next to the thing... with my ear against the engine. I mean it, it was surreal. There wasn't any vibration in the engine or frame to give the game away. Anyway I threw my leg over and took off. I can only compare it to the VTR I'd just been riding but it was the most unusual sensation I'd had on a motorcycle. It's like it wasn't there at all. It was just so smooth, quiet and comfortable. Vibrationless even when I revved it up towards 10K rpm. It was just such a friggin weird experience compared not only to my current bike, but every other bike I've ridden. The fuelling was flawless, no jerkiness or sudden pops or dropoffs in power (the EFI probably helped), the seating position was brilliantly comfortable and while I must have ridden the thing for around an hour in the heat and humidity, when I came off I didn't feel any fatigue at all. It almost felt like it had 2 different engines in it. The first engine goes up to 6000 rpm and is good for slumming it, but if I'm in the mood for some speed, I just put it above 7000 and motored away. The pulling power was deceptive because aside from the indicator movement, wind noise and minor increase in engine note, you'd never know you were accelerating. The finish of the bike was as new, and while the previous owner obviously took care of it, its still an 8 year old bike but you'd never know it to look at it. It became apparent after a ride why the things are so expensive when new. Its an amazingly well put together bike and the engine is sewing machine smooth (and I mean that in a good way). I didn't realize it until very recently, but its a Vtec engine which is rather uncommon. I think only Honda does it, and the only bikes aside from the 400 are the VFR and now the NC700 series bikes. Honestly the only criticism I'd give it is that if there was ever a bike in desperate need of an aftermarket pipe, its this one. Has anyone else ridden one of these things? Am I just viewing it through rose tinted glasses? Or is it really as good as I think it is? Christ, I'm going to buy one aren't I?
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Mar 11, 2016 10:02
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Beach Bum posted:Hell, you've got me wanting one with all that. Noooo I can't. I have to get rid of my old bike first. Wife's orders. and also do my taxes first but meh
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Mar 11, 2016 12:34
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HenryJLittlefinger posted:What about a 599? A what? 1 google search later: Wikipedia indicates this is known as the cb600f in my part of the world, and unfortunately, except for the late 90s examples, they've all gone the way of the wasp in styling and have an incurable case of the uglies. That is a terrible shame because the mid 00 examples that were still being sold in the US with the old styling look amazing and would be a strong contender (or at least I can't find any examples after 2000 with the nice styling in my listings).  Jim Silly-Balls posted:Sv650 is very needs suiting. V-twin, light, great power spread, Japanese, reliable, huuuuge aftermarket, etc etc etc Sorry about the stream of consciousness wall of words. It was half post, half internet journal and all 'tism. Somehow this never made it to my list, which is weird because I know it exists. I've read rave reviews about it in multiple motrocycle magazines and yet somehow it completely slipped my mind. Unfortunately none are for sale in my local listings in the unfared configuration. I know I find the sv650s weird looking on the front end and perhaps I thought of the unfared version in the same terms as the gs500 for styling. Perhaps its because they have similar style frames and I don't much care for that. I might still check it out though if I can find one in the wild. The wiki paper stats suggest its very comparable in that its got almost identical power and weight, but significantly more torque. The later examples don't come with ABS as standard. The average price is lower too. Interesting. Carth Dookie fucked around with this message at 15:24 on Mar 11, 2016 |
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Mar 11, 2016 15:05
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Shimrod posted:I've ridden it. It's flickable, but you're going to HATE how gutless it is coming from a Firestorm. Like, seriously going to hate it. It's absolutely gutless down low, feeling less powerful than my old ZZR250 and takes until quite high in the rev range to get any decent form of power. You'd think so, but no. Sure it doesn't push my eyeballs into the back of my head effortlessly the way the firestorm does, but I don't hate it by any means. Sure, you have to thrash it into the 5 digit rev range to get the maximum of its (still) modest power, but I kind of like it that way, and the fact that all 6 gears actually get used. Plus its a vtec, you're supposed to rev the nuts off it for peak power. One of the problems I have with the VTR is that aside from one stretch of empty straight road that I go down maybe once every couple of months, there's no where to really put all of the power of the VTR to use. Even there I run out of road before I run out of go (and I've put it over 150mph on the speedo before that happened) I feel as if I'm wasting 90% of its potential. Its a valid concern that I might miss that power after too long, so I'm definitely keeping that in mind. I definitely want power, and I definitely want to be able to motor along at pace when I want to. But I'm definitely at the point where a middleweight is more appropriate for me than a 900cc and above bike. The 400 is on the low end of the displacement scale though, I'll grant you that.
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Mar 11, 2016 15:17
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Partial Octopus posted:Have you checked out street triples? Yes and I either love or hate the styling depending on what day of the week it is (if we're talking about the older examples with the two round headlights, rather than the more recent ones with the diamond headlights which I just don't like) and I've sat on one and I just couldn't get comfortable. And I hate the instrument cluster with a passion (I hate digital displays on bikes in general). Plus I'd prefer to stick with Japanese.
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Mar 11, 2016 15:31
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Barnsy posted:The CB400 is a fantastic bike. It's top quality (and it feels it), bulletproof and a perfect commuter. I also think it looks awesome. Just not built for tall guys. This is the way I'm leaning, but I don't think I've given the sv650 a fair shake, so I'll probably go and have another long hard look at one in the flesh and test ride (if I can find one!), if only to compare it to the 400.
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Mar 11, 2016 23:59
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Not quite as dramatic but: Tiger blade best blade. 
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Mar 12, 2016 03:05
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Eeeeh maybe? I'd have to see one in person, but that looks a little too street-fightery to me despite the front headlight, and the 14L tank seems way too small for an 850cc bike. Also digital gauge   Its one of the nicer digital displays I've seen on a bike, but no. Honestly I prefer the look of the xjr1300 but that's basically double the size of what I'm after. Carth Dookie fucked around with this message at 06:04 on Mar 12, 2016 |
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Mar 12, 2016 05:55
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Nah. I'm a shallow soft handed millenial. Looks matter to me at least a little bit. Particularly what I can see from the riding position.
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Mar 12, 2016 06:16
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Good advice. Also out of the blue I spotted the unicorn sv650 in the wild while on my way to a comedy show tonight. It's much better looking in person than I remember (though I admit it was by streetlight, and much like a nightclub hookup, the lady may not stand up to scrutiny in the cold light of day), so if I can find one to take a test ride on, I'll have to give it a go.
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Mar 12, 2016 13:44
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Gotta find one for sale first! edit: vvv that's uncanny. Carth Dookie fucked around with this message at 15:10 on Mar 12, 2016 |
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Mar 12, 2016 14:43
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Edit: this post was garbage and I'm too long without sleep. Move along.
Carth Dookie fucked around with this message at 17:29 on Mar 12, 2016 |
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Mar 12, 2016 17:20
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Better start sharpening your internet stabbing device then. Sorry.
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Mar 13, 2016 01:51
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pokie posted:OK, so you guys think it's a good idea to drop 4.5k on say this new Ninja 300 ABS? I'd suggest buying second hand if only to deaden that horrible sinking feeling when you drop your bike for the first time. If your budget stretches to include bikes that have ABS, then yes it is nice to have.
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Mar 14, 2016 07:48
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pokie posted:"Drop your bike" part was prophetic. I have not dropped my first one in 30-40 hours of riding. And I rode the Ninja for about 10 hours before I decided to practice confined U-turns and sharp braking in a parking lot. I over-steered into the first 2-3 mph U-turn, and now I need a new shifter. Good thing it's only worth $50. Oh yeah, and the plastic is scratched of course. gently caress it, I will keep practicing this poo poo and probably drop it again. But like you said, I am glad I got a used one. I hope you didn't crush the indicator. On my 2010 Ninja I discovered that Kawasaki had made the brilliant decision to use an unusual OEM bulb rather than just any loving yellow globe you might pick up from an auto shop. You may also wish to look into getting some oggy knobs or equivalent fitted. Ain't no shame in it and it'll be cheaper than replacement fairings.
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Mar 17, 2016 06:54
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HotCanadianChick posted:Part of the reason I was glad to sell it on to another goon - took up too much space in my garage. Oh the bike, not the goon. Right. Carry on.
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Apr 8, 2016 06:28
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Since a lot of people seem to like the ZRX in here, how do you guys rate the Yamaha XJR1300? It seems like its aimed at the same kind of buyer.
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Apr 16, 2016 05:45
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welp.
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Apr 16, 2016 07:00
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I agree with all of those statements but to me it looks intentional and if you put some knobby tires on it I'd expect some road warrior to be riding it in a scene from Mad Max. So I actually like it. Honestly the only thing I'm not sure about on that bike is the digital display and the size of the fuel tank.
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Apr 23, 2016 01:04
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Z3n posted:I'll have you know 5'2 is a very respectable height and my weight keeps my center of gravity low. Dani Pedrosa is 5'2. and also doesn't hold a candle to any of the other factory riders on the grid. 
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Apr 26, 2016 10:51
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Now inhale.
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Apr 29, 2016 07:10
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Darwin always wins. Accept it.
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May 2, 2016 13:07
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I personally wouldn't buy a skully because all that poo poo reeks of distracting gimmick that wouldn't survive the first rain. Also looks like a lot of extra weight. gently caress everything about that. I ride around in a Shoei X-12 and where I go, it goes. I never leave anything on my bike, but that's a preference. If you get a lockable case, it might discourage casual theft, but honestly don't put anything in there you aren't prepared to lose. Kind of like why you shouldn't leave anything valuable in your car. It does require a little more forward planning than driving a car. I have to think about where I'm going to keep my gear once I get to where I'm going. As far as riding gear goes; Draggin make kevlar lined jeans which are reasonably discrete and you can wear them all day if you want to. Its not as good as full leathers, but its better than nothing. I wear normal jeans (because I can't find kevlars that fit) but leathers for the rest. I accept the reality that if I come off I'm going to lose my rear end skin, but that's ok its not like I'm a Chippendale and have to give a drat about that. As far as motorcycle theft goes, not a lot you can do except keep it locked up when its at home, and have it insured just in case.
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May 4, 2016 12:06
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predictive posted:I don't get it? We want to watch your snuff film.
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May 6, 2016 05:04
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Gorson posted:I don't see what the problem is, looks like a normal Yup. Cooked mine on my Superhawk twice.
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May 7, 2016 11:59
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PCOS Bill posted:Nobody needs more than 130-140HP on a bike What's "need" got to do with it? That said, I'm looking at a Honda CB1300 (if I can fit on it and paddle it around reasonably) which is both fat and has less horsepower than my Superhawk.
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May 8, 2016 04:15
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Z3n (and the rest of CA, but Z3n in particular) how do you feel about the CB1300? I'm going to go sit on one tomorrow to find out if the ergo is right.
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May 8, 2016 09:53
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Linedance posted:I test rode one a few years ago. They look good in white/red/gold, they're comfortable, very stable, pull like a train, but like a train you never really get excited by it. Cornering isn't great. It'll corner just fine, but heaving that cow around takes some concerted effort. They'll also soak your balls or whatever else you're carrying down there with a frigid torrent of water down the tank when it rains heavily. I always assume a ball-soaking is in order when riding a bike in the rain. The rest sounds more or less like what I expected. Edit: went and sat on one. Man it is HEAVY getting it off the side stand, but not unmanageable. I thought I'd be prepared considering I ride a 1000cc bike all the time but this was something else. It's also big. Enormous in fact, but it's deceptive because the seating position is very good and comfortable. It was kind of surreal because it was parked next to a Suzuki 1250 bandit and you'd never believe they're similar dispacements. The bandit looked tiny by comparison. I'm probably going to take the cb1300 for a test ride this week just to get a feel of what it's like to paddle it around in traffic. Carth Dookie fucked around with this message at 01:25 on May 9, 2016 |
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May 8, 2016 22:22
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I'm definitely going to take it for a ride. I want to find out what it's like in stop start traffic and the daily grind since that's where I do 95% of my riding. I suspect that despite the weight it'll actually be better in that kind of situation compared to my current bike because the riding position is better. I definitely won't be able to scythe through stopped traffic by lane splitting as much though. Even if I love it, I won't be buying that specific example though since it's the wrong colour and it doesn't look like the previous owner took very good care of it. The seat has tears in it that I'm sure will soak up the rain and is rather faded. The plastics also look like they've spent an awful lot of time in the sun (as in, not "I've been ridden for miles sun" but "I've been left in the back yard in all weather for 5 years straight" sun). Sure it's a 10 year old bike but it looks really battered. Plus the dealer wants way too much money for it and no amount of discounting would be enough for me to take it.
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May 9, 2016 07:28
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I've been rolling around the web and I've found the next bike I'm going to test if the CB1300 doesn't tickle me though. I've seen the Suzuki bandit 1250, and some of the slightly older models (a 2009 one I'm looking at in particular) has the old style round headlight I like and has disguised the digital speedo in a traditional round cluster of instruments. Plus there's something about that burgundy colour that appeals to me. Anything I should look out for in one of those? I don't know much about big suzukis.
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May 9, 2016 12:05
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What kind of sensor? ABS sensor? Also what year is yours for comparison? Do you mean you've had "a" problem with the starter, or a persistent, ongoing problem with the starter (or starters if you've had them replaced)?
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May 9, 2016 12:44
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Thanks for that. I did a bit of googling and found out the starter can be a bit of a weakness.
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May 9, 2016 22:10
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Crossposting: The blandit has landed on my driveway.  2009 model, 11000kms on the clock. Got it for just under $5K (in USD).  The red one was lonely so I found it a friend. Shown here is a tentative butt sniff by the purple intruder:  I'm a man with 2 motorcycles (at least until I sell the red one) and I've hassled my dad into saddling up for a short road trip. Today is a good day. 
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May 17, 2016 08:51
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GnarlyCharlie4u posted:Why are you selling the superhawk? tl;dr of the wordsalad I posted in here earlier: I ride mostly to commute and I was press ganging it into service and it wasn't suited to it and I was starting to dislike it despite it being really fun to ride on the weekends and having a fantastic noise. Also I'm a wuss and I wasn't prepared to put up with the strain it puts on my back anymore. I can ignore that when I'm riding for fun but when I'm riding to and from work its just an extra layer of annoyance. I can't realistically afford to keep both so I'm selling the hawk. Ain't going to lie; I'm going to miss the hell out of the noise it makes. Personally I think its the best sounding stock exhaust on a Japanese bike ever. Always woke me up on a miserable Monday on the way to work. Carth Dookie fucked around with this message at 13:19 on May 17, 2016 |
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May 17, 2016 13:17
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GnarlyCharlie4u posted:oh yeah... that thing is not for commuting. It's just for making noises and going fast. Holy poo poo you're not wrong. I would put a 5 carat ring on the finger of whatever woman could suck like that bike does.
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May 17, 2016 13:24
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HenryJLittlefinger posted:Should I buy a CT90? Yes, unless the choice is between that and a CT70, in which case get the 70. (wan't a 70 so bad but the last one I saw was $4k. )
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May 21, 2016 00:51
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60% more awesome.
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May 21, 2016 01:21
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I had a 250 Ninja to start with. A parallel twin is fine to start on. Very linear, not likely to give you a sudden burst of unexpected uncontrollable power if your wrist twitches when you go over a pot hole. Its not exciting, but its confidence building. It did sound boring though at normal rev range. Then I had the 1000cc superhawk. V-twin. Sounded and felt great. A lot of low end torque which made it a lot of fun to ride around at normal speeds. Also sounded amazing. The only thing I didn't like was that it would occasionally be uneven while at a static speed. Now on the bandit; huge torque at any speed. Sounds like a civic.
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Jun 4, 2016 04:06
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KARMA! posted:Bandit 1250 I recently bought one and its great. Be aware that its quite heavy to paddle around the driveway, but yeah at all other times its great. Comfortable, fast, good fuel economy so I can actually commute without having to stop at every petrol station. It does sound boring though, when you can hear it at all, and its not quite as able to lane split as some smaller bikes (though you can get away with quite a lot more than you think).
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Jun 5, 2016 11:58
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Don't buy a zx6r as a first bike unless you are actively seeking to donate your organs. Or any 600cc crotch rocket for that matter.
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Jun 14, 2016 08:07
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