So I have to sell my Honda to make room for equipment for my new business I'm starting in the garage. I will still have enough room for a bike if I wanted though. Two of my friends both started on a 02' R1. One of them now has the 06' R1. Anyways, I didn't want to start out on anything bigger than a 600 since I am a beginner rider. Both of them are telling me if I start out on a 600 I'll want more power in a few months. They offered to teach me on the '02 R1 if I wanted, before I even buy a bike. I'm a little bit nervous to do that, the guys on superbike forums wanted me to start out a Ninja 250, but there's no way in hell I'm buying a bike that's slower than my Honda. I have a great respect for anything that has alot of power and speed on the street. I know I would be careful and not drive like a retard in traffic, but I also don't want to die from making a newbie mistake on a superbike that may be less forgiving than something smaller. Can some experienced riders give me some insight?

 

do not start out on an r1, there is no need to even sit on one. Go to the msf course, get your license and start looking for a used bike. The honda f2,f3, and f4 are all fairly forgiving for a starter but still require an immense amount of respect. Everyone should start on a 250 but as most will agree the desire for more power will be inevitable in the next couple months.

 

The MSF course is a good idea. I did actually look into taking that first. I'd hate to buy a bike and want something different in two months though.

 

I would honestly start on a F2/3 or first gen SV650 if I could do it over again. Both bikes have plenty of power that you won't outgrow

 

why dose everyone say to start out on a 250cc? I honestly have no idea. If you have enough respect for the bike, it should be no problem to start out on a 600. Its not like you cant get your self in any trouble with a 250, you still have the same road hazzards there, the only difference is you're on a slower bike....

 

^^

Everyone says to start out on a 250 because you can learn the fundamentals of bike control on a smaller, slower bike a lot easier than having to deal with a bigger, more powerful bike. The fact is if you accidentally whack the throttle open on a 250 you're not going to get yourself in as much trouble as you would on a 600.

Case in point, a friend of mine was riding his new SV down the road and sneezed. Before he sneezed he closed the throttle -sneezed and grabbed a handful of throttle and almost tossed himself off the back of the bike. That wouldn't have happened on a 250.

 

boy... you got some friends if they are guiding you in the fashion you have described. With friends like that, who needs enemies.

 

I had the same type of question, I just took the MSF course last weekend and I am looking into a bike. I originally planned to get the Ninja 250, but after considering it I feel I want to start on a 600. Anyway I found a few F2's and F3's Im looking at, but I also found a Ducati Monster 620 Dark, from what I've read I heard they are pretty forgiving, can anyone help me out here? Thanks in advance.

 

don't be friends with those two anymore.
I rode with a guy that started out on a GSXR1000. He was an ok rider. A little shaky in turns, but the biggest thing was that he's crashed 4 times and you know why? Because he underestimated the power. Usually the rear tire broke loose and he crashed.
Another guy from my highschool started on a brand new R6, and he's dead now because he thought riding around at 150 was smart.

It doesn't matter how much respect/throttle control you have for a vehicle, if you get in a panic situation there's no room for error on a bigger bike. A smaller bike both in power and size will allow you to quell any f*ck ups more easily. A bigger bike just doesn't do that.

Also, a liter bike is not the final step for everyone. Don't think for a second that a literbike is the ultimate goal of every rider. I had an RC51 and i sold it because it was unpractical. Now i ride an SV650, a bike that some people have deemed a beginner's bike, and i can ride it faster than either of my previous bikes.

 

the 620 monster would be a nice starting bike indeed. they can be pricey to fix, but they well so your good to go unless something bad was inherent when you bought it... or you run it out of oil


Ditto/Echo rdblckSV650S

The size/displacement has a relationship to outright mph but it has little to do with how quickly you can ride

 

I started on an SV, great bike and will probably go back to a twin after I'm bored with my new F4i, but IMO not the best of beginner bikes due to the low-end torque. The forgiving ergos, lightweight and being a naked helps though, esp. with noobs prone to dropping bikes.

The F4i, frankly, isnt as fast as I thought I'd be in the low/mid range and actually feels more noob friendly in regards to throttle response. HOWEVER, dropping it will be expensive, its not as light, and the clip ons arent exactly easy at low speed.

That being said, get an F3 or equivalent.

 

People say start on a 250 because they expect you to actually learn how to ride your bike, i.e. lean it over a just a tad. Most riders will be fine rider strong powerful bikes and get overconfident because they've been commuting or just stunting on it forever. Then once they get to the mountains or canyons they've got broken collar bones and trashed bikes.

Even on a 600, if you're going wide and a car is coming at you, do you have the confidence on a 600 to twist the throttle MORE? Even if you do, twist it too hard and you're going down, hesitate and you're going down.

If a person only wants to commute then a 600 starting out isn't really all that bad if they negotiate simple turns like on ramps.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Etylorcen &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">People say start on a 250 because they expect you to actually learn how to ride your bike, i.e. lean it over a just a tad. Most riders will be fine rider strong powerful bikes and get overconfident because they've been commuting or just stunting on it forever. Then once they get to the mountains or canyons they've got broken collar bones and trashed bikes.

Even on a 600, if you're going wide and a car is coming at you, do you have the confidence on a 600 to twist the throttle MORE? Even if you do, twist it too hard and you're going down, hesitate and you're going down.

If a person only wants to commute then a 600 starting out isn't really all that bad if they negotiate simple turns like on ramps. </TD></TR></TABLE>

All I want is something that I can commute on occasionally. I won't ever do any mountain or canyon riding, for one there aren't any if Florida, for two taking hard corners at high speed just doesn't appeal to me....AT ALL. I feel it's way too dangerous no matter what you're driving, car or bike.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by f22 lx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I had the same type of question, I just took the MSF course last weekend and I am looking into a bike. I originally planned to get the Ninja 250, but after considering it I feel I want to start on a 600. Anyway I found a few F2's and F3's Im looking at, but I also found a Ducati Monster 620 Dark, from what I've read I heard they are pretty forgiving, can anyone help me out here? Thanks in advance.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I have a mosnter 620 as my first bike. it;s perfect. throttle is not touchy at all, and does eveything effortlessly
I think it;s a great first bike. Super easy to ride, light weight, and quick enough that you won;t be bored in 2 months.

 

I started on a 1985 Honda Nighthawk 650. It made about 60hp, and was very forgiving. You had to almost rotate the throttle 270 degrees to get to full, so if I accidentally grabbed a little too much throttle hitting a bump or something it wouldn't do much.

Now that I have my new bike (02 F4i), I am very thankful that I found an old, slow starter bike to learn on. I could have seen myself in many situations where I would have probably lost it on the much faster sport bike, than my old Standard. But I learned to be smooth, both in the turns and on the throttle, and if I did it over I wouldn't have done it any different.

 

Wow great thread we have going.


I recently starting looking at selling my ef and getting a retro looking bike.
Something like a Triumph America or something. But what worries me is that 685cc might be too much for me. My 2nd choice was possibly starting out with a Honda Rebel 250cc (but sucks it has to be WOT just to keep speeds of 75-80mph)


I'm 5'4 125lbs 25yrs old...


Honda Rebel less than $4k for new one.
the Triumph is more like $7500

hum...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RyanEJ8 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

All I want is something that I can commute on occasionally. I won't ever do any mountain or canyon riding, for one there aren't any if Florida, for two taking hard corners at high speed just doesn't appeal to me....AT ALL. I feel it's way too dangerous no matter what you're driving, car or bike.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Any modern 600 will fit the bill then. More than enough power to keep you happy, faster than 99% of all cars on the road, not nearly as twitchy as 1000cc bikes. Most people that buy a liter bike for their first bike just want to drag race the **** out of it and end up in trouble, or through a Taco Bell.

Buy something used to make sure you even like riding. If u buy a new bike then sell it a year later you're gonna get hit with a massive loss.

I'm sure they have tracks in Florida, draggin' knee on a bike is what its all about.

 

this is some great info here

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RyanEJ8 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

All I want is something that I can commute on occasionally. I won't ever do any mountain or canyon riding, for one there aren't any if Florida, for two taking hard corners at high speed just doesn't appeal to me....AT ALL. I feel it's way too dangerous no matter what you're driving, car or bike.</TD></TR></TABLE>

if that's the case then get a cruiser. Sport bikes are meant to attack the corners. Spending more money to get a 1000cc bike over a 600cc doesn't make sense if you're just putting around town. It's a gross waste of a bike and money.
What you need is something that makes torque at much lower RPMs, so you don't have to rev the ish out of it to get any power. Look in to vtwins. There aren't a whole lot of options out there for mid-range vtwins, but the SV is one of them. The twitchyness of the torquey motor can be a little touchy, but it's very useable.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Etylorcen &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Any modern 600 will fit the bill then. More than enough power to keep you happy, faster than 99% of all cars on the road, not nearly as twitchy as 1000cc bikes. Most people that buy a liter bike for their first bike just want to drag race the **** out of it and end up in trouble, or through a Taco Bell.

Buy something used to make sure you even like riding. If u buy a new bike then sell it a year later you're gonna get hit with a massive loss.

I'm sure they have tracks in Florida, draggin' knee on a bike is what its all about. </TD></TR></TABLE>

Maybe like an 04' R6 then?

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by rdblckSV650S &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

if that's the case then get a cruiser. Sport bikes are meant to attack the corners. Spending more money to get a 1000cc bike over a 600cc doesn't make sense if you're just putting around town. It's a gross waste of a bike and money.
What you need is something that makes torque at much lower RPMs, so you don't have to rev the ish out of it to get any power. Look in to vtwins. There aren't a whole lot of options out there for mid-range vtwins, but the SV is one of them. The twitchyness of the torquey motor can be a little touchy, but it's very useable.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I can definately see your point, but I think cruisers are pretty ugly. They don't appeal to me at all. I'd like to have straight line speed, I just don't feel safe attacking corners, even once I become experienced. After having looked at motorcycle accident statistics the majority of fatalities either involved drinking, high speed cornering, or both. I don't care to do either while riding.

 

I started on an R1. If I could do it again I'd get a 600 though, I would reccomend getting an 03 ZX6RR. They are cheap, really easy and fun to ride, and have more than enough power to keep you happy for a while. Slipper clutch too which probably isn't a bad idea for a first timer. I see no reason to start on a 250, unless you can't physically handle a bigger bike, or you don't have the maturity to know your limits. The most dangerous time I think is after a few months when you start to get comfortable and start to push the limits too much. Just remember you're not as good as you think. And don't make the mistake of trying to keep up with more experienced riders.

 

^^^That is so true, but you are a little off on your statistics, its the 12-36 month range that is most prone to accidents. This is great info in this thread. There is no reason for you not to start a 600, a lot of people I know have done it. Just keep a level head, pay attention, take the msf, practice practice and practice. If you don't plan on doing any canyon carving then then your biggest risk is just make sure to watch out for the cagers that like to pull left handers in front of you. It sounds like you are a pretty level headed person and that more than anything will keep you safe. Be safe out there whichever path you choose.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RyanEJ8 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">All I want is something that I can commute on occasionally. I won't ever do any mountain or canyon riding, for one there aren't any if Florida, for two taking hard corners at high speed just doesn't appeal to me....AT ALL. I feel it's way too dangerous no matter what you're driving, car or bike.</TD></TR></TABLE>

if you dont like corners i dont see the point in getting a motorcycle. the most fun on a bike is when you can lean it over. i would recommend a naked/standard bike. something like a yamaha fz600 or sv650 or the kawasaki inline twin that competes with the sv (cant remember what its called). i started on a 03 r6 and later went to an sv650 because the ergos were more comfortable and the power was much smoother and predictable which made it much easier for me to use so i end up able to go faster on it than the r6. inline 6's are fun for goin to the local bike meet and getting girls. for actually riding it, id take an sv over ALL sport bikes out today. but your friends really dont know how to ride if they say you'll want more power out of a 600.