Starter Bike

i picked up a 95 Ninja EX500 from my boss for 1000$, its an awesome starter bike. i think its got around 50hp from a 500cc carb'd motor, but it weighs in at 400lbs if i recall and its probably just as fast as my Cobra was. its definately no slouch.

I will ride this prolly until spring next year, then get something newer.

i've been researchin the same thing for the past 4 months really hard. The general consensus is that you should start with a ninja 500 or a suzuki sv650. the inline 4cyl bikes are really peaky and want to flip you over or break the back end loose too often for beginners. I have a really good friend who is almost 40 who has been riding forever who i was talkin to yesterday about it. He said that starting with a buell 900 or 1200 would be better than a cbr 600. They have v-twins in them, so they dont have the top end speed, but have a much more even acceleration. They also have a more stright up riding position as opposed to the laying down aspect of the japanese bikes. Also, they have shorter wheelbase and are much better handling than cbrs, gixxers, ninjas, and fzrs. Also, because of how they are classified, insurance will be cheaper on a buell.

wow that was longer than i expected. hopefully somethin in there helps you. I just joined a couple of sportbike forums and read a lot and asked a couple of newb-type questions.

i wish i had enough money to go with the sv650, but being a senior in highschool about to go to college, i'm on a fairly low budget.

anything less than a 600 is worthless. you wold be better with a moped. tust me i had a 600 and upgraded to a 1000 in 2 months. if you are looking for a good 600 the ninja 636 is a bad bike! also, the gsxr 750 is sweet! i would go with a gsxr 1000 and be done with it. maybe its just me. i have been riding motorcross since i was 6.

I bought myself a bike in April of '05. I had never riden anything over a TINY single speed 50cc dirt bike since I was around 10 or so(34 now). I did take the motorcycle rider safety program(which I HIGHLY recommend- http://www.msf-usa.org/ )before I made my purchase. It gives you the chance to learn the very basics in a controlled slow paced environment by professionals. The best thing is that THEY provide the bikes(usually 250cc cruiser type). By taking the class, not only do you learn how to ride, but most importantly, if you will actually want to purchase a bike and ride afterwards. All to often I hear people say they want to ride(who have never before), go out and buy the latest greatest "toy" and a few days/weeks later totaly hate it and now they are stuck having to get rid of it. The course is just over $100 if memory serves me correct...try and find a decent used bike for that! It will be money well spent!
Now trying to quickly answer the starter bike question I know I've been quite lengthy already, BUT it is your life we're talking about!!!!! The WORST thing you can do is listen to people who will tell you to go out and get the biggest motored cruiser or the best liter bike a company makes("you won't be happy with anything else after a few months or so and want to upgrade")that you can afford!!!!! You know what? Start out VERY resonable and you can always upgrade the bike, but you can NEVER get your(or anyone else's) life back!!!!! The greatest contol you have over ANY bike is your right hand. That is the only thing that dictates how how fast you go. Sure you could jump on a 'Busa or "Gixxer" 1000 and use minimal throttle and survive so you can look cool(huge waste of money though), but when stuff goes wrong and you pull just a bit too much throttle...many things go wrong REALLY REALLY quickly!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Both of those bikes stock have in the neighborhood of 170 HP. An inexperienced rider can get into trouble just as easily with well less than 100 HP! So I agree with the likes of the Ninja 500 or a 500cc cruiser as a starter bike. You can pick up great used ones for very little money, put many miles on them gaining experience all of the time, resell them for nearly what you paid(if not damaged of course) and upgrade if you want later. A bike is MUCH different than a car!!!!! Your chances of survival in a car are much greater if/when you get in over your head from time to time by exceding your limits. You need to approach it with your safety in mind at ALL times! Don't go out and try to "hang" with the better skilled riders on the open road or in the "twisties". On a bike(unless very well practiced), you get fixated on an object...you will ride right to it! So if you follow seasoned riders off into a corner at 50 MPH and the sign says 25(given good road conditions-most bikes can easily do this)...you have just exceeded your newbie skills and are now relying totaly on luck. You may know what to do in your head, but until you practice it, you won't perform it.
Sorry to really drag this out, but like I said earlier, IT IS YOUR LIFE or whomever rides with you or that is around you possibly. I wish you the very best if you decide to persue riding. It is VERY fun and rewarding at the same time. You can't get the same experience in a car even on the same exact roads at the same speeds.

mustang90 said:

anything less than a 600 is worthless. you wold be better with a moped. tust me i had a 600 and upgraded to a 1000 in 2 months. if you are looking for a good 600 the ninja 636 is a bad bike! also, the gsxr 750 is sweet! i would go with a gsxr 1000 and be done with it. maybe its just me. i have been riding motorcross since i was 6.

Click to expand...

Well if you have been riding since you were six then that may be ok. If he has never ridden and gets a gixxer 1000 he is going to kill himself in no time and not be able to develop his riding skills nearly as well as if he got a 600.

As a certified MSF instructor, I'll have to agree with kooldawg6's advice to take your local motorcycle safety course before you start riding. Usually, the course will provide students with a bike (250 cc or so) and will teach you how to ride the bike and, just as importantly, prepare you mentally for riding on the street.
While engine size is an important factor, make sure the bike fits you physically and you are comfortable on it. One of the major advantages of a 500 - 650 cc bike is that they are generally lighter and easier to handle which is what a beginning rider needs while getting experience on the street. You don't want to be struggling with the sheer weight and size of a bike instead of concentrating on the traffic, road conditions, etc. until you get some experience on the road.
Experience driving a car is helpful but riding a bike on the street is another ballgame. You have to assume you are invisible and ride like nobody sees you. And, with only two wheels, there's no room for errors. What would be a fender bender in a Mustang could injure you (or worse) on a motorcycle.
Have fun but be careful.

Don

Take the MSF course and start with a small bike as the others have said

I'm in the same situation as you and my #1 priority is my safety since i plan on getting to my 22nd birthday and being rich one day.

I'm personally going slow my starting off riding 4-wheelers and have recently gotten into riding my buddy's Yz125 Dirtbike ot get the idea of balance and stuff. After that i will take a motorcycle safety course and then look at only 600cc bikes like the Ninja, CBR, or R6.

I just got a GSXR 1000 ith mods that puts out 160 hp at the wheel. Trust me don't get anything less than a 600! You can always put training wheels on it

Pfft anything under a 600cc is worthless? I am looking at importing some parts and building my first bike along with some friends, a NC30 (Honda VFR 400cc) We are going to overnight parts from Japan

But see I live in a thirdworld country, where the majority of the people never have a license and stray dogs wander the streets. I don't feel like buying a 600-750cc bike only to hit a pothole and then 3 temple dogs...

Always partial to the R6 myself, probably in my future

View attachment 395274

DonRich90 said:

You have to assume you are invisible and ride like nobody sees you.
Don

Click to expand...

Incredibly true. A friend of mine got in an accident 4 days ago because some lady didn't see him and pulled out and hit him. Cracked his helmet when he flew headfirst into her windshield. The had to cut his jacket off of him too. He was held overnight at the hospital, but he wasn't injured at all. Just sore as a MF. He's lucky he didn't get hurt worse.

I had another friend get in a bike wreck today. I dont know the full story yet but he was riding on the wet roads this morning on his two week old ninja 600 this morning when a deer ran out in front of him. He jumped off of the bike and the bike kept goin long enough to hit the deer. He isn't hurt too badly at all.

I started out on an 06 gsxr 600. I havent had any misfortunes yet. Most of my friends that own bikes either started on a ninja 250 or a katana. If you would like ill sell you my gsxr 600 lol

I hate the term "starter bike". It is normally what motivates people to buy bikes that are too small/underpowered. I have never known anyone who has bought a "starter bike", and didn't get completely bored with it within 3 months. True enough - there are bikes that a n00b should avoid, but please - do yoursef a favor, and buy a bike that is big enough for you, and has respectable power. An EX500 is quite possibly the worst choice for an average sized man. Furthermore, because everyone knows this, they are very difficult to sell.

Fuel injected CBR 600's are real fun to ride, and are very popular, so they are easy to sell if you choose to upgrade. The R6 is also a good choice.

If you are into cruisers, the Suzuki intruder 800 is a fantastic bike to learn on, and will keep you interested after you are experienced. Also consider the Honda Magna for a good performing cruiser. Shadows and mid size V-Stars are slow, look like Harley imitators, and are tough to resell.

New riders tend to be really careful for the first few months, but get careless when they feel comfortable, especially if their bike is underpowered. Don't fall into this trap. Any accident can easily kill a motorcyclist. Head to pavement at 30mph=death. This will happen on any 250cc bike just as easily as a Hayabusa.


Ride fun!

Just to mention. My "starter biker" was and still is(will be 2 years in April) a 2000 Suzuki Bandit 1200S.

kooldawg6 said:

Just to mention. My "starter biker" was and still is(will be 2 years in April) a 2000 Suzuki Bandit 1200S.

View attachment 394464

Click to expand...

Nice ride! I bet it didn't come with training wheels either! I just read your previous post more thoroughly. Good info. Some bikes are just too difficult to control at WOT. However, most of the mid sized bikes are not in that category. Too small = too big, and you might get

And as you mentioned - MSF ROCKS! Here in PA, it's free!