Motorcycle Questions (First-time buyer/rider)

In My Humble Opinion
1

Greetings, fellow two-wheel enthusiasts!

I recently came to the conclusion that my 1973 Cheyenne C20 (454 ci) was costing me an absolute fortune in gas… So, I decided to start looking into 2-wheeled vehicles. Originally, my intention was to get a 250-500cc Scooter…

As I was looking around the shop, I spotted this and fell in love with it. Beautiful bike, seems just the right weight and look/feel for me. I’m not into sports bikes, don’t need a touring bike (Though the C50 Touring edition is quite pretty too…).

What am I looking for?

Opinions and comments from experienced riders.

I plan on taking the MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) Training Course (AKA: The confidence builder).

2 Nights ago I sat on a Harley Sportster and drove in a block down the road… According to my father, I did “pretty damned good for a first timer”… I didn’t stall the bike, I took off just fine without launching myself into the ozone and was “comfortable”, if a tad nervous riding on it. The bike itself was UNCOMFORTABLY heavy, but easy to control.

Good times on that, makes me want to give it a go.

So, assuming I have taken the MSFTC and have the confidence to ride…

Am I jumping in over my head by purchasing a 805cc cruiser? Should I go smaller and start with a 250cc bike?

I do intend to join my father/cousin on occasional roadtrips up north and such… comment from them was that a 250cc bike would never keep up (Cousin has a 1600cc Valk and father will be getting a 1200cc Kawasaki police motorbike).

The bike I’m looking at didn’t feel anywhere near as bad as the sportster to hold up, even though it’s a tad heavier. My suspicion is because of the higher seat height of the sportster compared to the Suzuki cruiser.

Pardon me if this is a bit disorganized… I’m at work typing between calls!

Anyway, any commentary would be much Welcome. This seems to be something I could absolutely fall in love with.

((
Wether or not it matters…

I’m 6’ tall and weigh in at about 150 pounds soaking wet.
I spent my young life from age 5 and on until about 24 (26 now) riding bikes, and riding quite hard (mountain biking, road bikes etc).
I’ve a fairly strong lower body, which most people seem to say is the most important aspect of a cyclerider.

))

2

Coldfire rented a Sportster when he was in L.A. In another thread (or other threads) he indicated that it was not his cuppa tea.

I’m not into cruisers myself. I think they’re too heavy and unwieldy. But they are comfortable (at least the Japanese ones).

A lot of people will suggest buying used bike so that it’s less painful when you drop it. All of my bikes have been new, except for the minibikes I started on when I was five and the Honda CX500 I bought for a dollar. I’ve dropped them all except for the Honda and my newest bike, a Yamaha YZF-R1.

I used to do a lot of freeway driving in L.A. I would not suggest a 250cc bike if you’re doing that. 500cc or 600cc at least. A 600cc bike is fairly inexpensive and will hold its own on the freeway. My weapon of choice (well my only bike at the time) was a 1994 Yamaha XJ600 I bought new. Using L.A. as a starting point I’ve ridden it to San Diego, Las Vegas, Lake Havasu, and San Francisco. It’s not really designed for that kind of riding, but it proved to be comfortable and reliable. Since I have the 1000cc R1 now, the Seca II seems very underpowered. But for 80,000 miles it’s been a great ride. They no longer make that model, but there is the FZ600R. (Or is it the FZR600? I can never remember.) Better than the Seca II, and not very expensive.

I think the Suzuki you linked to would be a good choice for you if you like it. That’s an important thing: Buy the bike that fits. While I do think it’s rather heavy, it’s got the power to move it around, but not so much as to be too much. It should be comfortable on the freeway. I wouldn’t want to ride in city traffic, but remember that I’m from California where lane-splitting is legal and a narrower bike is better suited for that kind of riding. (Man, I hate it that we can’t do that here in Washington! :frowning: ) Still, Tempe is not L.A. It should do.

You may want to consider having the Suzuki for your occasional long trips and getting a used Honda for around town. Really, you can never have too many motorcycles! :wink:

3

About the only 250 that will really keep up is a Ninja, and that’s a pretty small bike. There shouldn’t be anything wrong with an 800cc bike if it’s a cruiser.

As I’ve said in other threads, the best thing I have found is getting the Idiots Guide to Motorcycles. In the back there is a list of bikes with pictures and the pros and cons of each bike. They also list bikes that are good for beginners.

4

Excellent, thanks for the all the info guys.

I’ll check out that Idiots Guide to Motorcycles later on after I get outta work here!

5

I think you oughta try a lighter weight bike to start on. I’m not a cruiser though - I ride a Ninja 250 (which has plenty of pick up in traffic and handles 75mph on the freeway easily), which only weighs 300 lbs. and gets about 80 miles to the gallon in gas. There are many, much bigger people who ride Ninjas, but it sounds like you’re the cruiser-type. You might see if you can test ride a Yamaha Virago and see what you think. I just think heavy motorcycles aren’t any fun, but obviously there are plenty of people who disagree with me. You might check your local Harley dealership and see if they rent out bikes, too.

Another book I’d recommend is “Proficient Motorcycling.” It doesn’t have bike choices in it, but it has excellent riding advice.

6

The Sportster is the lightest bike Harley makes. If he feels the Sportster is too heavy for him, maybe he should take a look here.

And heavy motorcycles are a lot of fun. :smiley:

7

I was gonna ask what your height and weight was, and what kind of physical shape you think you are in. Sometimes I think a bike that is too small can be as bad as one that is too large.

8

I’ve owned many motorcycles over the years and the last one was a Kawasaki KLR 650. Do yourself a favor and go check 'em out at the Kaw shop.

Here are some of my reasons for saying you should get one and forget about everything else (and in no particular order):

  1. $5,000. (They sell motor scooters for more than that!)

  2. Huge and wonderful 6.2 gallon gas tank. With a Harley, and most other bikes, you’ve gotta start looking for a filling station at around 130 miles, vs the Kaw’s 230 mile range.

  3. The KLR engine has been around for many years and has tons of torque-to-weight and is as reliable as a hammer.

  4. For a six-foot guy you’ll be very comfortable on it, and can cruise all day on the hi-way and back roads, even with a passinger.

  5. Front and rear dis brakes.

  6. Water cooled.

  7. Handling. No joke; KLRs have waaaay better handling than most “road” bikes!

IMHO the KLR 650 is by far the most bang-for-the-buck. And it’s not even a close call.

9

I called ActionMotorsports today… going to head up there on Thursday to check them out (Kaw/Suzuki only shop).

Guy on the phone mentioned the exact bike you just spoke of.

As far as physical shape… fairly weak upper body, though I can “deadlift” about 150-200 pounds. Lower body is where all of my musclemass is, since I spent my entire life from about 6 years old until a year or two ago riding bicycles very heavily. Still ride a lot, but nowhere near as much as I used to. I weigh about 150-160lbs (swing between that over the course of a year).

I seem to be comfortable holding up a 500ish pound bike. After they push past 550, holding them up is more of a chore then it’s worth (which tells me the bike is far to heavy).