Justme68_86Hi Jay,
I agree with the previous poster. The V-star is a very heavy bike. The 624lbs is the dry weight of the bike, not the curb weight.
I am a beginning rider as well, my husband owns a V-Star 1100 Silverado which has a dry weight of 639lbs, but with full tank of gas, all the fluids, saddle bags, windshield and all it is close to 700lbs if not well over (depending on how much junk we have in the saddlebags lol).
I have ridden it a few times in an empty parking lot, but the bike is just extremely heavy to try and learn on. Hard to learn while your fighting the bike to keep it from falling in curves & what not.
If you like the V-stars have you checked out the V-star 650? Looks just like the 1100 & 1300’s but lighter weight and more forgiving for new riders. Or as the previous poster mentioned the Savage/S40 is a sharp cruiser and lighter then the C50 & Vstar 1300 would be.
While at a Suzuki dealership a few weeks ago looking at used bikes, the salesman had me sit on the C50 & M50. Both extremely nice bikes. Problem was that I could barely stand either of them up off the kickstand….So for me, those were definately too heavy. I also sat on the new GSX650F (Im in love!!!) is brand new to 08 and is the replacement to the Katana. Suzuki is apparently billing this as a entry level bike alongside the GS500f. But have decided that bike will have to wait to be my 2nd bike – its pretty heavy also for a sport bike at around 500lbs (476 dry weight) also alot of HP for the newbie at 85bhp.
Im currently looking for a lighter bike to learn & build confidence on because the v-star 1100 is way too much for me to handle in the weight dept. Im assuming that the 1300 would be even heavier after you add all the gas, fluids & extras. Im not a petite lil girl either, about 5’10. Currently I’m looking for good used Ninja 500/ GS500e or if I can hold out, the new Ninja 250 if the dealerships here ever get them.
Just my .02 cents. Happy Hunting & visit LOTS of dealerships and sit on everything so you can get a better feel for weight and sitting position/comfort of all types of bikes. Take a small notebook with you so when you leave the dealership you can make notes on what bikes you liked/didnt like and why.
Kari
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