[Ben]

By the way, I like the second picture the best, with the lower angle Super cool!

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

That thing rocks

I’m not sure if I love or hate the half fairing it has. I like how it has that ‘classic’ sportbike look, but I think if you tore off the fairing and threw some badass headlights on there the bike might look really good naked. But then you have no windscreen, and riding a bike without a windscreen is not a lot of fun hehe

That paint job looks amazingly good for the age. A couple scratches here and there, but in general the blue and the white seem to have held up really well. Thats the one thing I like about suzuki’s, even their old bike’s look great.

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

Lets see, this is about what I spent on all my current riding gear

Leather Jacket – $140 (on sale from ebay, usually 250+)
First gear textile overpants – $120ish
Shoei Helmet – I think around 300 brand new
Leather Gloves – 80
Boots – Free from another rider

I also have a mesh jacket as well that I paid around 150 for. So I’ve paid around $790 for all my main gear if I’m doing the math correctly.

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

That outfit is dead sexy!

I really like the jacket, sweedish made huh?

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

Well if you go kawasaki, you HAVE to go with kawasaki green haha, at least my bike is. Although I really like the blue color of the ninja250. I guess it will depend on what the dealer has in their inventory. The only thing I would avoid is a black bike, they make it harder for cars to see you.

Its funny that you want the ‘skuureeeoooooooo” sound more than the rumble of a cruiser! One of the reason I like v-twin sportbikes so much like the sv650 or the Honda Superhawk is because they have that rumble but also still look like a sportbike. To each their own I guess. You may have to wait a few months for some of the aftermarket manufacturers to make some slipons for the 08 ninja, but i’m sure they will make some soon and then you will be able to get the sound you want.

I personally have a Shoei helmet, but before them I tried on a scorpion helmet which rocked. Unfortunately I have a ‘shoei shaped head’ so after about 30 minutes the scorpion left some read marks on my forhead that were pretty painful. The size up was too big, so I just had to switch to a shoei. I haven’t tried an HJC but I hear they are pretty good. The main thing is you should wear the helmet in the store for 10-15 minutes and see if you get any red marks or if it hurts your head at all. You want it to be snug, but you don’t want to squish your skull. Plus the padding should conform to your face after a couple rides. Make sure you buy it from a store with a good return policy, because if you don’t like the helmet after a couple rides you are going to want to return it.

As for jackets I really like Shift Racing jackets. They are super comfortable right away, and they have good armor and good leather. Icon is a good brand too, they have really thick leather, but their prices are a bit high. Alpinestars is good, and Joe rocket can be good, but generally they are a little lower quality than other companies. A good thing to do is to try a jacket on in the store, to see what fits (you want it snug as well that way it doesn’t slide around when you are sliding on the pavement) and then try and find last years model on ebay. Thats how I got my shift jacket brand new for 140 dollars. If I were to get it in the store it would have been around 250-300.

Also make sure you get gloves and pants. A lot of people forget about riding pants, but I find that when you crash a motorycle you are going to be sliding on your ass/knees as much if not more so than your cool leather jacket. In fact when I crashed one of my motorcycles the only damange I had was ripped leather gloves (but my hands were fine!) and torn riding pants in the knee. My jacket was 100% fine because it never even touched the ground. Thankfully my firstgear riding pants absorbed all of the impact of the pavement and the only thing that ripped was the waterproof outer coating, not the abrasion resistance inner coating. It was pretty cool.

Anyway, I’m rambling a bit. Let us know what you decide!

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

Nice bike, do you have any pictures of it? How is it riding in seattle? I’ve been there a few times and from what I remember there were a lot of hills.

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

Excellent boutint! Which bike are you planning on getting?

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

Welcome to the forum, I hope that you find all the info you need to get you started. Parents can be a pain for sure, but showing them that you are into safety and taking the proper safety courses and wearing all the right motorcycle gear will go a long way to convince them that you take bikes (and your life) very seriously.

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

Dual sports are fun SuperMotoRider, but you can’t deny how beautiful the new Ninja 250 looks!!! I would get it on looks alone!

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

I would recommend you start off by reading these two articles and the comments that go with them:

https://www.bestbeginnermotorcycles.com/why-600cc-motorcycle-not-good-beginner-bike-updated

https://www.bestbeginnermotorcycles.com/beginner-motorcycle-guide

Basically if you don’t have any riding experience then stick with a 250cc or a 500cc bike, most 600’s (even a v-twin like the sv650) have too much weight and power to handle for a new rider. Now that the new 2008 ninja 250 is out, people can’t say that all small bikes are ugly, because that thing looks amazing!

It’s going to be a challenge to resist the peer pressure to get a larger bike like a 600 or 750cc inline-four, especially if the main reason you are riding is because ‘all my friends and some family members ride’. I would strongly suggest you go for a 250 or 500 though, and no matter which bike you get, make sure you get all of the gear (full face helmet, gloves, jacket, pants that aren’t jeans, and motorcycle boots).

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

Hey boutint!

Sorry to hear about your crash, how long were you riding before you totaled the bike? If you were riding for about a year or less I would recommend starting on something like the Ninja500. It has more than enough power to get you were you are going, and it will be much easier to learn some of the finer techniques of motorcycling. If you were riding for a few years before you crashed and you really don’t want a 500, then the most I would recommend is the Suzuki SV650. Thats a ‘full size’ motorcycle with gobs of low end torque, but it is delivered in a very controlable fashion.

You are probably already going to do this but just in case you hadn’t thought of it, you should buy some motorcycle gear. I recommend a minimum of jacket, full face helmet, gloves, boots, and some sort of riding pants (not jeans). Depending on what type of gear you get (name brand, not name brand) all of that will cost from as little as $250 to as much as $1000.

Check out: http://www.msf-usa.org/

You can find a local Motorcycle Safety Foundation class through that website depending on which state you live in.

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

I’ve heard lots of different theories on breaking in a bike. Some people say follow the manufacturers instructions to a T and that means keeping it below a certain RPM gauge. I’ve read other who swear by riding it super hard when you first get it, that way the valves (or something) will expand and form a better seal than if you follow what kawasaki says to do.

I think either way it doesn’t matter a whole lot unless you plan on keeping the bike for 5-10k miles. But if you plan on selling before then (which most people do) then I guess its someone elses problems. Of course that would suck for the person who buys your bike… It’s your call though, but I would probably follow the manufacturers advice, but its not going to hurt the bike if you rev it up a few times.

Also about the cold blooded – my bike is not fuel injected either and its really not that bad. Normally I have my boots/jacket/pants on and then I start the bike and finish by putting in my earplugs/gloves/helmet on. By the time I do this the bike is usually pretty warmed up.

I would really suggest starting on the 250 because if you are in it for the long haul, the 250 will give you an idea of what you want for your next bike. I’ve been through 4 or 5 bikes myself in the past couple years, so your first bike definitely won’t be your last. Plus the 250 has a great resale value.

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

Ok, that sounds like a really good feature and I’m pretty sure I know how I would implement it. Thanks!

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

I’ve been looking at all sorts of pants the past few weeks, specifically pants, and not overpants. Since my moto is my only form of transportation, it would be nice to be able to go somewhere and not have to wear my overpants around, especially in the summer. Right now my ‘dream pants’ are the BMW Santiago’s.

http://www.sierrabmw.bigstep.com/item.jhtml?UCIDs=820323%7C1287226&PRID=1516470

I’ve seen people wear them in real life and they just look pretty normal and really comfortable. The only downside is their price, nearly 400 bucks! I’ve been looking around to see if I can find some on ebay, but so far no luck

I’m sort of considering the Firstgear Mesh-tex pants, but i’m pretty sure they will make the ‘swish swish’ sound that I don’t like with my current pants. The plus on these is they are only 120 bucks and are definitely made for the heat, while the santiago’s are made for all weather and might be hotter in the summer.

http://www.firstgear-usa.com/fgweb2.nsf/Products/291A8EB90FD97945862571F0005B6BD6?opendocument

I think for now I’ll probably hold out for the Santiago pants, or something similar.

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

[Ben]

Welcome aboard Pittleague I hope you find all the information you need to pick out a great bike (and great gear!) to start your riding career.

Ben
~Best Beginner Motorcycles Admin

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