[eternal05]

Or, at least speaking for myself only, I can help. I may or may not be a web software engineer, and I may or may not have a weakness for blabbing on about things I care about. Let us know if there’s anything we can do to contribute to the site outside of the forums. I’ve gotten a lot from the site and the community; I’d hate to see it stagnate.

[eternal05]

If you’re worried about fuel injection because of a bad experience with an old car with carburetors, that may not be the best grounds for deciding what motorcycle to buy. Any bike built in the last five to ten years, fuel injected or not, should start up fine if properly maintained.

That said, if you’re die hard for fuel injection, finding a bike that’s cheap, has a low seat height, and is otherwise a good beginner bike is easy. Just use the handy spreadsheet I made a while back.

The truth is there’s not too much out there if you’re in the US. Outside of the US you will have much better luck, both with fuel injection (for environmental reasons) and with smaller/more-beginner-friendly bikes (for intelligence reasons). From what I can see, you’re stuck with any Kawasaki that uses the 650R powerplant (the Ninja 650R, ER-6n, and Versys), as well as Suzuki’s 650s (SV650, Gladius, V-Strom 650, and GSX650F). I personally think you’d be much better off considering smaller (both in weight and engine displacement) carbureted bikes, especially if your wife is 5’9″ and you want to stick to that budget, but that’s your call.

[eternal05]

One thing that I talked to Brian Van (of STG) about is the fact that when you’re reviewing mostly good products, it’s really hard to judge between equal-tier products from different companies. This is kinda in the same vein as your previous comment. If you could compare, for instance, two jackets that you liked on the whole and maybe list some reasons why a person might buy one or the other depending on their circumstances, that’d be really cool. It might be hard to work in, but I think it’d add a lot. Otherwise you end up in my shoes: “ok, so the A-Stars X and the Dainese Y are both great, they fit great, and their super protective? Well crap! Which one should I get?”

[eternal05]

I agree with you about quite a few things. The Triumph Street Triple is one helluva bike. It’s pretty sweet looking, great to ride (I’ve test-ridden one as well), and a solid contender for next-bike-if-I-ever-sell-my-ninja-and-somehow-don’t-need-to-eat-for-a-year. It is NOT however a good candidate to go in the SV650/Ninja650 category, and there reason is simple: it’s basically a streetfighter-ized Daytona 675, Triumph’s middleweight sportbike. It has 105hp, whereas an SV650 has around 75hp, and that’s already pushing it for a beginner. My GSX-R600 also has about 105 rear wheel horsepower. This is serious kick, and not a great choice for beginners imo.

You’re not a beginner, however, so you should probably get one and then post pictures so I can live vicariously through your purchase

[eternal05]

As Eon and Gary have said, keeping your head and eyes up is VITAL to staying calm and knowing what you’re going to do well before you have to do it.

It’s also true that you will feel much safer if you’re not worried that a 25mph crash will rip your face to shreds or put you in the ER. Good, armored gear will help a lot.

The biggest thing, however, is confidence in your own abilities, which as some have already said, comes with practice. Make a point to go to a parking lot and practice skills, especially braking and hard cornering. I’d also really suggest taking some sort of more advanced riding school. If you don’t have confidence in your abilities, you’ll hesitate to push them, which is good! As has been said already, “ride your own ride,” keep practicing, and you’ll get more comfortable in no time.

[eternal05]

The GSX650F is about 500 lbs.

[eternal05]

I’d absolutely pay $5,000 for a brand-new, manufacturer-warranty-covered bike. I’ve purchased nothing but used cars in my lifetime, so I know the territory well. When you buy used your making a gamble:

“I bet the potential effects of previous owner mistreatment / bad luck are going to cost me less than the discount I’m getting over a new vehicle.”

But dude, I can’t tell you how unlucky you can get. My current car is a 2006 Audi A4 that I got used at a huge discount. Luckily, however, it was manufacturer-certified and came with a factory warranty (you know, “Certified Used Audi,” blah blah blah). If I did not have that factory warranty I’d be in debt right now. The car, pristine-looking and mechanically certified, has cost me $121 in repairs so far, but it’s cost Audi about $16,000. It’s needed a new clutch, a new engine, a new rear differential, and a complete replacement of the electronics package. If I was stuck with the real bills instead of a $40-and-change deductible each time….yuck.

If the difference is slim, I go new every time. All three of my motorcycles were purchased new. I got great deals on all of them (I paid just over $8K TOTAL–taxes, fees, everything–for a brand new GSX-R600), but I bought them new. That way I didn’t have to worry if the previous owner had fiddled with the carbs, or the electronics, or the cam timing, or poured olive oil into the oil tank, or made a habit of doing 1.5-mile stand-up wheelies down the interstate, …the list goes on and on. Believe me, you can run up a repair tab greater than the $600-1000 difference in price REAL fast if the used bike is in any way a dud. And it’s not always easy to know ahead of time. Go new. Seriously.

[eternal05]

A lot of your (plastic) comments suggest to me that you’re severely handicapped by not having riding experience. I’m not talking about thousands of miles. I’m just talking about two days’ worth of comprehensive riding (i.e., all aspects of riding covered). I know this is impossibly idealistic, but you need to take that MSF beginning riders course before you go thinking about what “feels comfortable,” what suits you, etc. I’m not trying to slam you or make you feel dumb. You’re doing exactly what I did and what everybody does when looking into starting a motorcycling career: you look for what fits the image in your head and the intangible desires you have, rather than trying to figure out what’s really right for you. That’s natural, and there’s nothing wrong with that, as long as you realize it and catch yourself.

I have nothing against Suzuki GSX-Rs, nor do I have anything against the Aprilia Mana. They’re great bikes. But neither are beginner bikes. This is particularly true of the GSX-Rs, and the fact that you, at 5’7″, were more comfortable on a GSX-R than you were on a Ninja 250 tells me that you simply don’t know what to look for yet. My GSX-R is track-converted, and it’s a fantastic bike for that, but it’s uncomfortable as all hell next to any “standard” bike. The seat is high and the clip-ons are low; your upper body is pushed forwards, and your feet are shoved practically up to your butt. Hell, at 5’7″ I’m amazed you could even get your feet to the ground over the 32″ seat (33″ is the half-way point up your body). The Ninja has a much more upright sitting position, a more relaxed position for your legs, and would put you a lot lower to the ground, making it easier to flat-foot and easier to catch if the weight gets the better of you.

Finally, with respect to clutch vs. automatic, I’d be surprised if you could really not use a clutch yet still manage to ride a bike. All the same, I’d definitely check out the BRC and see how two days of solid riding feels. If your hand/wrist really do bother you, try a scooter. If they don’t, then your whole world has opened back up and you have tons of great beginner bikes to choose from.

Good luck figuring this stuff out, and do let us know how things go!

[eternal05]

Does the helmet feel tight after a while, or do you feel distinct spots in the helmet where it is particularly uncomfortable? If it’s the former, you may either have the right helmet but you got a headache, or you may have gotten a helmet that’s slightly small. I doubt that’s the case, however. Chances are that if you keep wearing it, it will break in and feel more comfortable over time.

If you feel distinct pressure on, say, your forehead, or at your temples, etc., then you may want to look for other brands and other helmet shapes.

Everybody else has said it already: drink lots of water, especially if you’re going to be out for extended periods in hot weather. Dehydration is a quick ticket to a headache and worse, so take care of yourself!

[eternal05]

Simply stunning. I’m jealous.

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There are plenty of instances where an entire industry carries on a harmful or misinformed tradition for years because they have no impetus to check their assumptions. You’d be surprised at the number of reputable race engine tuners that live religiously by hard break-in. That’s not to say that they’re right; I just think it’s kinda silly to assume that the manufacturers can’t err.

[eternal05]

I own three pairs of boots: two from one, and one from the other. They’re fantastic.

[eternal05]

Luckily Google takes care of this for you. Do a google search with the following keyword:

“site:bestbeginnermotorcycles.com”

So for instance, if I want to search for posts about insurance quotes:

“insurance quotes site:bestbeginnermotorcycles.com”

Also, don’t get a 600cc supersport if it’s your first bike. It’s your funeral, so do what you gotta do, but I advise against it. And yes, that’s coming from a GSX-R owner.

[eternal05]

I’m all for safety, but buying a one-piece suit to wear on the road will lead to only one thing: you not wearing it. I have a one-piece for the track, and I NEVER wear it on the road. Here’s why:

1) They take way too long to get into and out of, even with an undersuit.

2) If you want to go somewhere, you’ll need to take a change of clothes with you (unless you plan to go through your work day wearing leathers).

3) Going to the bathroom is problematic.

4) You will get WAAAAAAAAAAAAAY too hot on hot days.

5) When you get off the bike, you have nowhere to carry things like a phone, wallet, keys, etc.

The thing is, yes, a one-piece suit is very safe, but a cheaper one-piece is not necessarily safer than a nice jacket and pants. Really, the only benefit of a one-piece suit over nice two-piece gear is that you aren’t vulnerable where the jacket and pants join at the waist. Otherwise, it’s basically the same.

What you have to remember is that the more difficult it is to use a piece of gear, the less likely you are to continue wearing it every time you go out. Imagine you just need to run to the store to grab some half and half or mail your rent check? You’re telling me you’re really going to squeeze into your suit to do that?

One last thing: it is wise to be realistic about the risks of riding, but accepting that you will crash is not. Your goal is never to crash. Every time you crash, especially the higher the speed, you risk death, or worse: vegetable-ization. While it is very likely that, during the early learning phase, you might drop your bike at a stop or during a low-speed u-turn, a crash at 75mph should NEVER happen. You should be prepared and properly protected if it does, but you should NOT assume it is an inevitablity.

My recommendation is that you get a solid armored leather jacket (perforated if you live in a hot climate), a solid pair of armored overpants, textile riding pants, or armored riding jeans (not regular jeans!), and a really solid pair of boots.

[eternal05]

I spray painted my race bodywork to save a little money, and I did a damn good job if I do say so myself. The fact of the matter is that, if you do it wrong (one coat of color, one coat of clear), it looks like CRAP. If you do it right, it’s not that cheap (you need a LOT of paint, sandpaper, etc.), and it takes so much of your time that it’s almost worth it to just pay somebody else.

I spent about 25 hours sanding and painting over a week’s time (gotta wait for the paint to dry), and spent about $115 in spray paint (six cans of white, four of black, and eleven of clear). Even if I made minimum wage (about $8 here), the time I spent painting instead of working would have cost me $200 + $115 for paint = $315! I didn’t expect to spend that much, but I kept needing more and more paint. Like I said, it almost makes more sense to pay a professional. It’ll also look a lot better.

The worst part is that I crashed my bike two track sessions after I painted it, and ruined it so badly that I had to go over the whole thing with the left-over white I had sitting at home. That’s a week of my life down the drain. Don’t let this happen to you.

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