[WeaponZero]

As far as functionality goes, leather’s only real advantages over textile are the obvious (more protective, can survive multiple crashes), and the fact that it’s easier to maintain. A leather jacket will also last longer the reinforced qualities of textile jackets do break down over time and the textile will weaken and lose its protective qualities somewhat over the years. Leather doesn’t have this problem.

Aside from those things, textile is better in virtually every way. It is arguably more comfortable, it can be made to adapt to a wide variety of different climate conditions whereas with leather you need a different jacket for each season, it can be made to be fully waterproof while leather can, at best, only be water “resistant,” and it can be made to fit different body types easier. If you can only own one riding jacket, it’s going to be textile because only with a textile jacket can you get one single “do-it-all” jacket for varying weather conditions. If anyone does own a leather jacket, it’s probably one of 3 or more riding jackets they own, at least one of which is textile. I own 3 myself, one hot weather leather jacket, one cool weather leather jacket, and one waterproof textile jacket that has enough climate control features to go from hot to cool weather riding as well.

The biggest downfall to textile jackets IMO is that they’re a pain to clean as they cannot be machine washed, dry cleaned, or anything. They must be hand washed and using very specific chemicals to avoid breaking down the protective qualities of the nylons that make up the jacket.

I could go more into detail about it if you wish…

[WeaponZero]

Well, it’s more of a basic commuter than anything else. Its main competitors, the Yamaha WR250X and KLX250SF are both far superior machines in virtually every way, but it’s not bad for what it is.

[WeaponZero]

I wrote a short essay comparing the two for a writing class last year. Give your email address and I’ll send it to you.

[WeaponZero]

In the mid ’80s, Honda came out with a power cruiser (the original “muscle bike”) called the Magna that was built on a sportbike engine; the VF750/VF700 Interceptor engine.

Kawasaki answered Honda by coming out with the Eliminator line, which was a line of cruisers based on the Ninja four cylinder engines. Though the other sizes were only built for a couple of years, the 600 version, which was built on the original ZX600R (1984-spec) Ninja engine, was built all the way up until the mid-late 90s and was a pretty hot seller for a while. Kawasaki dropped the ball though when Honda redesigned the Magna 750 (its main competitor) in 1994, making it better than ever, and Kawasaki refused to similarly update the Eliminator 600.

Though the Eliminator line of power cruisers never quite met with the same success as Honda’s Magna and Yamaha’s V-Max, they were highly successful in their own right.

To call their new 125cc trainer bike the Eliminator considering the heritage behind the Eliminator name in their lineup is wrong on soooooo many levels.

[WeaponZero]

I don’t even know what a roundabout is. I don’t know what you’re complaining about with 4 way stop signs being bad, but then I’ve never known anything else.

[WeaponZero]

It’s hard to say because neither bike is available in US or canada. As far as which one is more user friendly as a beginner bike, I’d say they’re both great. I’ve read lots of reviews saying nothing but good things about the YZF but the CBR I haven’t heard much about.

[WeaponZero]

I am originally from Florida, which did away with the helmet law back in the ’90s. Originally I didn’t care until I realized once I started riding how hazardous it is to have debris kicked up by cars end up smacking you upside the head. I have numerous scratches on my helmets from small rocks being kicked up and hitting me in the helmet. If I weren’t wearing one, it would have caught me in the head and hit hard enough to possibly make me lose control of the bike. This changed my entire outlook on the matter.

The state I currently live in, PA, did away with the helmet law as well back in 2005 or 2006. There is a stipulation to it, however, and that is that if you are still under your learner’s permit or have had your motorcycle license less than 2 years, you are required to wear a helmet. FL had a weird stipulation as well. The state of FL does not require you to carry insurance on a motorcycle (or didn’t back in the 90s anyway), but only people who have insurance are allowed to go without a helmet. The FL insurance law is weird. You’re not required to carry insurance on your bike, however, if you are involved in an accident or cited for a moving violation while operating a motorcycle uninsured, it can result in loss of your Class M license.

[WeaponZero]

Kawasaki Ninja 250R is perfect for you. You can get a current generation model if you want but you’ll pay a hefty premium.

There are basically three generations of the Kawasaki Ninja 250:

Pre-1995 – All badging said “EX250” rather than “250R”. Known for having head gasket issues.

1995: Name changed to Ninja 250R. All reliability problems fixed.

2008: Complete redesign, only the old engine carries over. Everything else is new from the ground up, designed to look like a razor edged sportbike. Ergonomics are a bit more aggressive than older models.

You have two choices: either a 1995-2007 model, or a 2008+ model. They’re both good, it’s entirely up to preference. Both will suit your needs as well. Feel free to post with more questions.

[WeaponZero]

The Nighthawk and Rebel 450 were based on the old CB450 engine. it was built forever and only needs a little maintenance to practically outlast its owner. of course that doesn’t mean the rest of the bike is as good.

i think that for honda to discontinue production of bikes based on their 450 engine was one of the biggest mistakes they ever made. look at their model lineup right now. there’s nothing in between their 250 bikes and their 600cc repliracers in their model lineup.

[WeaponZero]

Though I made an exception for my new Scorpion helmet (only because I got it as a package deal with my new Scorpion jacket), I generally ONLY buy ECE certified helmets. In the past that pretty much limited me to just Shark, but with the new nonsense going on involving Snell, many other brands are switching to ECE. Scorpion is replacing the EXO 400 and EXO 700 with the 450 and 750 (though its a slow, phasing out process), which are identical but now have whats called World Standard certification, meaning they are DOT and ECE certified and give Snell the middle finger. All Icon helmets being made from mid 2009 on are the same, they’re ditching the Snell certification for the ECE certification.

The recent motorcyclist article that they did as a followup to that one you linked was basically Snell admitting (though not in so many words) that ECE was a better test and that they are changing their tests so that they somewhat mirror ECE. By doing this, Snell has basically made it hard for the helmer manufacturers to take them seriously, and so the Snell certification isn’t as important as it once was. In fact, many are saying that it is more important to get ECE certified than Snell.

[WeaponZero]

Dont buy any sort of bike with a fairing. You will be doing bodywork

[WeaponZero]

No problem. Glad to help. Also, just FYI, Speed & Strength and Joe Rocket were both founded by the same people. Here’s what happened:

Joe Rocket was (and still is, though it’s declining) the #1 selling brand of motorcycle safety apparel in the US. About 7 or 8 years ago they shut down their US plant and decided to start outsourcing all their production to plants in China and Korea that weren’t owned by or affiliated with Joe Rocket, it was just a contract work basically. Quality started declining rapidly and sales started slumping. Numerous quality control issues were hurting Joe Rocket’s image, so about 3 years ago the owners left the company and took their patents with them. They started up a new company called Speed & Strength which uses all the old Joe Rocket patents and the quality is every bit as good as JR used to be before they began outsourcing. They are making everything in-house now in plants that they own and supervise (though still overseas).

Their jackets –

Fame & Fortune – the bare minimum in motorcycle safety apparel. Basic ventilation and standard CE armor in elbows/forearms and shoulders, and a dual density back protector.

Moment of Truth – basic textile jacket with vents that open for ample ventilation.

Hang’Em High – similar to the Moment of Truth jacket, but it is made using a special 800 denier textile rather than their standard 600, offering superior abrasion protection and comfort. Has cool graphics.

Coast is Clear – their lowest-end waterproof jacket. Trades the superior ventilation of the other models for waterproofing.

Devil’s in the Details – discontinued model currently on closeout – a basic textile jacket that converts to a full mesh jacket for hot weather riding.

Twist of Fate – A sportbike-oriented textile jacket with superior ventilation to the Moment of Truth and added protection in the form of external GP style protectors in the shoulders and back on top of the internal armor.

Hell ‘n’ Back – High-end touring jacket that works for any type of weather condition. Waterproof, well-ventilated for hot weather, and offers protection on par with the Twist of Fate jacket.

They offer other jackets such as the Moment of Truth SP, Under the Radar and the My Motorcycle is my Weapon that are essentially just plays on existing models with special graphic schemes.

The Twist of Fate, Moment of Truth, and Hang’em High are all available in mesh jacket versions as well. All their mesh jackets come with a removable waterproof liner. Their textile jackets come with a removable thermal vest liner.

Also, All Joe Rocket and Speed & Strength jackets use what I refer to as “vanity sizing,” which means their apparel typically runs a full size or sometimes even more larger than marked when compared to other brands. Just because you can fit into a Joe Rocket 2XL doesn’t mean you can fit into another brand’s 2XL, in fact you may have to go up as far as a 4XL in most other brands.

[WeaponZero]

V-Star 650. I already responded in your other thread as to why.

Leather offers the best in safety but in the Texas heat it may not ventilate well enough for use in the summer. I’m not sure even perforated leather would suffice. It would be in your best interest IMO to get a textile jacket that allows you to deal with the elements better. Plus textile is cheaper so it’ll save you money. As a new rider you should get a full face helmet even though you’re a cruiser rider. It may not present the *image* you’re looking for but at this point you NEED the added safety of it.

Good choices for gear:

Jackets – stick with the closeout sections at newenough.com, sportbiketrackgear.com, and motorcycle-superstore.com. Kneedraggers.com is another good site but their closeouts section is poorly organized and difficult to navigate. If you’re a big guy with a bit of a spare tire around the middle, you’ll find the BEST FITTING gear in the brands JOE ROCKET and SPEED & STRENGTH. I know because when I started out riding I was 335 lbs at 5’11” and I even wrote a post on this site on “big men’s” gear. The quality of Speed & Strength’s gear is far superior to Joe Rocket IMO. Avoid “Euro-fit” brands of gear such as Teknic and Alpinestars and Shift. Their jackets are tailored to those with an athletic figure and aren’t comfy for the rest of us who aren’t all that athletic.

Pants – As a big guy you have one option and one option only: The Firstgear HT Air 2.0 Mesh overpants. I know. I looked long and hard and it was either these or a pair of Draggin’ Jeans.

Helmet – Most full face helmets have vents positioned for the sportbike riding position, and when sitting upright as you would in a cruiser, have a loud high-pitched whistle or booming noise that comes from air hitting the vents (whether open or closed). The Scorpion EXO-400 and Scorpion EXO-700 (arguably the BEST budget helmets on the market, far superior than anything HJC makes and better than anything else you’ll find for under $200) don’t have this issue as the vents are positioned more for a standard/cruiser riding position.

Boots – Take your pick. If you want boots that offer comfort and safety in a boot that looks like normal street shoes, Icon is your brand. Most brands don’t offer wide sizes but some brands, namely Icon and TCX, run wider than marked so it’s safe to look to these brands if you normally require a wide shoe.

Gloves – Try before you buy. These are the one thing I would not order online as they must fit your hand perfectly. Go to your local dealer, try a bunch on, pay the extra $15-$20 they charge for them over what an online retailer is asking, and get some gloves that fit your hands perfectly.

[WeaponZero]

The Virago was the predecessor to the V-Star. The V-Star 650 was the replacement for the Virago 535 which was a great bike. Its final year of production was either 2000 or 2001 before it was replaced by the V-Star 650.

[WeaponZero]

Yamaha V-Star 650. Kawasaki Vulcan 500 is another good choice but the seating position might feel cramped due to your size. The V-Star 650 has the same size dimensions as the full size V-Star 1100, since it’s built on the same frame and uses most of the same parts, aside from the engine. Honda Shadow 750 is another good choice and is a far better bike but it costs a fair bit more than the V-Star and at your skill level I’m not sure it’s worth spending the extra $2000 or so.

[Author]

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