what should be my first bike?

Question

at first i was thinking on getting a monster 620 but then the folks at y! answers said that was not a good idea cause i would lay it down for sure that makes sense but no one made any suggestions as to what bike i should Get.

oh if you do have any ideas for me could you tell me what i should pay for that bike

Answer 1

I have a 1990 Yamaha Virago that I got for $900-ish. It depends on your size really, if you're a big guy like 200+ pounds I wouldn't go with anything less than a 650cc. But if you're like me and weigh 160lbs, you don't really need something that big. I don't think a "superbike" is a good choice because they're really hard to control (if you have NO experience).

Answer 2

I bought a beat up old Honda CX500 for my first bike. I'm well over 200 lbs and this thing has no problem keeping up with highway traffic. Found it on Craigslist - that and Cycle Trader are good places to find bargain bikes.

Depending on your preferences, I'd say look at cruisers from 750 cc or less, sport bikes or standards of 500 cc or less (there are a few up to 650 cc's thar are all right), or any single cylinder dual sport bike. Just be sure that it's small enough that you can get both feet flat on the ground or pick it up if you drop it, and has a reasonable but not excessive amount of power. And make sure you feel comfortable sitting on it.

And definitely take the MSF class or an equivalent. This'll get you a chance to make the more common beginning mistakes in a controlled environment. I had one spectacular near-drop there that could have gotten me killed had I done it on the street.

Answer 3

Here's the first thing you should do. Go take a motorcycle course and learn the basic's of safety.

Go to all the motorcycle shops and look, talk to the sales people. sit on the bikes, test drive some used bikes.

Decide what you want to use the bike for before you buy one.

Three main types.

1.Touring Bikes, LD travel, highway use, long trips
2.Cruisers, Comfort riding, around town, 3 day trips,etc.
3.Sport bikes, around town, usually riden less than 100 miles per day.

If you plan to have a passanger and say take a trip from your home state to another, then get a touring type bike, which would be.
A) Harley's Largest bike w/saddle bags.
B) Honda Gold Wing w/ABS brakes or the 1300
C) BMW Touring Bike
Their are more, these are just three brands to start with.

Cruisers:
A)Harley, Softail Standard, Fat boy, Duce, Classic
B) Yamaha 1100V Star
C)Kawasaki 1600

Sport Bikes:
A)Buell
B)Kawasaki Ninka
C Suzuki Haybusa

Don't spend less than $6000.00 on any bike and get one which is not more than 3 years old. Less than 4000 miles.

Answer 4

Get a 100cc dirt bike, used. It's cheap and when you fall in the dirt it will hurt a lot less.

When your riding skills improve sell the 100 and get a 250 dirt bike.

When you've mastered that move on to street bikes. Get a 650 or 750..

From there the sky is the limit.

Don't buy any Suzukis! My brother and I bought 2 new bikes for a summer vacation. His 1200 Bandit leaked gas and ruined the motor before it got 2000 miles. We asked Suzuki to replace the motor so we could go on vacation.
It took 2 months to get a rep, then he said it’s to expensive and would cost $3000. After 4 months and the vacation gone they got the motor rebuilt at a their cost of $3700. The dealer wanted to replace the motor but Suzuki Rep squashed that.
The gas stained cases and burnt exhaust pipes were not replaced. The bike got nicked and scratched all over from being apart for 6 months. The rep rode it and looked at it, then said it’ good as new. It ran like crap and looked worse.
We called Japan, and even wrote the US CEO all for nothing. We spent $15,000 for the bikes to get ripped off by Suzuki. We spent our vacation hassling with Suzuki, and not one person there gave a damn!
Beware Suzuki’s warranty is not worth the paper it’s on! Buy one of their lemons, get shafted, we did!
I’m a 30 yr garage vet and I know when a rep and a manufacturer have ripped off a customer. This one stinks to high heaven! RUN from buying any Suzuki!

Answer 5

If you have no expirence on a bike before I would suggest a honda shadow 750. This was my first bike. It is light and easy to handle in case you get into a jam. If you want to go Cheap and find a excellenct bike then I would recommend a 1986 Honda Shadow. They run around 1,500

Answer 6

I agree with chad r , a 750 shadow is a good bike to start on , There low ,they are nice looking bikes and very dependable ,but I suggest getting an older one so as not to spend to much on something that might turn out to be to small , Ride safe and wave !

Answer 7

For God's sake !!!!!!! Have you all gone MAD ????? Your first bike should be one that you can handle. Try something like a CBR 250, or anything similar ( GSXR, ZXR, VTR ) A 750, is so much more of a handful. The idea, is to be alive to get a bigger bike, when your experience level, is at a point where you can handle it. Not to prove how fast you can kill yourself, with your first bike.

Answer 8

Stick with a 750cc Honda, Yamaha or other rice burner. They are great bikes to learn on. Very balanced, user friendly, and dependable (let's not forget cheap). Be safe, wear a helmet, and watch out for the cell phone yappers not paying attention out there.HAVE FUN !!!

Answer 9

I agree with the 2 posters above me. I learned on a Kawasaki H2 750 triple 2 stroker. Tons of power. Alot of fun. But i didnt hurt myself. What i am saying is don't be afraid of power. But be confortable. That virago is real comfortable and has plenty of power.