Discussion
Hi All,
I'm totally new to biking, I've desperately wanted a bike for ages now and have eventually saved up enough to do my tests and get my first baby.
I don't really want to get a 125 and then have to sell it again or lose money so have booked my DAS and completed my CBT and theory. I'm old enough to drive anything if I pass but now don't know whether I should get a 125 first? I'm being told different things and some say get a 125 and drive it for a year first and other say go for it so I just wanted some opinions from bikers.
Hopefully I'll get a bit of comfort that getting straight to a 600 is a good idea as I'm a complete novice and need some reassurance 😁
All opinions valued so feel free to contribute 😊
Thank you x
I'm totally new to biking, I've desperately wanted a bike for ages now and have eventually saved up enough to do my tests and get my first baby.
I don't really want to get a 125 and then have to sell it again or lose money so have booked my DAS and completed my CBT and theory. I'm old enough to drive anything if I pass but now don't know whether I should get a 125 first? I'm being told different things and some say get a 125 and drive it for a year first and other say go for it so I just wanted some opinions from bikers.
Hopefully I'll get a bit of comfort that getting straight to a 600 is a good idea as I'm a complete novice and need some reassurance 😁
All opinions valued so feel free to contribute 😊
Thank you x
If you can feel you can pass your DAS without practicing on a 125 beforehand, go for it. The only reason I had my 125 was to get out and about for a couple of months practicing. Passed both tests first time without any any minors so read into that what you will.
Made a few quid selling my 125 as well, they don't lose much money at all.
Made a few quid selling my 125 as well, they don't lose much money at all.
DuraAce said:
You'll be fine.i started on a GSXR600 and haven't died (yet!)
"It only goes as fast as you tell it to" , always sticks in my mind. There was a guy on here who went straight onto a Desmo so don't worry about a 600. You can ride whatever your budget allows you to.
This ^ is the standard response on here."It only goes as fast as you tell it to" , always sticks in my mind. There was a guy on here who went straight onto a Desmo so don't worry about a 600. You can ride whatever your budget allows you to.
But there's two schools of thought. One is the "throttle works both ways", which obviously it does but in my opinion you'll end up getting your s
ts and giggles by pinning the throttle, and not enjoying the corners. Then in a year or two you'll be posting on the internet asking "how do I go around a corner" once the novelty of accelleration has worn off. The other (more old fashioned) view is that it's better to get your learning done on a small bike so all your concentration goes on the important bits you have to learn, like cornering and road awareness without being intimidated by the machine.For your info, you won't lose much money on a 125. There's always a demand for them so very often you can sell them for what you pay for them.
srob said:
This ^ is the standard response on here.
But there's two schools of thought. One is the "throttle works both ways", which obviously it does but in my opinion you'll end up getting your sts and giggles by pinning the throttle, and not enjoying the corners. Then in a year or two you'll be posting on the internet asking "how do I go around a corner" once the novelty of accelleration has worn off. The other (more old fashioned) view is that it's better to get your learning done on a small bike so all your concentration goes on the important bits you have to learn, like cornering and road awareness without being intimidated by the machine.
For your info, you won't lose much money on a 125. There's always a demand for them so very often you can sell them for what you pay for them.
Thanks, I'm not massively interested in driving like a loon, I'm probably what you would bracket as a pleasure rider. I live between a few motorway and dual carriageway veins so my other thought is around having enough clout to take these on without bottoming out half way past a lorry. I guess a lot will depend on my patience and the skills of the instructors along with my ability to learn. But there's two schools of thought. One is the "throttle works both ways", which obviously it does but in my opinion you'll end up getting your s
ts and giggles by pinning the throttle, and not enjoying the corners. Then in a year or two you'll be posting on the internet asking "how do I go around a corner" once the novelty of accelleration has worn off. The other (more old fashioned) view is that it's better to get your learning done on a small bike so all your concentration goes on the important bits you have to learn, like cornering and road awareness without being intimidated by the machine.For your info, you won't lose much money on a 125. There's always a demand for them so very often you can sell them for what you pay for them.
Being 6ft I'm not massively comfortable on a 125 either so this is another consideration. Honestly, how do you focus on work when you spend 24-7 thinking about bikes :0
Purity14 said:
I started on an SV650, like a lot of people.
Cheap bike, super reliable, goes well, very linear power delivery so it wont surprise you with a massive rush of power like an IL4 will.
Maxes out at 135 mph, I get 55mpg consistently, even when pressing on.
3 Options, Naked; party faired; fully faired.
Good all rounder, masses of parts available,
I was thinking of a XJ6, full faired...they seem pretty decent for a newbie?Cheap bike, super reliable, goes well, very linear power delivery so it wont surprise you with a massive rush of power like an IL4 will.
Maxes out at 135 mph, I get 55mpg consistently, even when pressing on.
3 Options, Naked; party faired; fully faired.
Good all rounder, masses of parts available,
Difficult to prescribe a bike for you - ride some and find what you feel comfortable and confident with.
I rode on a CBT 17 years ago, never passed my test (hot headed youth meant I didn't persevere when I failed it), and recently did CBT/DAS. Found the Suzuki VanVan pretty hateful for anything other than CBT/reacquainting myself with riding, and was glad to be put on a 600 fairly soon (XJ6N).
Since I passed my test, I went out and bought a 17 year old (but nice condition) VFR750. Probably a bit mad, but it just felt nice to ride, and I have liked them ever since I was first riding. It's all about what YOU want, really.
I rode on a CBT 17 years ago, never passed my test (hot headed youth meant I didn't persevere when I failed it), and recently did CBT/DAS. Found the Suzuki VanVan pretty hateful for anything other than CBT/reacquainting myself with riding, and was glad to be put on a 600 fairly soon (XJ6N).
Since I passed my test, I went out and bought a 17 year old (but nice condition) VFR750. Probably a bit mad, but it just felt nice to ride, and I have liked them ever since I was first riding. It's all about what YOU want, really.
I passed my test on an old Yamaha RXS100, then jumped straight onto a new sports 600 that I bought after trying some more 'sensible' 500 twins. the bigger bike felt hugely more stable than the RXS, and while much faster you do have to pin the throttle on a modern IL4 to get at the performance, so it was something I built up to. If you're a mature, sensible individual you won't find a big bike gets you into difficulties.
SS7
SS7
Hello and welcome.
Going straight to a 600 is, I think, a very good idea. Smaller bikes can be great fun but are hard work in traffic, especially on faster main roads. Just because you can go fast doesn’t mean you will go fast and the ‘survival instinct’ most of us get once we’re beyond our teens will generally stop you from going too fast.
Once you have passed your DAS and have your bike, book some further advanced riding courses where they will teach you things such as how to make safe use of the power of the larger bike and how to handle corners safely while still having fun.
Going straight to a 600 is, I think, a very good idea. Smaller bikes can be great fun but are hard work in traffic, especially on faster main roads. Just because you can go fast doesn’t mean you will go fast and the ‘survival instinct’ most of us get once we’re beyond our teens will generally stop you from going too fast.
Once you have passed your DAS and have your bike, book some further advanced riding courses where they will teach you things such as how to make safe use of the power of the larger bike and how to handle corners safely while still having fun.
Purity14 said:
Work? I cant even concentrate on sex.
I just want to get my leg over an engine with two wheels attached to it, fill it with some flammable liquid, and see how fast I can blast myself off.
My friend has an XJ6, he loves it - If you live near a dual carriageway etc, would you not consider something with a fairing? It makes a huge difference.
Totally, I've been eyeing up a Diversion F. I literally CANNOT wait! I just want to get my leg over an engine with two wheels attached to it, fill it with some flammable liquid, and see how fast I can blast myself off.
My friend has an XJ6, he loves it - If you live near a dual carriageway etc, would you not consider something with a fairing? It makes a huge difference.
black-k1 said:
Hello and welcome.
Going straight to a 600 is, I think, a very good idea. Smaller bikes can be great fun but are hard work in traffic, especially on faster main roads. Just because you can go fast doesn’t mean you will go fast and the ‘survival instinct’ most of us get once we’re beyond our teens will generally stop you from going too fast.
Once you have passed your DAS and have your bike, book some further advanced riding courses where they will teach you things such as how to make safe use of the power of the larger bike and how to handle corners safely while still having fun.
I guess it just takes time and confidence. Having a clutch and throttle at my hand is not the same as my feet but I know I won't become another statistic if I'm aware and sensible Going straight to a 600 is, I think, a very good idea. Smaller bikes can be great fun but are hard work in traffic, especially on faster main roads. Just because you can go fast doesn’t mean you will go fast and the ‘survival instinct’ most of us get once we’re beyond our teens will generally stop you from going too fast.
Once you have passed your DAS and have your bike, book some further advanced riding courses where they will teach you things such as how to make safe use of the power of the larger bike and how to handle corners safely while still having fun.
My first bike is a GSX-R600, I've had a great time with it so far. It just depends what you want from a bike, if my main use was going to be commuting, I wouldn't have got a sports bike. My use is almost exclusively quick riding at quiet times or blasts on empty roads, so I wanted a sports bike.
Of course buying a sports bike doesn't mean you'll die - almost any bike can go fast enough to kill you if you come off above a certain limit, you'll get some survival instinct, hopefully, and you'll use the performance available when appropriate to do so without incurring unnecessary risk.
Of course buying a sports bike doesn't mean you'll die - almost any bike can go fast enough to kill you if you come off above a certain limit, you'll get some survival instinct, hopefully, and you'll use the performance available when appropriate to do so without incurring unnecessary risk.
srob said:
But there's two schools of thought. One is the "throttle works both ways", which obviously it does but in my opinion you'll end up getting your sts and giggles by pinning the throttle, and not enjoying the corners. Then in a year or two you'll be posting on the internet asking "how do I go around a corner" once the novelty of accelleration has worn off. The other (more old fashioned) view is that it's better to get your learning done on a small bike so all your concentration goes on the important bits you have to learn, like cornering and road awareness without being intimidated by the machine.
For your info, you won't lose much money on a 125. There's always a demand for them so very often you can sell them for what you pay for them.
There are indeed two schools of thought. Personally, and this is just my opinion and recommendation which others may not agree with:ts and giggles by pinning the throttle, and not enjoying the corners. Then in a year or two you'll be posting on the internet asking "how do I go around a corner" once the novelty of accelleration has worn off. The other (more old fashioned) view is that it's better to get your learning done on a small bike so all your concentration goes on the important bits you have to learn, like cornering and road awareness without being intimidated by the machine.For your info, you won't lose much money on a 125. There's always a demand for them so very often you can sell them for what you pay for them.
- A 125cc bike is not powerful enough to give you the additional safety and additional options that good acceleration can give you
- A 125cc is pretty relaxing to ride at slow speed because they are so light
- A 250-400cc bike is a lot more powerful than a 125 and still quite light but don't have so much power that you find yourself going at 100mph.... right before the vehicle which you would have seen had you had 2 more years of experience pulls out of a junction in front of you and SMIDSYing you.
So in other words, I recommend a 250-400cc bike for a year or two. Enjoy a small light bike for a while; you will probably never own a bike as light and easy to handle again.
Started off this summer aged 25 and decided to go the route of CBT+125 to get into the swing of things then (full thread here http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a....)
Several mates have gone straight to big bikes (well one has tried and failed 3x) and told me that was the better way to go but I'm quite happy with a few months on the little Suzuki (though it has very much told me I want something with a bit more punch).
Next summer I shall be heading for a DSA test with a good few miles already in the saddle
Several mates have gone straight to big bikes (well one has tried and failed 3x) and told me that was the better way to go but I'm quite happy with a few months on the little Suzuki (though it has very much told me I want something with a bit more punch).
Next summer I shall be heading for a DSA test with a good few miles already in the saddle
creampuff said:
srob said:
But there's two schools of thought. One is the "throttle works both ways", which obviously it does but in my opinion you'll end up getting your sts and giggles by pinning the throttle, and not enjoying the corners. Then in a year or two you'll be posting on the internet asking "how do I go around a corner" once the novelty of accelleration has worn off. The other (more old fashioned) view is that it's better to get your learning done on a small bike so all your concentration goes on the important bits you have to learn, like cornering and road awareness without being intimidated by the machine.
For your info, you won't lose much money on a 125. There's always a demand for them so very often you can sell them for what you pay for them.
There are indeed two schools of thought. Personally, and this is just my opinion and recommendation which others may not agree with:ts and giggles by pinning the throttle, and not enjoying the corners. Then in a year or two you'll be posting on the internet asking "how do I go around a corner" once the novelty of accelleration has worn off. The other (more old fashioned) view is that it's better to get your learning done on a small bike so all your concentration goes on the important bits you have to learn, like cornering and road awareness without being intimidated by the machine.For your info, you won't lose much money on a 125. There's always a demand for them so very often you can sell them for what you pay for them.
- A 125cc bike is not powerful enough to give you the additional safety and additional options that good acceleration can give you
- A 125cc is pretty relaxing to ride at slow speed because they are so light
- A 250-400cc bike is a lot more powerful than a 125 and still quite light but don't have so much power that you find yourself going at 100mph.... right before the vehicle which you would have seen had you had 2 more years of experience pulls out of a junction in front of you and SMIDSYing you.
So in other words, I recommend a 250-400cc bike for a year or two. Enjoy a small light bike for a while; you will probably never own a bike as light and easy to handle again.
Now, you have to take lots of training before you’re allowed near a road on bike with more than about 12.5bhp. The same wisdom regards stepping up now suggests you "take it easy" on a mid-range 600 with between 100bhp and about 125bhp.
As gentle bikes these days have more power (and less weight) than the fire breathing beasts of the past then it would suggest that the "it’s only safe to do it in steps" view is not based around how safe a given capacity of bike is but around the power of a beginners bike being in the mid-range of top end bikes. These values then move with changes in power outputs and not with what is safe and what is not.
Likewise, there is no evidence that a rider of X experience is a better/safer rider if those years are spent on smaller/lower capacity bikes or if they go straight to large capacity bikes. There is an assumption that inexperienced riders on bigger bikes can’t corner but I think that’s only because all inexperienced riders take a while to learn to corner properly and there are proportionally more inexperienced riders on larger bikes (thus they get noticed) than there are on smaller bikes.
I did my DAS and went straight for a 600cc Fazer S2. However I had geared off road bikes when I was younger, a moped at 16 and rode a little geared 110cc in Asia for a few months.
I think it would be far too tempting to pin the throttle and get into trouble on corner or wobble around corners at tortoise pace if you haven't built up the experience before hand.
I felt my jump was quite big, so without any experience at all I think you'd be better pacing yourself.
I would look at something in-between like a 400cc DRZ
I think it would be far too tempting to pin the throttle and get into trouble on corner or wobble around corners at tortoise pace if you haven't built up the experience before hand.
I felt my jump was quite big, so without any experience at all I think you'd be better pacing yourself.
I would look at something in-between like a 400cc DRZ
cat with a hat said:
I did my DAS and went straight for a 600cc Fazer S2. However I had geared off road bikes when I was younger, a moped at 16 and rode a little geared 110cc in Asia for a few months.
I think it would be far too tempting to pin the throttle and get into trouble on corner or wobble around corners at tortoise pace if you haven't built up the experience before hand.
I felt my jump was quite big, so without any experience at all I think you'd be better pacing yourself.
I would look at something in-between like a 400cc DRZ
I agree that baby steps are the key, I'm not one to pin a throttle and even in my very very limited experience I know I'm comfortable with my balance. Maybe something else then, a 400 DRZ is totally not my style.. :-/I think it would be far too tempting to pin the throttle and get into trouble on corner or wobble around corners at tortoise pace if you haven't built up the experience before hand.
I felt my jump was quite big, so without any experience at all I think you'd be better pacing yourself.
I would look at something in-between like a 400cc DRZ
I had a 125 for 6 months before doing DAS. Bought an XJ6N after passing test. It didn't feel scary when I bought it and is dead easy to ride. It's nowhere near the most powerful 600 out there. After 9 months on it, I want something quicker.
I use to think that my experience on a 125 was useful, but I'm not so sure now. What I would say is that I actually made money when selling my 125 and saved a shed load of petrol costs by not using my car.
I use to think that my experience on a 125 was useful, but I'm not so sure now. What I would say is that I actually made money when selling my 125 and saved a shed load of petrol costs by not using my car
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