MT07 - My first bike!
Discussion
Kawasicki said:
Lovely bike…
As I am wont to do, let me provide a counter opinion regarding the topic of power/performance.
An MT07 is more than fast enough. Many moons ago I bought a ZXR400 and I was advised that I would soon get bored of it. Did I? No.
My advice to you comes in three parts.
Learn to steer & brake.
Expect the unexpected.
Enjoy your fantastic bike.
Fully agree. I had a ZXR400 for 12 years* and never, ever felt like it wasn't fast enough (apart from trying to keep up with litre bikes on dead straight roads, which are boring after the first 10 seconds anyway). I've ridden 'big' bikes frequently over the years and always felt that they actually robbed me of the fun and satisfaction of working hard to ride rapidly (ie getting the braking/cornering/accelerating bits right). Too much 'power' makes for a lazy rider. As I am wont to do, let me provide a counter opinion regarding the topic of power/performance.
An MT07 is more than fast enough. Many moons ago I bought a ZXR400 and I was advised that I would soon get bored of it. Did I? No.
My advice to you comes in three parts.
Learn to steer & brake.
Expect the unexpected.
Enjoy your fantastic bike.
- after an 'apprenticeship' on a Ducati TL600, before that a Moto Guzzi V50.
Update time! So I managed to pass my mod 2 first time, meaning I got through my entire license training without a single minor which I was very happy with 
After spending a small fortune on insurance it was finally time to get out on the bike.
Naturally the first trip was to the petrol station
Next up was a ride over to the reservoir just down the road from me
Just after this photo was taken I was riding along the wall of the reservoir towards the gravel lay by at at the end so I could turn around and head back towards home. Nice and slowly onto the gravel I went and as I stopped and started to push the bike backwards with my feet guess what happened? I noticed the ground wasn’t as flat as I had initially thought and the bike started leaning further and further over. I tried to save it but I just ended up banging it off the rev limiter and looking like a complete tw*t
I knew I was eventually going to drop it at some point I just wasn’t it expecting it to be so soon.
My ego must’ve taken all the damage as the bike didn’t have a scratch on it.
I spent the next few rides taking it slowly and getting used to handling the bike on some quiet roads after work, trying to rebuild my confidence a bit.
This weekend just gone I met up with my friend on his moped and we rode up to Matlock. It’s not ideal with him being able to go a whopping 57mph all the way there but it was a good ride anyway. We ended up getting there very late in the afternoon so a lot of the bikes had gone already so I’ll probably go back up there soon and be a bit earlier.
I’m slowly getting used to leaning the bike over in the corners, the only thing holding me back is my confidence in the road surfaces. Seeing bits of gravel, horse poo or potholes halfway around a corner isn’t something I’m normally bothered about in a van but when I’m on the bike it’s a whole different story.
In their infinite wisdom the local council have started re-doing all the roads in my local area by dumping loose gravel everywhere which has restricted the amount of fun I can have but at least it’s good practise for me to ride on different surfaces.
From the time I passed my test I’ve ridden 650 miles and it’s been amazing so far. There’s a few things I wasn’t expecting before I started riding -
- How many bugs I would have splattered all over my helmet and clothes
- How much difference it makes pushing the bike around with a full tank of fuel vs almost empty
- You can tell if another biker will nod/acknowledge you back depending on what gear they’re wearing and what bike they’re on. I also seem to get less nods when wearing hi viz than when I’m not
- How relaxing it is to go for a ride on the bike compared to being in a car
- How loud my bike is. I knew it would be louder than normal but not this loud! I love it
Here’s a few more photos, any advice would be greatly appreciated
After spending a small fortune on insurance it was finally time to get out on the bike.
Naturally the first trip was to the petrol station
Next up was a ride over to the reservoir just down the road from me
Just after this photo was taken I was riding along the wall of the reservoir towards the gravel lay by at at the end so I could turn around and head back towards home. Nice and slowly onto the gravel I went and as I stopped and started to push the bike backwards with my feet guess what happened? I noticed the ground wasn’t as flat as I had initially thought and the bike started leaning further and further over. I tried to save it but I just ended up banging it off the rev limiter and looking like a complete tw*t
I knew I was eventually going to drop it at some point I just wasn’t it expecting it to be so soon.My ego must’ve taken all the damage as the bike didn’t have a scratch on it.
I spent the next few rides taking it slowly and getting used to handling the bike on some quiet roads after work, trying to rebuild my confidence a bit.
This weekend just gone I met up with my friend on his moped and we rode up to Matlock. It’s not ideal with him being able to go a whopping 57mph all the way there but it was a good ride anyway. We ended up getting there very late in the afternoon so a lot of the bikes had gone already so I’ll probably go back up there soon and be a bit earlier.
I’m slowly getting used to leaning the bike over in the corners, the only thing holding me back is my confidence in the road surfaces. Seeing bits of gravel, horse poo or potholes halfway around a corner isn’t something I’m normally bothered about in a van but when I’m on the bike it’s a whole different story.
In their infinite wisdom the local council have started re-doing all the roads in my local area by dumping loose gravel everywhere which has restricted the amount of fun I can have but at least it’s good practise for me to ride on different surfaces.
From the time I passed my test I’ve ridden 650 miles and it’s been amazing so far. There’s a few things I wasn’t expecting before I started riding -
- How many bugs I would have splattered all over my helmet and clothes
- How much difference it makes pushing the bike around with a full tank of fuel vs almost empty
- You can tell if another biker will nod/acknowledge you back depending on what gear they’re wearing and what bike they’re on. I also seem to get less nods when wearing hi viz than when I’m not
- How relaxing it is to go for a ride on the bike compared to being in a car
- How loud my bike is. I knew it would be louder than normal but not this loud! I love it
Here’s a few more photos, any advice would be greatly appreciated
Edited by Dynamoduck on Wednesday 15th June 20:25
I have an MT07 mate. Yours looks great in those colours - they suit the bike.
I reckon you're doing so much right - your awareness of the road surface seems excellent. I know exactly what you mean about loose gravel 'resurfacing'. I've been caught out by this a couple of times when turning onto a road that's just had the gravel treatment.
I've dropped mine 3 times. I've put crash bungs on mine.
Apart from that, it's all about anticipation - I assume literally every driver is going to pull out in front of me or turn right across me.
Enjoy your bike!
I reckon you're doing so much right - your awareness of the road surface seems excellent. I know exactly what you mean about loose gravel 'resurfacing'. I've been caught out by this a couple of times when turning onto a road that's just had the gravel treatment.
I've dropped mine 3 times. I've put crash bungs on mine.
Apart from that, it's all about anticipation - I assume literally every driver is going to pull out in front of me or turn right across me.
Enjoy your bike!
Slowboathome said:
I have an MT07 mate. Yours looks great in those colours - they suit the bike.
I reckon you're doing so much right - your awareness of the road surface seems excellent. I know exactly what you mean about loose gravel 'resurfacing'. I've been caught out by this a couple of times when turning onto a road that's just had the gravel treatment.
I've dropped mine 3 times. I've put crash bungs on mine.
Apart from that, it's all about anticipation - I assume literally every driver is going to pull out in front of me or turn right across me.
Enjoy your bike!
Thank you 👍 Crash bungs are definitely something I’ll be investing in soon as I know it’ll happen at some point again. Ive already had three people pull out on me but luckily nothing major yet.I reckon you're doing so much right - your awareness of the road surface seems excellent. I know exactly what you mean about loose gravel 'resurfacing'. I've been caught out by this a couple of times when turning onto a road that's just had the gravel treatment.
I've dropped mine 3 times. I've put crash bungs on mine.
Apart from that, it's all about anticipation - I assume literally every driver is going to pull out in front of me or turn right across me.
Enjoy your bike!
Dynamoduck said:
I tried to save it but I just ended up banging it off the rev limiter and looking like a complete tw*t
You're doing great, don't worry about it. I just did this the other day in my driveway! Just keep an eye out for gravel, and when you stop, look for a place where your foot won't go in a hole or off-camber.
When you're on a nice smooth road and get to a corner, just shift your bum over a bit, get you face closer to the mirror, and get your weight on the inside peg, it will all start to feel very natural after you've nailed a few corners perfectly. Don't try to hang off like a monkey.
Look through the corner, push (countersteer) and lean. If you think you went in too hot, don't brake, just look, push and lean more. Trust your tyres, they have way more grip that you think.
Hugo Stiglitz said:
Take it easy your first few weeks.
At least once daily I anticipate someone doing something stupid.
If your tired or angry don't ride.
Never ever leave the bike anywhere out of sight from you!
I find riding calms me down when I’m angry or otherwise have things weighing on my mind. At least once daily I anticipate someone doing something stupid.
If your tired or angry don't ride.
Never ever leave the bike anywhere out of sight from you!
Yep MT-07 was my first big bike at 53 as a late start biker, a great choice. There is a wealth of learning and advice - my only comment would be to anticipate - think ahead - why is that car over to the right more than I would expect - is he about to jam on brakes and turn? - Why is the traffic braking 10 cars ahead? Stopping at junction is it on a slope, should I put my left or right foot down, if on a hill I am confident to hill start on front brake alone as my right foot is on the uphill side. Steaming horse poo? Where is the horse - just round the next bend? Is the sun low, am I about to ride into low sun and lose vision on the next bend....
The MT07 is a great first bike, I had a 2018 (blue) for 3 years after not riding for 10+ years - it was a great bike to get me back in to riding again!
I've since moved up to an MT09 SP (Gen 3) and it's a great step up. Even though it has a chunk more BHP and torque, I find with the extra power and quickshifter it's easier to ride than the MT07 - it feels more comfortable for me also (5'7" lightweight!), the MT07 used to give me a right numb bum after 20 mins or so!!
Enjoy.
I've since moved up to an MT09 SP (Gen 3) and it's a great step up. Even though it has a chunk more BHP and torque, I find with the extra power and quickshifter it's easier to ride than the MT07 - it feels more comfortable for me also (5'7" lightweight!), the MT07 used to give me a right numb bum after 20 mins or so!!
Enjoy.
Update
I’m definitely getting more comfortable with having the bike leaned over, I think the main thing is being on some nice roads without much traffic.
As for the power I am starting to want a bit more but only on the long straight and motorways, however when I’m on country roads it’s plenty plus I like the fact that I can go “full throttle” through a few gears without doing crazy speeds.
I also did something stupid because I was being impatient. I was cleaning the bugs off the light and screen with a sponge but they weren’t coming off, for some reason I decided to use the other side with the rough part on it and it’s scratched everything. They’re only light scratches but it’s still annoying so I’ll have to polish them out when I clean the bike next.
Definitley needs a proper clean soon! Probably next weekend.
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/26xBAmie[/url]
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/jS2UGifp[/url]
I’m definitely getting more comfortable with having the bike leaned over, I think the main thing is being on some nice roads without much traffic.
As for the power I am starting to want a bit more but only on the long straight and motorways, however when I’m on country roads it’s plenty plus I like the fact that I can go “full throttle” through a few gears without doing crazy speeds.
I also did something stupid because I was being impatient. I was cleaning the bugs off the light and screen with a sponge but they weren’t coming off, for some reason I decided to use the other side with the rough part on it and it’s scratched everything. They’re only light scratches but it’s still annoying so I’ll have to polish them out when I clean the bike next.
Definitley needs a proper clean soon! Probably next weekend.
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/26xBAmie[/url][url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/jS2UGifp[/url]carinaman said:
I've been told not to use a hot jetwash on motorcycles.
If you do use a hot jetwash it's possible to jetwash off rim tape stickers. Be careful if you want to keep them.
Not necessarily a bad thing If you do use a hot jetwash it's possible to jetwash off rim tape stickers. Be careful if you want to keep them.
Sounds you are getting out as much as possible on the bike, OP. That's what it's all about -- get all the experience you possibly can, in all weathers. Not necessarily getting your gear on and choosing to go out for a ride when it's chucking down, but not being afraid of riding home when you get caught out by the rain. In wet weather, the roads are slippery (obviously) and it helps if you relax yourself by almost slumping your shoulders and softening your whole upper body rather than remaining stiff and ultra-reactive.
Edited by FatboyKim on Monday 27th June 10:03
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