Experience: What have you ridden, how did you like it?

[gsJack]

..........the GS500F. It has the sporty look you said you like; alot of people mistake it for a gixxer, until they see the rear tire (kinda skinny...)........

Looks better with a wider rear tire like this:



My 150/70 RoadAttack, looks a little better than the 130/70 OE rear.

[DivideOverflow]

DivideOverflow: Oh hell yes. 800SS is pretty. Now would I ever forgive myself if i damaged a rolling work of art by dropping it? Looked up the power though and it is around 75hp. That's just 5hp short of a 5 year old, stock, 748. Now those are beautiful as well. Just not sure that getting on an 80hp SBK as my first full time ride is a particularly smart idea. I also understand that their riding position has been described as rolling torture racks. Damn pretty though. That 800SS looks like a solid idea in some ways. Think I will just have to see how I do getting back in the saddle again and maybe I could find an older version that is a bit more underpowered than a new model. If the sv650 puts out 60-65 and is considered a "grey" area for new riders, then this might be just a tad much. I'm less worried about myself doing something deliberately stupid and more concerned about doing something accidentally stupid.

Look for a used SuperSport 750! I've seen them between $3-6k in good condition. You are looking at 61 rwhp, and 45ft-lbs... but they can definitely fool you if you don't know the specs! These things are awesome. They have the full aftermarket plastics if you can only find one with the half-fairing.

Also, the 75hp rating for the 800 is at the crank. It puts out about 68rwhp. Just a tad above what is normally recommended. Also, I would definitely NOT call the SS series a torture rack. I'm 6'0 and 235ish lbs, and my SS is comfortable for about 5 hours. It would be better if my arms were 2 inches longer (you are 6'2, you might have longer arms than me... haha. Mine are kinda short to start with). The seats on the new style SS bikes are amazing! It is honestly the best stock seat I have ever been on. Never had any butt pain... just wrist and back pain...lol

I would steer clear of the SBKs to start with. Even if it looks like the specs are similar, they don't ride similar. The SBKs are more aggressive, MUCH less comfortable, and definitely less forgiving. Also, there are few known problems with the 4 valve motors in the SBKs. Flakey rocker arms, computer troubles, etc. I just think that the Supersport series is a much better bike for mostly road with a little track. The SBKs are happier with mostly track and a little road.

In conclusion, go find a nice used 750SS! It beats the SV650 hands down in "wow, what a bike!" factor.

EDIT: To answer your question about what we have ridden.

My first bike I bought new, a 2004 Alphasport (Hyosung) 250cc Cruiser. It was a great bike for a complete beginner, I had never touched a bike before in my life. Sold it after 6 months.

2nd bike was a 1979 KZ650. This bike has about 55hp and 40ft-lbs. Gave this bike to my brother, but he just got a new m50, so he gave it back for me to work on... haha. It is a bit heavy, but definitely a solid bike. I never really rode this bike much. Maybe 1000 miles total... we got the bike with the idea of my brother getting it as his first bike. So this one doesn't really count as "my bike".

3rd bike was a 1984 Honda Interceptor 700. Great bike! V-4 engine. 70hp, 45 ft-lbs. I rode this bike for a couple months, then my roommate wanted to get a bike. He bought it from me and rode it as his first bike. It had docile power delivery, and was easy to control. It is definitely in the "gray" area for a first bike, but for someone who takes the MSF, and gets a little riding experience beforehand, it was actually a very good first bike.

4th bike was a 1994 Honda Interceptor 750. This bike had 96rwhp, and 55 ft-lbs. It also weighed 500lbs, but it could still move! I would NOT recommend this for a first bike. It does have very linear power delivery, but I think the combination of the weight and power on tap makes it a great second or third bike. I sold this bike after a year. I got the Ducati bug.

5th bike (but it is really my 4th) is my 2005 Ducati Supersport 1000DS. 86rwhp, 65ft-lbs. Less ponies than my VFR, but you could have fooled me!!! This thing moves! It has pretty tall gearing, and crazy torque, which = much faster than the paper suggests. I would say I could have gotten this as a 2nd bike if I had the VF700 as my first bike, and rode it until I maxed out my abilities on that bike (which I did, but that was as my 2nd real bike).

Since you aren't a complete beginner to motorcycles, I think if you take the MSF, you'd probably be happy with something like the SV650, SS750, Ninja500, etc, to start off with. Just make sure to take plenty of time in a parkinglot or off the public roads to get fully acquainted.

Edit again:
Things to about the bikes: The 250 cc cruiser was light, adequately powered up to 65mph, but it dragged parts when I cornered with enthusiasm, which made me want to change to a sportier bike.

The VF700F was a damn nice bike, it was mostly upright, was a very good runner... I would have put a lot more miles on it, except my roommate wanted a first bike, and we found a good deal on the VFR750.

VFR750. Excellent all-around bike. Comfortable, not too leaned over, but not straight up. Great power on tap, very smooth, no vibrations, nice big gas tank. Things I didn't like: I had a few problems with the carbs, it weighed over 500 lbs, the fairing was messed up from the previous owner, and I didn't want to spend over a grand to get it fixed.

Up until this point, I had spent very little money on my bikes. The 250cc was $2500 new, got it shipped from out of state, came in a crate and I assembled it. I sold it for what I got it for.

The VF700F was $1800. Sold it for what I got it for (but I had put some money into it for an oil mod and K&N filter). The VFR750 I got for $2500 and sold for $2300.

So up until that point, chump change for the most part. The Ducati was my first nice bike. It was expensive, as it was almost brand new (1000 miles on it). But I love it!

[bmgibben]

I havent riden one before, but what about the Ninja250? It has the plastic styling you said you liked, and it only has 36hp. Much less than most sport bikes, but a TON more than any other bike in that cc class. Though it might be too underpowered since youve riden before. Just a thought, though.

[Silenti]

Cruisers. I just can not get around the bit of having my feet stuck out in front of me. The times I have rode friends cruisers I could not find a seating position that would work for me for any amount of time. I felt like I could not control the bike the way I was used to. I freely admit that a lot of this was because the bikes were so different than I was used to riding that it just felt odd to me. Not to say that I would mind a cruiser but not as my primary ride and I think I would have trouble going distance on one. Too much weight on my tailbone and not enough ways to shift my riding position. If I could find one with the pegs in the right place though...

You need to sit on some stuff to see what feels good to you. Remember that what can feel good on the show room may not feel so good after a couple of hours in the saddle.

What use do you want of a bike? You want to cruise, commute, tour, track days? This will make a huge difference in your choice. Look at service intervals and what is involved in the required maintainance. How much can you do on your own?

I know, I know. Not enough solid answers from me. Just things to think about.

Actually, this is exactly the kind of thing I was looking for. For those of us without a lot of experience or opportunity, it's nice to know that the sense of "this feels wrong" isn't us just not liking the style of the bike and projecting. Cruisers specifically I cannot see myself enjoying for the very reasons you stated. I sit in two fashions. Crosslegged if I have to, but I prefer to have my legs under me in a fashion that lets me easily and quickly move my body. Anything else makes me mentally uncomfortable.

[Silenti]

DivideOverflow: I may really have to consider the 750 or 800SS. That looks nearly perfect with a full fairing. I can always look to step up later after I've had more experience. Really I have only 2 concerns about power. That it can safely handle a highspeed highway with enough power for me to create space when I feel the need and not so much as to kill me from stupidity (read: SBK) Certainly love the Ducati look and that rocker arm element scares the crap out of me. Love to work on my own stuff, whatever it is, but little experience there and a Ducati that I need to do my own valve adjustments on seems a little foolish. Still a damned pretty bike though.

bmgibben: I've seen them, there's just something about them I do not like visually. They don't really look like a sportbike to me. It looks pretend when you look at the front fairing and the seat. It doesn't bother me so much that it isn't (or isn't to me) a sportbike, just that it's faking it. Like buying an early 80's Mustang or Camaro with bodywork almost the same, but it's got a 4cyl in it. Just kinda bugs me there.

Yeah, I'm a picky bastich

[DivideOverflow]

http://www.ducatisuite.com/maintenance.html

Gives you an idea of what the maintenance is like. It hasn't really given me any problems yet.

[Silenti]

I've read through that site, and watched some videos from, I believe, the same site. Still rather daunting. Buildilng computers is damned easy, even 20 years ago, compared to working on engines. Consequences of screwups are a lot worse too.