The cruiser style 454 LTD arrived here a year later in 85 with the engine that is now in the Ninja 500 and Vulcan 500 bikes. Some magazine writers referred to it as the half a Ninja engine because it shared bore and stroke and some parts with the 908 cc Ninja engine. The 454 LTD became the Vulcan 500 in 1990.
The EX500 arrived here in the US in 86 a year after the 454 LTD as a sport standard type bike that was known as the GPZ500 on the European market. It had a major redesign in 94 with a change from 16" to 17" wheels and change to disc rear brake and was then called a Ninja 500 on the US market remaining a GPZ500 abroad.
blitzfire, I never suggest a 250cc bike as a first bike for someone your size, only for smaller persons. A 500cc sport/standard type bike or a cruiser up to 750/800 cc should work for you or me.
The Ninja 500/GS500 are excellent starter bikes and while they are great bikes to start on they are also good bikes to ride for many years to come. They can do it all in the hands of an experienced rider.
After putting almost a quarter million miles on four 400-750 cc Hondas, I got a 97 GS500 in 99. I've done 400-500 mile freeway days on it getting to the mountains to ride with friends with bikes of all sizes and had a ball doing it. I put 80k miles on that GS and when it was totalled in 03 I bought a slightly used 02 GS500, my current ride that now has over 57k miles on it.
I was 6' 2" and about 240# when I bought the first GS500 and am now just below 6' tall and have been up to 250-260# since then and back down to 240# so I'm about the same size as you are.
