Poll: New riders, do you consider weight of a motorcycle?

[blues2cruise]

What did she learn or or rode before?

She got her endorsement via a MSF class, I think it was fall a year ago. Her then-boyfriend bought a used late-model GSX-R600 (!!! ). She did some rides around side streets with it, doubt she ever did more than 10-15 miles total. Didn't have any incidents thank goodness, but never got any real experience either. She and that boyfriend separated in March and she moved back to NJ where she's now living with us.

She's started collecting Harley t-shirts, etc, and goes to Harley dealerships and drools over the bikes. At the moment her finances won't let her buy the Sporty she wants. Last summer I offered to buy her a used 250 cruiser of her choice (there were many on craigslist to choose from), it would be her bike, titled to her, she could ride it for a season then use it as trade-in on a Sportster. She turned me down.

(Hard-headed, like a certain other female relative of hers who also lives in my house.....)

She turned you down?!?! Wow! Most people would jump at the chance to have a motorbike of their own to ride.....they can save up for their next one.

[blues2cruise]

Weight was somewhat of a consideration for me. I got the 650 V-star which was 500 pounds. It was the lightest bike I could find at the time without having to resort to a 250.
The 650 felt heavy for a few weeks but once I understood the balance and throttle it did not seem very heavy.

[totalmotorcycle]

I have to be honest and say that I really enjoy a light bike (in general) over a heavier one, even though I can handle a 800lb bike. Lighter = you can do more things with it, easier to corner, easier to throw it around corners and go into tight places with. But usually you have to sacrafice power for the low weight.

Heavier bikes do have their advantages though, like on the highway for example.

Mike

[HYPERR]

I have to be honest and say that I really enjoy a light bike (in general) over a heavier one, even though I can handle a 800lb bike.

+1

I am a pretty strong guy so weight is not a problem in itself. That being said, a light bike is sooo much responsive. My BMW R1150R is about as unsporty of a bike as I would want and it is a porky pig IMO at about 550lbs. It's my long distance & pillion bike.

[Grey Thumper]

Heck yeah. When I was shopping around for my first bike, I considered horsepower (a maximum cap, not a minimum), seat height (I'm pretty short), and weight, roughly in that order. I preferred a 400-450 lb max (dry) bike, and managed to find one; a 2004 BMW F650CS, 389 lbs. dry. Still miss it.

[totalmotorcycle]

I have to be honest and say that I really enjoy a light bike (in general) over a heavier one, even though I can handle a 800lb bike.

+1

I am a pretty strong guy so weight is not a problem in itself. That being said, a light bike is sooo much responsive. My BMW R1150R is about as unsporty of a bike as I would want and it is a porky pig IMO at about 550lbs. It's my long distance & pillion bike.

I do find it interesting that in general, we as riders, are encouraged to "move up the cc food chain" asap, go to the top and find we miss the smaller, lighter bikes we so quickly moved away from... Hindsight wisdom?

Mike

[Gummiente]

I do find it interesting that in general, we as riders, are encouraged to "move up the cc food chain" asap, go to the top and find we miss the smaller, lighter bikes we so quickly moved away from... Hindsight wisdom?

Some of us, however, are eating everything in the real food chain on the way to the top of the "cc food chain", with the end result being that a heavyweight bike is the only option to cart our bloated carcasses around.

[sunshine229]

LOL - great posts at the end there! (sorry don't have time to read the whole thread)

I definitely don't regret staying with my "little" 400cc Honda for so long. I really wanted to move up but just knew I wasn't quite ready so I waited until I was. When I did buy a "big" bike I went for a 750cc and swore I'd never need a bigger bike. Although I have switched from that one to another 750cc (moved country) I still think I don't need to move up anytime soon. Got plenty of years at the 750cc level to go!

[HYPERR]

I didn't say I wanted to give up CCs. I just said I like light bikes.

[Bandit Brad]

I know I am late on this topic, my 1st post here actually, but for me it was such an important factor when choosing the correct bike. I have been ridding for 24 years, both enduro and street. The biggest enduro I had (and miss terribly) was a 78 XT500. Started off with a Honda 400/4 for my first street bike and moved up from there. The bike I spent the most time (years) on was a ZX7R. I have had several others throughout the years. Recently, a move and other factors put me without a bike for a time. When it was time to buy another bike, I had always wanted a Harley. Financially I was finally able to do it. When I started to seriously look, I have to say I was a bit apprehensive of both the weight and 1480 cc’s. I am getting older and the 600+ pounds made me reconsider. I ended up very comfortable on my Bandit 1200. The weight is 485 pounds. Way better! Although the 180 back tire took some getting used to, I love it now. Still light enough to be in control, but big enough on the highway not to be blown all over the road. So yes, weight was a big factor for me. And- for the price I got my Bandit for, I can buy 4 of them instead of 1 Wide Glide. No kidding! That fact alone really opened my eyes to the whole Harley scene. For me personally, I love my metric and still wear bandanas and t-shirts with flames on the sleeves. LOL.