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For a person who has riden a Nighthawk 450 for about 9 month, would your reccommend this bike to learn on?
The power isn't the issue, the next one down has a large space between the tire and the front end that my friend doesn't like.

That bike is ugly. But anyway, I don't get the question. Are you saying you've been riding a nighthawk for 9 months and now your friend recommends the yammie? Or, are you saying your friend has been riding a nighthawk for 9 months, and wants to get the yammie?

camthepyro wrote:That bike is ugly. But anyway, I don't get the question. Are you saying you've been riding a nighthawk for 9 months and now your friend recommends the yammie? Or, are you saying your friend has been riding a nighthawk for 9 months, and wants to get the yammie?

How can it be ugly? It looks like every other sportbike in the world.

i think it looks

If he has been riding for nine months, I cant see a problem with getting a YZF-600R. He knows enough not to be a liability to himself and others.

CNF2002
PostPosted: Tue Apr 25, 2006 1:38 pm Post subject:
camthepyro wrote:
That bike is ugly. But anyway, I don't get the question. Are you saying you've been riding a nighthawk for 9 months and now your friend recommends the yammie? Or, are you saying your friend has been riding a nighthawk for 9 months, and wants to get the yammie?


How can it be ugly? It looks like every other sportbike in the world.

Too curvy and bulky, cruisers are supposed to be curvy and bulky, sport bikes should be small, with lots of straight lines, and as minimalist as possible. At least in my opinion.

hmmm curves

I don't care too much for the way the side fairing curves outward. The headlight kinda looks odd too from the front angle.

I can't say too much re. going from a Nighthawk to a YZF600...

The 600R sounds like a nice upgrade from the 450 nighthawk, im sure you will love it.

I prefer the FZ6 myself (the one below the 600R that you commented on)

I found the 600R to be quite comfy for a sportbike

The YZF600R has been around since 1996, which a buddy of mine owned, and I owned the predecessor of that bike as well as the successor.

To be quite honest, with the information provided, it's impossible to know if someone is ready to move from one bike to another, because each person's riding experiences are different. i.e. they may have "survived" 9-months of riding through sheer luck or they may have learned a lot during that period, riding daily to work, touring around on the highways, practicing basic skills, etc. As always working on riding skills makes the most difference, the fastest and safest way to learn is with a good mix of classroom and on-bike instruction. If they are respectful enough of the bike then they'll continue on that learning curve.

To cover the bike, the YZF600R is a proven model, with more than a 10 year history and it's a better all-round street bike than most current 600s. Shopping around for a used model might save your friend some money which could be used to take a riding course and upgrading your riding gear.

If he/she buys the new one, financing some new gear may be an option. A really good helmet makes riding more comfortable, less tiring and more fun. Of course good gloves, boots and jacket all give your more confidence too.

This bike is a great step up from the Nighthawk 450 or even the Nighthawk 750, into a sport bike. The YZF has excellent brakes and chassis, and much more comfortable ergonomics for sport touring or daily riding. The seat height and higher weight should be considered. Every bike fits differently depending upon the riders arm length, inseam, strength. For a passenger it's much nicer than either of the models I owned. The engine has a broad spread of accessible power, reasonably up-to-date wheel and tire sizes.

The 1995 YZF600R model used the same chassis and engine as well, with different styling (it was actually released in mid-1994 as a 1995 model). The basic chassis design is from the 1993 YZF750R which Yamaha campaigned as as Superbike from '93 to 2000-something.

Other options to consider: Kawi EX500 and the new EX650 Ninja - faster, more sporty; Suzuki SV650 - nice motor, light, very capable; Suzuki 600/650 Bandit & 600 Katana - similar; CBR600f-series (f2/f3/f4/f4i) - very comparable to YZF600R; Kawi has a few variations on the ZX600 Ninjas too, ZX600D and ZX600E as I recall. All of these are easy bikes to find.

should be a fun upgrade for serious sport riding, sport touring, city commuting, etc...

//monkey