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hey one more question.....i was up at cycle world today n i was lookin at some gs500 but he told me that a katana 600 would be a good starter bike for someone of my size sound off on that for me...

Big-iYse wrote:hey one more question.....i was up at cycle world today n i was lookin at some gs500 but he told me that a katana 600 would be a good starter bike for someone of my size sound off on that for me...

from what ive heard and read the kat 600 isnt the greatest starter bike. i think it can be a first bike if your careful and safe, but i would advise you to pick up the GS



JWF

Katana is a pretty top heavy bike comparatively speaking, not that great. What's the price difference between a GS500 and a Katana?

The GS is 5000 new and the kat 600 is 6300 new.

The Kat will be a little tougher to learn on than the GS but its still a much better choice than a super sport.

the kats biggest problem is its heavy and most of the weight is up high.

My CX500 is also quite top heavy, but its ergos are friendlier and its still pretty easy to manuver at low speed. Sportbikes are not easy to manuver at low speed for a new rider.

You will have an easier time on the GS500, it will be much easier to handle and it will also be cheaper to insure, less likely to suffer major damage when you drop it too.

That's alot of cash for a first bike. And learning on one may certainly be expensive, but dollar for dollar I'd go with the 500. The $1300 difference will put you ahead in the gear department and still have enough left over for a few months of insurance. I actually like the looks of the GS better also. I've sat on both models and there isn't alot of difference there. I'm sure you'll notice most of the differences in the twist of the throttle.

go for the GS and put the money you save into gear.

Katanas are notorious for being really expensive to fix even after a low speed drop.

The Katana does have the more agressive riding posture. though it is quite comfy for a sportbike it is still a pain to manuver at low speed which is something it shares in common with most sportbikes

Oh and buy a used one. You will be thanking yourself for buying used the first time you drop it.

there's an echo in here - the Kat is top heavy, and kind of a pig in a parking lot. The plastic on 'em is also HUGE, which equals expensive when you drop it. I say go with the GS, get a used one though, the GS500E was essentially the same bike for well over a decade, and they are stupidly reliable. They make outstanding commuters, and are still plenty of fun where the road turns twisty. You can get one cheap enough to keep it forever, if you feel you've outgrown it - keep it for a backup and buy something else. When you can ride the GS fully to it's limits, you will be much better on anything else with two wheels. That's just my take.

Possibly the salesmans recommendation is influenced by the larger commission on the Kat?.... GS500 has had a great reputation for an easy bike to ride, and still quick enough to be fun, for at least 16yrs.

J.R. Bob Dobbs wrote:Possibly the salesmans recommendation is influenced by the larger commission on the Kat?.... GS500 has had a great reputation for an easy bike to ride, and still quick enough to be fun, for at least 16yrs.

That's exactly what I was getting at.

When I first went shopping for a first bike I was really concerned about the weight, because, well, lets face it. I'm not a big guy. So I was looking at the v-star 650 and asking about how easy it was to balance and stuff.

The salesman launched into some story about how the bike wouldn't be able to pull me and a big windshield on the highway (I weight 1/4 of what the bike does when I'm soaking wet, and it's bone dry), and suggested that I move up to the marauder 800 as a first bike, because it does highway better.

I ended up buying an LS650 which has about 1/2 the HP of the marauder, and it did highway just fine! You need to be careful because if the salesman makes commision he makes more if you buy a bigger bike, and if you wreck that one, you might come back and buy another one... which is even more money.