How good are the older thou's??

**Gremlin** · 1st November 2005, 00:27

Originally Posted by justsomeguy

Yeah - what problems you have NOT

huh?? Looking at bikes is very hard. Knowing I will have to test some of them is even harder.

Finding one I like... but then not being able to afford it, is the hardest of all

I know I need to work over Christmas period, but I also know, the harder I work, the more the ZZR will want money (not joking, last time I worked all uni holiday, the bike ate it ALL and then some). It sucks.

*sigh*. Have to wait until LTSA (or LTNZ or their -yet-to-be-announced-new-name) tells me yay or nay, and then the punishment may begin...

**DEATH_INC.** · 1st November 2005, 05:20

Righto....
RF900,good bike,just check that the alternator drive mod has been done or it WILL die.
FZR1000,notorious for loosing second gear and exploding clutches if you're too rough.Tend to use a bit of oil too (even from new???)
CBR1000,not too bad and no real probs I'm aware of,a little more touring orientated than some of the others.
ZX10 (older one's)A good strong bike,again no real probs that I know of.Maybe a little pricey.
GSXR1100.Prolly the pick of the bunch,Very fast and strong for an older bike,a little clumsy in the handling department though.
One thing I wanna point out though,these things are all very big and fast(they'll all break 280kph on a good day)and don't handle anything like a 250,be very sure of your riding skill before you purchse one as they are not very forgiving compared to the more modern bikes.
My opinion is you should go for a 600,still waaay faster than yer 2fiddy and an awful lot safer than these monsters.
Other suggestions would be a yzf750,maybe a gixxer750/600(you may find an older srad for fiveish)and I've even seen the odd ZXR750 for that sorta price.

**TonyB** · 1st November 2005, 05:31

Originally Posted by DEATH_INC.

Righto....
FZR1000,notorious for loosing second gear and exploding clutches if you're too rough.Tend to use a bit of oil too (even from new???)

Gear box- have only really heard of this one recently.
Clutch- yip, a lot of the american owners put a new clutch basket in. I have heard of them exploding. But there is a guy on here who's done heaps of launches on his FZR with no problems
Oil- if I use mineral or semi synthetic mine does use oil. If I use fully synthetic it doesn't until it's time to change.
Other problems- the EXUP valve can sieze up. Just maintain it and feed it new bushes occasionally (they're cheap)
- the dreaded idle to 3000rev misfire. There seem to be a few different causes for this one. From coils to valve clearance to carbs. I've thrown a few dollars at mine trying to fix it. Seems to be OK on 98 or race fuel.
- emulsion tubes. They wear resulting in rough running. Common to all Mikuni carbs of this type.

**Lou Girardin** · 1st November 2005, 07:19

Apart from the alternator drive and emulsion tube wear, the RF is damn near bulletproof, and it'll do everything you want except kill 1000's at track days.

**MSTRS:Me** · 1st November 2005, 07:50

Originally Posted by DEATH_INC.

Righto....

GSXR1100.Prolly the pick of the bunch,Very fast and strong for an older bike,........

I rest my case.....

**cowpoos** · 1st November 2005, 09:19

Originally Posted by SARGE

Trixies are damn nice bikes ..270 degree inline twin ( similar to the Ducati).. heaps of power all across the range and handles well

the trx is a inline twin and yes has a 270 degree firing order....the ducti's have a v-twin [they call it a L-twin because of how its placed in the machine] set at 90 degrees...there fore the firing order is 360 degrees...so it isn't that similar...but yes...apparently they are a great bike...and sound good!

**Smorg** · 1st November 2005, 09:30

I bought my 6 hundy at 60k and its a 1992,since then ive done almost 20k on it and i havent had a single problem with it in the 2 years ive owned it started everytime and always has the balls when i need it. BUt like others have said it depends alot on its service history mine was done every 4k before i bought it so i do it every 5-6k (im not very rich)
but IMO a general statement though if your looking at older bikes that are reliable go honda they are bulletproof

**F5 Dave** · 1st November 2005, 16:56

I haven’t read every reply, but I gotta say I truly believe people who swap from a small bike to a big one in one step are doing themselves a disservice. The longer you spend working your way up the ranks, the more you will learn rather than jumping onto something that will scare you.

If you really are quite a competent rider then a 600 should be a good jump. Something like a 90s CBR600 can sport-ride, pillion, tour, & commute without breaking the bank & is small enough to still be fairly telepathically controllable.

‘Course there are some who think that straight from a 250 to a 1000 is a fine thing. Stoney was a great advocate of this theory. Well. . . until he spanked his 1000 up twice & himself way moreso. (apologies Stoney, but I think you’d agree).

**Stevo** · 2nd November 2005, 07:05

Originally Posted by F5 Dave

I haven’t read every reply, but I gotta say I truly believe people who swap from a small bike to a big one in one step are doing themselves a disservice. The longer you spend working your way up the ranks, the more you will learn rather than jumping onto something that will scare you.

If you really are quite a competent rider then a 600 should be a good jump. Something like a 90s CBR600 can sport-ride, pillion, tour, & commute without breaking the bank & is small enough to still be fairly telepathically controllable.

‘Course there are some who think that straight from a 250 to a 1000 is a fine thing. Stoney was a great advocate of this theory. Well. . . until he spanked his 1000 up twice & himself way moreso. (apologies Stoney, but I think you’d agree).

At first I thought goin to the thou should be no problem. BUT maybe F5Dave is right. I did not consider that you were still on learner license, and without knowing your riding ability (ie. have you been riding offroad for years etc) I would be hesitant to recommend a thou.
A lot of it depends on maturity of the rider. If you're doing lots of miles regularly, you will quickly learn whatever size new bike you get........ OR maim yourself and the bike depending on the respect you do or don't give it.
I don't think the old 600s are anywhere near as bad as older 400s, but then I've only ridden one older 400, and it didn't seem much bigger than a 250.

My 10 cents worth.
My 600 has oodles of power, as much as any commuter could ever need.