Migrating from a small bike to a larger one.

[surfchick]

...

You need to be ready though - if your skills are not up to it you will get into trouble real easily and really quickly. I strongly suggest you jump on a 600cc before trying the 1000cc + bikes. Ive seen people on here do the 250cc - 1000cc jump with huge egos and little brains - yeah ok they may not have killed themselves yet, but they sure have had many scares and close calls.

yes just think of the dilemas the americans face. no 250cc restriction...OMG the r1 or the blade or the 1048 einy-meany-miney-moe...

[NighthawkNZ:Me]

You need to be ready though - if your skills are not up to it you will get into trouble real easily and really quickly. I strongly suggest you jump on a 600cc before trying the 1000cc + bikes. Ive seen people on here do the 250cc - 1000cc jump with huge egos and little brains - yeah ok they may not have killed themselves yet, but they sure have had many scares and close calls.

All good advise and agree with the above that yu go the 600-750 range first before a 1000cc + and like Dan have seen many acase making the huge step from 250cc to 1000cc

As for the weight, as suggested will be noticable in some areas... just think and watch ahead before you park up etc.

You have a slight longer wheel base so you may find that you won't be able to flick the bike into corners the same though with practise that will come and if you go to a bigger bikes ie 1000cc range then you have to work at that little more. But again as the others say it most likely will feel more stable. don't let that lead in to a false sense of security and make you over confidentant or cocky.

Ensentially the best advise is take it easy learn the quarks of the bike. Know your abilities and know the bikes.

[homer]

i think you need to get on a 400 have a ride and see what you think ....i had a 250 then got a 400 trail and then a 600 now a 1200 and you will get in to trouble going from a 250 to a 600 unless you have a lot of riding experience....I know people say the size dosent matter weight wise is true but when you r thinking of the change in to top gear and then realise your doing 130 140 km already and the next corner is coming up youll be in trouble .....compare this to your 250 when its hard out and then changing in to top at say 100km youll make the next corner anyway ......

[rwh]

What I am wondering is what sort of challenges to expect going from a 250cc 2-stroke bike to, say, a 750cc GSX, GPZ etc etc. I've ridden a few bigger bikes "round the block" distances but never out on the open road. The first thing that springs to mind is the weight, my old KR-1S was so bloody light I could almost push it uphill. How hard is it getting used to not dropping a big bike for example?

I got my 750 at Easter after not riding my 250 (4 stroke) for 3 months (it died). I had no problems (yet) with the power - yes if I wring it out in first it's a bit scary, but it's easy not to do that. I have however dropped it 3 times (only dropped the 250 twice in 6 months). The last one was mostly due to my own stupidity though (if you stall going down a steep driveway, push the starter when you're ready. Much better than trying to crash start in first ...)

It's probably worth noting that I'm quite short, so my short legs may well contribute to my inability to keep the bike vertical at low speeds (once it starts, it's hard to catch ...), but on the other hand I'm about twice your weight, which probably gives me an advantage in that respect.

I did try a 1000 before I bought the current bike (not a sprots bike though; one of these: http://cb-nchu.cocolog-tcom.com/phot...g1_05_7_1.html )
I had no issues with the power of that on my test ride either (though I didn't wring it out ...). I possibly would have bought it if I'd had a bigger budget; I really liked it (and it may not have suffered so much from being dropped, being naked).

Which reminds me - you're in Wellington? Visit Fergus at TSS in Alicetown; he was happy to let me try out several bikes (including the CB above, and a Moto Guzzi Breva) that he knew I wasn't going to buy, so I could have a better idea of what I wanted. They've always been friendly to me there, despite me not having bought very much from them ... So are all the shops in Wellington, but Fergus was the most forthcoming with test rides.

Richard

[bert_is_evil]

You will need to exercise a great deal of self control while you are getting used to it. Then a great deal after you are used to it and feel like you are bullet proof... Try not to get to excited about testing the limitations of your new ride for a while.

I find parking a bit of a nightmare on the hills in Welly, I can't push my bike backwards on anything more than a slight downhill gradient as only the balls of my feet reach the ground (and it's really fricken heavy) so have to chose my parks very carefully.

[McJim]

Reading through a lot of the replies it is becoming apparent that most people have little idea of what a KR1 really is. Many of the comments are only pertinent to moving to a larger capacity bike from a 4 stroke 2 fiddy.

A 2 stroke 250 is like a small uncontrolled explosion. If he can handle a 2 fiddy 2 stroke than it will require a very twitchy modern race tuned 600+ to make throttle control difficult for him. Controlling the power will not be his issue - changing direction is where the differences will be due to the extra weight of the bigger bike.

[caesius]

Reading through a lot of the replies it is becoming apparent that most people have little idea of what a KR1 really is. Many of the comments are only pertinent to moving to a larger capacity bike from a 4 stroke 2 fiddy.

A 2 stroke 250 is like a small uncontrolled explosion. If he can handle a 2 fiddy 2 stroke than it will require a very twitchy modern race tuned 600+ to make throttle control difficult for him. Controlling the power will not be his issue - changing direction is where the differences will be due to the extra weight of the bigger bike.

Hahaha I like this. Yes, it is true, I was almost lucky to stay on the road for the first week of owning the KR1 - not because I'm reckless just that power band. Oh god I loved it.

So yes, looks like the weight is the biggest transitional problem.

[Jimmy B]

Reading through a lot of the replies it is becoming apparent that most people have little idea of what a KR1 really is. Many of the comments are only pertinent to moving to a larger capacity bike from a 4 stroke 2 fiddy.

A 2 stroke 250 is like a small uncontrolled explosion. If he can handle a 2 fiddy 2 stroke than it will require a very twitchy modern race tuned 600+ to make throttle control difficult for him. Controlling the power will not be his issue - changing direction is where the differences will be due to the extra weight of the bigger bike.

Kind of agree Mc Jim because with both additional weight and performance comes a different riding style, one to be learned over time and I don’t think one style is any more difficult than the other, just different.

I do think there is a significant difference between 40Kw and 90Kw with only a 30kg weight gain, 2 stroke or not. Controlling the power will be an issue because it’s deceptive on a larger ride and there is much more of it, you would probably acknowledge that, so it’s the whole package. Some of the stock 600s have staggering performance so I still think the key focus should be around setting some limits and sticking to them until it all clicks into place. Concern with additional size for low speed stuff is a minor IMHO.

[MSTRS:Me]

Hahaha I like this. Yes, it is true, I was almost lucky to stay on the road for the first week of owning the KR1 - not because I'm reckless just that power band. Oh god I loved it.

So yes, looks like the weight is the biggest transitional problem.

Riding a heavy(er) powerful 4stroke has many transitional challenges from what you are used to....
Physical size - Weight - Torque - Linear power - Engine braking

[McJim]

caesius, what is your budget going to be anyway?

There are 'bigger bikes' and 'bigger bikes'. For example I'm making the assumption you'll be going for something around 80hp - ish or will you be going for a race replica 125hp+ kind of bike?

If you're going for something with insane power then stay away from the peak power (10% from redline) for a while.

you had mentioned GPZ I think in your first post which to me gave the impression that you weren't going out to buy a 2005 onwards mid range sportbike.

So yeah - what price and what hp are you looking at here?

[avgas]

OK so from what I gather you can still get a 600 that doesn't knock the earth out of orbit with its weight - I think that's what I'm after, something big enough to get the long trips done, but still managable (I'm only 60kg btw!).

My recommendations if your concern is weight (go test ride these bikes - and you will see my point):
ER5
ER6 (n or f)
GSX500
400+ cc motards
GB500
SV650
Trust me man, if your comming from a smoker, a torquey twin or idealy a thumper is where you want to go so that you can still flick it in the corners.
600+ IL4's are great fun, but their sound is also deceptive and that makes them really easy to wind up where you shouldn't.
Test ride a thumper - they are very under rated bikes.

[avgas]

A 2 stroke 250 is like a small uncontrolled explosion. If he can handle a 2 fiddy 2 stroke than it will require a very twitchy modern race tuned 600+ to make throttle control difficult for him.

Likewise to be on the negative here i have also experience and know of other situations.
Ride a 2 stroke below power band - the rider has no comprehension of power at all (a power valve smoker below power band is like viagra looking sugar pills) . Let alone speed
and
Ride a 2 stoke in power band - rider gets a big bike, opens the throttle in first (or 3rd ) gear and the torque lifts the front. 2 strokes have no low down torque remember.
Just some thoughts.
I once met a guy that owned a RGV250 who had never gone past 8,000 rpm or faster than 130.

[McJim]

I once met a guy that owned a RGV250 who had never gone past 8,000 rpm or faster than 130.

What a waste. I've had the missus RG150 bouncing off redline and reading 180kph! Keeps the engine clean

[dveus]

Once your used to a bigger bike you will wonder what all the fuss was about riding a 250 and you wont want to go back!

Not always the case. I'm seriously considering getting another 250. I miss being able to ride the thing around with the throttle on the stop. Infact if I didn't spend alot of time riding 2up I would still be on a "little learner bike".

[Jimmy B]

Not always the case. I'm seriously considering getting another 250. I miss being able to ride the thing around with the throttle on the stop. Infact if I didn't spend alot of time riding 2up I would still be on a "little learner bike".

I’m hearing you mate. A few months ago I went out through Clevedon and around the Coro Loop with another KBer who rode a ZXR250. We went pretty hard in places and the 250 gave up absolutely nothing in the twisties. Horses for courses I reckon.