Page 2 of 5 FirstFirst 1234 ... LastLast
Results 16 to 30 of 72

Thread: So many choices

  1. #16
    Join Date
    22nd March 2007 - 10:20
    Bike
    2015 HD Street 500
    Location
    Blenheim
    Posts
    2,178
    Have you noticed most of us have recommended the physically smaller and lighter bikes?
    The stripple being probably the smallest and lightest of your list. Thats why I agreed and said it.
    I concur with what other people are saying about the 72, its a posers bike, not a riders bike, an 883 std sportster would be more fun IMO.
    But do look at the mid range bikes around the 500 - 650 cc area, plenty of good ones to be had, a good step up from your GN.
    Don't toss aside our recommendations, as some of them come from riders with many years and miles behind us.
    We want to see you still enjoying yourself in 30 years time, Not becoming another statistic in 3 mths because you went toooooo big toooooo soon. Cheers and enjoy the journey of shopping
    To be old and wise, first you must be young and stupid.

  2. #17
    Join Date
    19th August 2010 - 13:17
    Bike
    '09 GSX-R750, '13 Hayabusa
    Location
    Hamilton
    Posts
    317
    Quote Originally Posted by gnjackal View Post
    What kind of fuel do the HDs use? I'm told they can be frugal.
    Don't know what the fuel economy is like but it has a pathetic 7.9l tank, smaller than your GN.

  3. #18
    Join Date
    13th May 2012 - 10:37
    Bike
    Kwaka
    Location
    Wellington
    Posts
    244
    Quote Originally Posted by Subike View Post
    Have you noticed most of us have recommended the physically smaller and lighter bikes?
    Would you say the Striple falls into that category?

    I have thought about a 500-600cc bike as another interim before a big bike. But which one???

    What would be a good LAMS approved intermediate step? To be honest, the GN is frustratingly underpowered (I do lots of motorway travel). On the way to work this morning the Wellington headwind reduced my speed on the motorway down to 75kph.

    The LAMS Ducati Monster 659 looks good, but pricey. Hyosung's GT650RNL looks like fun...

  4. #19
    Join Date
    22nd March 2007 - 10:20
    Bike
    2015 HD Street 500
    Location
    Blenheim
    Posts
    2,178
    I am sure very soon, there will be someone who will come along and give you some good ideas on the lams sportier style of bike, Im more into cruzers, so would recommend the XVS Yamaha 650 Star. But I believe there are some great bikes out there for around the 10k you have, that will more than meet your interest and ability. Mossy, Drew, PaulNZ, Greywolf, Conquiztador being members who IMO would give you good direction. But in the end it comes down to your choice, there are others who will just say get on a 1000 and ride it.....you will learn. But.....
    To be old and wise, first you must be young and stupid.

  5. #20
    Join Date
    27th February 2009 - 16:06
    Bike
    Flame On!
    Location
    Levin
    Posts
    236
    How bout the new GSR750? Looks way cool but dont know much about it apart from being an inline four

  6. #21
    Join Date
    22nd March 2007 - 10:20
    Bike
    2015 HD Street 500
    Location
    Blenheim
    Posts
    2,178
    Quote Originally Posted by HappyGOriding View Post
    How bout the new GSR750? Looks way cool but dont know much about it apart from being an inline four
    not a lams bike
    To be old and wise, first you must be young and stupid.

  7. #22
    Join Date
    27th February 2009 - 16:06
    Bike
    Flame On!
    Location
    Levin
    Posts
    236
    Quote Originally Posted by Subike View Post
    not a lams bike
    yeah I know but neither were the others on the OP list

  8. #23
    Join Date
    15th October 2009 - 17:33
    Bike
    2014 Honda NC750X
    Location
    Auckland
    Posts
    914
    Blog Entries
    4
    Quote Originally Posted by gnjackal View Post
    What would be a good LAMS approved intermediate step? To be honest, the GN is frustratingly underpowered (I do lots of motorway travel). On the way to work this morning the Wellington headwind reduced my speed on the motorway down to 75kph.
    I like the look of the kawasaki mid range 650s, er6n, ninja 650r, there are LAMS approved versions available this year but they're not cheap (around $16,000), I've not ridden them, but they come across as midway between a sports bike and commuter.

    Or you could go for a mighty BMW 650 single like mine! Less raw power but cheaper to run, versatile and pretty good value new (G650GS around $13,000.) A bit of a tractor compared to a sports bike, though.

    And I've seen some negative net chatter around about quality issues with some new Beemers, but there's a 2 year warranty, so YMMV.

  9. #24
    Join Date
    6th March 2012 - 11:45
    Bike
    VFR
    Location
    Auckland
    Posts
    543
    Quote Originally Posted by gnjackal View Post
    Would you say the Striple falls into that category?

    I have thought about a 500-600cc bike as another interim before a big bike. But which one???

    What would be a good LAMS approved intermediate step? To be honest, the GN is frustratingly underpowered (I do lots of motorway travel). On the way to work this morning the Wellington headwind reduced my speed on the motorway down to 75kph.

    The LAMS Ducati Monster 659 looks good, but pricey. Hyosung's GT650RNL looks like fun...
    A LAMS approved intermediate step would be a GS500. Get you off your ginny for not too much overlay for the next year, give you a good bonus step. Nice power, look decent, not too expensive. Newerish ones are pretty cheap.

    I'd avoid the restricted for LAMS bikes. They're almost always going to be heavy and massively underpowered because they weren't designed to be that way.

    An RVF400 is another LAMS bike that would last you into your full. Never ridden one personally, but at 63 BHP they've got a fair bit of power, and they handle pretty damn well.


    As for non LAMS bikes that would suit your criteria, there's a lot of stuff out there. If you don't HAVE to buy new, consider things like the Honda hornet 600/900, 750 katana.

    Otherwise, some other suggestions would be SV650s/gladius/v-strom. All are great bikes and would probably be more suited to all round use then a full on 120+ BHP sportsbike. Especially jumping off of a Gn250.

    Otherwise the little triple would be a better idea. Or a GSR750 which are fairly tame by most accounts.

    There's a shit of a lot of choice out there.

  10. #25
    Join Date
    22nd October 2002 - 11:00
    Bike
    Sold
    Location
    Coromandel Town
    Posts
    4,407
    I've owned a Street Triple for over 3 years now and love it to bits. I've actually come from a bigger bike so can probably offer a slightly different perspective.

    Here are my 2 real world takes on owning a Striple. The first is an early comparison with my much-loved Honda Blackbird and the second is a longer term review of the Striple by itself.

    http://geoffjames.blogspot.co.nz/201...bird-some.html

    http://geoffjames.blogspot.co.nz/201...revisited.html

    Hope you find them useful.

    Cheers,

    Geoff

  11. #26
    Join Date
    11th November 2012 - 18:49
    Bike
    Nothing :(
    Location
    Auckland
    Posts
    2,068
    Blog Entries
    10
    Don't underestimate the power of some of the bikes you've listed. My flatmate has a BMW S1000RR, upgraded from a Kawasaki Ninja ZX6R even for him (track only bikes) it was a big step up. The GN250 whilst a good learner bike, is a snail! I'd not dream of going from my GN to the Beemer, but then I don't have a death wish, nor anything to (over) compensate for, lol. Besides it's a gass guzzler compared to the Ninja from my observation.
    Becoming fearless isn't the point. That's impossible. It's learning how to control your fear, and how to be free from it.

  12. #27
    Join Date
    27th November 2003 - 12:00
    Bike
    None any more
    Location
    Ngaio, Wellington
    Posts
    13,111
    Test ride a Z1000. They do most things pretty darned well. Ultimately the only reliable indicator is saddle time and finding a bike that suits you really well. One size does not fit all, when it comes to motorcycles.
    "Standing on your mother's corpse you told me that you'd wait forever." [Bryan Adams: Summer of 69]

  13. #28
    Join Date
    23rd December 2012 - 18:09
    Bike
    2003 Suzuki SV650
    Location
    hawera
    Posts
    41
    I dont have any experience with big bikes but moved from a vl250 cruiser to an sv650 and have found it a great all round bike, easy to control power but enough that I can comfortably do long rides with my wife on the back. Seems to me that the 650-750 range is a good step up from a 250. Must admit though if I had the cash when buying my bike I would have probably gone for the street triple.

  14. #29
    Join Date
    13th May 2012 - 10:37
    Bike
    Kwaka
    Location
    Wellington
    Posts
    244
    Quote Originally Posted by Glowerss View Post

    Otherwise the little triple would be a better idea. Or a GSR750 which are fairly tame by most accounts.

    There's a shit of a lot of choice out there.
    Oooooh! The GSR750 is a nice looking machine!

  15. #30
    Join Date
    31st March 2005 - 02:18
    Bike
    CB919, 1090R, R1200GSA
    Location
    East Aucks
    Posts
    10,421
    Blog Entries
    140
    Quote Originally Posted by gnjackal View Post
    Regarding the big sports bikes, that's part of my concern, they're a big step up from a GN but I'm told you get used to the power pretty quickly. I think the Striple's a good step up I'd probably keep for a long time.
    If your only experience of motorcycling so far has been the GN, mate, you truly have no idea just how fast big bikes will accelerate, and therein lies the danger. Sure, if you have a controlled right hand and can say hand on heart you'll be restrained, maybe the 1L bikes will be OK, but I would advise against it.

    Step to something mid range and well ridden, the bigger capacity won't have much of an edge on the road anyway, as it's difficult to get the power down properly. The main differences are apparent at high speed (200+) and a lot more torque in bigger bikes, so you cruise in a higher gear. Anything you buy isn't going to be as frugal as a GN as well. Only thing mid range that will probably get close is the Honda NC700S and NC700X.

    Wait until you have the full before test riding, as it's very personal. Don't buy what we want, buy what you like and feels comfortable and suits you. Other option is to step up to a LAMS bike now, so that when you have your full you have more experience with bigger bikes.
    Quote Originally Posted by Jane Omorogbe from UK MSN on the KTM990SM
    It's barking mad and if it doesn't turn you into a complete loon within half an hour of cocking a leg over the lofty 875mm seat height, I'll eat my Arai.

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •