View Full Version : Size of Bike
hbdust76
04-29-2004, 11:06 AM
Hey guys, this is my first post. I had a question for you. Im 16 almost 17, leaving for the USMC in August. I was thinking about getting a bike, a couple of my friends have them. Mostly Ninja's I believe around 600's? They say that if I get a 250 it wont be quick enough? Can someone explain besides the fact that its a bigger engine top speeds, overall performance, and how it will affect me as a 155 pound 17 year old. Thanks very much.
250 or bigger?!
hbdust76
04-29-2004, 11:12 AM
forgot to mention im also only 5'7
Shaolin
04-29-2004, 11:13 AM
i'm approx 5'5 155, and I ride a 600.. it's perfectly fine.. a 250 will do you no good.. go at least 500..
hbdust76
04-29-2004, 04:58 PM
only thing is, as a young guy my insurance is already going to be skyrocketed, and I was told that a 250 would be far cheaper insurance wise then a 600 or 500. Would a 250 carry me and my girl with ease?
method
04-29-2004, 09:33 PM
a 250 can carry people around no problem, just slower than the other larger bikes out there.. the insurance is also cheaper
kevie88
04-29-2004, 09:50 PM
250's are fine for the first year or so, but the 500's are a better choice for a bike to grow with. they have great power and a good rider on a 500 will do very well compared to a bad rider on a 600.
My girlfriend has a EX500 and I love riding it.. it's so easy to ride and can really be thrown around. You can pin it while leaned over without sliding, so it makes for a quick ride without any undue fanfare.
Tyler883
05-03-2004, 11:44 PM
Don't listen to these guys. My bike only has 45 hp and it's left every bumble-bee honda in it's dust. You don't need the latest and greatest bike to have fun out there!
One way to think of it......There are sky divers that look at people jumping out of planes with snowboards as a symbol of 'you're missing the whole point'
If you are going so fast that the countryside is always a blur...frankly, you're missing alot. One of the great things about a bike is that it puts you into your envirement instead of behind a car windshield (which kinda reminds me of watching TV). On a bike, you get to eperience the wind, temperature, and smells, (and other things like bugs and gravel)...and we live close to the mountians. Don't limit yourself to speed demon trips up and down the deerfoot.
Well, thats my opinion. you can take it or leave it.
Regards
Tyler
PS did you ever notice that you sportsbike types kinda look like you're humping a football - LOL.
CowTownBiomed
05-04-2004, 09:28 AM
Originally posted by Tyler883
My bike only has 45 hp and it's left every bumble-bee honda in it's dust.
PS did you ever notice that you sportsbike types kinda look like you're humping a football - LOL.
I call BS on the first one.
The second is just dam funny
Khyron
05-04-2004, 03:55 PM
When I asked, the insurance person said there was a line right at the 600cc mark. Most 600s are actually 599ccs for this reason. So it should still be cheap. Could be wrong though. :dunno:
Khyron
method
05-05-2004, 07:53 PM
I thought most 600s were 599cc because they are repli-racers, and they have to be under 600cc to compete in said class.
:dunno:
Arthur
05-05-2004, 09:59 PM
Anybody who says a 250cc bike isnt quick enough is stupid, You should never start out on a 600cc or higher for a first bike, especially a full feringed bike. Well i should say around 95+ bikes... the 80's 600cc bikes arent as powerful as most are now a days so it would be ok with an older one but, for a first bike dont go any larger than a 500cc...... because you you will undoubtatly drop it atleast once.
kevie88
05-06-2004, 06:51 PM
Originally posted by Tyler883
Don't listen to these guys. My bike only has 45 hp and it's left every bumble-bee honda in it's dust. You don't need the latest and greatest bike to have fun out there!
One way to think of it......There are sky divers that look at people jumping out of planes with snowboards as a symbol of 'you're missing the whole point'
If you are going so fast that the countryside is always a blur...frankly, you're missing alot. One of the great things about a bike is that it puts you into your envirement instead of behind a car windshield (which kinda reminds me of watching TV). On a bike, you get to eperience the wind, temperature, and smells, (and other things like bugs and gravel)...and we live close to the mountians. Don't limit yourself to speed demon trips up and down the deerfoot.
Well, thats my opinion. you can take it or leave it.
Regards
Tyler
PS did you ever notice that you sportsbike types kinda look like you're humping a football - LOL.
Tyler, I hope you're aware that a HD 883 sporty is a ladies bike! (not that there's anything wrong with that!!) :D
Start out with something small to get a good feel of riding a bike, then work your way up to a 500 or 600cc bike. I mean I started out on a 70cc Honda dirt bike, and at 8 years old, that was plenty fast for me. There is nothing wrong with a 250.
djstefan
05-08-2004, 10:15 PM
At 16, I personally think you shouldnt get a bike. I wanted to get one and I am soo happy I didn't. Got a fast car instead and had many accidents till I "grew up". I am 23 now and starting to actually feel the feeling of fear.
I would say, learn the experience of the road in a car first as it is much safer. Once you know all the tricks and bits of the road, includin on how to watch out for bad drivers, a bike could come in.
If you do decide to get one, I would say get a 600. Not because I have any experience what so ever in bikes yet, but because everyone I have talked to that has 250-500s find them a bit slow after a while.
I would suggest you to get a beater bike at an auction or something and learn on that. Less tears when you will drop it! :D
Tyler883
05-19-2004, 02:16 PM
Tyler, I hope you're aware that a HD 883 sporty is a ladies bike! (not that there's anything wrong with that!!) :D [/B][/QUOTE]
Hi Kevie,
Interesting that you would say this(not that there's anything wrong with it)
The 883 Hugger is popular with the ladies because of it's low seat height. All other models of the sportster(1200 and 883) actually have a higher seat height than the larger H-D's. Not suprising when you consider that the larger bikes tend are a lot wider, as well.
There is very little difference between the 883 and the 1200. On an 883, H-D leaves about a 1/4 inch of metal sleeve in the cylinder walls... not a common thing for a manufacturer to do, but it gives them the ability to build 2 engines with virtually the same parts. It takes little cash or time to turn the 883 into a 1200. Btw, the 1200 is Harley's fastest bike off the showroom floor.
If you want to build-up a custom Sportster, I recommend starting with an 883. It can be converted to a 1200 simply by boring out the cylinder walls and changing the piston, then having the heads ground out to accomodate the new compresion ratio. Some jetting is worth considering,too. This can cost around $500 bucks, the dealers would rather have you buy the 1200 off the show room floor( at a higher cost, of course).
The 883 is a good starter bike. And, when I want to upgrade to the 1200, I can hang onto all those extras that I've bought over the last few years. I work hard for my money, too. I'm not interested in buying accesories at full price, just so someone else can benefit from it later.
bikrbabe
05-19-2004, 04:45 PM
Originally posted by Tyler883
Don't listen to these guys. My bike only has 45 hp and it's left every bumble-bee honda in it's dust. You don't need the latest and greatest bike to have fun out there!
One way to think of it......There are sky divers that look at people jumping out of planes with snowboards as a symbol of 'you're missing the whole point'
If you are going so fast that the countryside is always a blur...frankly, you're missing alot. One of the great things about a bike is that it puts you into your envirement instead of behind a car windshield (which kinda reminds me of watching TV). On a bike, you get to eperience the wind, temperature, and smells, (and other things like bugs and gravel)...and we live close to the mountians. Don't limit yourself to speed demon trips up and down the deerfoot.
Well, thats my opinion. you can take it or leave it.
Regards
Tyler
PS did you ever notice that you sportsbike types kinda look like you're humping a football - LOL.
LOL- like my buddy says, a greyhound humping a football....
Tyler, you don't need the HP cause you have the torque :tongue:... V-Twins have a different powerband than the twin - or inline four- sportsbike engines... most sportsbikes rely on HP, the top end, for the speed, whereas the cruisers are built for -well- cruising.
Anyhoo... a ninja 250 would be no problem if it was just yourself.. I was cruizing around on one for about 2 month this year while I was waiting to get my ZX636. I found it was a fun, flickable little bike, plus I didn't really have tooo much trouble keeping up with some of my buddies on their 600's. :tongue: Mind you, it's not a great highway bike... the rev's were at about 10,000 RPM when you were going around 150 km/h, and the thing redlines at around 13,000 RPM (basically it sucks up gas pretty bad at that RPM, which will give you maybe 2 trips up and down deerfoot from McKenzie to 32nd Ave NE). As for carrying a passenger... it's like driving a firefly... no power. (You can do killer wheelies with someone on the back tho...lol) :burnout:
Hope that helps you out a bit.
bikrbabe
05-19-2004, 05:25 PM
Oh- and about the wheelies thing... don't do it until you are more experienced... and don't do it in high traffic areas, you could get yourself into a lot of trouble there... (almost got a stunting ticket, plus it's dangerous)
Meteorite
05-19-2004, 10:10 PM
I can think of at least a couple of very fast 250's:
Yamaha TZR250
Suzuki Gamma 250 (grey market Jap import)
or..what about stepping up one size to the RZ350?
My first streetbike was a 1985 Kawasaki GPz 550. I still have it, eight years later.
Tyler883
05-22-2004, 11:09 PM
Kevie88,
By 1988, the Hugger package was offered that lowered the suspension to a 26 inch seat height. The Motor Company offered this model so it would be attractive to women riders. Apparently, no advertising was addressed at women in fear that men might think of the Sportster in less than manly terms. Unfortunately, many still view the Sportster as a women's bike or as an entry-level motorcycle. The fact that the Sporty is considered the "hot rod" of Harleys apparently does nothing to dispel this misconception.
1988 was also the first year that the XLH-1200 Sportster appeared. By 1991 the belt drive was introduced on the Sportster for the XLH-1200 and the XLH-883 Deluxe.
The first year for the Sportster was 1957. Now the Sporty continues into a new century and a new millennium with no lessening in the demand for its models. According to financial data available on the Harley-Davidson Web site, the Sportster sales were 22.6 percent of all H-D sales in the year 2000. From 1994 through the year 2000, Harley-Davidson sold 240,692 Sportsters.
Sportsters are destined to continue rolling off the assembly lines for years to come. The controversies about Sporties will undoubtedly continue unabated on motorcycle forums here and elsewhere on the Internet but will do little to stop the Sporty from continuing its roar down the highway into the history books.
The Ninja 250 is supposed to be a good little bike, actually. It can out-accelerate almost any car out there (and that's what counts for safety, right? It's slower off the line than a 600 supersport - but the people on those are watchin' out for other bikers, the cagers aren't, so you only gotta outrun the cagers) and it's really light, so it's a monster in the turns. If they actually sold the Ninja in Canada, I'd consider getting one - but what they sell is the ZZR250, which costs about 2 grand more than the US-only Ninja. (Pro-am Cycle may still have an actual Ninja in stock - hope you like Kawi Green!).
As an aside, the really fast 250s are probably 2-strokers.
Ya im in the same boat as u man. same age all that. i have about 3 yrs of experience though on dirtbikes and im thinkin ill get a gsx400r or yz600r.
But if ne1 has some suggestions to this just reply give me some ideas as well.
Skylinelover
06-12-2004, 02:16 PM
A little off topic but when you do a wheely.. is it harder up hill because I saw some guy doing one up a hill and looked kinda freaky.
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