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It's $400! Even if you spend $500 getting it to run, you're still getting a great deal on an awesome bike. But yeah, it sounds like someone who didn't know what they were doing was working on it for a while. Either way, I'd jump on it.
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May 19, 2009 23:20
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Uncle Ivan posted:It's $400! Even if you spend $500 getting it to run, you're still getting a great deal on an awesome bike. But yeah, it sounds like someone who didn't know what they were doing was working on it for a while. Either way, I'd jump on it. don't be so sure on that. The whole bike, in good shape will only sell for $1200 or so. That bike won't be in good shape, with mismatched plastics, and various other potential problems. ... I LOVE my 1983 GSX550ES .. But even as such, that bike needs careful consideration.
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May 20, 2009 06:21
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Hey everyone, I'm a beginning rider and looking to buy a cheaper probably used motorcycle. I've narrowed it down to two options: the Suzuki GZ250, or the Kawasaki Ninja 250R. Here's my question: I'm a fat guy. I'm 5'10", and 240 lbs. I understand that at my weight, a 250cc bike might feel like a go-kart, but I'm a beginning rider and plan to stay off the highway for a little while. Would you guys recommend the sportbike, or the cruiser-type? Here are pics for reference: Ninja 250r  GZ250 
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May 21, 2009 01:20
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http://toronto.en.craigslist.ca/tor/mcy/1178449707.html 1992 Suzuki Bandit 400; sounds good but upon checking the listing at the store, "needs carbs overhauled." Not that I plan on buying it, but anyone know about Bandits?
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May 21, 2009 01:25
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talking_head posted:Hey everyone, Well, what kind of bike do you want to ride? A cruiser or sportbike? If you don't know, go to a dealer and sit on some different styles of bikes and find what's most comfortable for you. If you've got a big belly you might find the sportbike uncomfortable with the tank digging into your gut 
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May 21, 2009 01:29
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100 Years in Iraq posted:Well, what kind of bike do you want to ride? A cruiser or sportbike? If you don't know, go to a dealer and sit on some different styles of bikes and find what's most comfortable for you. If you've got a big belly you might find the sportbike uncomfortable with the tank digging into your gut I really want to ride a sportbike, but I think I would need to shed some pounds before I can do it. I don't have a HUGE gut, but I don't think a sportbike would be as comfortable. Which bike would you guys rather ride for 200 miles straight, the Ninja or the Cruiser?
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May 21, 2009 01:37
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Keep in mind you're comparing a bike with 20hp to one with 30hp. It's not a wildly fair comparison. I'd prefer to ninja. But I really don't like the GZ250. I got enough time on them in the MSF.
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May 21, 2009 01:50
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talking_head posted:I really want to ride a sportbike, but I think I would need to shed some pounds before I can do it. I don't have a HUGE gut, but I don't think a sportbike would be as comfortable. Get the ninja. Granted I'm a year in, but I do 400mile days pretty easily on my 250, though it's the previous generation.
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May 21, 2009 02:09
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talking_head posted:I'm a fat guy. I'm 5'10", and 240 lbs. Feel free to go up to 900cc as far as cruisers go. I started on a Suzuki Boulevard M50 (800 cc) and it was ideal. As for what specific bike to get, buy whatever moves you emotionally. The cc limit is mostly to keep MAD TYTE STUNTAZ YO from killing themselves on race replica sportbikes.
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May 21, 2009 02:56
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MrKatharsis posted:Feel free to go up to 900cc as far as cruisers go. I started on a Suzuki Boulevard M50 (800 cc) and it was ideal. As for what specific bike to get, buy whatever moves you emotionally. Yeah, I'm not a MAD TYTE STUNTA YO. I'm looking for something reliable that can chug me around from my apartment to classes, to the store every once in a while, and the occasional weekend excursion. Will the additional cc's help lug my rear end around with decent acceleration/speed?
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May 21, 2009 03:08
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talking_head posted:Will the additional cc's help lug my rear end around with decent acceleration/speed? On a 500lb bike, it doesn't really matter much if you weigh 70 more lbs than the next guy. Most bikes are made to be able to ride 2 people+luggage. An 883 HD Sportster, for example, weighs 590lbs or so with a full tank of gas and oil. You can add another 400+ of people and gear before you hit the limit of GVWR or whatever of 1001lbs. If you were 400lbs, you might want to re-think things.
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May 21, 2009 03:34
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talking_head posted:I really want to ride a sportbike, but I think I would need to shed some pounds before I can do it. I don't have a HUGE gut, but I don't think a sportbike would be as comfortable. I've never sat on a Ninja 250 but if it sits like a real sportbike then your weight will be resting on your arms, being heavier you'll get tired quicker and your back will hurt after a day or two of steady riding. 200 miles is nothing, depending on the roads it's only 3+ hours of riding. On the other hand, if you were looking for a cruiser then go bigger. A mid-range cruiser won't be much heavier, won't be overly powerful, the low seating makes them easier to handle and you won't be ready to trade it after the first month of riding.
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May 21, 2009 18:52
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wormil posted:I've never sat on a Ninja 250 but if it sits like a real sportbike then your weight will be resting on your arms, being heavier you'll get tired quicker and your back will hurt after a day or two of steady riding. 200 miles is nothing, depending on the roads it's only 3+ hours of riding. On the other hand, if you were looking for a cruiser then go bigger. A mid-range cruiser won't be much heavier, won't be overly powerful, the low seating makes them easier to handle and you won't be ready to trade it after the first month of riding. The 250 is a more upright seating position. But giving that a cruiser is the end goal, I'd stick with a cruiser (but not a 250 cruiser...it'll kill you)
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May 21, 2009 20:40
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I . . . I don't understand the hatred of a 250 cruiser. I mean, I started on a 125 dualsport, that's got maybe 8 or 9 bhp (supposedly 11 when new). I am slightly militant about enjoying a bike, and my only previous transport before that was a pushbike, so it was definitely an upgrade from that. But I'm six foot fricking four, sat bolt upright on a 125, doing motorways, albeit not always at motorway speeds, blitzing round town, carving country lanes. Were my expectations too low? Is that you lot are mostly americans and routinely do longer distances? Different attitudes? Different availibilty of bikes? The lack of the tiered license? The fact that you don't have to start small? I rode my 125 for 2 years, and I've still got the drat thing because it's still teaching me things. *edit* vvvvv yeah, I have z3n. Two CB400 Super Fours, which I own, and the GS500E I did my DAS training on. The 500 was back in september for 4 or 5 days, but I've owned of the 400s since early January, and put far too many miles on it. Orange Someone fucked around with this message at 21:37 on May 21, 2009 |
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May 21, 2009 21:18
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Orange Someone posted:I . . . I don't understand the hatred of a 250 cruiser. I mean, I started on a 125 dualsport, that's got maybe 8 or 9 bhp (supposedly 11 when new). I am slightly militant about enjoying a bike, and my only previous transport before that was a pushbike, so it was definitely an upgrade from that. But I'm six foot fricking four, sat bolt upright on a 125, doing motorways, albeit not always at motorway speeds, blitzing round town, carving country lanes. Have you ridden a bigger bike yet? A motorcycle will always have more things to teach you, if you're willing to learn. But it's a lot more comfortable to have the right bike for the right situation.
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May 21, 2009 21:29
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Orange Someone posted:I . . . I don't understand the hatred of a 250 cruiser.*snip* The short answer is that you need a minimum amount of horsepower to keep up with highway traffic. If your bike is screaming, and at full throttle on the highway, you've just limited yourself to swerving, or braking. And you also have no more throttle to feed in if you're making a maneuver. Now, a 250 cruiser essentially eliminates your ability to position your body differently to affect the handling of the bike. That ALSO reduces your options in an emergency. It's also hard to find smaller bikes. I have a moped because I couldn't find a good small bike. (see, I love small bikes too...) Even if you could, they wouldn't be able to do the 90mph I consider "safe." How can I put this. In europe 200miles is a long way. In america we consider 200 years a long time. The distances in the US are much, much larger than europe. It takes seven or eight hours just to traverse my state, and i'm not in a big one. And that's using interstates, not the fun state roads.
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May 21, 2009 22:13
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My 250 Ninja is part exhausting, and part boring on the freeway, and I'm relatively small. I'm about 5'10", 145 lbs. The bike is fine as far as power goes, but at about 75-80 MPH, I'm spinning about 8 or 9,000 RPM at something like half to two thirds throttle. That leaves me with little room for extra power if I need it (13,500 redline, if I'm not mistaken), and really, that kind of engine speed for any decent amount of time is simply draining. If I could cruise at, say, 4-6k, I think it would be significantly better. I've taken it to Lancaster/Palmdale and back from Los Feliz in LA just once, and I don't want to make that ride again any time soon. Unless I take Angeles Crest, that is.  I'm also bored to tears in a car on the freeway, though, so its not entirely the bike that is the problem.
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May 22, 2009 00:27
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Today while bike shopping I ran into a guy who owned a 250 Ninja among many other bikes, sport and cruiser. He liked it but says you can only do about 300 miles per day and that's pushing it. I asked about trips and he said the power was fine on flat ground but get into hills and you quickly run out of power. He sold it because on the freeway he had to run it hard to keep with traffic and he said it was tiring. He was about 5-10, 170 lbs. Not my opinions, just passing them along. I think small bikes are great for basic transportation but aren't necessary for learning nor would I want one for distances of more than an hour or two.
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May 22, 2009 06:38
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I stand by my assessment that no honest man needs more then a ninja 250. Also if you can only do 300 miles in a day on a 250, it's your rear end thats the problem, that or you didn't bring any oil to replace what got burned off cruising at 9k rpm  That said, I'm saving for a bigger bike, and you should really ride what you're comfortable with, and aren't going to ball of flame into a ditch.
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May 22, 2009 16:24
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wormil posted:Today while bike shopping I ran into a guy who owned a 250 Ninja among many other bikes, sport and cruiser. He liked it but says you can only do about 300 miles per day and that's pushing it. I asked about trips and he said the power was fine on flat ground but get into hills and you quickly run out of power. He sold it because on the freeway he had to run it hard to keep with traffic and he said it was tiring. He was about 5-10, 170 lbs. Not my opinions, just passing them along. I think small bikes are great for basic transportation but aren't necessary for learning nor would I want one for distances of more than an hour or two. I did this route on my 250 about a week and a half after I bought it: http://tinyurl.com/p6vy7z It was exhausting. Of course, I didn't know any better, either. I didn't have any problems with power on mine, even going up hills (although I didn't hit any major ones), just keep it spinning and downshift as needed. I'm 5'11 and 175 pounds, and I had probably 50 pounds of gear and clothes and stuff on the bike as well.
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May 22, 2009 17:04
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I finally, finally, bought a drat bike. I went from wanting a sport touring bike, to an old (70s) Japanese, to a cruiser. Here is what I finally bought this morning: '06 C50. This is just the crappy craigslist picture but it's immaculate with quite a few extras. Has all the speed and handling of a riding mower but it'll be fun for the summer.
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May 22, 2009 17:23
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Z3n posted:I did this route on my 250 about a week and a half after I bought it:  All in one day? I can't even imagine the soreness.
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May 22, 2009 19:12
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sirbeefalot posted:
Yeah, all in one day. It took me about 15 hours, I left at about 12pm, right when the UPS guy dropped off my brand new arai, stopped in SLO for a hour or so, and then finished the trip to the bay area. I got in at around 3am. Pretty sure I had hypothermia as well. I had to stop a few times to layer on more clothes, get more gas, eat, piss, learn how to feel my hands again...stuff like that. It was fantastic.
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May 22, 2009 19:28
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sirbeefalot posted:
The fun starts at the 500th mile.
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May 22, 2009 19:36
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blugu64 posted:The fun starts at the 500th mile. That it does, because at that point you start to go insane with being stuck in a helmet on a motorcycle on the super slab. That said, guy who thought he was to fat for a sport bike, you're not. Ride what you want, not what you think will look best. Also the ninja 500 and 250 are upright seated like a standard so you wont have any issues with wrist hurt or anything. I'm 250 at 5'11 and my 500 was more than enough power to learn on, and was borderline crazy for me the first month with speed. The 250 will be completely fine for you go test ride one already! On topic of getting a new bike, I'm starting my saving for a new bike phase this summer, and I cannot loving wait to be riding again. I'm probably going to upgrade to a 750, but if the deal is right, there is one liter bike that has my eye (drat you MV f4). For those who have ridden liter bikes what should I be expecting when I inevitably test ride one in the future. My mind is basically prepared for ridiculous torque and power from any point on the powerband that if hamfisted will power wheelie (which makes my insides all happy with excitement). Maybe people have built up liter bikes to more then they are for me, but the way it was explained to me is it's like that first time you went fast on your first motorcycle, every single time you ride. Mentally and skill wise I'm ready for an upgrade for sure, now its just time to get the money for said upgrade.
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May 22, 2009 20:08
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blugu64 posted:The fun starts at the 500th mile. What was the longest day for you during that recent adventure? The EX250 is more upright than most sport bikes, but you still lean forward a little. I've found that I sometimes need to consciously adjust my posture so I'm not hunching over the bars too much, and loosen up my arms at the same time.
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May 22, 2009 21:42
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For my tall brethren out there, do you have any experience with the seating position/comfort of a ninja 500r? I am looking at a 2005 Ninja 500r with 5,000 miles for $2900. I'm 6'5. I know the best thing to do is go sit on it, but I'm always open to hearing others inputs.
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May 22, 2009 23:24
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Hi everyone, new rider here. I'm looking at this GS550 katana: http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/mld/mcy/1183932991.html Looks real pretty but I'm not finding much info about this model besides this brief review: http://www.thecreeper.net/katana.htm Anyone know if this bike will be compatible with other GS550's in terms of parts / knowledge etc. ? Is that reviewer guy full of poo poo? Also the price seems a bit too high.
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May 23, 2009 01:41
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sirbeefalot posted:What was the longest day for you during that recent adventure? I don't have exact mileage per day, most days were right around 500, but the max was just shy of 800. Trintintin posted:That it does, because at that point you start to go insane with being stuck in a helmet on a motorcycle on the super slab. I'm not sure which is worse, the 'oh god my entire body aches', or the mental wall of 'what the gently caress am I doing, oh god my rear end'. Either way I'm a glutton for punishment and can't stop. blugu64 fucked around with this message at 05:12 on May 23, 2009 |
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May 23, 2009 05:08
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Anyone know where the idle adjustment would be on my '79 GS750?
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May 23, 2009 06:23
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Assuming you mean idle speed, there should be a small knob sticking out from in between the second and third carbs. Depending on the carbs, it will either be pointing rearward from between the float bowls, or sticking out the top.
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May 23, 2009 15:41
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Hughmoris posted:For my tall brethren out there, do you have any experience with the seating position/comfort of a ninja 500r? I am looking at a 2005 Ninja 500r with 5,000 miles for $2900. I'm 6'5. I know the best thing to do is go sit on it, but I'm always open to hearing others inputs. You'll be fine. I've had some tall folks (uh I think 6' or taller) on my 500 and they all say it's good. You'll be sitting upright with those long arms of yours; I have to lean over like I'm on a sportbike myself. :P
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May 23, 2009 15:47
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I'm looking at a small '73 Kawasaki triple for 2,500. Anything I should be looking for specifically? It runs, the tank leaks, all the chrome is still shinny, and the tach doesn't work. Is 2,500 a fair price?
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May 25, 2009 07:04
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benhameen posted:Hi everyone, new rider here. That said, riding a collectors bike as your first bike.. yeah... don't do that. The asking price is sane if it really has been in cold storage for twenty years. You can pick up a very nice 1977-1982 GS550E or L for $1000 without looking hard. The GS550 is a very good beginners bike. Just not that one. hoho`win posted:I'm looking at a small '73 Kawasaki triple for 2,500. Anything I should be looking for specifically? It runs, the tank leaks, all the chrome is still shinny, and the tach doesn't work. Is 2,500 a fair price?
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May 25, 2009 10:30
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Nerobro posted:I wouldn't go over $1500 in it's current state.
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May 25, 2009 11:37
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Nerobro posted:$2500 isn't a fair price for a bike with a shot gas tank. I'd more happily pay $1850 for that aforementioned GS550MZ versus the that thing for $2500. I wouldn't go over $1500 in it's current state. The possible causes for the broken tach make me leery. As does the weeping tank. Not to mention that old two stroke triple parts (and Z1 parts) seem to be fetching a premium these days, so a tank replacement might end up being expensive for a good one.
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May 25, 2009 12:03
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Nerobro posted:For everything that matters, the bike is compatible with every other 1977-1982 GS550. Thanks for the info. I've been checking craigslist for a couple months now and I've actually had a lot of trouble finding GS's around here in DC. But anyways, I ended up finding an '04 Ninja 250 for a good price, so I got that.
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May 25, 2009 15:03
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Over the weekend a friend's girlfriend mentioned she has her dearly departed father's Honda CX500 Deluxe covered up under her porch. At this point she basically "wants it gone." I am hopefully going to see it this week. He died about a year ago, and it sat for a few months before that. As best she can remember, he started it up about 1.5 years ago to ride it, but was too weak from his illness. She is in the process of finding the documentation on it for me. She also knows the mechanic shop he used to take it to, so I can probably get some service history for it. I've read a few articles about them already. Is there anything else CA recommends I look at? I am taking the MSF next week and the extent of my wrench turning is changing my car's oil and rotating tires. Am I getting in over my head mechanically by considering a nearly 30 year old bike?
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May 27, 2009 04:27
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mike fictitious posted:I am taking the MSF next week and the extent of my wrench turning is changing my car's oil and rotating tires. Am I getting in over my head mechanically by considering a nearly 30 year old bike? I think you might find an old bike to be ideal to learn on because they aren't as sophisticated as a modern bike. That said the lack of sophistication sometimes means doing things like points and manual cam chain tensioning that you probably wouldn't normally have to do. The CX500 was a cool bike because it was like a Guzzi without the wallet crushing unreliability. Other than that I'm not sure of the reliability or ease of repairs on older Hondas.
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May 27, 2009 04:44
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8ender posted:I think you might find an old bike to be ideal to learn on because they aren't as sophisticated as a modern bike. This. Basic toolkit, Haynes/Clymer manual, reasonable mechanical aptitude. That's really all it takes. Run into a problem? Ask. mike fictitious posted:I've read a few articles about them already. Is there anything else CA recommends I look at? Wow, that's quite a comprehensive article. Pay special attention to: 1) water pump 2) water pump 3) stator 4) water pump Special care must be taken to use silicate-free coolant in the cooling system, or your water pump won't be long for this world. Replacing it is not a good first-time learning project. E: Completely overlooked the rear drive unit. Look for oil leaking from around the rear hub. Water pump can be done with the engine in the frame, with mixed results. Stator replacement requires engine removal. Rear drive unit is expensive and complicated. If there's signs of trouble in any of these areas, you may be in over your head. Repairing them yourself (given your limited experience) could prove difficult, and labor costs for someone else to fix it could easily exceed the value of the bike. I'm going to back off on what I said above about learning to wrench on old bikes; it really only applies to air-cooled chain-drives. The CX/GL 500/650 are a special case. Dagen H fucked around with this message at 16:58 on May 27, 2009 |
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May 27, 2009 05:07
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