I was thinking of swapping my faithful ninja 250 next month and the CBR 500 is looking to be an enticing option.

As much as i love my 250, im looking for a change. Does anybody own or has anybody ridden the CBR500?

471cc parallel twin
ABS is standard
80.2 mpg (apparently)
Sport Demons standard

I'll be restricted to 47hp for 1.5 years still (UK Laws) , so this is smack bang on the 47HP mark (ninja has 29.81hp) , it's got 30lb/ft torque (My ninja has 15.5lb/ft).

Decisions Decisions...

that's extremely heavy bike for power output!

personally, i would go with Ninja 400. Similar power, 30kg lighter.

lets put it this way..... when I got my 2012 Ninja 250R I was very impressed
as it is only a 250cc but it has the power of a 650cc just a few years ago !
my Ninja is stock in the engine department I haven't touched it to increase the power simply because it doesn't need it ! so WHY are you looking for more ?
you want to go faster ? or just want to FEEL more power.... most likely the latter because the Ninja is very capable of doing over 100mph and you don't need to go that fast anyway ! LOL
I understand that feeling the power of a bigger bike is worth switching for
I've done that many times myself but I've also noticed that the ride is more important than doing wheelies ! especially now that I am older ! and something else that I've never considered before is weight.... now that I am a shrivled up old man I find picking up a 450 lb motorcycle takes everything I have and i'll regret that for a week ! Smaller is better Really as it uses less gas
can still go fast and you would be hard pressed to find a better bike than the Ninja !
Myself I'ed listen to Danno if I were you ! but more than that Just keep the Ninja and save your money ! LOL
...
Bob.....