Getting a Bigger Bike, What to Choose?

[Alex]

I have no ill will toward you and certainly am not in the mojo business either. You've clearly demonstrated you have no self control in multiple ways. You're impatient with your brand-new bike (1300 miles and wanting to sell because "it's not fast enough"), and in a few minutes on another bike you're already doubling the speed limit to "test its acceleration". You're foolish, and you're too foolish to realize it. The very last thing you need right now is a machine that allows you to immediately channel your impatience well into triple-digits, but more importantly, well faster than you expect or can handle into a curve or other obstacle that your skills are nowhere near ready for. I hope it all works out but I've seen this story so many times let's just say I know how it wraps up.

Good luck.

[kkim]

He's giving you some very good advice. I only hope you take the time to listen. I've also heard this same story told too many times before with some devastating endings.

No one here wishes you bad mojo... we only try to pass on from experience the lessons from history that you should consider heeding to as you go down this road you are on.

[jameZ]

Heh, my ride on the GSX-R today was just to test the waters (see what a crotch rocket is like), and it in fact confirmed that I will not be getting one. I also rode a couple of Harleys, an FZ6 and an FJR, just to see what they were like. As I said earlier in the thread, I won't be selling my ninja until just before summer, probably after I put around 3.5-4k miles on it. I'm simply trying to find the right bike for me for my summer touring adventure. And who knows, it might just end up being the 250 after all.

[Lurkable]

James, a guy at school today told me he got beat by a 250R on his R6 through a long twisty road.

[Viper-Byte]

When in the right hands and the right road a 250R can beat the bigger bike because it is so light, where is the FUN in riding fast in a straight line? I don't see it. Where is the FUN in riding fast on a twistey road? I see it! That is what the Ninja is good for. The 250 can go faster than bigger bikes in the twisties, it just taks a good rider. If you keep the RPMs in the powerband, then it can still go fast, and still you can go fast enough to get into trouble on this bike, but not nearly as bad as high speced bikes.

IMO part of the fun of the bike is the lack of power.

I was chasing this boy racer in his Modded Evo around a road here and I could hear his tyres squeeling he was going that fast round the corners, yet I was keeping up with no problems

The people here are just looking out for you, nobody is wishing you bad anything, we just don't like to see another rider off the road cause he was riding a bike that is far too powerful for his experience.

[komohana]

Originally Posted by CC Cowboy

There are so any nice bikes to choose from. Here are two of my favorites right now;





Hopefully this will help some.

hey cc are those two pix on the bottom that H-D that is or was only available over-seas?
(thought i read bout that in a recent or not so recent motorcyclist mag. article)

[g21-30]

Originally Posted by kkim

He's giving you some very good advice. I only hope you take the time to listen. I've also heard this same story told too many times before with some devastating endings.

No one here wishes you bad mojo... we only try to pass on from experience the lessons from history that you should consider heeding to as you go down this road you are on.

Historically speaking:
12/26/2008
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=11221

1/5/2009
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=11458

[camaroz1985]

Originally Posted by komohana

hey cc are those two pix on the bottom that H-D that is or was only available over-seas?
(thought i read bout that in a recent or not so recent motorcyclist mag. article)

I have heard they are now taking orders for them in the states as well.

[darkknight49]

Originally Posted by g21-30

Historically speaking:
12/26/2008
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=11221

1/5/2009
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=11458

well, he lived up to his namesake.

[komohana]

Originally Posted by camaroz1985

I have heard they are now taking orders for them in the states as well.

thanx ryan. had wondered if they had done that yet. something about that set up makes me like the looks of that machine.

[camaroz1985]

Yeah it is one of the few Harleys that I like. The one shown there isn't a stock one though.

http://www.harley-davidson.com/wcm/C...p?locale=en_US

[komohana]

Originally Posted by camaroz1985

Yeah it is one of the few Harleys that I like. The one shown there isn't a stock one though.

http://www.harley-davidson.com/wcm/C...p?locale=en_US

ahh...ok...THATS why that one looks so...sweet! thanx again

[Verus Cidere]

Originally Posted by Viper-Byte

The people here are just looking out for you, nobody is wishing you bad anything, we just don't like to see another rider off the road cause he was riding a bike that is far too powerful for his experience.

Sorry JameZ, but I have to agree with these guys. If you've only had a 250 for 4k miles, you're not ready to move up yet. That knowledge comes from a friend of mine who's been riding motorcycles for 40 years, and he rides touring bikes, so he knows all about real power (upwards of 1500cc). He's told me several stories about younger riders who upgrade way too early and get themselves either maimed or killed. One he told me about just ran over a pothole he wasn't expecting on a 1Kcc bike, accidently cranked the throttle a little, and pulled a wheelie he didn't know how to get out of. Ask yourself this: Is being able to go faster and looking better because of the bigger bike worth your life? The answer for me, and most other people is no. Like the others have said. We're not here to bad mojo you, or discourage you. Get a bigger bike by all means. But wait until you can control it really well, not just well enough to get by. Just getting by won't be good enough eventually.

[NinjetteMan]

Very well said Verus. I myself am a new rider and must constantly resist the "internal conversation" regarding a bigger bike. And really, I think the only reason that conversation exists is because I simply cant wait to see myself running with the "big boys" as well. Purely cosmetic reasons. But then I realize that to truly run with the bigs boys means I must have the skills to do so, because my life is not worth looking good to somebody else.
For me, my little 250 has plenty of power and certainly enough to get one into a hairy situation. But our ninjettes are very forgiving bikes and allow us to learn from our misteps.

[Moo-wasaki]

Versys! I am considering this bike too. Not this year probably...but check it out and see what people think of it. ADVrider.com has a huge forum on this bike.

[Kolya1981]

Originally Posted by GreezMunky

That is my next bike.. Only in Neon Blue. I want to put at least 20k on my ninja though first before I even think of upgrading.

They dropped the neon blue for '09. But the redesign is soo sexy. Hopefully they will bring that color back one day...or maybe that sweet green they offer on the Street Triple...green is faster after all.

But yeah to OP +1 on checking out a Street Triple...the 675 motor's sound is down right music to the ears.

EDIT: What about a Honda 599 (Hornet)? Very sexy bike. It was actually codesigned by Ducati...dig around and you'll find a lot of Ducati parts on it.

[Alex]

Originally Posted by Kolya1981

EDIT: What about a Honda 599 (Hornet)? Very sexy bike. It was actually codesigned by Ducati...dig around and you'll find a lot of Ducati parts on it.

Where can I read more about that? I thought it (and the 919) were designed by Honda in Italy, but this is the first I've ever heard about a Ducati connection.

[Syphen]

It a corporate partsbin f4/f4i mix-mash of parts. Only the tank, frame, subframe and the connecting bits to those were designed anywhere else really. The rest of the parts look identical to an F4.. That one in the pic is carbed too. Its an older model. The new Hornets were FI were they not?

Anyways, to James, I think the folks here are giving you great advice that you need to listen to. Do not give into that internal bug to buy a new bike that is bigger, better and badder just because of the looks or "speed". You need to learn to go fast on your 250 and stay alive before going to the big bikes that have more then enough power to loop you and spit you off if you simply drop the clutch.

[Verus Cidere]

Originally Posted by Kolya1981

What about a Honda 599 (Hornet)? Very sexy bike. It was actually codesigned by Ducati...dig around and you'll find a lot of Ducati parts on it.

I don't know what it is, but I've never really liked the look of naked bikes. Is there anything about them that's an upside to a bike with fairings? Or is it just a different aesthetic touch?

[zeroth]

Originally Posted by Verus Cidere

I don't know what it is, but I've never really liked the look of naked bikes. Is there anything about them that's an upside to a bike with fairings? Or is it just a different aesthetic touch?

I think that, like people, it depends on how they look naked. Some bikes you prefer naked (like some people ), others you think they should keep their fairings on (like the old guy at the gym).

I think the Honda Hornet looks pretty sweet naked. But I don't get the concept of making a "streetfighter" out of a faired bike. I just think that bikes with fairings are not designed to look good naked.

Some people say they'll get damaged less, but if the clutch cover gets scraped up, it seems like you could spend a lot more money repairing/replacing it than you would either repairing or replacing a plastic fairing! (Can anyone support/refute that from their own experience?)

So to me, fairings are like a poor man's frame sliders!

[CC Cowboy]

Originally Posted by komohana

hey cc are those two pix on the bottom that H-D that is or was only available over-seas?
(thought i read bout that in a recent or not so recent motorcyclist mag. article)

The Harley was done by Storz Performance. They have been doing Sportsters for years and have a lot of performance parts (mostly for Harleys). They are expensive but pretty.

www.storzperf.com

I just picked up a Dyna Lowrider and want to do it up like the bike on page 11 of their catalog.

[Kolya1981]

Originally Posted by Alex

Where can I read more about that? I thought it (and the 919) were designed by Honda in Italy, but this is the first I've ever heard about a Ducati connection.

Hmm, I know there is a 599 Hornet forum. My friend actually has one, and was explaining the Ducati connection...not sure how much input they had on the bike, but if you pop the seat off, you will see several parts clearly stamped DUCATI.

His is carb'd and said the motor on it was more or less an F4 motor, not sure if they switched to FI or not on the newer ones.

[Alex]

Originally Posted by Kolya1981

My friend actually has one, and was explaining the Ducati connection...not sure how much input they had on the bike, but if you pop the seat off, you will see several parts clearly stamped DUCATI.

Not buying it. It's a great bike, but it's a parts-bin Honda, that happens to be designed and built in Italy. Can't imagine what Ducati parts it would need.

EDIT:
Here are some links on the 599 forums that your friend is probably referring to:

http://www.honda599.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3326
http://www.honda599.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3029

As it is built in Italy, Honda Italia & Ducati buy from some of the same suppliers for the ancillary parts. Like the regulator/rectifier and perhaps some other electronic accessories. Nothing that matters, and nothing that was actually designed by Ducati in the first place. The engine/frame/suspension/controls are all Honda, it's not like anything that affects the performance of the bike in any way has anything to do with any Ducati. It would be like us claiming our ninjettes are just like the Kawi motoGP bike because we use the same tire valve stems. (no idea if we do or not, it's just an analogy)

Though I don't mind Honda 599 owners saying their bike is like a Ducati. Not nearly as much as I mind Ducati owners saying their bike is just like a 2-wheeled Ferrari. No, spending $5K on a used monster does not make one a Ferrari owner.

[Kolya1981]

Originally Posted by Alex

No, spending $5K on a used monster does not make one a Ferrari owner.

Haha!


LOL, never said it was a Ducati...just said it had some Ducati stamped parts...pretty sure I said it was a Honda 599. But yeah I see what you are saying, and its a nice bike either way.