Greetings from Toronto

[panopticon]

Hi Everyone,

Just wanted to say hi to everyone here. I have been on bikes for about 25years now and until recently have always owned and used older bikes. Mostly cruisers, a sport touring, and a 'classic' bike. I've never customized a bike, nor felt the need....but today is a new day

When my latest daily driver started having typical old-bike issues I finally decided it was time to make a move to something more reliable, a bit more fun, and a bit easier on the wallet. After a very quick search around my area I felt a CBR250R or a Ninja 250r was just too small. I was leaning for a CB500F or CBR500R being a 'honda guy' but with an inseam of only 31" the seat height as well as the edge over the 250s made it a clear choice. I picked up my red, 2013 300 a full week ago now and I could not be happier.

Initial impressions:
Pros:
-Power to weight is really impressive for its size. It accelerates to my liking and can play on the freeway if need be. It's very easy to push this bikes to it's limits and thus offers me more smiles-per-mile than my cruiser or a larger 500+cc
-Corning is orders of magnitude more fun than I anticipated. It's precise and very flickable (I'm 185lbs @ 5'9"). I was expecting to require more effort to corner hard but it's very easy and smooth.
-The RPM range over the CB500F/R just makes it much more fun.
-Body styling is very sharp and yes I've already had several compliments on it. Many non-riders believe its a bigger bike.
-Fuel Injection. This is my first. nuff said.
-Aftermarket support seems to be well established.
-Bikes potential is high for entry-level racing class or street customizations. It seems K&N Filter+Tune+Full Exhaust+Tires can make this a whole different bike.
-Price point was very favorable. OTD was 5700 with zero miles.
-Exhaust tone...I just like the way it sounds all the way through the RPM range. I don't think I would change the exhaust simply for sound.

Cons:
-The seat is just terrible. I didn't expect it to be good but I get sore after about 1hr of riding.
-The brakes although powerful enough, don't fill me with confidence. I've seen this over the years and it's either cheap pads, cheap flexible lines, or both.
-Front end dive....Still need more seat time to get a better opinion by so far I've been noticing the front end dives considerably under most braking conditions. I think it could be firmed up a bit.
-Tires.......hmm I would say they are Ok for a beginner or a sloth but any 'spirited' rider can quickly push the bike beyond the safe characteristics of the tires.
-Raw power: I'm definitely used to a low revving 1100 motor so the butt dyno can really notice however this bike plays well above 5k rpm so it's not really a con I guess.
-Cornering is both a pro and a con. I've noticed it can get a bit squirrley in the corners when really pushing it. I scraped the peg feeler once and must have overreacted with the throttle and caused a speed wobble and a hop. Nothing out of control but a heavier bike probably would have shrugged it off. I get the feeling on older bikes with worn out bearings. Just something to keep an eye on.
-Throttle cable slack. I have roughly a 1/8th - 1/6th turn of play on my throttle from the dealer. I have not yet inspected or adjusted.

I joined up to ninjette.org because after reading through the forums prior and post purchase I feel this is the best resource available for technical discussions. Nearing my first oil change I thought it would be a good idea to sign up if any unknowns cropped up (...an oil change... but ya never know..)

See you on the roads!

[csmith12]

Welcome!

Better tires will help with the cornering feel. And welcome to FI, it's real nice.

[csmith12]

Originally Posted by panopticon

-Raw power: I'm definitely used to a low revving 1100 motor so the butt dyno can really notice however this bike plays well above 5k rpm so it's not really a con I guess.

You sound just like me when I moved over to sport bikes from cruisers. In short order, the sound of 10k rpms will become music to your ears.

[panopticon]

Originally Posted by csmith12

You sound just like me when I moved over to sport bikes from cruisers. In short order, the sound of 10k rpms will become music to your ears.

Ah that reminds me, going to start wearing plugs after reading a lot of the material in these forums! I want to hear that music for a long time.

[cbinker]

oh hello.

[ninjagaiden09]

Welcome!

[KJohnson21]

[EternalNewb]

Yes, earplugs are wonderful.

Welcome aboard. Glad you found us, and I'm envious of your 300. I still need to clean carbs.

[misfitsailor]

Welcome!

[Snake]

Hello and welcome.