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What's a good beginner bike for my friend?


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Hello there fellas and felladies? I know this is a type of question that pops up often but will ask it anyways for my pal. We both live in poland and he wants to finally take the plunge and get some cruiser/sportster. Eventually he wants to take his girl with him. He's around 75 kg and she would be in the 50 ish kg range. There's a cool Polish motorcycle company but their biggest bikes are 250cc. Starting prices, for new, are around 8000zl. Relatively CHEAP. 

He doesn't exactly like the idea of buying a beginner bike and then outgrowing it. My (maybe bad) advice is if you want to have both of you on the bike and do freeway speeds, 250 cc might not be the best idea. That starting with a 350-500cc wouldn't be the worst idea; since I started on the 5th gen VFR. What does the collective mind think about it? If you agree, what type of cheap bike y'all recommend? 

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I don't know the learner laws in Poland but assume they are the EU standard. Depending on how old you are determines what power output machine you can have post passing your bike test or tests. 

 

So if we assume he's over 25 & passed the full test he can buy whatever he likes, assuming my EU rules are up to date.

 

The power or size of a bike is immaterial, almost everything greater than 400cc will weigh between 185-250Kg wet. And the cost is relative. So figure out what he wants in the end & find something that fits the bill. Performance is determined by haw far & how fast you twist the twist grip,  it is expected that people over 25 will have enough sense to know their limits & have a large degree of self preservation ingrained in them. As long ax someone can safely set off, ride & stop learner bike they should be able to ride anything, just take it easy & learn the new bike, before trying to ride it hard or fast. 

 

The VFR's in all their guises are great allrounders, so you should be able to find something in his price range. They are also extremely reliable, so no need to worry about their age if you find a well cared for one. Hondas generally have always had the best build quality so they look good years later than other brands of the same age. 

 

I hope that helps.

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8 hours ago, dozyproductions said:

My (maybe bad) advice is if you want to have both of you on the bike and do freeway speeds, 250 cc might not be the best idea. That starting with a 350-500cc wouldn't be the worst idea

 

I agree. Your notion that a 250 is a little small on the highway seems fair to me. As does the idea of a good beginner bike in the 350-500cc range. 

Without knowing the Polish market, my guess is there are plenty of older UJMs available in the 500cc range, and for peanuts. That would include some cruisers if that’s the kind of bike he wants.

 

This guy has some ideas for you, although he’s addressing riders in the States. There may well be newer models around as well. VFRs are not on his list:

 

https://motorcycleinfo.calsci.com/MotorcycleIntro.html#Buying

https://motorcycleinfo.calsci.com/MotorcycleIntroA.html

 

As for the wisdom of your beginner friend carrying a passenger, that’s a whole 'nuther discussion. We will assume his girlfriend loves him a lot… 🙂
 

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When I resumed mc riding in 2006 after last riding in 1970 a friend suggested a small used mc without bodywork. I did not listen and ended up destroying a lot of fairings, levers and foot pegs relearning to ride.

 

For a first-time rider I'd suggest a small (less than 500 cc) light-weight, used bike that could be resold after a year or two of learning and likely a few dropped bike incidences. That, I believe, would significantly lower the cost of the early learning curve.

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I'm in my fifties and I've never owned a new vehicle in my life, so I would be inclined toward a used bike just as a matter of practical frugality. There are just so many great used bikes on the market.

 

If I had a friend who was looking for a first bike and he didn't have a strong preference on  mission type (i.e. *definitely* a cruiser, or *definitely* a sport bike, etc), my first draft answer would be: Suzuki SV650.

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If they are available, get a Nighthawk 750. Stone cold reliable, understressed in-line 4 cylinder motor that is buttery smooth. It’s a naked standard so if you drop it no big deal. They made them for years so should be easy enough to find cheap. 

 

nh1_zps6ye6i33r.jpg

Here is a photo of my old 2002 model.  I think they were mostly unchanged for their entire production run that lasted over ten years.

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EX500 / Ninja 500.

 

Great starter bike, has enough power to run the highway, typically inexpensive to purchase but will give him what he wants and needs to learn.  I rode one 5 years before I bought the VFR, and I rode the heck out of it... including a couple of 13hr 1000+km days.  Corbin seat helped with that, as its a narrow bike!

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Honda do a great range of 500cc bikes, you could do worse than start there, but my first bike (after 20 years away) was my first VFR800 so I'd be tempted to look there, especially if your friend is "mature" and hopefully can control his wrist.

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The new Honda CB500’s are plentiful here in the states and are cheaper to buy and repair than the VFR. They are awesome bikes as well.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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You can lead a horse to water,

but not make it drink..... :tongue:

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On 8/27/2019 at 5:41 AM, Mohawk said:

it is expected that people over 25 will have enough sense to know their limits & have a large degree of self preservation ingrained in them.

:laughing6-hehe::laughing6-hehe::laughing6-hehe: ... :laughing6-hehe::laughing6-hehe: ... :laughing6-hehe: ...

Wait, were you serious? ... if so, sorry :biggrin:.

 

ACE

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8 hours ago, dozyproductions said:

The Socal (bad population sample) were more predisposed to running from the police. 

Is there an area of Poland called Socal?

I don't think I know anyone here in L.A. who would rather try to run than just stop and take the ticket.

You can't out run the radio, and probably not the helicopter either.

Maybe you won't get a pounding when they catch you. If you don't crash first.

I'll admit the riders I know are all way past 30.

 

Anyway /rant. I also suggest a smaller lighter bike with no fairings to start. 😎

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On 8/28/2019 at 11:44 PM, Sweeper said:

The new Honda CB500’s are plentiful here in the states and are cheaper to buy and repair than the VFR. They are awesome bikes as well.


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Ive got a 2016 cb500f as a commuter. Springs, gold valve emulators in the front and a 94 fireblade shock and it handles  like a real bike.

 

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18 hours ago, VFR4Lee said:

Is there an area of Poland called Socal?

I don't think I know anyone here in L.A. who would rather try to run than just stop and take the ticket.

You can't out run the radio, and probably not the helicopter either.

Maybe you won't get a pounding when they catch you. If you don't crash first.

I'll admit the riders I know are all way past 30.

 

Anyway /rant. I also suggest a smaller lighter bike with no fairings to start. 😎

Rant aside, I outran a helicopter and got away. They faked finding the rider by storming a apartment complex. I parked the bike under a tree between two f 150s and ditching my gear. Helicopter followed me while walking back home but got called off. My fault, my bad decision but I was not the only one to want to and do it. Being older, I will happily take the ticket. Don't want to tarnish the community here. Cops stopped giving Socal riders the benefit of the doubt a long time ago. They would indiscriminately round up anyone in many of the rides that made sure to follow the laws.

No worries, I grew up so thanks for the input fellas. 

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