Cheap bike for returning rider
Discussion
I'm currently accumulating riding gear, but once I'm sorted I'm planning to buy a bike. It's probably 30+ years since I had my last bike, although I did do a refresher session last year.
I was hoping to get away with spending around £2,000 - £2,500 on a bike, but from what I can see many bikes at this end of the market can be quite ropey, so it's probably a case of trying to find an older, less fashionable bike which has been maintained.
I'm just curious about what you'd recommend. A glance through local ads shows things like a BMW R1100RT, but that's probably a huge lump of a bike which might be a bit of a handful. I presume BMWs are generally reliable and well-built, and tend to be owned by older riders who can afford to look after them. Another interesting bike is a Ducati Multistrada 620, but perhaps servicing costs would be high, and reliability a concern. I've also seen an old Suzuki DRZ400SM (supermoto-style trial bike) which appeals, but it's in great condition so it's priced over my initial budget - I'm wondering if it's worth considering. The other option might be a scooter of some sort.
You probably couldn't find four more different bikes! When I'm ready to buy there will be other options, but before then it would be good to have an idea of which sort of bike would be worth looking at.
To complicate matters, I'm not really sure how I would use the bike. I'm in Scotlamd, so I'd be riding on a mix of A, B and unclassified roads, with some town work. I'm not sure if I'd just use it on nicer days, but I never was a fair-weather biker, so I might end up using it most of the year, and if that's the case I'd probably cover a fairly high mileage. Minimum usage would be a 36 mile round trip commute, but if I liked riding I might end up doing some long distance rides.
I was hoping to get away with spending around £2,000 - £2,500 on a bike, but from what I can see many bikes at this end of the market can be quite ropey, so it's probably a case of trying to find an older, less fashionable bike which has been maintained.
I'm just curious about what you'd recommend. A glance through local ads shows things like a BMW R1100RT, but that's probably a huge lump of a bike which might be a bit of a handful. I presume BMWs are generally reliable and well-built, and tend to be owned by older riders who can afford to look after them. Another interesting bike is a Ducati Multistrada 620, but perhaps servicing costs would be high, and reliability a concern. I've also seen an old Suzuki DRZ400SM (supermoto-style trial bike) which appeals, but it's in great condition so it's priced over my initial budget - I'm wondering if it's worth considering. The other option might be a scooter of some sort.
You probably couldn't find four more different bikes! When I'm ready to buy there will be other options, but before then it would be good to have an idea of which sort of bike would be worth looking at.
To complicate matters, I'm not really sure how I would use the bike. I'm in Scotlamd, so I'd be riding on a mix of A, B and unclassified roads, with some town work. I'm not sure if I'd just use it on nicer days, but I never was a fair-weather biker, so I might end up using it most of the year, and if that's the case I'd probably cover a fairly high mileage. Minimum usage would be a 36 mile round trip commute, but if I liked riding I might end up doing some long distance rides.
I reckon you'd do well to think about why you want another bike, 'twould go along way to helping decide... With that budget, and a little patience, you could have quite a choice. I tend to keep an eye on local stuff at a similar sort of level and currently of interest (to me) are a couple of Enfields, a BMW R100RT, a Harley Sportster, a gorgeous low mileage FZX750, a tatty V-Max, very nice W650, very tidy Yamaha Bulldog, a tricked up SRX400, a very high mileage CB1100, a low mileage Z1100 and a couple of big Zephyrs... a mate picked up a tidy, running BSA Gold Flash at the weekend... and another bought an oldish Africa Twin all for around your budget, you'll see there's plenty of variety. Add in a multitude of Bandits and VFRs and the like, many of which are being sold off cheap so that the owners don't have to look after then until next year - there's a lot of folk fretting about finances at the moment. It may not reflect in dealer prices and high end stuff, but at the lower end it's noticeable.
I doubt that any of the above would be what you want, 'tis more an illustration of just how much choice you have at that price.
I doubt that any of the above would be what you want, 'tis more an illustration of just how much choice you have at that price.
roboxm3 said:
I've got a very un-ropey VFR800 that could be had within your budget, if you're interested?
The best bit about it is, I'm based near Cambridge, so you could get some nice warm/dry riding under your belt, on the first 2ish hours of your ride home!!
Thanks! I'm not currently ready to buy, but I'll bear your bike in mind. I'd probably be a bit hesitant about riding so far on a first ride (I'm in the north of Scotland), especially when the deluge starts at the 2 hour mark.The best bit about it is, I'm based near Cambridge, so you could get some nice warm/dry riding under your belt, on the first 2ish hours of your ride home!!
There are lots about - just keep an eye on AT, Ebay, FB and see what comes up
Personally I'd be wary of a BMW you can get very big bills, probably wouldn't want to cover big miles on a DRZ either
VFR is a great call if you like that type of bike, Versys 650 would be my starting point on the basis of comfort and visibility on back roads
Personally I'd be wary of a BMW you can get very big bills, probably wouldn't want to cover big miles on a DRZ either
VFR is a great call if you like that type of bike, Versys 650 would be my starting point on the basis of comfort and visibility on back roads
SV650’s are the cockroaches of the bike world and you could pick an older, decent condition one for within budget.
We have a 2002 model and it never ceases to amaze me who it can just be parked up in the garage l, left for months on end ridden and just parked back up again knowing that it’s just going to work when I go back to it again.
We have a 2002 model and it never ceases to amaze me who it can just be parked up in the garage l, left for months on end ridden and just parked back up again knowing that it’s just going to work when I go back to it again.
Hiya,
I was in a similar situation to you about this time last year - I had my heart set on a 600ccc sport bike, with a tentative plan in mind to modify it if I didn't like the riding position after a few weeks / months of riding it extensively. I felt I had no business being on a litre sport-bike after 28 years away from riding (and that was on a 125) but still wanted something quick and reliable. I specifically wanted a Honda and did some digging around on what was available.
CBR600f4i was the choice. 110bhp, smooth power delivery, reliable. Found one local to me in great condition and at a reasonable price - the top end of your budget - and had it delivered before I passed my Mod 2.
It's a truly amazing machine. Caveat - while this is a fairly mellow sport-bike with a comfy riding position, I took the plunge and decided to stick an MX bar on to improve comfort and low speed control. I'm getting into moto-gymkhana and the clip-ons really aren't suitable for this low-speed stuff. Plus I've always had a penchant for streetfighter bikes! All this has entailed de-fairing it and doing countless mods like brake, clutch and throttle lines, new headlight and indicators, and a fair bit of loom modification. An interesting learning curve for me, but really rewarding doing all the work myself. Bit frustrating as it all takes time, and with my work pattern the hours for fettling can be hard to find... Still, I'm very nearly done
Total spend on all mods was less than 1k, including a good crash cage, custom speedo mount, top yoke conversion and LED headlight. For me this is the best of all worlds - excellent power with all-day comfort, awesome engine note, learning that yes with some care and attention I can be handy with a spanner, and finally ticking off that teenage dream to build my own 'fighter'.
If you're of a similar mind, F4i's come up at your price quite often. Try one out and mod it if you want. Or, you could save yourself all that hassle by looking at the middleweight naked bikes... Plenty out there at your budget. Honda CB600F; Suzuki GSR600, SV650S, Bandit; Yamaha Fazer and so on. Sports tourers also make sense given your intended use (that VFR mentioned above is interesting and they make a wonderful V4 noise). Let us know what you decide on!
I was in a similar situation to you about this time last year - I had my heart set on a 600ccc sport bike, with a tentative plan in mind to modify it if I didn't like the riding position after a few weeks / months of riding it extensively. I felt I had no business being on a litre sport-bike after 28 years away from riding (and that was on a 125) but still wanted something quick and reliable. I specifically wanted a Honda and did some digging around on what was available.
CBR600f4i was the choice. 110bhp, smooth power delivery, reliable. Found one local to me in great condition and at a reasonable price - the top end of your budget - and had it delivered before I passed my Mod 2.
It's a truly amazing machine. Caveat - while this is a fairly mellow sport-bike with a comfy riding position, I took the plunge and decided to stick an MX bar on to improve comfort and low speed control. I'm getting into moto-gymkhana and the clip-ons really aren't suitable for this low-speed stuff. Plus I've always had a penchant for streetfighter bikes! All this has entailed de-fairing it and doing countless mods like brake, clutch and throttle lines, new headlight and indicators, and a fair bit of loom modification. An interesting learning curve for me, but really rewarding doing all the work myself. Bit frustrating as it all takes time, and with my work pattern the hours for fettling can be hard to find... Still, I'm very nearly done
Total spend on all mods was less than 1k, including a good crash cage, custom speedo mount, top yoke conversion and LED headlight. For me this is the best of all worlds - excellent power with all-day comfort, awesome engine note, learning that yes with some care and attention I can be handy with a spanner, and finally ticking off that teenage dream to build my own 'fighter'.
If you're of a similar mind, F4i's come up at your price quite often. Try one out and mod it if you want. Or, you could save yourself all that hassle by looking at the middleweight naked bikes... Plenty out there at your budget. Honda CB600F; Suzuki GSR600, SV650S, Bandit; Yamaha Fazer and so on. Sports tourers also make sense given your intended use (that VFR mentioned above is interesting and they make a wonderful V4 noise). Let us know what you decide on!
One thing I found when looking at cheaper bikes and it's probably obvious but try and get one where the previous owner recently has fitted new tyres, that can be a big fairly immediate expense and new tyres will fill you with confidence whereas old ones will potentially be off-putting...
Loads of bikes out there, worth looking at a few obviously, via FB I ended up with 2 R1100S BMWs (which I would recommend, bargain untrendy sports tourers), both under £2k, both well maintained, wanted for very little and rode beautifully but one had clearly been stored in a garage and was sooooo much tidier so a careful seller is worth searching out.
Loads of bikes out there, worth looking at a few obviously, via FB I ended up with 2 R1100S BMWs (which I would recommend, bargain untrendy sports tourers), both under £2k, both well maintained, wanted for very little and rode beautifully but one had clearly been stored in a garage and was sooooo much tidier so a careful seller is worth searching out.
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