125 + Gear Recommendations Please

[Ormy1]

I'm looking at doing my CBT this spring once the weather gets better, plan is to book it for april-ish. I'm mid-30s, been driving since 17 with no issues, 6ft0 with 32in inside leg, 200-220lbs. The main reason I want a bike is not so much for the fun (although that would be a bonus) but to skip through the traffic on my commute to work. The journey is ~5miles straight down a dual carriageway, but can easily take 45mins to an hour in the car because 95% of time it's stationary traffic, I'm fed up of losing all that time every day for such a short journey.

I've tried cycling to work, used to cycle everywhere when I was a teenager until I could drive, but now I get too sweaty and there's no showers at work so that's a no go. I considered an electric bike, but anything with decent build quality is looking to be significantly more expensive than a 125 motorbike for reasons I can't quite understand. Also the quality of the cycle lane on this particular route is shockingly bad.

So I need a bike that is small and agile enough to manoeuvre through stationary traffic but also quick enough that I'm not in the way/causing an obstruction on the rare occasions the traffic gets up to 60-70mph on the dual carriageway. Extra luggage space would be a bonus, I don't usually travel light haha. I will not be taking any pillion passengers so that is not a concern when picking a bike.

I also want a bike that I can maintain myself so nothing too modern, prefer Japanese as I know their stuff is usually reliable. I do a fair amount of DIY with the car and I'm handy with the spanners and want to continue saving money by doing my own minor repairs.

Any recommendations for bikes? How much should I look to spend? Don't mind something with minor (or even moderate) cosmetic damage like scuffs and scratches etc as long as it's mechanically sound. I'll likely be buying through a private sale (i.e. ebay or similar) so what kind of things should I look out for when viewing a bike? I know some things will be specific to the model but any general things to look out for?

Also what about the clothing/gear? How much should I spend on a helmet? Any specific features to look out for or avoid? Same questions for jacket, gloves, boots etc.

At home I have nowhere to secure the bike, no garage, tiny front garden with no wall or gate, so I'm thinking I need some way of anchoring the bike either to the ground or the side of the building? Any suggestions on how to do this?

Anything else I need to buy or think about before I get into biking?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Ormy1]

Aha, step in to my office.

Literally the same as you. 38 years old, exactly the same size and weight. 7 mile commute, fed up with traffic. Wanted something perfect for London commute carving, bit of weather protection, storage space, USB charger, quick enough to spank most things off the lights, big enough to handle some A roads, decent sized wheels so it can handle some potholes and some light adventuring, cheap on fuel, etc.

My Aprilia SR GT 125 cost me £3600 brand new, I spent a fair amount of a disc lock, massive chonker of a chain and a tracker with a 1 year subscription. Add in a cover and this all cost me about £4000.

Gear I also got a bit spendy on, but you can do this much cheaper too.

Road tax is £17 a year, and £14 worth of petrol will get me to work and back for three weeks.

Now the killer. On a CBT, road parked, 125cc scooter in London, I'm paying £1k PA insurance. This will drop significantly once I've got my full licence and a year's NCB but that one did sting a bit.

It might only be a 125 but it's the best thing I've ever bought, nothing removes frustration and irritation like a nice ride.

Here's a photo me sat on it the day I put a payment down, to give you an idea of size:




And of course another random shot of when I was pootling about last summer:

I hope to spend much less than that on the bike itself (hoping for £1-1.5k range for something with minor cosmetic damage) but plan to spend a similar amount on accessories. Which tracker did you go with?

Will my car NCBs not help me out if I'm with the same insurance?

£1k insurance is crazy, my car is less than a third of that, and that is parked on street in London in a rough area, but I do have 10+ yrs NCB.

Prepare to get blasted on insurance... but once youv got over that shock the answer is any bike really! bike insurance is less about will you crash and more about will it get stolen.
If you feel you might do your DAS in near future I would just get something cheap and cheerful, 125s are pretty bulletproof really but demand is high at the moment so you may end up just having to get a new one once you've narrowed your choices. Just don't buy any Chinese crap.

Helmet spend is personal choice - I spent £400 on mine, but others are happy with a £50 one. You do get what you pay for imo, but I would absolute advise getting something with pinlock support so you can actually see wtf your doing. same general logic applies the more you spend , the more features, vents, accessory support, lighter it is etc...If you go to your local https://www.sportsbikeshop.co.uk/ you can try them on and they can make sure it actually fits....do not just buy one online.

What can I do to keep insurance costs down? I literally have nowhere to put the bike atm, thinking about a steel loop that I can just bolt to the side of the building. If I get this professionally installed with some kind of certificate could that reduce insurance? Or can't I just get third party liability only insurance (like you can for cars)? I happy taking on the financial risk of theft myself.

Helmet: yes I will 100% be going to try it on, thanks for the tip on pinlock support though, had no idea about that, great advice.

I remember people often suggesting a Varadero for taller riders. I’m afraid I can’t offer any more suggestions other than maybe have a look at going straight for your full license? It may seem expensive but it could make enough difference to your insurance to warrant doing your full license straight away.

You wouldn’t need to go for a huge bike after passing. Even a 300 or 500 would see you right and hopefully be far cheaper insurance wise cause you’ve not got everyone on a CBT smashing them up

Straight to full license? Is that possible? I was sure I'd read/heard somewhere that I have to do a CBT first regardless? Where can I read some technical info about how the licensing works? Tried gov.uk site but it's confusing as hell.

A Varadero has a bit more poke to it than the YBR125s and is much more comfortable being a bigger adventure-style bike.

I almost bought a brand new R125 back in the day, ended up going for a used Varadero for £1500 less, I'm glad I did as I went straight for the big bike test within a year.
If you've ambitions for a bigger bike even slightly on the mind then definitely go for a budget used bike to see you through a year before spending more money on a bigger one.

More comfort sounds good to me but will a Varadero be so big that it makes it difficult to squeeze between queues of stationary cars? I need a bike that is reasonably narrow.

first off with you being 6ft what do you weigh ? as a lot of 125's are underpowered 12-14 bhp your top line bikes yammy suzuki ktm .. are just 15bhp there meant for little 16-20 yr olds so they would do 75-80?
my gsx does 68 flat out with me on it .. i'm 14st short arse .. but thats all i drive is 125's for the last 30 yrs ..i do split shifts and early mornings .. so £13 every 2 weeks fuel £18 road tax and cheap insurance is a bonus ..a bigger bike would cost me more simple fact
good warm gear waterproof for winter and a summer setup will cost £800+ they are what they are cheap transport pass your test on a 125 no more cbt ..

Weight in first post, 210lbs ish. If it gets to 50mph briskly I'm happy.

My plan was to just buy decent summer protective gear and wear woollen jumpers etc underneath in the winter. I don't mind the cold (yorkshire blood) but really suffer in the heat.