Average cost - licence + gear

[AHarvey]

Hi all,

Just generally talking, what kind of budget should I be putting aside to get my bike licence and a safe riding gear?

Recently lost my golf gti in the snow and ice, got £4k and I just can't find a similar spec gti for less than £6k.

I'm still loving the 2017 KTM Duke 390 and prices have dropped to £3k for a pre-registered new one. Trying to get more knocked off, we will see.

I was thinking £600 for helmet, gloves, boots and all weather gear (no leathers yet because I'm a fat **** and I am losing weight)

The issue is average costs of theory, CBT, and full test.

36, driving for 18 years, grew up on the back of bikes and did my CBT at 18 but never followed through. It'll be for commuting really, 18 miles each way, it's not a rapid bike and probably an ideal bike for really learning on.

 

[tom_e]

£6-700 for your full DAS in this area of the country. £600 on gear may be a little optimistic if you want to ride all year round without it being a very depressing experience.

You can gear up and be relatively safe for a couple of hundred quid but if it's becoming your main form of transport then that cheap gear is not a nice place to spend a great deal of time and the more expensive stuff makes like much more pleasant.

 

[TallPaul_S]

It'll cost more than £600 if you want to commute during winter, stuff like goretex boots will be £200 or so, a decent set of textiles can be £300-400 easily, decent waterproof gloves another £100 easy, then at least £2-300 for a comfy helmet.

Nothing will make you regret biking during winter than being cold, wet, not being able to see and fearing the cold wet dark roads at this time of year. Decent kit is a must.

 

[tom_e]

From some quick man maths my general commuting kit is about £1000 worth and I wouldn't want to downgrade any of it for winter riding, in fact I'd quite like to upgrade to Goretex jacket and bottoms but the laminate stuff is expensive.

 

[AHarvey]

Nice one, gives me a rough budget to start working around

£600 was due to already having a helmet, although tbh I should replace it as it's 10 years old but never dropped etc. I've also got a hi-vis waterproof jacket that's good to -40'c.

 

[TallPaul_S]

From some quick man maths my general commuting kit is about £1000 worth and I wouldn't want to downgrade any of it for winter riding, in fact I'd quite like to upgrade to Goretex jacket and bottoms but the laminate stuff is expensive.

Goretex Pro-shell is the stuff you want, but ££££££££££££

Doing loads of miles a year wears stuff out quick too, and winters aren't kind to anything bike related. I started riding in April 2014 and do a 34 mile round trip commute, and I've done about 45k miles in that time - my helmet is going saggy, my textiles have needed treating with nikwax, my goretex boots are still going strong but another couple of winters will see them on 60k+ miles and probably in need of a new footbed at least...

All my textile and winter gloves and boots comes to about £1000, not including my helmet... Then there's the other 3 pairs of gloves, the leathers, and the kevlar jeans on top. Biking aint a cheap mode of transport once you get into it properly!!! But it's soooo worth it.

 

[flea.rider]

ok yeah I ride a 125 ..(quiet at the back ..) have done for yrs cost me £280 a yr to run inc petrol .
but gear wise £400 for last jacket 2 yrs ago £350 for helmet ..new one every 4-5 yrs
pants Kevlar padded biker jeans + gortex over pants ..get the Austrian armry ones £100 this is cheap I use good walking boots very warm and dry
thought about taking my test but £700 and 3-6k for a bike ..naaa
if I need to go far wifes got a car

 

[InvaderGIR]

The tests themselves are fairly cheap at really ( https://www.gov.uk/driving-test-cost )...

Theory test: £23
Module 1 motorcycle test (off-road): £15.50
Module 2 motorcycle test (on-road): £75

CBT is down to you the instructors / training centre you pick really but expect somewhere around £100 (in Bristol mine was £125).

Mod 1 and mod 2 inclusive costs will depend on the centre too, I'm paying £155 per day for training (test fee isn't included in that) and due to being new to bikes I did a 3 day stint for my mod 1 and failed it but did a morning session a couple weeks later and passed. I've got 2 full days and a morning booked in for my mod 2 later this month.

My training + test cost is sat at over £1k but if you've ridden before then I'm sure you won't need as much time training, best to do the CBT and see what the guys recommend. I'd literally never ridden a motorcycle before August this year...well, last year now I guess (despite having car license for over 13 years) so obviously in my case there is more training required to get me used to riding and handling of the bikes.

As for gear, I already have a helmet although it's a little old and I need to replace it once I get a bike but I spent something like £500 on jacket, gloves, boots and trousers (mostly RST gear), all armoured and waterproof although I've been lucky with the weather so far when training (I don't currently have a bike to practice on). When I get a helmet I'm expecting to start around £200 or so as it's rather an important thing it's protecting and even £200 feels potentially a bit low.

 

[BUDFORCE]

My gear approx:

Helmet about £250-£300
Jacket £250
Trousers £80
Boots £200
Gloves £40

I just ride summer these days, but, you can buy second hand textile stuff for cheap, I bought a perfectly good textile jacket for about £20 once was in good condition.

Tbh, if you are starting out again, I'd be tempted to go cheaper (not helmet) until you know what you like as bike gear is different. Provided it's got the CE armour and safety stuff of course.

Once you know what kind of gear you like/need through experience then splash out if you want.

 

[Freeman]

I commute all year round. Only thing that gets me cold is my hands which can be sorted by heated grips or heated gloves.

My kit to give you an idea on price:

Helmet - £250
Jacket / Pants - £278 (RST ventilator 5 - can be used in summer as well)
Boots - £360 (goretex)
Gloves - £100 (goretex)
Neck tube - £3

Total - £991

I'd happily go for a goretex Rukka which would cost an extra £1500 or so. Just can't afford it at the moment but the waterproofing is great and you don't need a waterproof liner which is what I hate about my RST. After a while in the rain the liner begins to stick to you. It doesn't make it wet, just very uncomfortable.

So realistically you're looking at about £1000 for winter commuting.

Don't go cheap.

 

[BUDFORCE]

Oh make sure your jacket zip in to your trousers, I think most gear is compatible now, but we'll worth it.

 

[Edinho]

Am I the only one thinking

"You stacked a golf GTI in winter but you then want to ride a motorbike in winter as an alternative?"

 

[Karl]

Gloves - £180
Jacket - £390
Trousers - £300
Boots - £100
Helmet - £180
Neck tubes - £30
Ear plugs - £40 (no they're not disposable ones)
Training - £1000
Total - £2220

Haven't bought a bike yet, currently using one of Dad's on his insurance policy until the right bike comes up.

 

[tom_e]

Flare Audio ear plugs are around that price I've got a pair and they're great so much more comfortable than disposable ones I've tried.

 

[Yaayuh!]

I have so many questions. How did you spend 180 on gloves? Neck tubes at 30quid? But boots at 100 and a 180 quid helmet?

Also what non disposable ear plugs are 40quid? I'm curious/interested, I use 3M disposable ones that work ok.

Agree, those prices are all over the shop.

 

[Griffo]

I realised when I bought my latest set of textiles that I could tell the guy (motolegends, love that place) what elbow, shoulder and spine stuff i wanted and we replaced whatever the jacket and trousers came with with much better stuff.

So don't try and get the best of the best to start with. Do DAS or whatever and - assuming you have another method to commute as you have time to learn - get used to riding before spending more. Also yeah, maybe spend on a decent helmet (or whatever you determine is decent) rather than lots on maybe some ankle protection. Unless you keep your brain in your ankles .

If DAS is still £600 quid odd up your way that's great. I paid about that 10 years ago! Rah northern powerhouse!

Also yeah unless you want ninja gloves then you can get good protection (weather and impact) under £100.

 

[IC3]

Helmet £150-200 (I had a £150 helmet when I had a nasty crash, it works)
Necktube £3-7
Ear plugs £3 for 20 pack and something like £30 for a 200 pack
Textiles £350-450
Gloves £100 (Goretex), although you might want to get summer gloves with muffs and heated grips, most comfortable imho.
Boots £300-350 (Get Goretex, thank me later)
Back protector £65-100 (D30 makes inserts, get level 2. My bike has fallen on my back, the protector saved me from a wheelchair)

Everything like CBT and DAS should be around £700, Bikewise you can get some good low mileage beginner bikes for £2000

Cover I would recommend Oxford stormex £60-75, if you've a garage get a cheaper one. The stormex is heavy duty. Protection wise Almax chain with squire lock is around £130-160

Bike stand around £30, chain lube will be something like £25-30 for a pack of 5-6 cans.

If you don't have spanners, get halfords 200 piece kit £120-150.

This is all I can think of from the top of my head, this should give you an idea of what it'll roughly cost to get started. Bikes are easy to work on, so DIY and saved that cash up for bike trips.