Budget for CBT gear?

elrasho · 2 Jan 2012 at 23:39

I'm going to do my CBT and need to budget everything from the bike to clothes. I've got £1600 for a YBR, £300 insurance. That leaves about £200 for helmet and clothes.

Can anyone recommend a helmet, jacket and gloves? I'll only be doing a 10mile commute with no dual carriage ways so I don't need any heavy duty clothes. Just cheap stuff that has the protection. I'm keen to get a back protector though.

elrasho · 3 Jan 2012 at 00:00

I can stretch to £300. I understand the helmet is the most important. What's the road tax on a 125cc bike these days?

elrasho · 3 Jan 2012 at 09:55

MonkeykingZX said:
Please don't get a YBR they're horrible little bikes, had a go on one when I used to have my cbf125 and it was probably the worst days riding I've ever had.

The one I rode had only done 3k miles but felt like it had done much more, the speedometer needle wouldn't stay still even at low speeds and the engine seemed to have very little go in it in comparison to the cbf (which isn't exactly a speed demon).

Also avoid anything clothing wise made by Richa as both the gloves and trousers I've had from them have fallen apart after a couple of months of use (obv I could have just been unlucky but I personally wont be buying anything made by them again)

I can quite happily recommend these boots made by spada. Had mine for 6 months now and have had no issues at all, completely waterproof and quite comfy.

I know the feeling when you've had a bad time with a bike, but 99% other people say YBR's are awesome for noob bikers. Can you recommend any clothing though please?

elrasho · 3 Jan 2012 at 13:46

DanF said:
hey Elrasho, where do you live? if your in a fairer part of the country then you don't need quite as heavy winter kit. Scotland is always way colder and wetter than Southampton.

One of the more important things I had when trying to buy budget jackets is arm length, I'm skinny and tall so all the budget kit just didn't fit properly. If the arm is too short then you'll get water down your sleeve where the jacket and gloves meet. Make sure the jacket fits properly. Um also you can get cheap warm layers from weird places. Gap sells thin merino wool jumpers for about £30 which are fine if they get a bit wet. Cotton is bad when wet so some thin fleece tops are handy as well.

I never found cheap bike boots that where waterproof, you could maybe look at some army surplus stores that sell heavy duty waterproof boots, they're usually pretty solid and I used them to ride off-road for years.

If you get a ybr you'll just end up wanting a bigger bike sooner, not really a bad thing £1500 gets a 2nd hand sv650 if you pass your test in the first year. But yeah you'll get bored on a ybr quicker than something more sporty.

I live near Manchester. I know what you mean about the YBR, I'm planning on riding the YBR for a few months to get some experience then doing DAS in August and getting a bigger bike.

I was driving to work this morning and due to the excess rain there were MASSIVE puddles in the road, even by driving 15mph over them I made a big splash, would hate to do that when on a bike! I'd get soaked. This kind of stuff is kinda putting me off getting a bike

elrasho · 3 Jan 2012 at 15:37

I'll purely be using the bike for commuting, so I don't have a choice of car. I'm wary of the weather is really bad (heavy snow etc..) how will I cope?