Good first learner legal bike for taller rider?

[Monkey Puzzle]

Could anyone give any advice on a first bike for a tall rider?

I've booked to do my CBT on August 9th and I'm planning on getting a 125 for an almost entirely A road 17 mile each way commute (through the New forest if that makes any difference), and want to get a bike as soon as possible after. I haven't really ridden much before at all other than a quick go on my brothers NC30 some years ago, and not sure whether I'd plan to do direct access after or just use as a commuter whilst I learn to drive, so I'm looking for something that would be bearable to ride for up to a year.

I'm 6'3" and 93kg and have a 34" inseam - I've been looking at 125 learner legal bikes - what would people recommend for a decent commuter? - I don't want a CG125!

I've been looking at the Honda Varadero XL125, Yamaha YZF R125 and KTM Duke 125 (I realise a 125 isn't going to set the world alight but would like to get as close to the maximum allowed power as possible as I'm a bit heavier than a 60kg 17 year-old!). Is there a noticeable difference in torque for 2 stroke engines (have been looking at a restricted cagiva mito evo/525 as a possible less-sensible option! Not sure whether a restricted 2 stroke would be more fun to ride/break down all the time/be lots more expensive to run)

I've budgeted around £2500 give or take for a second-hand bike (figure that unless I wreck them I imagine they'd hold their value okay for the time I own them and around that price it shouldn't depreciate too much over say a years ownership)

Anyone have any experience of any of these or advice about how they are to ride for a taller rider? Any other 125s worth considering?

Also, what are the views on the YZF 125 - nice-looking bike or a silly boy-racers toy bike pretending to be something it's not? Will an undoubtedly boy-racer previous owner have thrashed the 4 stroke engine?

 

[Monkey Puzzle]

How's the speed/acceleration on the varadero? Biker friend of mine said today they're a bit slow for a 125, but then he had last week suggested a 2-stroke DT125 as they're tunable, so not really sure whether he meant for a 4-stroke or just that they're slow even for a 4-stroke 125.

Varadero's certainly look comfortable and practical.

 

[Monkey Puzzle]

Varadero. I just about got away with my CBF 125 (I'm about 6'1).

I guess you're not old enough to do your DA?

No, no, I am old enough, but I don't want the hassle of non-motorised commute (2 mile cycle, train journey, another 2.5mile cycle, then arrive sweaty etc) for the 6 weeks or so of work at my next job until I could do my DA. One of the reasons I'm looking for a decent 125 is fully comp insurance only looks like it's going to be around £300 anyway.

Plus I wouldn't really want to jump on anything too big right away - would rather get to grips with a comfortable but still fast enough smaller bike and see whether I'd want to do direct access tbh.

 

[Monkey Puzzle]

Thanks for all the advice guys; really appreciate it. I think I'm settled on getting a 5-10 year-old varadero for up to around £2k. They seem to hold their value really well so that doesn't seem too crazy to me.

In 2007 Honda changed it from carbed to fuel injection (which apparently has a smidge less power). Would you say it's worth going for EFI rather than the older carburettored model?

 

[Monkey Puzzle]

Thanks for your input guys.

Anyone know if the assesment sessions put you on a bigger bike? I'll report back this afternoon. I'm in Southampton and looking at DAS at the moment. I spent about 5 years on a 125 but tbh if I had the choice I would have got the licence then got a 250 -500. 125's are great for what they are but you soon find yourself wanting a bit more power to help with over takes etc - which is common riding in the forest


edit: Assessments at ART (Southampton, ocean village) put you on a ER6-n for about 20-30 mins to see how you do. Its free and its great if you've never riden anything of that size before

Thanks for the info- I suspect that the 125's lack of power around New Forest A-road traffic speed in order to overtake might get a bit annoying. Will have to see if I take to biking I guess.

In other exciting news; I got a bargaintastic commuting-convenient 2 year-old aerostich roadcrafter suit for £230 (including import tax from US ebay), some cheap usable leather and textile gloves, and I think I've decided on getting a shoei xr1100 helmet (seemed to be a perfect fit in the shop and seems to get good reviews). . Just need to decide what to do footwear-wise - not sure on how many pieces of the suit, helmet, gloves and boots I can put in a topbox when commuting, so not sure whether I should be looking at something like this (possible sweaty awfulness if wearing all day?) or something like the sidi streetburner short boot and change into smart shoes at work (need shoes that would look smart with suit trousers and shirt)...