Suggested fun first big bike?

Monkey Puzzle

Monkey Puzzle

Monkey Puzzle

Soldato
Joined
13 Mar 2006
Posts
6,712
Hey all, I have my Mod 2 booked for Wednesday 12th November, so fingers crossed will be looking at getting test rides for a first big bike soon.

I'm looking for a bike that's fun, reasonably new-rider friendly and reasonable for commuting (17 miles each way, mostly A-roads, some through town), Insurance group 14 or below is bearable and budget for the bike (looking at 2nd hand) is up to around £5-6000 give or take. I don't regularly need to travel for hours at a time but comfort on motorways would be a bonus.

So far I'd like to test ride Triumph street triple R, tiger 800, BMW 800ST (though the V-twin suzuki GS500 I tried on the first day of Mod 1 training vibrated horribly until around 30 mph/3rd gear).

I understand triumph and BMW are quite good at giving test rides (including to new licence holders!). Is it likely I'd be able to test ride one of the Japanese bikes?

Any suggestions for other fun first big bikes to consider?
 
I see where you're coming from about getting a cheap first bike, but I already have a varadero 125cc bike I'm keeping until late July to get the years no-claims on, so would rather get something decent that'll last at least a few years than get yet another bike to trade up! Plus I'd be then spending another load on insurance that I wouldn't get my money's worth from.

I thought this time of year is when bikes were generally cheaper 2nd hand?
 
TallPaul_S said:
If you want to spend that much on a first bike, you need to go to loads of dealers, sit on/grope/fondle/feel the weight of as many bikes as you can - a tiger will be very different to a street triple which will be very different to an F800ST.

I do a similar commute to you of 20 miles each way, and for any bike that'll be used daily during the winter, set £60 aside to get it ACF-50'ed.

Don't forget to allow a budget for kit, and I mean decent kit. 170 miles a week in the cold and wet will be miserable if you're cold and wet. I'd set a £4k limit for the bike (you can get some serious bikes for £4k) and £1k on kit - this being goretex boots at £200, decent textiles (£200-sky's the limit - mine are Furygan Titan jacket £270 and Duke trousers £200) a decent lightweight, comfortable helmet with pinlock - £150 upwards, Goretex winter gloves and/or summer gloves and Muffs (£100 for some decent winter gloves).

Test rides - I've just passed my full test and apart from the odd dealer, I have no issues getting a test ride on a street triple, or monster 821 for eg. The issue you'll have is most dealers have sold their demo bikes as it's end of the season. I can't get a test ride on an Aprilia Shiver for love nor money at the 3 nearest Aprilia dealers :(

Also - go to autotrader, put in £3500-£5000 and limit of 60 miles, and spend a few hours browsing, making a shortlist, checking fuel tank range (you don't want to be filling up every 2-3 days ;)), watching youtube vids to see if they sound nice and so on. Then go and sit on them at dealers and you'll end up with a nice little list of 3 or 4 bikes which you can then test ride and make your decision. I've done this and ended up with the CBR600F (FI model) and the Aprilia Shiver as my shortlist - just need to get a test ride on both to make my mind up.
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Cheers for the advice.

Did you test-ride the street triple, and if so how's the wind-blast on A-roads/motorways? (I'm around 6'2-6'3") I keep reading rave reviews of the striple but worry it would be too cold and miserable blasting around at 70 in the cold and wet!

I have a secondhand aerostich roadcrafter suit that I've thoroughly waterproofed with wash in nikwax and spray on scotchguard and silicone spray. No more looking like I've got a continence issue when I get to work! :). I need some decent winter gloves though (have some held ones with goretex that have waterproof inner but are cold and get waterlogged).

TallPaul_S said:
Good choice in 125 ;) :D

Yes they are cheaper, but only by a few hundred quid - there's less bikes for sale though, as people selling privately will wait until spring to sell.
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Yep. A nice dependable comfy bike. :) Shame that overtaking over about 40mph isn't on the cards, and I work in an elderly area, meaning I get stuck behind old dears doing 40 down the A-roads.

Dogbreath said:
The GS500 is a parallel twin rather than a V. Singles and twins tend to be lumpy at low RPM, you need to avoid lugging them in higher gears otherwise you get chain snatch.

Have you considered the Yamaha MT-09? There are a few around that would just squeeze into the budget, or you could buy a new MT-07.
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The MT09 looks nice, but I keep hearing it has snatchy throttle response for low speeds/traffic, which doesn't sound great for a bike after my test.Sadly the MT07 looks pretty small for my size.
 
wazza300 said:
you would feel the windblast I bet with a triple,no or tiny screen,same with the mt09 without fitting big aftermarket screen

would a drz supermoto be anygood? its tall
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Probably not tbh! unfaired and 39bhp doesn't sound like that much fun. Even the street triple could have a small screen to lessen windblast I guess. Thanks for the suggestions though, much appreciated.
 
MowyTone said:
Fantastic! Thats my local Triumph dealer as well. I was hoping that I could get a few test rides

Congrats on the pass :)
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Thanks. Going there tomorrow morning - they said they're happy to give test rides but not in the wet, and their insurance only covers 25 year-olds and over, and they need licence and counterpart (or for me as I won't have the updated licence card for 3 weeks they're happy with mod 1&2 certificates plus passport).
 
ElliorR said:
One thing to remember about the 2 bikes you want to test ride is don't judge the Tiger's engine against the Striple engine even though they're basically the same lump. They are set up for different styles of bike and the Tiger engine isn't as "fun" as the Striples. If you wanted a more upright/Adventure/longer range bike the Tiger is a great bike (no I'm not on commission, I just think the Tiger 800 is a great bike for more things than the Striple is).

If I could have a Striple as well I would (actually if I could have 2 bikes I'd probably have a Bonnie as well as my Tiger but I do like the Striple).
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That's what I'm expecting tbh - the tiger to be more comfy, handle rough roads better but not handle quite so well or be as exciting. I'd not considered the triple as I thought it'd be too small for me, but apparently it's not too bad for taller riders.
 
I tried the standard street triple and tiger 800 today - surprisingly the street triple fit me fine - my legs slotted in nicely to the fuel tank, brakes were great, acceleration was instant and handled really nicely. The bike I tried had the flyscreen on and it felt okay at up to around 70mph - juat like a slight pressure on my torso without buffeting.

The tiger handled really well for such a tall bike. Acceleration seemed almost as quick but with a slight delay and the engine felt less twitchy - I found it easier to keep a steady speed and control in town traffic. The seat was really comfy, the suspension did a better of soaking up small potholes and imperfections. There was a bit of turbulence around my neck and helmet above about 50mph.

Overall both brilliant bikes for what they are but I think I'd value the excitement from the street triple more than the comfort of the tiger. The tiger felt a bit too tall. I wish they had a fazer style half fairing option for the striple!
 
Yeah it looks like there's loads of aftermarket screens available so no doubt could get one that works well were I to get one. It was much more responsive than I was expecting after reading reviews of it, and it did seem like a great bike. The striple just seemed more responsive and agile, and for what I'd be using it for I think I'd value that more.
 
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