The time has (maybe) come...

bloodiedathame

bloodiedathame

bloodiedathame

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Surrey
To return to biking.

It's been two years since my accident, and whilst I'm healed and fine and have been for ages, I've not got back on a bike due to the fact I've been working in London and didn't fancy the insane 30 mile commute to and from any more.

But I've got a new job now, one that's 10 miles from my house, in the countryside. Wife has OK'd a new bike. Still unsure if I really want to be dealing with tractors, muck, oil, potholes, stones, morons but I'm definitely tempted.

But what bike to get? I like unusual bikes, stuff that's a bit rarer than the SV, Fazer, Er6 etc.

I fancy another twin, maybe 400-800cc, fun but not balls-out insane (I'm a 2x daddy now), easy to work on, decent MPG, easy to get spares.

Was thinking about Ducati Monster, KTM 690 Duke (bit nutty), Triumph Street Triple...

Budget only about £2k though.
 
If you fancy a twin and have a 2K budget then would rule out the 3 bike mentioned and get a Suzuki SV650.

No it's not a rare bike but do you really want a cheap Ducati or Triumph?

The Duke is a nice bike, not sure what they're like second hand for that budget.
 
At £2k there's not a lot of choice, you won't get a street triple or monster 696 - it's mostly just run of the mill commuters if you want something new(ish) i.e. bandit, sv650 and so on, you'd need to look into an older 90's bike to get something rarer/more interesting.

Loads of sports bikes around that price mind you, I haven't really looked at them as they're too price for insurance (Daytona is 3x the cost to insure vs a street triple!)
 
Curveball - But its a litre superbike!

Would you consider a litre twin? Because a budget of £2k puts you bang into the territory of a superb example of the Aprilia RSV Mille. They are going for silly, silly prices. Fast, reliable, comfy (yes - really!) and pretty easy to work on. I've owned mine since 2004 and its the best bike I've ever sat my backside on.

Of course, litre twins may be stretching it a bit but in my experience most twins around the 600cc area feel fairly asthmatic power wise. :p
 
The 690 Duke is an awesome bike, I am also biased. It's not a twin though, it's a big single. Despite the twin ignition and other LC4 lump refinements on the newer models there is no escaping the fact it is a single.
 
 
well just to be clear.. i have owned mine since 2006 . Other than servicing the only "repairs" i have done are

1: replaced ecu (common fault on 2006 models) £100 for second hand unit and programing
2: replaced snapped bolt on sprocket carrier £3
3: Made new front brake res bracket and mine snapped £0
4: replaced perished tb inlet rubber £5

Not bad for 8 years ownership
 
no that's not bad,howmany miles you clocked up on it though?

for example my zx6r from new 1998,one service at 18k now on 57k

things that failed were fuel pump,steering head bearings twice,rear wheel bearings,sprocket carrier bearings that's it

(not including consumables like tyres/battery/oil/filters ect)
 
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I'd be open to singles, and larger cc bikes. Don't think I'd want another IL4 though. Full license holder so nothing is out of reach. A friend has a Tuono which he swears by. VTRs are very nice too. I might have to fit a dreaded topbox so something sportier would look daft with hard luggage.
 
wazza300 said:
^^ he wants something to ride not repair,constantly:D:p
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There's a reason that Aprilia's are referred to in many circles as 'The Italian Honda'. ;)

In the 10 years I've owned my RSV apart from routine servicing I've had hardly any issues with it which could be attributed to 'inherent reliability or otherwise' of the model/manufacturer across the board. By that I mean I've had to replace a couple of faulty parts which are common issues like sidestand cut out switch, tip over switch and a starter relay. But that's it. Nothing else has went wrong with it. I've had starting issues with it but those are solely down to my cackhandedness at storing it away for hibernation over the winter. I didn't drain the fuel last year which resulted in it evaporating and causing water to end up in the system. I do all my servicing myself, the 990V60 Rotax lump is an absolute doddle to work on. The only things I don't do is check and adjust the valve clearances but even with those I've yet to hear of any Aprilia owner who has found their clearances to be out of spec at servicing time and believe me, I read a lot of threads on the owners forums at RSVR.net, AF1 and RSVZone. :D I have my local bike mechanic do those and also the throttle body sync once a year.

In fact, the Rotax lump is so reliable its been used for years as the 'informed choice'to power hundreds of microlight aircraft where reliability is fairly important! All the above can pretty much be said for the Tuono and the Falco too.

I posted a while back here on the forums, a quick buying guide to RSV's, should still be around somewhere. They honestly are utter bargains, inexpensive to own and run and a hoot to ride. If you look at the kit that comes on a Gen 1 RSVR - full Ohlins, Oz alloys, Brembo brakes (radials on the last of the line Gen 1's) that bargain gets even better. Even the vanilla RSV is well specced. I'm no Rossi or Melandri but there's very little on the roads which will stay with a well ridden Mille in real world riding situations. :cool: £2k - £2.5k would score you a mint, low miles Gen 1 RSVR or RSV easily. In fact, for the money I can't think of another V-Twin with anything like the character and the reliability as an all round package which comes near it. Just be warned, if you do go down the Aprilia route be prepared to utterly love it and become a fanatical owner who is loyal to the brand in complete 'fanboi' sense.

*The above post is written in a completely unbiased fashion from a happy veteran RSV Mille owner :D
 
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some Italian bikes are ok I guess

im just not a fan myself nothing personal at all,i still think they make the best looking/sounding bikes by a huge mile

@ op drz400 anygood?
 
I love Italian bikes (a part from the bag of spanners sound with dry clutch on some Ducati's) but I don't think I'd have deep enough pockets to own one.

At £2K i would steer clear of Italian and British and go with a jap bike. Cheaper to buy, most are reliable and parts are generally easy and cheaper to get.

SV650 would still be my choice if you like a V-Twin

http://www.motorcyclenews.com/mcn/b...ts/detail/suzuki/sv650s/2004/_/R-NXGN-7627065
 
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atpbx said:
Unfortunately these have tensioner issues from new that were never corrected.

Potential to be a disaster now.
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Firestorms are neither rare, nor are they a potential disaster if you use a bit of intelligence.

The tensioners are known to be problematic, so it would be pretty silly to buy a bike with no history of tensioner replacement and just use it without checking. Manual tensioners are easily available, or a simple modification can be made to the original tensioners to prevent damage should they back off.

If you want a sporty-ish litre V twin then the Firestorm is good value. You can pick up a tidy one for under £1500 and they go pretty well, though the suspension is a little soft in standard form and the tank on earlier bikes are a bit small, giving limited range.

If you want a proper sports bike the RSV is a much better choice though, and aren't much more expensive.

Rossi~ said:
I love Italian bikes (a part from the bag of spanners sound with dry clutch on some Ducati's) but I don't think I'd have deep enough pockets to own one.
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The point is that you don't need deep pockets with an RSV; they are as reliable as most Japanese bikes. The only thing to go wrong in my entire ownership was a speed sensor which failed just after I bought it - I replaced with an industrial proximity sensor for a few quid and it's worked ever since.
 
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