What Kit to Get Started

fez · 16 Dec 2015 at 16:51

I'm just about to do my CBT with the idea of riding a 125cc for a while before I can get my DAS sorted. Party this is to familiarise myself with riding a bike for a while and partly to placate the missus.

Anyway, there seems to be a huge amount of information out there and I'm a little overwhelmed by it all. I have a few questions that I was hoping you could all help me with which will at least help me to narrow things down.

I want to be able to ride in sunshine and rain, summer and winter so I assume I will ultimately need 2 sets of clothing to cover both.

Should I be looking at leather or synthetic clothing or doesn't it make much difference. I'm not that worried about the cost as I would rather have the safest gear that costs more than risk a more serious injury by saving a few quid.

I struggle to find well fitting clothes normally as I have don't have the usual physique of either skinny, fat or just the same all over. I have wide shoulders, a thick back and a thin waste so are there particular brands I should look at or is it just best to go into a shop.

I like to buy things online because you can find huge discounts on last years stuff etc but if the fit isn't likely to be good then there isn't much point in that.

Now, onto the bike.

I prefer the sports style bikes over motocross but there are still a lot of options and I have no clue where the sweet spot is money wise. I keep hearing the idea that a well kept bike won't really lose much value over a year or so which makes me think that spending a little more to get something better isn't a bad idea as most of that money would come back when I upgrade.

With a budget of ~£2500 what should I be looking at. I don't mind spending less if there is no point spending that much but would prefer not to go much higher. The bike wouldn't be used for commuting but would be for general travel and going in and out of london a few days a week.

I'm not sure if I have missed anything but any advice on the above would be really appreciated.

fez · 16 Dec 2015 at 17:10

Cheers for the replies guys. I'm 6'2" so I probably don't want a tiny bike. Sounds like synthetic stuff is best to be starting with as well.

Unfortunately I've been ripped from the warm bosom of norwich and re-homed on the outskirts of London in Sidcup at the gfs behest.

fez · 16 Dec 2015 at 18:35

I have a reasonably large chest and quite a large back so hopefully some of the jackets will suit me.

Cheers for the suggestions for bikes. Do you need to know what you are looking at if you get a bike from a random seller as opposed to a legitimate dealership? Any things to keep an eye out for?

fez · 17 Dec 2015 at 19:31

So, I did my CBT today but I need to go back tomorrow to do the on road part. I was fine with everything apart from the slow speed manoeuvres using mainly the clutch biting point. The clutch level had miles of travel and the bite point was quite near the end of the range. I literally had my had as extended as it would go when the clutch was fully open.

I couldn't seem to feather it so close to the end of the range and with my hand almost fully open. The front brake lever was the same so I was also struggling not to over rev the engine when going for the front brake.

Any tips? The instructor said that he would try me on a bigger bike tomorrow (something like a 650) to see if I got on better with that as I want to go on to get my full licence asap.

I have watched some videos of people riding proper bikes and explaining how to use the gears and clutch but they mostly seem to say something along the lines of "the bite point starts about an inch into the travel from the lever being flat against the bar" and the completely open level is only about 2.5 inches from the bar at most. I know it obviously differs from bike to bike but all the videos I have seen look like they have far less travel and a bite point much closer to the bars than the 125 I rode.

On the plus side it was good fun and I think that I would prefer to skip the 125s and go straight onto the proper bikes as soon as possible.

fez · 17 Dec 2015 at 19:41

I was happy moving off with it and changing gears once I was going but really struggled on the slow speed figure of 8 and doing a U turn in a tight lane. Can you adjust the fully open position of the level as well as the bite point.

I have an issue with ankle mobility as well so I cant pull my toes up towards my shin very far. This made using the rear brake very hard and when I had my foot over it, it was always pressing on it a little. The instructor said that can be adjusted but it wasn't worth doing on a practice bike. I was fine doing the figure of 8 with quite a lot of rear brake but he said I shouldn't be using so much which is fair enough.

fez · 17 Dec 2015 at 19:49

So how much travel is there in the brake and clutch levers usually?

fez · 17 Dec 2015 at 19:53

wazza300 said:
usually 1-2mm gap between the lever and stop

(it says that in most owners manuals)

I'm not sure what you mean. I'm just wandering how far the lever can travel between when it is untouched away from the bar and when it is fully compressed towards the bar.

fez · 18 Dec 2015 at 14:26

Yeah, I don't think there was any way to adjust them on the bikes I was on. I'm still really struggling on whether to just wait until I have done my full test and get a bike then or get a 125 for a bit. I just know that without any urgency I will just rag a 125 for 2 years and end up having to do my CBT again.

fez · 18 Dec 2015 at 15:59

Yeah the 125s are nippy at slower speeds and the acceleration is quite good but it did feel a little weedy.

I didn't realise as well that there is only one CBT. You can do it on a scooter then jump on a 125 geared and that's fine.

fez · 18 Dec 2015 at 16:18

tom_e said:
Just you wait till you get on a bigger bike

The CBT in general is mental as far as I'm concered, I like the fact that it meant I went from nothing to transport in one day but if you actually think about it it's pretty dangerous.

It's super dangerous. I have done my cbt over 1.5 days and that's going from never having ridden a bike in my life. Riding a geared bike whilst trying to be safe, indicate etc is not that easy to pick up and I'm glad I wasn't on the roads my first day. A good nights sleep made a big difference and I'm still not massively convinced I am 100% safe on the roads.

To think that someone can learn on a 50cc scooter then go out that evening on a 125 geared in the dark is just plain stupid.

As a side note, what size bikes would you say most people end up on? Does a 600 feel small after a while?

fez · 18 Dec 2015 at 16:32

Why is a bigger bike more comfortable? I understand that up to a point you are thrashing a smaller bike more but what changes if you get a 1100 instead of a 600?

fez · 19 Dec 2015 at 22:57

Stovepipes said:
I think it depends on whether or not you have some roadcraft, as a car driver I was scared but I knew the roads I was riding & what to sorta expect. The controls are fairly easy, much easier than a car imho but to think someone who doesn't know the roads can be out by themselves after a few hours tuition seems mad.

I didn't think it was the knowledge of the roads that would cause issues, more the lack of complete control over the bike and the chance you would panic if something unexpected happened and you had to react. Most people would be fine but some people would panic and hit the throttle or slam on their front brake.