She's gone...it's your fault! ;-)

[SAFE-T]

Yamaha's 2nd gear disintegration problem has surfaced in plenty of their bikes over the years from mid-80's FJ1100's to early-models R6's. Yet I have also seen these same bikes with high-mileage that have not had gear box failures ~ probably depends more on how much they were abused and/or maintained by various owners. 

[SAFE-T]

Regulator/rectifier issues were a problem for lots of Honda's up until around 2001 when they changed suppliers.   

[ohgood]

F4I, because its a honda, efi, and goes 100000+ miles as a rule.

Rode with a guy on a yzf 2 weekends ago, 107;000 miles, excellent machine. Its worthless in bluebook dollars, but incredible in riding value.

Either will serve you well. Pick, ride, and enjoy.

[tt_four]

What makes me think twice about this bike is that 2nd gear jumping issue that a lot of Thundercat users seem to complain and that might not be as sporty as the CBR. Are this concerns legitimate or it is the same as the CBR?

That was a known problem on the 1st generation R6 too. Not a huge problem, but I've never owned an R6 and I've still heard about it haha

[piresito]

Thank for your inputs...I've been researching about those bike and I came to the conclusion:

-YZF are comfortable bikes and still allow to have some fun, altough most of them have or going to have 2nd gear problems. Of course, the treatment they had plays a big role but theres allways that risk, and it is a huge pain in the *ss. So I'm will try to avoid them.

-The CBRs...seem perfect, but a little higher priced.

-The GSXR are low priced, more in the supersports class than the other two, but I've seen some of the with premature oil consumtion. Tomorrow I will ride one, well priced altought it is the 97 model srad, I would prefer the 98/99 model.

What you people think of the GSXR vs the CBR?

Again, thank you all!

[Juan1]

YZF-600r 2nd gear issue - There is a motion-pro kit that will fix this issue.  If you can find one with a good second gear, buy a second gear and install the kit.  The downside is that this involves a bottom end tear down, but there are videos online to walk you through the process.

[Twisted]

What you people think of the GSXR vs the CBR?

You will have to tell us after you take one for a ride.

[piresito]

I'm taking today the GSXR for a ride, if everything goes as planned...a review of that later...

But reliability related, both of them are at the same level?

[Twisted]

I've never owned on but like the CBR I ahve not heard anyone say anything bad about them. Here is some reviews -

http://www.mcnews.com.au/Testing/gsxr600.htm

http://www.visordown.com/reviews/motorcycles/sportsbikes/suzuki-gsx-r600-srad-1997---2000/review/540.html

[piresito]

Just rode the GSXR yesterday, and didn't feel very impressed, nor too much disapointed...
It was a blue and white 1997 Srad 28.000Kms (18.000 miles). The owner didn't inspire much confidence, skinny punk, smoking hard, tatoos and rings all over the place. Nothing against punks as sometimes I'm one, but it looked like the kind of guy that at some time may not have the money for an oil change.
The 1997 model didn't have compression adjustment in the forks, and there was some engine tweaks in the later years. It appeared all stock, with some rashes of being droped, nothing major, just one or two scratches and a bent clutch lever.

The riding position is obviously more agressive, which I liked at first.
The tank is huge, it's like a kitchen table! Perfect to chop onions in it!
Nice Lcds temp gauge and odometer.
Firing it on was weird...it took two tries to get it working, and it was already warm. It idle was at 1000rpm, which is very low and it wasn't that nice and smooth idle of a 4 cylinder bike. I don't know if anyone of you as ever heard the idle of an Srad, but I found it more noisy than my old GS500. It has a cyclic rattle, and there was also a resonance/rattle when ridding it at 3/4Krpms. Maybe it just needed cam chain replacement/tensioner and valve adjustment.

Anyway, started riding it on heavy stop and go traffic which was a PITA compared to the GS500. The benefit was that when I reved it, caged drivers would know I'm there. As soon as I got clear road I stretched 2nd, 3rd and 4rd. Bellow 9000 Rpm it reminded me of my GS500. Not much power to it, I even thought that the bike was messed up...until I hit 9000 RPM, which felt like fighter jet afterburner on steroids. Didn't shaZam! on my pants because I didn't have any shaZam! ready.
I liked the brakes, very effective.
Cornering was strange as the front seemed to wobble. I even reviewed my body position, chicken flaped and still wobbles corner after corner. Riding it straight I could take my hands of the clip ons and it would go straight.
Comparing it to the CBR, I liked better the CBR. Felt smaller (I'm a small guy), could handle it better and it seemed to have more overall power than the GSXR.

Maybe I wasn't unimpressed due bad bike maintenance, not sure, I think I would give the Srad one more try. I know one with 36.000 Kms (20.000 Kmiles) that seems to be well cared.
This one:



If it doesn't go well I will go back to the CBR or give the YZF a try.

More news to come... 

[Twisted]

Those SRADS are spose to handle corners like they are on rails. Might have not had the correct tyre pressure 

[piresito]

Well, long story short, I found one F4 at less than an F3 price...what's the catch you ask?
25.000 Miles, no mirrors, aftermarket "Devil" exhaustt, no rear light, half turn signals won't work, need brake pads (rear brake disc already chewed, but still thick), 30 seconds after being at idle it will idle rougly and stall. All of this is fine for me to deal with. The owner assured me never had a crash the frame looks goods, the bike seems to handle good but still have to assure that the frame isn't bent (for that I wouldn't trust what the previoes owner says). If anyone know how to check for bent frame please share, I would appreciate it!
Even if it doesn't idle right, it has tonnes of power! And the power starts sooner than the other bikes I've tried.

Now, there is one bit of the problem...after I test ride it and made the deal, just 5 miles from home, the 2nd gear jumped at a tight right corner, and jumped 2 miles later during tight right hand corner also. f%$k, f%$k, f%$k, f%$k!!
Funny that under heavy load at WOT it wouldn't jump, and it seems to jump when gearing down from 3 to 2nd and in tight right hand corners.
When parking it home, it left 4 drops of oil in the floor, as can be seen in the pictures:







I know that this is not a GS500...can someone point me directions on this? Should I got to a Honda forum? Should I ride a little more to check if it wasn't my mistake changing gear or should I open it up so it won't scratch other gearbox parts? 

Again, thank you all!

[tt_four]

mmm..... I can't ever get over how gorgeous those SRADs are, I wish bikes still looked like that!

Congrats on finding the F4. So do you own it now or are you waiting to make sure the frame is straight before you transfer the title?

[Twisted]

I hope there is not to much wrong with it.

[piresito]

I do own it now, there is not much to do if the frame isn't straight. I have a friend of a friend with bolts in his arm due to a bent frame. I will fix all the electronics, carbs, and everything I can, then I will take it to a nice mechanic that can assure me of the straightness of the frame. If not staight, I hope I can sell it for the same price as I got it plus the parts I spent on. If straight, it would be a nice loud ride!! 

[piresito]

Anyone of you know how to make a rear wheel stand to get the bike upright while working in it? There are those rear wheel stands and I'm buying it in the future, money doesn't stretch and I don't know how much I will be spending on the bike itself...anywhere I can save it would be nice.

So, any creative ghetto rear wheel stand alternative?

[Twisted]

Why not go get a mechanic to see if it is straight before you do any work on the bike? It would be a waste of time to fix stuff up and then find out it is bent. 


You mean a stand like this?



http://www.ehow.com/way_5437866_homemade-motorcycle-stand.html

[bill14224]

All the bikes you mention are way fast for the street.  None of them will disappoint if you want performance, but if you're on a tight budget your GS is your best friend.  Watch gas hit five bucks this summer.  I hope it doesn't but that's what I'm expecting.  You will not get good mileage with 100+ HP.  Crotch rockets suck gas, even 600cc, they cost more to maintain, and I don't think they are generally as reliable as a GS, especially 10 years old.  I know a guy who bought a 2005 Gixxer 600 that looked and ran great but 3 months later he dropped a valve.  The good deal went out the window.  It's pretty hard to drop a valve with a GS.  Just some things to think about when you're on a tight budget.  I hope you're happy with your choice.  Best of luck.

[piresito]

Why not go get a mechanic to see if it is straight before you do any work on the bike? It would be a waste of time to fix stuff up and then find out it is bent. 


You mean a stand like this?



http://www.ehow.com/way_5437866_homemade-motorcycle-stand.html

Yep, something like that but easier to make. There are some alternatives in the link you gave but I guess I will be using a car jack to lift it up the two hard boxes to hold it in that position.
I will get the bike running the best I can either if the frame is bent or not. It will allways raise the bike value, as I'm not throwing it to the garbage if it is bent.

All the bikes you mention are way fast for the street.  None of them will disappoint if you want performance, but if you're on a tight budget your GS is your best friend.  Watch gas hit five bucks this summer.  I hope it doesn't but that's what I'm expecting.  You will not get good mileage with 100+ HP.  Crotch rockets suck gas, even 600cc, they cost more to maintain, and I don't think they are generally as reliable as a GS, especially 10 years old.  I know a guy who bought a 2005 Gixxer 600 that looked and ran great but 3 months later he dropped a valve.  The good deal went out the window.  It's pretty hard to drop a valve with a GS.  Just some things to think about when you're on a tight budget.  I hope you're happy with your choice.  Best of luck.

Relax...where I live gas is well over 10$ for an US gallon...