Bike noob wanna start riding looking at cheap GSes

[noobski]

car guy here, recently got interested in bikes and I've been going back and forth on it and today I decided for sure I wanna ride a bike! I dont even have a bike license. but been browsing used bikes.. i like to make impulse buys, and today i got the idea of buying a cheap gs500 just to have it,  sneak it out to the nearby walmart parking lot to do figure 8s and whatnot for hours. get to know the controls. 


Is that a bad idea overall? I don't see why I can't have a bike even if I'm not legally allowed to ride it on public roads yet. (I would probably end up riding in the vicinity eventually..

My reasoning for a used gs500f over a brand new beginner bike is that I can have one sitting in my garage TODAY and start exploring it and doing stuff with it and get parts very cheap and the engine is 500cc so a bit more power than a 250 and a twin will probably last longer than a single cylinder and tbh I probably would not upgrade bcuz I've seen the stuff this bike can do and that is good enough for me.   Plus I like wrenching and already got the gs500 manual. Bikes are so cheap it seems, I see 10 year old bikes with 5000 miles and sellers claiming they're all original.

would it be foolish to buy a bike first then start obtaining license. I'm just a self taught person. Im pretty sure I could deal with this myself.

[SK Racing]

I would do it if I were you. How else will you get your license if you don't first learn to ride? But try and get your license soon so that you can  ride the bike wherever you want to go.

[The Buddha]

car guy here, recently got interested in bikes and I've been going back and forth on it and today I decided for sure I wanna ride a bike! I dont even have a bike license. but been browsing used bikes.. i like to make impulse buys, and today i got the idea of buying a cheap gs500 just to have it,  sneak it out to the nearby walmart parking lot to do figure 8s and whatnot for hours. get to know the controls. 


Is that a bad idea overall? I don't see why I can't have a bike even if I'm not legally allowed to ride it on public roads yet. (I would probably end up riding in the vicinity eventually..

My reasoning for a used gs500f over a brand new beginner bike is that I can have one sitting in my garage TODAY and start exploring it and doing stuff with it and get parts very cheap and the engine is 500cc so a bit more power than a 250 and a twin will probably last longer than a single cylinder and tbh I probably would not upgrade bcuz I've seen the stuff this bike can do and that is good enough for me.   Plus I like wrenching and already got the gs500 manual. Bikes are so cheap it seems, I see 10 year old bikes with 5000 miles and sellers claiming they're all original.

would it be foolish to buy a bike first then start obtaining license. I'm just a self taught person. Im pretty sure I could deal with this myself.

I dunno where you are, but I am not finding a cheap runner for the life of me in the Boston area for a friend.
And that's not even GS specific, he's now looking at cruiser/Std genre. Nope.
Cool.
Buddha,

[cbrfxr67]

Not sure where u are but Houston has a crap load of cheap busted bikes.  Here are some free ones,..

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/872352947028628

[Bluesmudge]

I would say either a.) learn to ride a motorcycle or b.) buy a project bike and learn to work on motorcycles

Trying to do both at the same time makes neither one work. If you want to learn to ride, buy a modern (2010+) fuel injected bike with ABS like a Ninja 250/300 or CBR250 or CB500 type bike. Even a fuel injected SV650 if you trust yourself to show some throttle restraint. You can get most of these for around the same price as a later model GS500 or for just $500 more than a '90s GS500. Having ABS will save you from the front washing out, which happens more often than people will admit.

Trying to learn on a carbureted bike that maybe doesn't run right is just too many variables to overcome at once.
IF you can find a well sorted GS500 that is verified to run good, then it is an OK starter bike. There are just many better starter bikes that have come along since the GS was discontinued in 2009. Just my opinion though. I started on a GS and still own it 15 years later. If I started riding today I would probably be on a recent CB500R/X/F or SV650 or NC750X. Its good to have a bike to ride and a bike to work on...but they shouldn't be the same bike.

[The Buddha]

Not sure where u are but Houston has a crap load of cheap busted bikes.  Here are some free ones,..

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/872352947028628

Yea we got those everywhere, including Johhnyro's bike which is in his neighborhood. But he wants a runner. And he's looking at the cruiser genre as well, GS too sporty for him.
Cool.
Buddha.

[ShowBizWolf]

I was just a car gal all my life until almost 10 years ago when I decided I wanted a bike. My current GS was gonna be for sale (a friend of my family owned it) and they let me borrow it once I got my riding permit so I could learn.

I had the same idea as you, fixing things here and there at my Dad's auto repair shop and teaching myself how to ride in the parking lot. The things I had to fix were cosmetic, not running issues thankfully... but the cosmetic stuff worked in my favor since I definitely did have my fair share of learning drops 

Wishing you the best of luck on your GS journey    and it's awesome to know you already have the Service Manual

[cbrfxr67]

Continuing on that same theme,...
I couldn't afford a bike and decided I'd build one.  Picked up a cbr superturd for $350 and started learning.  If it were me, I'd do it that way.  You'll learn how to take care of your bike and how everything works.  Wish you luck and please post whatever you decide!

[mr72]

I don't know what you mean about doing donuts in a walmart parking lot, but if that really is your plan, then the very first things you should spend your money on is a very good helmet, moto-specific jeans, boots, gloves, and an armored leather jacket. And a very good health insurance policy. Because you are going to crash and get hurt if you go that route.

The MSF Basic Rider class is actually extremely good to get you some beginner instruction on a street motorcycle in a very forgiving environment. I highly recommend it. I mean, I learned to ride a motorcycle when I was a little kid but still got a lot out of the MSF class when I came back to it after a 30 year layoff. The whole progression of learning to do "power walking", clutch control, shifting just one or two gears at a time, countersteering, swerve-or-stop, etc. is all invaluable. I highly recommend you do this and get correct instruction before practicing on your own and developing bad habits. If you can ride a bicycle and take instruction, then you are ready for the MSF class. Plus it's someone else's motorcycle to try out.

I mean, seriously, very experienced riders get hurt on 500cc class motorcycles. You really think it's smart as a beginner to go out and try to "do donuts" with zero instruction or experience? I guess it's just me, the guy who spent half a year unable to walk last year after a wreck, I'm a little bit on the side of being safe and not sorry.

Anyway, if you really want to own a motorcycle to just learn on as a rote beginner, buy a GROM or a GROM clone. That's the easiest motorcycle to ride on earth. And when you drop it while riding it, there's less motorcycle to land on you and less for you to clear when you crash, and it weighs less so it'll break fewer bones in your ankle when it does land on you. You can get a Chinese GROM clone all day long for under $1K. Then you can practice learning to ride on it, take your MSF class, get your license, and if you manage not to wreck it a lot, you can sell it for what you paid for it, then buy an actual beginner road bike. The advice to get a fuel injected modern bike with ABS is absolutely great advice. A CB300 or Ninja 300 with ABS would be a far better choice if you are learning.

No matter what you hear, GS500s are all old enough to be a pain in the butt. Half of the conversation on this forum is about fixing carbs. It's not that they are really that hard to work on, it's just that it requires constant attention and FI is just turn and go.

A decent usable runner that you can ride away today and just do maintenance will cost $2500. You can buy a 10 years newer fuel injected Honda or Kawasaki small twin for $3K. That extra $500 is well worth it.

Unless you have some kind of real specific reason to desire a GS500, they're not the best choice for a beginner motorcycle. There are lots of objectively better choices. Frankly, maybe you'd be better off with something like a DR350 to start. They sure are a lot more forgiving to ride, and only have one of these BST carburetors to work on, and it's way less likely some prior owner was a wannabe hooligan beginner who thrashed the thing and cut every possible corner on repairs and maintenance.

[Joolstacho]

Just go for it! Worry about it later. A GS is an ideal bike in many ways.

[SK Racing]

Just go for it! Worry about it later. A GS is an ideal bike in many ways.

+1

I call my GS "my little Bonneville". I'm enjoying it so much!

I recently rode an Aprilia RSV4 1000. No thanks! I'd much rather ride my GS500.