:dunno_white:
Decent bike, but not worth the extra money over the FZ6 which is a much more updated bike, w/ the altered R6 motor. Also the FZ6 is cheap on insurance.
i think a suzuki gsx-r600 would be faster and cheaper
fz6s dosnt have as much power but i would be alot better for long rides because you would have to sit on you nuts for as long
well i can get one for 3500 .. thinking about it.
Quote from: deathlucky on July 27, 2006, 03:00:33 PM
because you would have to sit on you nuts for as long
Not a problem for Matty B. He likes that kind of thing.
GSXR 600 is faster, it's a SS. The FZ6 is not, more for street riding (not track) much better for city or longer rides. The Gixxer may be cheaper (not for sure) but insurance would be much higher.
The FZ6 has a good amount of aftermarket support but not as much as the Gixxer.
less power would be a good thing ... im coming off a 500 ....
Quote from: Egaeus on July 27, 2006, 03:14:53 PM
Quote from: deathlucky on July 27, 2006, 03:00:33 PM
because you would have to sit on you nuts for as long
Not a problem for Matty B. He likes that kind of thing.
that thread was a joke!!! :flipoff:
yzf600r is by far the most comfortable sport bike I have ever sat on. I wouldn't by one brand new, as they're a bit dated compared to what's on the market now, but they're unchanged since 97, so they make a great used bike that can be picked up for around $3k. Think of it as the R6's more civilized brother. Great for street riding, not the best for track riding.
Yeah, I would concur. I've owned a YZF for going on 3 years now (an '01). Its a very good do it all bike. Enough power, a comfortable seat, and good fairings and windscreen for doing long trips on. Even though its heavy compared to newer 600s, sometimes that is a good thing especally on the highway. Its got really good brakes and fully adjustable suspension. Alot of people use them for track days.
I have enough money saved up to buy just about any bike I want, and I really can't think of any bike that can do all the things I want to do any better than my YZF. Yeah some are newer and sexier, but its not enough to make me want to part with my Thunder Cat.
BTW- The FZ6 is both several pounds heavier than the YZF and makes less power in the mid-range (where streetbikes spend most of their time). They FZ also has really dumb, non-adjustable suspension. The FZ is just newer, and Ok, it has a clock too. :p
JamesG-
Glad to see you are back man!
Back on topic:
I ended up putting on about 8K miles on my mom's '03 YZF600R, and it was mostly highway miles. Great brakes, definitely enough power to get you in trouble, really smooth roll-on capabilities. Took about 5K miles before it would start up right away, but once it was broken in, great riding bike.
Gets buzzy after about 3 hrs at 85-90mph, but that was with stock hard grips. My only real complaint was the rear shock, I never got it dialed in to where I was happy with the rebound characteristics in between packing up and being harsh or just being way too fast and getting nasty spikes back over freeway expansion bumps. Other than that, I could ride it all day after I had recent high miles on it. Would want higher clip-ons if I was going ultra-long distance, but I'm 6'6".
I usually got 225-250 miles out of a tank, if I remember correctly.
Nice bike. Comfy (for a sport bike), torquey, good brakes and fully adjustable suspension. Go for it.
no im riding the gs till next summer.
Quote from: Matty B 500 on July 27, 2006, 03:25:35 PM
less power would be a good thing ... im coming off a 500 ....
Quote from: Egaeus on July 27, 2006, 03:14:53 PM
Quote from: deathlucky on July 27, 2006, 03:00:33 PM
because you would have to sit on you nuts for as long
Not a problem for Matty B. He likes that kind of thing.
that thread was a joke!!! :flipoff:
Holy crap. No offense Matty, and not being a turd, when I read that it just kind of floored me.
haha i know ... im just kidding.
Quote from: JamesG on July 27, 2006, 07:53:46 PM
Yeah, I would concur. I've owned a YZF for going on 3 years now (an '01). Its a very good do it all bike. Enough power, a comfortable seat, and good fairings and windscreen for doing long trips on. Even though its heavy compared to newer 600s, sometimes that is a good thing especally on the highway. Its got really good brakes and fully adjustable suspension. Alot of people use them for track days.
I have enough money saved up to buy just about any bike I want, and I really can't think of any bike that can do all the things I want to do any better than my YZF. Yeah some are newer and sexier, but its not enough to make me want to part with my Thunder Cat.
BTW- The FZ6 is both several pounds heavier than the YZF and makes less power in the mid-range (where streetbikes spend most of their time). They FZ also has really dumb, non-adjustable suspension. The FZ is just newer, and Ok, it has a clock too. :p
I would have to agree, been to 2 or 3 dealers and haven't seen anything that even interests me after riding the 600r. The new supersports are too cramped and race oriented, nakeds don't offer the wind protection. A fantastic all around bike. :thumb: My friend who owns an FZ6 took my bike for a spin and thought my bike was more comfortable for long distances.
I love mine (2001 black). Sounds great with a D&D exhaust. I'm leaving tomorrow to ride from my house to key west (1,000 miles one way). How's that for comfort? Owned since new and just rolled over 10,000 miles. I would have bought a FZ6 if available in 2001.
- 220 miles per tank - pops wheelies - does stoppies - sportbike sound -
the yzf600r is a good bike. its the second tier sportbike under the R6, like the cbr600F4i is to the 600RR, or the katana is to the gixxer (wait, I take that last one back...). much better all around bike than the top tier.
The YZF is a great sport bike, but I would get a Katana 600. There about equal bikes, the Katana weighs a little bit more because its air cooled instead of being liquid cooled and that's actually the reason I would get one before a YZF, thats just less things that could go wrong. :cheers:
Hehe, you've never had to work on a Kan-o-tuna have you? :bs:
The frame wraps around the engine in a way that makes working on it a serious pain in the ass. Water cooling is actually a reliabliltiy benefit compared to the air/oil cooled. The cylinders and oil last much longer at extremes with liquid cooling.
The Katana weights quite a bit more than the YZF, but thats not all that important compared to the really good suspension and brakes the Yamaha has. It just blows the Suzuki away.
A Bandit 600 is a better bike than the Kan-o-tuna. Besides subjectively looking better, the Bandit has the same engine but it is easier to access. Also no one will tease you about owning an "ugly girl's bike" on a Bandit, you will catch hell on a Kan-o-tuna... :nono:
Quote from: JamesG on July 29, 2006, 06:33:24 AM
Hehe, you've never had to work on a Kan-o-tuna have you? :bs:
The frame wraps around the engine in a way that makes working on it a serious pain in the ass. Water cooling is actually a reliabliltiy benefit compared to the air/oil cooled. The cylinders and oil last much longer at extremes with liquid cooling.
The Katana weights quite a bit more than the YZF, but thats not all that important compared to the really good suspension and brakes the Yamaha has. It just blows the Suzuki away.
A Bandit 600 is a better bike than the Kan-o-tuna. Besides subjectively looking better, the Bandit has the same engine but it is easier to access. Also no one will tease you about owning an "ugly girl's bike" on a Bandit, you will catch hell on a Kan-o-tuna... :nono:
Yeah I've never had to work on a Kan-o-tuna yet, but one of my riding buddies has a 04' 750 so it will probably happen some time. And I think his bike rides way better than my GS, but most of the roads here in Florida are smooth and unfortunately straight so it hard to judge suspension.
I don't get teased much about riding a 05' GS500F so a Katana can't be any worse, but I'm very open minded and don't really have hang-ups on looks about fared bikes or naked bikes, or about sports bikes or cruisers. I'm kind of a any bike is better than no bike person, and as long as you take care of her, she will always get you home! Well actually I do have one hang-up, you'll never see me on a EX500(now thats ugly), I'd ride an Aprilia RS50 around town, but never an EX.
And I'm very upset they stopped selling new Bandits in the US that would have probably been my new bike last year, but I got another GS because I knew exactly what I was getting, and there a great little bikes for getting around, and $23.00 a month for full coverage insurance sure beat the well over $100.00 + a month quote for the SV650 or Kan-o-tuna, I'm single and a lot of other financial responsibilities to keep up with, maybe in five years when the house is paid for then I can get the bike of my dreams. :cheers:
I had to choose between the 600r and the GS as my first bike. Although I'm not disappointed with the GS, the 600r will most likely be my next bike. I've only read good things about them, they do seem fairly hard to come across. Dealer usually only have R6's in stock. I've actually gone to a couple dealerships where I had to explain what a 600r was:
Dealer: "you mean R6?"
Me: "No, 600R"
Dealer: "When did they make it?"
Me: "They still make it..."
Quote from: Yankee Punker on July 29, 2006, 08:47:48 AM
I don't get teased much about riding a 05' GS500F so a Katana can't be any worse,
actually its much worse. the katana is universally ridiculed as one of the ugliest bikes ever made. not THE ugliest but right up there.
Quote from: common sense on July 31, 2006, 11:11:21 AM
I've actually gone to a couple dealerships where I had to explain what a 600r was:
Dealer: "you mean R6?"
Me: "No, 600R"
Dealer: "When did they make it?"
Me: "They still make it..."
can you explain what a 600R is to me? I've never heard of one. Ive heard of 6R's (kawasaki 636), 600RR (my honda), R6, 650R (the new kawasaki) and the yzf600 (might be what you're referring to as a 600r?) but never heard of a 600R.
Yes, the 600r is the YZF600R, aka the Thundercat.
ah, not the way its generally known in the US (or the western US). its the yzf600 here. Not thundercat (sounds awesome) or 600r.
Its full US nomenclature is YZF600R. Which causes endless confusion with the YZF600 R6 . Luckily in conversation usually you can get away with saying "YZF600" for the former and "R6" for the later.
"Thunder Cat" isn't its offical name here, its just been adopted by us...
The YZF600R as said before is an excellent all rounder bike. It is abit heavier than most of the sports bikes but i would class it more of a high performance tourer. Big comfy seat, Pillion seat is ok too. Its a pretty bike - except for that front headlight. . . My dad just sold his to a guy who was going to buy an R6 for his first bike (arghhh) he loves it. Plenty of power, very good handling, but alot less squidly than an r6 or gixxer 600.
The only problems i can think of with it is if they have high milage the rear suspension turns to a spongy mess and the rear shock could use upgrading if it does have high miles. Particularly if it was alot of two-up riding. Otherwisie i can sing nothing but praises for it. I nearly bought it off my dad before i got the zxr. Its never had a single mechanical problem while we owned it. 7ish years i would think. Great bike and seems like a very reasonable price. Ours sold with only 7k miles on the clock for £2300 thats in England so i would think 3k would be a good price for it.
The YZF 600R is a decent bike.... but all the ones I have ever seen are pigs. Wide body, wide tank. If I were in the market for non-race-ready sport bike then I would probably look at an F4i first since it has fuel injection and better looks (in my opinion).
As for the Katana... they are weak bikes (compared to modern 600cc bikes). They are sport TOURERs with the same power as an SV-650. The stock rear tire is a 160. They are comfy, though....easily fit tall people, long wheel base, *really* bright headlights, fuel gauge. They dont' get much respect from the sportbike crowd, though.
Quote from: TarzanBoy on August 02, 2006, 08:37:19 PM
The YZF 600R is a decent bike.... but all the ones I have ever seen are pigs. Wide body, wide tank.
Compared to what? A GS500? Well yeah... :dunno_white:
Quote
If I were in the market for non-race-ready sport bike then I would probably look at an F4i first since it has fuel injection and better looks (in my opinion).
Probably same here. Though if you take long rides and such, the YZF is still better suited for "real life". And even though Honda came out with a blue F4i, its still not "better" enough to make me want to swap my Yamaha for it.
This looks like a good spot for a gratuitous YZF pic! :icon_mrgreen:
(http://www.knology.net/~ARS/images/yzfStuff/YZFfarkle3.JPG)
Really like the 600r. Either that or the ZZR600 will probably be my next bike (prob a year or two away). The only thing really holding me back on the 600r is that I'm almost certain it uses a steel frame. Don't know exactly why, but my mindset is that every bike I own after the gs will be aluminum framed. I'm sure steel frames are fine, but I'm a total rust-o-phile (I actually wipe down the gs frame with gun oil and grease after each major cleaning :cookoo:) and aluminum just seems like one less hassle.
Who knows, maybe suzuki will come out with a relatively inexpensive, up-to-date kick-ass replacement for the katana by the time i'm looking to upgrade :icon_mrgreen: .