so i think i've narrowed my bike search down. (again) to 3 bikes.  please post nicely.     things i want in a bike: i'm a beginner so i want something noob friendly. i want something easy to handle. something that will last me awhile. i won't compromise on fuel injection, it is a must. hmm...and probably more things i just can't think of off the top of my head cuz the wife is rushing me to get off the computer.  anyways. happy posting fellas. 

prolly the 883. easy to work on. not  problem prone as frankie and others here, like to say. HOWEVER if it has the skinny tire up front. id withdraw my recommendation. cause it affects handling. not bad, BUT being that ive logged 10k on mine ( before selling it) it would act liek its falling into turns not easing into them, takea a few miles to get used to. parts are available, usually dont have to be ordered. and again not because teh break as some suggest. or the 900. but i like the sporty cause you can bump it up to 1200 WITHOUT voiding warranty. well they dealership can. ( or i can) or any certified hd tech can. anyhoo at less cost than the 1200. but the kawi 900 is nice as well

No need to tell you what I voted for.... 

Quote from: bucks1605 on October 28, 2008, 08:37:16 PM
No need to tell you what I voted for.... 

Cruisers?  Ugh.  Heavy Harleys?  Ugh.

Why is fuel injection a must?  The best noob-friendly bikes are carbed.  Lord knows I hate carbs with a passion, but a cheap, reliable carbed bike as a starter - like, say, the one that this site is devoted to - has served me and many others well.

Jesus H. Man just buy a GS500, I rode one when I had nothing else, that's why I joined the site way back when in 05.

It's inexpensive, for fucks sake don't buy a new one. A good used releible naked one is a good choice. And they're not hard to work on. It was the perfect bike to teach my wife to ride as well, she even got her first wreck out of the way onit which cost me a grand total of $40 to fix, on her F4i that wreck woulda been easily over $1000

Two words bro: Turbo Busa!!!

And don't get one that's been half-ass turbo'd, make sure it has at least 300hp on the wheel

what was i thinking, expecting serious answers.  i know, all of you will say not to buy new, to buy used etc. i've had a lot of issues with used cars and i'd rather not continue the trend with a bike. generally i'm the kinda guy when i buy a vehicle, i keep it till it explodes and/or the cost of fixing it outweighs the cost of replacement. although i'm a member here at gstwins, i'm not going to buy a gs. sorry. the few i've sat on feel heavy as hell and the reach isn't as comfy for me. about the only 2 "sport bikes" i've sat on that i felt truly comfortable on are th cbr600(too big for a noob) and the new kawi ninja 250(not f.i and wouldn't do well with the wife and i two up).  thus i've turned my attention to cruisers. flame me if you must. but different strokes for different folks. i'm actully leaning more towards the sporty 1200. but we'll see. 

If the 600 was too much bike for you how do you think your going to handle the bikes your looking at now?

The CBR600 makes minimal low end tourque, it's fairly docile to start out if you have the self control not to crank the throttle WFO and keep it about 50% of it's max rev range, (about the sameplace the bikes your looking at redline btw) your all good. But yeah you already said got make the wife comfy, okay problem solved 2 GS500's used still less than one brand new GS and certainly less than what your looking at.

Twin cruisers are designed for low end oomph, you laugh but HD shop guys like to stand outside and watch noobs take off on their new bike to see if they make it down the block from the shop. Get cocky and hammer a low end tourque bike you'll find yourself on your ass.

Okay I gave my opinions I'll shut up now.

Oh yea ... winnebago all the way ... atleast it will take up less room than the ones you're asking about.
Cool.
Buddha.

Quote from: jserio on October 29, 2008, 12:37:33 PMi'm not going to buy a gs. sorry. the few i've sat on feel heavy as hell

You're looking at Harleys.

Because a GS500 is too heavy.

i'm talking top heavy. apples to oranges i know. anyways. you guys also talk about "ease of working on it". i don't want to wrench on my daily driver. that's the reason i bought a brand new car. the time i spend wrenching, i could be riding.  i'm not looking for something that is the fastest thing around so i think i'll be able to control the throttle well enough no matter what bike i get.  back to weight. sure the harley weighs  better than 500lbs. but it doesn't feel like it. at all. once again though, i think that's an apples to oranges comparrison. and BP, i mentioned to the wife about just getting her own bike. she doesn't want to right now. she said she just wants to ride with me for awhile then maybe look at learning to ride on her own. i'm also looking at insurnace rates as well. insurance for a cbr would be considerably higher than the other bikes ive mentioned. i've got a good driving record but i'm not 30 yet.  i got a quote on the vulcan 900 from my insurance place. $480 a year full coverage.  keep the opinions comming but i'd really to hear unbiased ones. maybe from some of you that have owned a variety of bike and not just, oh, buy this because i own it and it's the only thing i've owned kinda thing. i've found that a majority of people that bash harley have never ridden one, much less owned one. and of course there's the flip side, those that love harley that have never ridden anything else. low seat height is a must for me as well, just thought i'd throw that in. i know that as i advance in my knowledge it wont be as important but for now, i'd feel much more comfortable with a bike i can touch both feet.  comfort is important right? 

i also thought the motorcycle "brotherhood" was more about the ride than what you ride? 

Quote from: jserio on October 29, 2008, 04:58:30 PM
i also thought the motorcycle "brotherhood" was more about the ride than what you ride? 

I'm going to comment on THIS first, then give my opinion about which bike... keep the focus a minute-

Yes, it's about the ride. Completely. This is why if my bike was painted pink by pranksters tomorrow, I'd keep it, and ride it. It's just paint.

Now, building on your comment above....

You asked about WHICH ride, so it's a bit of a contradiction.

Wrenching and bikes go together like KY and OH YES BABY YESSsssSSSSSSSSSsssssssss !

No, I'm serious. Your bike will HAVE to have some wrenching, either by you or a stealership. Bikes get dropped, get kicked, and get blown up. If you don't want to do this yourself, that's your choice. Not knocking you for it. Keep in mind the expense of -paying- someone else to do your maintenance. And not knowing if they've done things correctly.

I completely understand wanting EFI. Completely. No argument, none.

A Harley ? That isn't heavy ? Or expensive to maintain ? -And- you want it to be fun to ride ? OK, hope you find it.

My choice for a FUN fuel injected 2-up machine ? I'll vote for OTHER: SV-650. Lots of torque low down, 2-up sporting or cruising is fine, and parts are everywhere.

Every single HD owner I know wants to talk about the last BIKE- traffic jam they went to, or the latest chrome doo-dad that "really sets the bike apart from the others". IT'S JUST A FREAKING BIKE ! GET IT DIRTY, RING IT OUT, AND BLAST IT SOME !

There, you got my 37 cents. Don't take it personal man, but you asked about HD's on a jap bike forum. Dig it.

ps - how can you not take the advice of people that suggest you get a used bike, so when (AND YOU WILL!) drop it, it won't matter ? this is some of the best. bestestestest !

Quote from: jserio on October 29, 2008, 02:07:09 PMkeep the opinions comming but i'd really to hear unbiased ones. maybe from some of you that have owned a variety of bike and not just, oh, buy this because i own it and it's the only thing i've owned kinda thing.

I have owned
GS500E
GS500F
SV650S
SV650
Breva 750
Savage
GSX-R600
R6
DR650
DR-Z400S
F800ST
F650GS
SS800
FZ6
WR250X
TT-R125L
CR80R

I might be forgetting one.  :p  But that covers standard, sportbike, sport touring, cruiser, dirt, dualsport, supermoto, and track.

Quote from: jserio on October 29, 2008, 02:07:09 PMi've found that a majority of people that bash harley have never ridden one, much less owned one.

I've ridden Harleys and Buells.

Don't blow a lot of money on your first bike.  You don't know what kind of biker you are until you've ridden a while, and you don't know what you want out of riding until you have some miles under your belt.  You toss a chunk of money out of your pocket when you ride a new bike off of the lot.

If it has to be a cruiser, make it an inexpensive metric cruiser.  Lighter and more reliable than a Harley.  Buying new is no guarantee of reliability; a labmate of mine had a new Sportster and had all kinds of odd issues with it.  Fixed under warranty, yes, but he had to have it fetched to the dealership and was without transportation while it was fixed.

Bikes are a lot easier to maintain than cars.  A gently used UJM is not going to be a pain to maintain.

Ural has a pretty slick '08 lineup that conveniently is almost mechanically identical to the '98, '88, '78 and '68 lineup.  But seriously those are freaking cool bikes and hella unique.

Quote from: Roadstergal on October 29, 2008, 01:20:22 PM

Quote from: jserio on October 29, 2008, 12:37:33 PMi'm not going to buy a gs. sorry. the few i've sat on feel heavy as hell

You're looking at Harleys.

Because a GS500 is too heavy.

since you RG have ridden the harleys, youll know where i am coming from. yes jserio, the hd is heavier. but alto of the weight is down low. trust me, i balance hd crankshafts on a regular basis a bit of a pain in the ass, to put 150 punds of torque to the crankshaft nut/s. but are fairly easy to keep upright. IMO about as easy as the gs is. ( and yes i love em both the same. lol. but as a newb. you will eventually for one reason or the other, have to upright the bike. WHEN this happens no matter which one, do it this way. DO NOT FACE THE BIKE it will kill your back. ( trust me on htis, carrying an assembled 1340cc hd, kills mine lol. and you know how small i am. anyhoo, face away from the fallen bike.take left hand place under or near subframe near back tire. and right hand, on handle bar. get a firm grip, lift up, AND walk backwards, till bike is almost upright. stop, brace against it, rach around with right hand and grasp right grip, and left to left. , push back a bit more, till almost vetically upright. , and carefuilly turn around, and place kickstand down. if my skinny ass can do this wiht a goldwing., anyhting is possible. what imsaying is. go look, and sit, ponder, and ask yourself  will this be potentially good enough for a few years,, will it be comfy enough for a good long trip, say 400 miles or so? and as terry said, check out the urals. basically OLD copies of the early beemers., makes me wonder if the parts might be interchangeable in some way shape or form

i posted none of the above simply because i would not waste a dime on a hog and i am not into cruisers, thats just me.

well fine, then suggest something appropriate. something YOU would get as a "first bike" or you think he might benefit from. c'mon now, helpa  brutha out. he has after all offfered his mom to pretty much all of us, so the least we can do    ( sorry jserio, i just had to ) btw frnakie YGPM

Insurance again OK lemme explain insurance. My wife is now 27, got her 600 at 26. It costs less to insure it than any of the bikes you are looking at. Why you ask? I will tell you why state farm does not care if it is a sport bike or a cruiser their rates are based on displacement alone. I about fell out of the chair when they quoted my bike $320 year for full coverage, her bike is $198 year. I was looking at $2400 to $3600 a year from geico or progresive.

Now that that's been rehashed, I'm sure you read some of the insurance cost threads I really really really really really urge you to at least heed the advice buy used for your first bike, theres lot's of factors beyond having a wreck you need to consider and one of them was you may not know what kind of rider you are.

It has taken me 20 bikes over the last 23 years to figure out what I really like, buying new is an expensive proposition to figure out what you really like.

For traveling hands down I'm a goldwing guy and I enjoy traveling on a goldwing, but it sucks for commuting, at least it does for me. Commuting on a sport bike isn't alot of fun either for me, I really want a motard for dorking around in town on, I'll get ione in a year or 2. Day rides I am a sportrider all the way I love nothing more to than waking up and going for an all day blast, by myself with my wife or with my mates.