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 Post subject: first bike?
PostPosted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 7:25 am 
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Location: Clifton, N.J.
my buddy has been on the hunt for an older motorcycle, something that just needs a little TLC and won't get him killed in an instant....we went to see a honda magna a few weeks ago, but it was a bust....i've been thinking about tossing in a little cash towards the deal as well as helping get whatever we get back in shape and splitting costs with him, as i have no room for a bike and can't justify owning one

any recommendations for a good, cheap, reliable bike to learn to ride on? i've ridden my dads old honda trail bike and mopeds before, but never really ridden a motorcycle....my friend at work is selling his 87 yamaha fzr1000, but i have a feeling it would get both of us killed pretty quick

where should i start?

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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 9:11 am 
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What do you call cheap, and how old?

I would recommend any of the 1980s BMW airheads (R65, R80, R100). They are all capable of being worked on, maintained, rebuilt etc by anyone with some basic mechanical skills and a willingness to search the internet for repair instructions. Most parts are still readily available. These are all basic, old school, straight up European styling, with sufficient power and pretty good handling (no, they are not crotch rockets). For a beginner, consider a R65. That was my first bike (and only bike -- still have it). Its 650cc, 50 hp, weighs in at about 450 lbs wet, low center of gravity. They are not easy to find, but can be had for $2,000 to $3,000 depending on condition. They are a real workhorse. It would be a bike that should last for many more years.


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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 10:48 am 
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For a first bike I would keep it small but not so small you’d be bored or embarrassed to be seen on it within a few months of riding it. You’re not a teenager ya know.
I would advise a road bike rather than duel purpose and a sport rather than cruiser. These are much more fun on the road, very easy to work on and when you are bored with it great to modify. Think “Café Racer”, very hip at the moment and I know how important that is to you... 8)

I’m a Honda guy so I’d look for 1968-74 CB450, the way cool ’89-90 GB500 (very hard to find), ’72- ’74 CB 500, ’74-’78 CB550. If I could find a deal on one of these I’d buy one today just to f@ck around on.

I had a ’78 CB750F back in the day;
Image

…a very fun bike but a bit of a pig and more than you want or need.

I know there are some nice Yamahas out there but don’t follow them like I do Hondas. Kaw’s and Suk’s I don’t really care for…that’s just me. I know nothing about Beemers and will not comment except to say they were never for me.
Let me know what you get.

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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 2:31 pm 
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Here is a '75 400 in LI that would be fun;
http://newyork.craigslist.org/lgi/mcy/2902136810.html

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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 4:53 pm 
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Here is a R65 in NJ, but the asking price is too high.

http://www.cycletrader.com/listing/1983-Bmw-R-65-102597393


Here is one that is more realistic in price, but not in prime shape and may have a title issue:

http://newyork.craigslist.org/lgi/mcy/2889987125.html

Check http://www.bmwr65.org/ as people tend to post about R65s that are up for sale.


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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 5:46 pm 
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Do yourself a favor and do not buy a bike without the proper paper work. :roll:

Ken I'm surprised you posted that. :?

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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Thu Mar 15, 2012 7:50 am 
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by cheap, i'm talking $500

title issues are a no-go, dealing with getting a title for my '72 stag right now, its a nightmare

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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Thu Mar 15, 2012 9:50 am 
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Bklyn.X wrote:
Do yourself a favor and do not buy a bike without the proper paper work. :roll:

Ken I'm surprised you posted that. :?



Tom, almost all states have a process for replacing lost paperwork. I have done it, and will end up doing it again. It can be a pain in the ass (depending on the circumstances). But it is definitely possible to have the title replaced -- I would just make sure the seller does it.

k_enn


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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Thu Mar 15, 2012 9:51 am 
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Crap, my brother just sold his '88 Suzuki 450 GS last week for $600. Great little beginner bike, easy to work on, surprisingly quick and cheap parts.

My first bike was a '82 Yamaha Virago 750, had it for 4 years before I upgraded. Same deal, parts are easy to come by and cheap and the small V twin had a nice sound. I sold that for $600 5 years and it needed some work. I'm on a Vulcan 1500 now.

I would stick around 450cc - 800cc, anything under will be underpowered and anything over could get dangerous is the hands of a novice - also smaller cc = lighter and easier to manuver. Remember that there cc may be limits on highway travel in your state, I think NYS is 250cc and up on the thruways.

I'm a cruiser guy, so I would look into:
Yamaha Virago 500, 750
Suzuki 450 GS
Kawasaki Vulcan 500, 750

It's a tough time of year to be looking for a $500 motorcycle that is not a basket case. If you can hold out until September or October (I know it defeats the purpose at this point), you can probably find someone looking to unload a bike to fund their winter habits.

My old Virago:
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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Sun Mar 18, 2012 11:34 am 
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I know this may be out of your price range, but here is reasonable sale offer on a R65:

http://www.bmwr65.org/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1331839830


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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Mon Mar 26, 2012 7:52 pm 
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thoughts?

http://newjersey.craigslist.org/mcy/2912155119.html

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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Mon Mar 26, 2012 8:22 pm 
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Looks like a nice bike. There is only one cruiser for me and small ones are not my choice. Anything smaller than a 1000 needs to be more "sport" oriented. IMHO these are great to learn on but get boring very fast. That just me though and if you do get it let me know and we will get out for a run this summer.

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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Tue Mar 27, 2012 5:03 pm 
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My first, and only bike, was a 1980 Honda CX500. They were a strange bike in that they were shaft drive, water cooled and had the characteristics of half sport and half cruiser. They also had an offset, angled twin with four valves per cylinder, but had pushrods instead of OHC.

It was a fun, fast (what do I know, it's the only one I owned other than a dirt bike) reliable and easy to work on. I sold it to go back to school to get my master's degree and never got another bike.

I'm sure those are cheap these days.


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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Wed Aug 29, 2012 10:50 am 
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forgot to update this one

my buddy at work was moving and his wife limited him to the number of toys he was allowed to bring to the new place, so he let this go for dirt cheap

Image

1987 Yamaha FZR1000....yeah, not the bike i'm going to learn on :shock:

it is not in awesome shape and recently went through a frame swap ( previous owner before him dropped it bad)...needs some TLC, but for the low low price of $0 i couldn't beat it :D

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 Post subject: Re: first bike?
PostPosted: Wed Aug 29, 2012 10:57 am 
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:shock: Man oh man that is a lot of bike to be learning on bro.
My brother learned on a 900 and almost killed himself…he no longer rides. Be careful…

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