Rookies 1st road bike

djflawless

Yer probably sick of seeing threads like this but anyway...
Im 24, tall and thin.
Ive plenty of off road experience.And a small bit of road experience.(on closed roads is a better way of putting it).
I recently passed my theory for Cat A bikes.
Looking for a decent all year bike as my driving will consist of well maintained/salted roads for winter (hopefully salt wont be needed)
Im thinking of something along the lines of a honda rvf 400 or kawasaki zxr4.zxr being the bike i would have experience on.
It will be used for a 90km daily all round drive.
Am i aiming too high or would ye reckon something towards a 250 would be sufficient enough?
Tia

cantdecide

My standard advice is this: choose your dream bike and use this as a basis of choosing your first bike. There's little point going for a ZXR if your dream bike is a Harley. In my case I started on a restricted Bandit 600 but within months I got my GSX1400 which I still have 7 years later.

If sports bikes are where your heart is then there are tons of options in the >600 cc range which are realistic for newer riders (if your head is screwed on) and are capable enough for a long commute in mixed conditions. There aren't many bikes in the 250 range that you won't be bored with or find entirely capable for a long commute on open roads. For weather protection, faired bikes are better but you'd want to consider your comfort over a long commute if you're too hunched forward, particularly if you're tall.

The best options for all-round riding and long commutes out-of-the-box are the enduro/ adventure style bikes or some of the muscle bikes but realistically, tons of bikes will work with adaption.

ciderbaby

I'd get a handly bike first for the commute - Deauville, CB400 superfour or something like that. Then save the bobs for your dream bike as a second one - it isn't going to cost a lot more to put a second bike on the policy

GBX

If you are doing a 90km commute, you wouldnt go wrong with a Deauville. Ideal set up for this purpose. Shaft drive, easy maintenance.
An RVF or ZXR might not be insurable as a first timer? Not only that, as 400's are becoming less and less available in decent condition without spending a decent amount.
Fazer, Bandit, Hornet are all readily available and ideal for commuting on.

CJhaughey

Honda Deauville is in a class of its own when it comes to practical commuting.
Built in Panniers are very handy for carrying stuff and if you need to carry more then that get a top box.
High screen makes a big difference to weather protection and the hand wind deflectors make it possible to commute in comfort.

zubair

@OP.

What type of roads will you be commuting on? I presume that there's motorway/ national roads on the 90k trip.

Pugzilla

I would go with a Deauville if doing 90km commute.

djflawless

All national roads.once i get the full bike licence will be heading up and down the motorway

zubair

djflawless wrote: »

All national roads.once i get the full bike licence will be heading up and down the motorway

You'll want a faired/ half faired bike for that then. The bikes you suggested are small sportsbikes you'd be better off with a 600+ commuter bike... the ususal suspects, Honda dullville, Honda Hornet, Suzuki Bandit, Yamaha fazer.

szatan84

+1 for Hornet. Commuting on my 50km to work (one way) for the last year and a half. Added 35k miles to the clocks and nothing went wrong, apart from a kinked vacuum hose that opens the fuel tap. €20 to fix.

djflawless

Was looking at a hyosung today.650 cc.great quotes with it.but not too familiar with the maker?
Good or bad?

Del2005

djflawless wrote: »

Was looking at a hyosung today.650 cc.great quotes with it.but not too familiar with the maker?
Good or bad?

Stay away. Not great build quality and will be difficult getting spares.

Del2005

djflawless wrote: »

All national roads.once i get the full bike licence will be heading up and down the motorway

Stick to the national roads, no point riding a bike on a motorway as it's no fun.

djflawless

Was worried about build quality but as far as spares were concerned, was thinking parts could be easily available from many manufacturers

djflawless

Del2005 wrote: »

Stick to the national roads, no point riding a bike on a motorway as it's no fun.

You know, thats the 1st time i thaught of that... inclined to start to agree

Del2005

djflawless wrote: »

Was worried about build quality but as far as spares were concerned, was thinking parts could be easily available from many manufacturers

That's the problem with the Chinese bikes, the imported owns the brand and there's no way to find out who made any particular bike. So you need a new part who do you contact? Then you'll be hit for taxes when it arrives.

Stick with the known brands for now. The Chinese bikes are like the 1st Japanese bikes that came to Europe, cheap and unreliable. But I can see them doing the same to the Japanese as the Japanese did to the European manufacturers, copying then improving and then absolutely destroying them.

Pugzilla

Hyosung are Korean, not Chinese, so a step above in build quality.

I would still stick to the Japanese brands.

Del2005

Pugzilla wrote: »

Hyosung are Korean

:o:o:o