fazer for a beginner, but what about the twitchy brakes/accelerator?

[neilw]

Hello,
So, I'm undergoing DAS ('fast track' bike test for over 21's) training/examinations (UK).

On searching for a bike after I pass I find a number of bikes classed as 'ideal for beginners', although a bike capable of 0-60 in 3 seconds and can outclass a porsche is hardly a sedate bike

Due to the looks and nice upright sitting position and the forgiving nature (so I read) my heart seems set on a fz6 (the other two I really liked, btw were a suzi sv650 and kawasaki er6 - the suzuki I ruled out due to the sitting position).

Anyway, two questions really. One (I'm sure it's been heard lots of times), is this ok for a newbie (if it helps I'm 6'2" and about 14.5stone).

Second, I read quite a few articles saying that (I think it was prior 2007 models) the fz6 has a very unforgiving accelerator and rear-brake (as in, more a case of on-off than a gradual transition and can easily catch out the unwary). Can anyone shed any light?

Cheers.

 

[Taku]

I got the FZ6 as my first big bike. Previously I had a Honda XR125 which was good for learning the basics of driving in the traffic.

But i soon outgrew the XR mainly because it was very restricted in the power department.

When I got the FZ6 it was restricted to 25kw due to legal issues. It was a good way to start it that way because I could get used to the handling and controlling the bike.

Few times I went to an empty parking lot just to get used to emergency braking with it and got hang of it quite quickly.

After about 6 months I took the restrictions off then started to familiarize myself to the power aspect as I already had learned the basics of handling the bike.

To sum it up. If you want to get a FZ6 as your first bike then I'd suggest restricting it for awhile otherwise it just has way too much power for a beginner.

Hope this helps.

 

[Mr Buck]

http://www.600riders.com/forum/new-riders-q/983-potential-riders-must-read.html

I'd seriously suggest you read this article Neil, I did my direct access in 2005 but theres no way I'd recomend getting straight on a Fazer, unless of course it is SEVERELY restricted.

Like I say though, read the article, in the end only you can make the decision, just make sure its for the right reason


Hope this helps you decide


Ride Safe

Just noticed you're in my neck of the woods too!!! who did you train with bud?

 

[huxy]

I'd recommend it as a first big bike (it was mine).

It's very forgiving for the newbie as you don't have to be in a particular gear so if you happen to be in the wrong one, you'll be fine. (2nd will do 80mph, 3rd will do 100mph, allegedly, not that I'd know, officer).

As you get more practise you'll find you can use more and more of it's power, so it should be ok for you for quite a while. The only thing with the throttle is it's a bit lumpy at lower revs. So you rev it harder to keep it out of the bottom of the rev range and you'll see it is nice and smooth. And fast. Problem solved.

I'm 6' and just under 15 stone (considerably more in all the gear) and it has no problems "making progress" with me on board

Rear brake? There's a rear brake on our bikes? I hardly touch it. Most is on the front with a little bit on the back in the wet or when I'm approaching the car in front and one brake isn't slowing me down quite as quickly as it needs to.

I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Happy biking and good luck with the test.

 

[Sarz]

I passed my das a little over a month ago now and got a fz6 as my first bike. 2005 naked. It's a great bike and I use it to commute to work ( about 50miles round trip ) one if the reasons I got it was the instructors recommended it and when I was hunting around it felt the most comfortable. I'm 5 11 and 18stone and the bike just keeps powering away!

 

[greg]

i'm in a similar position, never ridden a geared bike before (but have a car driving licence), did my CBT + DAS, and bought myself an FZ6N last week.

Being unfaired it will hopefully stop me from speeding

The fazer seems fairly decent with enough power below 8-10k rpm, though does feel a bit snatchy at first. Steering is quite sensitive, and it will flick into a corner fairly easily, though I am still building up my cornering confidence.

It'll definitely feel more powerful than the DAS bikes (i used a CB500), but it should be managable.

 

[biker57]

This will be the forth bike I've owned and the most resent was a Harley 1200R and I can't believe that they write this bike up as an entry level sport bike. The FZ6 is very impressive in all respects. After riding the Harley for 5 years this Fz6 is a very exciting and powerful alturnitive. Classifying this bike as a beginner bike is truly a mistake. You better know how to handle a bike before you buy one of these machines.

 

[discgolfdude]

I agree with Mr. Buck read http://www.600riders.com/forum/new-riders-q/983-potential-riders-must-read.html and please read the whole thing too.

I'm 6'2", 245lbs, and this is my first bike, and it is really a great bike, it can bite you hard if you don't respect the power it has. A bump, or a pot hole, can make you twist the throttle a little bit more than you think, and then you could jump from 3-5k to over 8 or 9k in a split sec.

I've been riding for almost a year now, Aug 31 will be 1 year. I admit I bought mine due to the looks, and the up right riding is better for my back. When I first starting riding before I took my MSF course, I could have gotten in a lot of trouble fast, but now I wouldn't want any other bike to have started on.

 

[rpereira]

The FZ6N was my first big bike. Had a GPX250 for about a year riding that on and off then stopped riding for a few years. So I would say it is ideal for a first big bike. It is very forgiving. It does have power but it isn't over powered. And it is up to the rider to use the power. I reckon if you are a sensible rider you will be fine. Just ride slowly and build up your confidence.

 

[greg]

This will be the forth bike I've owned and the most resent was a Harley 1200R and I can't believe that they write this bike up as an entry level sport bike. The FZ6 is very impressive in all respects. After riding the Harley for 5 years this Fz6 is a very exciting and powerful alturnitive. Classifying this bike as a beginner bike is truly a mistake. You better know how to handle a bike before you buy one of these machines.

Yeah but isn't that like a tractor to a modern day car. I thought most harley's were slow heavy and cumbersome ;D

 

[Kazza]

FZ6 is my first big bike.

Used to have a Z250 and CBF250. Glad I went the 250 route before the 600. For me it was the right way to go.

 

[ShadowChillaGin]

The FZ6 was my very first bike ever..Never road any dirt bikes or any other bike(except pedal bikes) prior to the FZ6. I think its a great starter bike as it is forgiving. There is loads of power over the 8k rev rang and when it comes on it comes on strong over 8k, prior to 8k the bike is ideal for beginners I think, IMO. I stayed well under the 8k range for quite some time and slowly dabbled with as I learned the bike better and better....
In my eyes, this is a great bike but you just have to remember it is capable of keeping pace with many other "sport" bikes considerably. Just respect the bike and its power and don't get ****y!

Good luck!

 

[neilw]

Thanks for all the responses, there are some quite differing opinions

I checked out the ninja250 as recommended by the article and the insurance and cost second-hand (and the dimensions for that matter) is not that much difference to the Fazer (£260 or £220 fully comprehensive insurance on a 2 year old).

Perhaps the best bet (although it seems daft in some ways, passing on a 500cc) would be to get a Fazer and restrict it using one of the online kits (without a certificate as there's no need) for a year then unrestrict it. I never checked insurance on restricted, it might even go down further.

 

[greg]

I never checked insurance on restricted, it might even go down further.

i think you'd need to show them a dyno certificate proving it was restricted, but insurance should be a lot cheaper

if you can trust yourself you should be ok, for me i find that it sounds loud enough at 7-8k, so you don't realise that it goes up even higher! :thumbup:

 

[jtarkany]

:welcome: I have ridden dirt bikes my entire life, the last was a Yamaha YZF250. The FZ6 is my first street bike and I have put 26,000 miles on it in just over three years (commuting 80%, canyon carving 5%, long trips 15%) and have never regretted getting it.

Twitchy brakes/accelerator, I don't know about either of these as my FZ6 has not felt 'twitchy' in either area. The only mechanical complaint I would have would be the clunky shifting between 1st and 2nd, usually taken care of by upgrading the oil you use.

Good beginner bike? The debate will continue, as you can see from the other posts. For me it was the perfect beginning street bike as well as the perfect long term bike. My experience has been that the bike has grown with me, it has been very forgiving with it's docile behavior under 8k and a freaking roaring tiger above 8k. As my skills and abilities have increased I have been able to tap into more and more of the FZ's potential and I know that I still have not ridden it to it's fullest.

Ultimately your experience will depend on you, good luck with your choice :thumbup:

 

[arkay]

The Fazer was my first bike, after having done my training on a bandit 600 and a gs500 I thought the Fazer was slightly more "responsive" on the throttle and brakes but soon got used to it. As for it being too powerful as a first bike, I disagree. It was actually recommended to me by one of my instructors (was going to get a street triple) and whilst I agree it's a quick bike it'll only go as fast as you twist. If you're going to be an idiot on a fazer you're going to be an idiot on any machine and a slightly less powerful bike will still dump you on your arse if you're not careful. Learn to ride the fazer and you'll come to love it! It's a forgiving bike and until you get used to the throttle which isn't as bad as some would have you think, you can plod along at 30 in top gear, do roundabouts in 3rd and an unexpected twist on the throttle wont see you lose the bike. A few months down the line and you'll be using the revs (and mirrors) a lot more!



A while back I was knocked off at a roundabout, while my bike was getting repaired I had a Honda CBF 600 courtesy bike. It's a comparable bike to the fazer, very much easier to ride, smooth on the throttle, ABS, but it left me feeling a bit "wanting" it just didn't have the "buzz" that the fazer gives.

 

[necrotimus]

My 2 cents for what its worth:

The FZ6 is my first motorcycle and I have been riding it for 2 years. If I had it to do over again I would have started on a used 250. I would have started on a 250 because in the long run a 250 will give you more confidence when you move up to a bigger bike. If you look at the best riders on this forum they all have one thing in common and that is confidence. And it is not a false confidence that many riders have but real confidence built on years of experience of knowing their own and their bikes limit.

A smaller/lighter 250 will allow you to learn your limits a lot faster than a 600 will. In conjuction buying a used or throw away bike will allow you to practice without fear of what an accidental drop may do to your bike. To this day when I practice I am still nervous I may have an accidental drop which does play into how hard you practice. And the harder you can practice the better you can ride.

Buy a used 250 for a year and learn to ride it to the rims then when you are ready take the next step to a 600.

 

[ericausand]

I had a dirt bike for a couple years growing up. Then 15 years later I decided I wanted a bike. So I got a Vulcan 750 cruiser to learn on. Then I just recently upgraded to the FZ6.

I don't think the size has much to do with it as long as you are physically strong enough. I would take it slow and practice every night after work. Little by little you will grow into the bike until it feels like it's an extension of your body

The accelerator does take a little used to getting to. I would read up about throttle control. Most cruiser guys just crank the gas and let the throttle twist back down by itself like driving a car. On a sport bike this seems to be much different so you may have to twist the throttle with much more accuracy and hold rpm a tad longer than you would on a car or cruiser.

 

[Shawn]

My first bike was an FZ6. I spent lots of time on a mountain bike but had never been on anything with a motor. However I did take an extensive training course where they used the CBR125's. I have not been disappointed the FZ was my first bike. I didn't have to upgrade to a bigger bike a year or 2 after I purchased it. However it did feel like a big bike when just staring out and I knew the capabilites of the bike and was timid of the bike when learning to ride.
As a training bike or first bike would recommend the Honda CBR125, Ninja250, or the Suz. GS500.

 

[Mr Buck]

I got a Vulcan 750 cruiser to learn on.

Thats what I learned on, after I chopped the hell out of it of course :BLAA: