1990dtgl98
Junior Member
Hey everyone, I'm new here, and to street bikes in general. I used to ride some dirt bikes, but that was only for a few months and over 8 years ago, so I doubt that experience will help a lot.
I live in Central PA and just got my permit. I plan on taking a MSF course in 2 weeks, and hope to get my license after completing that.
So now I'm looking for a good deal on a bike since winter is approaching.
I had looked at and sat on (but not driven) tons of bikes including: Gladius, Street Triple, Sprint ST, VFR, FZ6, GSX-650F, SV650, GS500, Ninja 650R, Ninja 500, FZ-6R, etc.
I narrowed it down to a used SV650 or FZ6, mainly for the seating position, cheaper price, good reviews and aluminum frames.
I was wondering what you guys would recommend. I am a beginning rider 22 years old, but responsible (no tickets and no accidents even with owning a modified 450hp Corvette since 17 and my DD Charger R/T for 2 years) and got my head on right (start easy, back roads, getting full gear already).
I want a reliable bike that's powerful but not overly so. I'm 270lbs and 5'10, so its going to be lugging a big guy, hence why I'm wanting a 600 to start with. I also will be riding 2-up with my fiance occasionally.
Some other facts. It will be used mainly for back-road weekend cruises, city travel (city here means 35mph roads with stoplights ever 1/4-1/2 mile, so more like "congested country roads" ), and maybe some 70 mile trips (one way) to visit my sister and possibly some 140 mile trips (one way) to visit my parents on the highway. If I did those long highway trips, it would probably only be one, mayyyybe two, weekends a month.
So, I was leaning toward the FZ just cause it looks better, but more importantly I "fit" it better. However, some others are swaying my opinion and saying the V-twin is a better motor for a starter, especially my size
, over the FZ6. However, they did say a naked SV is going to be almost impossible to do with a 150 mile highway one-way ride.
What I was wondering is will the peaky inline 4 motor give a beginner trouble, and if so, should I get an SV? Basically, should I get the better distance cruiser for the one time a month I do that much highway driving, that might not be as suited around town with (FZ6), or a 'potentially' better back roads and weekday bike that is going to cause a lot of trouble on the highway, which I might not even miss (SV650).
It would be a lot better if I could see how "peaky" the motor was on the FZ6 was, but no dealer or local private party seller will let me test ride them (since I would be financing majority). Likewise it'd be nice to ride a SV650, but can't for the same reasons.
Anyways, thanks for the forum, its always nice to lurk here, and finally start posting. I realize I might get some biased answers, but you guys and gals seem to be honest and thus would tell me if a FZ won't work!
I live in Central PA and just got my permit. I plan on taking a MSF course in 2 weeks, and hope to get my license after completing that.
So now I'm looking for a good deal on a bike since winter is approaching.
I had looked at and sat on (but not driven) tons of bikes including: Gladius, Street Triple, Sprint ST, VFR, FZ6, GSX-650F, SV650, GS500, Ninja 650R, Ninja 500, FZ-6R, etc.
I narrowed it down to a used SV650 or FZ6, mainly for the seating position, cheaper price, good reviews and aluminum frames.
I was wondering what you guys would recommend. I am a beginning rider 22 years old, but responsible (no tickets and no accidents even with owning a modified 450hp Corvette since 17 and my DD Charger R/T for 2 years) and got my head on right (start easy, back roads, getting full gear already).
I want a reliable bike that's powerful but not overly so. I'm 270lbs and 5'10, so its going to be lugging a big guy, hence why I'm wanting a 600 to start with. I also will be riding 2-up with my fiance occasionally.
Some other facts. It will be used mainly for back-road weekend cruises, city travel (city here means 35mph roads with stoplights ever 1/4-1/2 mile, so more like "congested country roads" ), and maybe some 70 mile trips (one way) to visit my sister and possibly some 140 mile trips (one way) to visit my parents on the highway. If I did those long highway trips, it would probably only be one, mayyyybe two, weekends a month.
So, I was leaning toward the FZ just cause it looks better, but more importantly I "fit" it better. However, some others are swaying my opinion and saying the V-twin is a better motor for a starter, especially my size
, over the FZ6. However, they did say a naked SV is going to be almost impossible to do with a 150 mile highway one-way ride.What I was wondering is will the peaky inline 4 motor give a beginner trouble, and if so, should I get an SV? Basically, should I get the better distance cruiser for the one time a month I do that much highway driving, that might not be as suited around town with (FZ6), or a 'potentially' better back roads and weekday bike that is going to cause a lot of trouble on the highway, which I might not even miss (SV650).
It would be a lot better if I could see how "peaky" the motor was on the FZ6 was, but no dealer or local private party seller will let me test ride them (since I would be financing majority). Likewise it'd be nice to ride a SV650, but can't for the same reasons.
Anyways, thanks for the forum, its always nice to lurk here, and finally start posting. I realize I might get some biased answers
, but you guys and gals seem to be honest and thus would tell me if a FZ won't work!
Last edited:
