80's Honda as beginner bike?

[EvilGenius]

I thought I'd try road warriors since what I'm looking for isn't horribly old nor is it a maintenance issue, but if this belongs in old school, I appologize.

I'm looking for my first bike which will be used for commuting. I was originally looking at ninja 250 but after a long look I'm just not interested in them. My next choice was possibly a nighthawk 250, but there's not really any on craigslist right now.

So now I'm looking a little towards some 80s honda cruisers. I'm not a huge cruiser guy but so long as its not too stretched out, I dont think I'll mind that much and I've always heeard great things about the shadows.

I'm curious, do you guys think a 600-750cc cruiser is too much for a new guy?I'vealways heard that they're more docile than say a sport or sport/standard or similar engine size. I'm also open to suggestions of different brands. The big things are I'm trying not to go over $2500, needs to be cheap on insurance (I'm 20 yrs old with no offences) and gas mileage isnt as big of a deal so long as it gets atleast 55-60mpg.

Theres a few on craigslist around here, I'll post them later since I can't copy/paste on my phone.

[30Bones]

KLR650. Great beginner bike and mine pretty well farkled only went for $2800 in December of 07 and was an 2005.

[Rad]

80's Honda are fine beginners bikes with one caveat; that being, that they are in good shape. A 20+ year old bike with poor brakes, shot suspension and hard aged tires can be a problem even for the experienced rider.

[xtphreak]

Originally Posted by 30Bones

KLR650. Great beginner bike and mine pretty well farkled only went for $2800 in December of 07 and was an 2005.

+1 on starting on a dual-sport
better leverage (wider bars)
better "pokability" (slow speed abilities)
upright position without legs forward or back

personally unless you have a pair of long legs, the KLR650 is pretty tall and somewhat topheavy for a n00b

there were lots of mid sized UJM's (Universal Japanese Motorcycle) in the 80's .... I'd suggest a standard vs. a cruiser or a street racer if you can't find a DS that suits you.

everyone will tell you to get something bigger than a beginner needs ... look at what they use at the MSF courses

don't let your ego or your friends' advice land you on a KZ1000 or R6, because the one your looking at is "too small" or a "chick's bike".

you can always move up after you gain some skills and experience.

avoid lots of plastic!!! i.e. body panels that you will fuck up WHEN you drop it.

if you can avoid the freeway, a smaller bike is a good bet for starting out.

ask a knowledgable friend to check the mechanicals and road worthiness for you.

TAKE A COURSE LIKE MSF!!!!!!

[Grainbelt]

For $2500, I would much rather have a mid nineties GS500 or EX500 than an 80's cruiser.

There are a lot of of other options as well - Yamaha Seca II, Bandit 600. All docile mid-nineties standards with decent brakes, good leverage and cornering clearance.

[scarysharkface]

KLR650.

Or if you want to stay cheap, Honda CX500.

Both will run for-e-ver and are fun to ride.

[rocker59]

650 or 700 Honda Nighthawk.

You don't wanna crash a bike that old, though, if you plan on fixing it.

Parts will be hard to come-by...

[rocker59]

Originally Posted by Grainbelt

For $2500, I would much rather have a mid nineties GS500 or EX500 than an 80's cruiser.

+1

two good bikes...

[Yad]

Originally Posted by EvilGenius

I thought I'd try road warriors since what I'm looking for isn't horribly old nor is it a maintenance issue, but if this belongs in old school, I appologize.

I'm looking for my first bike which will be used for commuting. I was originally looking at ninja 250 but after a long look I'm just not interested in them. My next choice was possibly a nighthawk 250, but there's not really any on craigslist right now.

So now I'm looking a little towards some 80s honda cruisers. I'm not a huge cruiser guy but so long as its not too stretched out, I dont think I'll mind that much and I've always heeard great things about the shadows.

I'm curious, do you guys think a 600-750cc cruiser is too much for a new guy?I'vealways heard that they're more docile than say a sport or sport/standard or similar engine size. I'm also open to suggestions of different brands. The big things are I'm trying not to go over $2500, needs to be cheap on insurance (I'm 20 yrs old with no offences) and gas mileage isnt as big of a deal so long as it gets atleast 55-60mpg.

Theres a few on craigslist around here, I'll post them later since I can't copy/paste on my phone.

the other posts didn't directly answer your question - this isn't probably a cruiser-heavy web site and personal preferences always come in, so I'll chip in my 2 cents. You heard right, a 600-750 cc cruiser is WAY more docile than a similar sized sports bike or even standard, and yes I think that they're reasonable choices for someone with less experience. Nice torque and lower seat height make them easy to ride. Depending on your size, make sure you're comfortable on it (for example, I like the Shadow Aero 750, but very much dislike the Suzuki Savage (LS650) which has very heavy steering and weird ergonomics). With your budget and goals, I don't think you really need to reach back to the 80's, but be sure to save some money back for helmet, gear, and tires ($500 ish maybe?). Go slow, have fun!

[Eurobiker]

Honda CX500 or CX650. These later came in cruiser style, but I would go with one of these Standards. I think Honda called them "Deluxe" back in the day. Tons of midrange for around town locamotion, but can also handle the highway just fine. Shaft drive, twin simplicity. What's not to like? Decent examples are $900-$1200

[EvilGenius]

I should've put this in the first post. I've already got a KBC modular helmet, tourmaster intake jacket, some icon ti-max (the new kind) gloves and I'm getting ready to order some joerocket alter-ego pants. So I think I'm good position on gear. I already took the MSF and I won't be using the freeways (hell I don't even use them now unless I'm going somewhere far away). My initial thoughts were 250-350cc because I know big motors aren't exactly newbie friendly and I don't have any intentions of playing motoGP on the streets anyways so I'm not exactly looking for a sport bike. Like I said I'm not a huge cruiser guy but that doesn't mean I don't like them, just the really stretched out ridiculous kind where you don't have any room to leverage the bars anymore. I'm 5'10" with a 32" inseam and about 200lbs. I think I could handle a DS if I had too, but I'd like to try and keep the weight down low while I'm still inexperienced. Like many have said before, your first bike isn't likely to be your last bike, so I'm not worried about getting exactly what I want. I'm just looking for a standard or cruiser bike much like what dominated the market in the 80's.

I really appreciate all the replies so far!!

Here's what I'm looking at at the moment.

http://dallas.craigslist.org/mcy/598516261.html

I checked for some CX's but didn't find any which is a shame because they're so cool.

[yooperbikemike]

Look for a 750 Sabre or Magna.

[30Bones]

Originally Posted by yooperbikemike

Look for a 750 Sabre or Magna.

Another good bike if you can find them cheap enough and rideable.

[hpsVFR]

Originally Posted by EvilGenius

I should've put this in the first post.
[gear, MSF, freeways, lower displacement snipped]

Like I said I'm not a huge cruiser guy but that doesn't mean I don't like them, just the really stretched out ridiculous kind where you don't have any room to leverage the bars anymore. I'm 5'10" with a 32" inseam and about 200lbs. I think I could handle a DS if I had too, but I'd like to try and keep the weight down low while I'm still inexperienced. Like many have said before, your first bike isn't likely to be your last bike, so I'm not worried about getting exactly what I want. I'm just looking for a standard or cruiser bike much like what dominated the market in the 80's.

Near as I can tell, your situation is as follows: you're looking for a bike to commute on. You're not going to buy new (right?), so you're constrained by what's available used. You like the UJM or 'standard cruiser' (is that even a non-made-up-on-the-spot category? ) look. You appear to have put a fair bit of thought into your motorcycling so far, and into this decision as well.

Your discussion of displacement in terms of friendly power, and mentioning wanting to keep weight lower for easier handling makes me think that you understand the purpose of the standard advice: to get a person on a bike that's comfortable, easy to control, and tolerant of mistakes.

Given all this, I'm inclined to give you an anti-recommendation, so to speak: just about any standard-looking bike will do what you want. Find one that's comfortable and in very good condition. Newer is better, for reliability more than performance. Another way of putting this advice is that you appear to both know what you want and to have a reasonable attitude towards the features that are relevant to a newer rider. Because of this, I don't think you need us to tell you what bikes to look at, so much as for you to find some people (perhaps even here at this site? ) who can look at a bike you're considering and tell you 'that's too expensive' or 'check the trans. cover for leaks; that seal is a PITA to replace' and similar. Ideally you'd find someone who lives near to you who is both willing and able to look over a few bikes with you and provide a reality check on price and condition.

fwiw, anyway.

[Grinnin]

I think you're on the right track. I'm no fan of cruisers but cruisers generally have low center-of-gravity and low seat. Peter Egan says cruisers are so popular because of their "accessibility"; they're easy to get out of the garage and easy to push around at the gas station or parking lot. The flip side is that they usually have terrible clearance for leaning.

I like my CX500, but I'm glad it wasn't my first bike. It's very top-heavy and has limited steering lock. I was able to learn parking lot skills with a lighter and easier to handle bike before working "up" to CX500. I happened to learn on a CB360 which is about 90 pounds lighter with a lower seat, lower center of gravity, and more nimble handling.

Ask 10 ADVers and you'll get 20 opinions. I'd recommend an '80s standard of less than 400 pounds. Throw a leg over a KLR650 and ask yourself if you want to learn on something so tall.