Help in buying an R6

I started riding dirt when I was 5 on a little honda 50 I'm 26 now even with 21 years of experience (only 10 on road) I have a hard time recommending an inline 4 600 sport bike. the SV650 is a great place to start. The katana's are a solid bike but man are they HEAVY they have steel frames which is nice to not get blown around on the highway but if they start to tip over good luck saving it. If you aren;t a heavy set guy the Suzuki 650 will be more than enough bike for a while. Another bike no one has mentioned is a BMW Gs650
it's a single cylinder and aimed a the dual sport crowd they are great both on and off road. just a thought.

 

Problem is I am in Puerto Rico. Buying anything in the states is out of the question in terms of shipping and import tax fees. It should not be too much a problem if I wait long enough to find the right bike though.

As a side question. Is painting bikes too hard? Seems like not a lot of pieces to paint. I could probably take to a shop to make it mine... Seeing as I am buying used and I do not want a colored bike... Kinda want to keep the same theme I have with my Taco... Black and Matte Black with Red and Charcoal Grey accents.

 

painting isnt difficult most of the bikes in your range all you need is a couple sizes of allen keys a phillips and a flathead screwdriver and most fairings will come off. then just remove what ever decals are there and paint.

 

i will have to agree with you on that lol. it happend the day before i was going to the advanced sport bike riders course on base. Ironic? well that bike ended up getting stolen out of the garage at my apartment in san diego about 3 months after i replaced my upper and right mid fairing and i havent road since then

 

i hate crackheads that eff with bikes

http://www.craigslist.org/about/best/sfo/27499971.html

 

While I appreciate your last comment and I see how valuable it is, the first comment pisses me off, specially considering I am asking for help in this thread. If I was just another idiot just wanting a superbike to go 300 miles an hour, I would not have done this and I would not have changed my mind about the R6.

Perhaps those people who "MUST" have a superbike as a first bike, thought that the an R6 would not be as powerful. That was certainly my train of thought. I wanted an R6, because I thought it would be calm enough for me to handle. Now I know differently.

Also, most people who end up as blood stains on pavement, probably were speeding too much where they should not have. If I wanted speed, I'd go to a track, I got one close enough where I can drive whatever car/truck/bike/dragster I care to.

 

I really want a superbike... but I also REALLY don't want to get hurt or killed and I know my current limits.

Hence why I started on the Ninja 250R... I now have my 650R and its a great bike... the parallel twin engine has tons of low end torque and a flat power band. It was meant from riding... it is very easy to ride and can kill you if you are really dumb but is also VERY forgiving to noob mistakes.

I stand by my statement that the Ninja 650R and Suzuki SV650 are the best middle weight novice bike... you could not go wrong with either one.

The best beginner bike HANDS down is the Ninja 250R simple to ride, light, easiest maintenance possible, forgiving, looks like a sportbike, and great gas mileage (75+), but I do understand outgrowing it and getting bored...

 

I thought this was a truck forum lol

Let's not kid ourselves, you could get in over your head on any motorcycle. I can out ride some guys on r1's and I know one guy that can keep up with me on a 250. A 600 is a perfectly good first bike,my first bike was an 01 r6, then a 03 r1, 98 honda f3, 04 r6, and finally an 03 racebike, my point being your tastes as a rider will change anyway.

I saw a couple people recomend a suzuki sv 650, this would also make a good first bike.

Bottom line is do what is right for you, practice, get your suspension set up for you, do some track days and be safe

 

OP ever concider a dual sport? I started riding young but always had dual sports there easy to ride & fun. Then 2004 popped up & i bought my first sport bike & never looked back. Today I own both. I never liked the feel of the R6 not saying anything bad about it I just liked the balance & feel of the suzuki's better. Have fun on whatever you choose & if you dont like it sell it for something else. Its a free world
.

 

I rode the YZF6-R and it's a nice smooth powerband for an I-4. It's not peaky like the high-strung R6. I'm not a fan of twins (650 ninja, SV650, Gladius). Don't like the power delivery of a vibraty twin... I-4's are much smoother.

Sounds as if the OP decision is made. One thing I can say about the R6 is the torque is lacking in the lower revs. This is where you'll be riding around in for the most part anyway. Only if you rev 8K+ you'll get whiplash! Don't wind it out in 1st, you'll loop that thing before you know what happened!

 

sorry to bump this up but.....

at least your bike had miles on it this video popped into my mind for some reason this morning
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9zNUPDmnz4

 

ahhh a new busa and a idiot. lol that combo is never good. i have seen that also. a brand new orange busa leaving a parking lot and the rider was in a full suit and as he was leaving the parking lot he was revving and had clutch half way out... well at some point he let it all the way out and 12 0 clocked his new busa and jacked up his suit and helmet. what a great way to ruin a 14k bike and a 2k helmet and suit combo. OP just be smart about your purchase and you will be ok. oh and dual sports are pretty sweet to. i used to ride the canyons in SD and at the turn around our buddy would just go nuts climibing the hills on the sides of the roads. the dude was insane! he got ran off the road on that bike and broke his arm. then he took his clutch and put it on the other side and road like that. so this kid would use front brake,clutch and throttle all with his right hand with his left arm in a sling!

 

Ok so my instructor is telling me that I should be able to handle the R6 nicely based on my current skills and how they are quickly developing.

I however kind of agree with what most of you stated and I do not want to risk it, by getting something that does not go along with my actual skills.

I did some searching and the Ninja 650 you all suggested seemed like the best option for me. One problem however, I cannot find one anywhere here. Not even new. I can find any other like the 636R, but that is already high performance or the ZX line which is also supersport.

The only Ninja I found remotely close to the 650 is a 750.

Seems like it will be a while before I find one of these.

 

Go to a local bike shop...tell them what you want and they can order it...

 

Be smart, don't buy an r6 for your first bike. You'll wreck it or hurt yourself. Work your way up

 

BUCK said it right. It all depends on how well you handle the R6. Take it easy dont get too confident with it for first few months. My personal choice would be between Yamahas n hondas. They are all equally good. I started off with a cruiser Vstar 650 in 2007 and quickly out grew to sport bikes..and am late 30`s. I currently own a 86 Yamaha 750cc called Maxim X (smaller version of todays Vmax) and a 02 Suzuki bandit 1200. Other thing to consider is sport touring if you need some comfort. If bikes come modded with yosh pipes, michelin or metzler tires etc its even better as they cost lots of $$ to upgrade. Lastly apart from your instructors advise watch yourself on the road coz its the other bad drivers who will knock you off guard !! GOOD LUCK