First bike after DAS?

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Hey folks, I'm thinking about doing the DAS when I turn 21 in a few months, and I'm struggling to choose a bike. Obviously I don't want a 'Busa or 'Blade because I'm not stupid, but at the same time the reason I'm doing DAS is because I dont want a silly hairdryer that goes nowhere. So...I was thinking along the lines of a faired Fazer (prefer faired bikes) and then I saw the other thread there about the NC30 VFR400, which wet my appetite a bit. :D

Anybody know what bikes most schools use for training the DAS students on? I'd think whatever bike they use would also be a good first bike. :confused:

Cheers
 
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Hi
Most DAS instructors put you on something like a Honda CB500,not a bad bike to learn on but you'll soon be boared silly with it if you owned one.

If I were 'just starting out' in biking it would be either a Honda Hornet(although they have a very thin seat pad and are uncomfortable on a long ride) or a Suzuki SV650S.(all day long comfyness!!)

I have ridden both and although the Hornet was faster , I dont think I'd be able to live with the seat.

Yamaha's Fazer is also a contender but I havent ridden one for a few years and cant compare it to the other two I mentioned.from what I remember though it was comfy .

Dont know whats on offer from Kawazaki ,Duicati apart from the Monster 600,or Aprilia.

All you can realy do is test ride them all and choose one for yourself,once you've passed obviously;)

Good luck
RD
 
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er-5's seem popular with riding schools. great if you can get hold of a nice 400 but imo they are very hard to find and any you do find are going for premium prices. i'd jump at the chance of getting one but finding one that isn't a dog is very hard. fazers hornets bandits sv's all good bikes to start on and there's nothing wrong with a 600 full on sports for some people, just have to remember the bike has a lot more power and can come back and bite you on the ass if you don't respect it.
 
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I had a GPZ500s after I passed my DAS - fun little bike, it's basically the faired and slightly sportier version of the old ER5. Something like a Fazer or a bandit 600s are both good choices. Of course you could go for the CB500 which is a reliable machine, or go for some more fun with a fun little 400. Personally I feel I'm was a bit too big for a little 400 so wanted something a bit more substantial (though the gpz isn't really that much bigger). And then when I mastered that one, I moved onto my 600.

To be honest the throttle works both ways and you've got a decent head on your shoulders you shouldn't need to worry about overdoing it if you learn to take it easy. :)
 
Soldato
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Hmm you want a fast bike that isnt overkill considering that you will be just through DAS, and its got to be faired...

SV650?

Far and away my choice.
 
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I would looking at the Japanese sporty 400s

VFR400
CBR400
ZXR400
GSXR400
Most are imports - with the older imports you can get very cheap insurance with a certain club which I cannot remember for the life of me!

Otherwise something like an SV650 would be ideal :)
 
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I know a lot of people (including myself) that favour Bandits. The training school I used to spend my summers cleaning bikes for used them for all their DAS training and I can't find much to fault them for.
 
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Thanks thats got me plenty of ideas on what to go look out for, will look into them in terms of used prices and insurance and see what seems the best, then will report back to help decide again nearer the time, cheers. :)

PS. regarding insurance, would it be wise to see what my current car insurer can do for bikes or to look at a specialist bike insurer, one that would be more sympathetic to a 21 year old just after DAS? ;)
 
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GlasgowTitan said:
Thanks thats got me plenty of ideas on what to go look out for, will look into them in terms of used prices and insurance and see what seems the best, then will report back to help decide again nearer the time, cheers. :)

PS. regarding insurance, would it be wise to see what my current car insurer can do for bikes or to look at a specialist bike insurer, one that would be more sympathetic to a 21 year old just after DAS? ;)

get as many quotes from as many places as possible, a company that quoted cheapest for me 2 years running is http://www.hrinsurance.co.uk/index.asp?ref= but they may not be the cheapest for you so shop around.
 
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I passed about 2months ago and finally bought my first bike last week, a 1999 R6, I havent really rode much else other than the ER5 etc during my lessons. The R6 feels hellishly quicker, but after 4 days of riding its going well. The bike doesnt start going mad till after 8k so its controllable when taking it easy.

Would I recommend one as a first bike? Depends on the rider really, if you can control yourself, yes. If you cant, your likely to get into trouble pretty quickly.
Insurance was actually less than the SV650 with motorcycle direct and is only around £500 a year (21yr, no ncb, pretty bad area).
 
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GSXRMovistar said:
Not to mention cheaper for road tax as it's sub 600cc (unlike the SV).

I didnt know that, tbh I dont even know the bike tax criteria.
I was surprised when I got a quote on the SV and it was more than the R6, not complaining though.
 
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moss said:
I didnt know that, tbh I dont even know the bike tax criteria.
I was surprised when I got a quote on the SV and it was more than the R6, not complaining though.
Less than 150cc £15.00
150cc to 400cc £30.00
401cc to 600cc £45.00
all others £60.00

Kinda silly as the cc doesn't really mean too much, most sports 600s have twice the bhp of larger commuting classed (sensible) bikes.
 
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None of the 600 class bikes will dissappoint, but in my opinion the 600 fazer is the win...

The latest version witht the r6 motor is fab.. and they are a much nicer ride than the sportsbikes...

My bikes went DAS, ZX6r Duke 748 then fazer 1000

I never looked back to my sportsbike days once I got the fazer...

It would keep up with everything to about 150mph and soooo much easier to live with

:D
 
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Maybe an old bandit 600 for a few months to give you some practice (can be had for as little as £600), then in winter when the prices plummet pick up a bargain gsxr600/r6/ZXR6.
Alex
 
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