help need advice

i have 3grand to either buy a bike or put down on 1. if i put down on a bike ill get a rc51. my question is.. should i put down on an rc or buy a older used bike? first street bike btw.

and you're posting this question on an RC51 messageboard?


seriously, though - if it's your first street bike, i'd suggest getting an SV650. you can pick up one of those in good shape for around 3,000 or 3,500. it's a great bike for all skill levels, it's a twin and it's a ton of fun. get familiar with it and then when you're ready to sell it, you won't be stuck with a ton of depreciation - meaning you should be able to get 85% of your money back out of it. then get an RC.

that's pretty much what i did . . . although i didn't have the heart to sell my SV. it's my RC's little sometimes-neglected brother.

best of luck.


Modified by 5150 at 9:44 PM 6/1/2005

I'll second that notion. The SV will make a excellent first bike.

RC for a first bike sucks and the only people who will tell you otherwise are people whom have the RC as their first bike or like the RC so much that they forget whats its like to not have owned a bike or people that are just stupid.

Anyhow the SV is a great choice. My friend is faster on the track with his SV650 than he ever was with his 1000cc bike. The SV was his second sportbike and always says he wished nhe would have bought it first instead of taking the long painfull route he did.

SV for year then see if you still want the RC.

I agree with these guys! My first bike was an F4i. Thankfully, I had 10 years of dirt riding under my belt before I got that bike, or I woulda got hurt bad. For a 1st bike, even the F4i is a lot of bike. You have to remember, it's only 600cc, and now considered more as a sport touring type bike with the into of the 600rr, but it also revs to 14,200 and has almost 100hp! As mentioned, the SV650 would be a great choice IMO. I shit you not, after the 1st time I rode my 51, after experiencing it's "I do NOT like to go slow" attitude and having to slip the clutch so much in 1st compared to an I-4 600, one of the first things that popped into my mind was "damn, is there a worse beginner bike than this?"

I second, third and fourth agree with this guys.

Yeah, I would agree with everyone here (my first bike ever was a Ninja 250 with 29hp) and add to that - not only does the RC suck as a first bike, the RC even sucks as a stock bike IMO. It wasn't until I shoveled money into it that I really fell in love with the thing.

Other than the 250, I have only owned V-twins. Ridden inlines and just didn't enjoy them as much even ringing them out. SV650 is the way to go for a fun ride that you'll keep a while and could do track days, etc. on.

SV

wow this is one of the few times i think everyone will agree on the same thing!the sv will make a perfect first bike. its really easy to ride for a newbie and when the time comes for upgrades(and theres alot of them for the sv)itll keep you happy for time to come.the majority rules,you should get an sv!

get something small for the first bike. your gonna drop it or do somehting stupid on it. the RC isnt easy to fix.