I want to buy a street bike.

[MickMcGeough]

Originally Posted by SHOGUN

How much insurance do you guys pay for your sport bike?

Depending on who you go through, displacement is a big factor. When I had a 250R it costed $378 for the year with all coverages maxed. My Dad's 1200cc Goldwing is around $1200.

[3 Justin 3]

Insurance is the next thing I have to check out. Hopefully it won't cost too much for an R6.

[metallicat]

I go through Bulger Insurance, but it's actually Jevco out of Quebec. Look into them.

[3 Justin 3]

Hey guys, if you guys bought a used bike, how much did you haggle down? My dad figures I can get about $500 off.

My budget is $3500-4000 for the bike itself, and have been looking at bikes up to $4500 (only 2 I believe). There are a couple of R6's that look in good condition, some look good but have more km than the other.

There was one b-e-a-u-tiful Honda CBR600 2005 I believe with like 17000 KM, for $3600. Sadly it is way at Slave Lake, and I really don't want to take a 4-5 hour ride out there just to test a bike and then not like it or find out it has a problem.

I'm looking mostly at R6's, a couple CBR600's and a few Kawasaki Ninja 600's. If push comes to shove I'll look at SV650's but I really don't like their naked look, enough to consider not buying it.

I'd link the ones I am looking hard at, but I don't want anyone buying one out from under me.

[Hi-Psi]

I just finished my course at Too Cool Motorcycle School today! I have to say, they put on a great course! Trevor, Jordan and Rene are great instructors and the things they teach you are well worth the cost of the course.

Now I gotta find myself a bike, so far I haven't found anything I really like online, might go into a few shops this weekend and see if something catches my eye.

Oh and as for a first bike, I honestly feel like the Ninja 250's just aren't beefy enough, I also feel though that maybe a 600+ would be too much bike to start off with. I feel like it would be best to start on a 500 or something but I can't seem to find anything that I like in that range.

The search continues....

[3 Justin 3]

Nice Hi-Psi! The stores in Calgary have barely any used bikes though and I don't suggest getting new right off the back. Used ones are way cheaper, unless you have money then go for it, but the lowest I saw was around $6500 for a 600cc, and like $3500ish for a 125cc. Not worth it IMO for a new bike.

I need to go write the theory test for the Class 6 this weekend, so I can take the road test right when I am done my lessons next Friday (then take the test on the Sunday). I can't really practice on anything before I take the test so better to take it as fast as possible.

Unless I buy a bike and then have my dad follow me around everywhere I go, haha.

[Mad Mel]

Originally Posted by 3 Justin 3

Nice Hi-Psi! The stores in Calgary have barely any used bikes though and I don't suggest getting new right off the back. Used ones are way cheaper, unless you have money then go for it, but the lowest I saw was around $6500 for a 600cc, and like $3500ish for a 125cc. Not worth it IMO for a new bike.

Agree entirely about getting a used bike to start with. Two reasons: First, you might think you know what you want, but until you spend a season or so on a bike, you really don't know. What you want once you spend lots of time on a bike might be quite a bit different. Second: You're gonna drop it. Everyone does. Everyone is embarrassed by it. But everyone does.

[Regulator75]

Random question.

In the Motorcycle world, what do regular (2 wheels) riders think of the Can-Am Spyder?

[Mad Mel]

Originally Posted by Regulator75

Random question.

In the Motorcycle world, what do regular (2 wheels) riders think of the Can-Am Spyder?

I think it's pretty nice. For a car.

[WilsonFourTwo]

Originally Posted by 3 Justin 3

Hey guys, if you guys bought a used bike, how much did you haggle down? My dad figures I can get about $500 off.

Here's the key to haggling on price........you have to be able to justify it. Nobody is going to cut their price "just because".

1. Know what the market looks like for a particular bike.
2. Be able to identify abuse to the bike (like it's been wheelied, dropped) or maintenance items (needs rubber, coming up on a major service).
3. Know roughly how much those items cost to address.

When I bought my SV650s, I paid the asking price. The bike was very well priced to the market, and in amazing condition. Truth be told, I sold it 2 years later for the same price.

My VFR was in really solid shape, but needed new tires to get into the same value range as other listings. Even once it made that category, it was a bit overpriced. I ended up paying ~$750 less than asking price.

[WilsonFourTwo]

Originally Posted by Regulator75

Random question.

In the Motorcycle world, what do regular (2 wheels) riders think of the Can-Am Spyder?

It's a really neat machine and (apparently) fun to ride.

I does kind of annoy me when they're compared to motorcycles though (warning, bike snob alert). Scooters have more in common with motorcycles. Spyders have more in common (general design, steering) with a Snowmobile.

Personally, I think that they're targeted to people who are interested in "looking the part". I suspect that most Spyder owners also own Hummers (an H3....not the actually badass ones).

[3 Justin 3]

Just wrote the Class 6 knowledge test. 2 of the 4 questions I got wrong were sign questions. They always choose the stupidest signs to use.

Regardless, my Road Test is May 18, 2 days before my birthday, so I am excited for that. Sucks I couldn't do it the Sunday but it was fully booked.

Also, the Alberta gov't can suck on my left nut. $120 for a Road Test is ridiculous. As well as $125 for the "Advanced Road Test" (I am GDL for my class 5). If I have no accidents or tickets for 3+ years, I shouldn't have to take the damned Advanced Road Test, my track record should be good enough, and if you want to test me, don't bend me over to do it.

Ah well, enough ranting, this thread is about Motorcycles.

[Bring_Back_Shantz]

Originally Posted by 3 Justin 3

Just wrote the Class 6 knowledge test. 2 of the 4 questions I got wrong were sign questions. They always choose the stupidest signs to use.

Regardless, my Road Test is May 18, 2 days before my birthday, so I am excited for that. Sucks I couldn't do it the Sunday but it was fully booked.

Also, the Alberta gov't can suck on my left nut. $120 for a Road Test is ridiculous. As well as $125 for the "Advanced Road Test" (I am GDL for my class 5). If I have no accidents or tickets for 3+ years, I shouldn't have to take the damned Advanced Road Test, my track record should be good enough, and if you want to test me, don't bend me over to do it.

Ah well, enough ranting, this thread is about Motorcycles.

You know who else has a perfectly clean driving record? People who get their GDL and then never drive again until 3 years later. There's no way for the gvt to be sure, so they test everyone. Can't say I think it's a bad idea either.

[Bring_Back_Shantz]

Originally Posted by Regulator75

Random question.

In the Motorcycle world, what do regular (2 wheels) riders think of the Can-Am Spyder?

Personally, I'm fundamentally opposed to any trike as I think it kind of defeats the purpose of having a bike.

That being said, my intended bike progression looks something like this:

Current bike: Yamaha MT-01
When I'm old enough: Honda Goldwing
When I'm too old for that: A Can-Am Spyder, or something silly like that.

[Josh]

I hope my body is never decrepit enough to own a Can-Am Spyder.

[Mad Mel]

For you dudes learning to ride over the next little while, I'm sure they talked about this in your course, but be goddamn careful out there with the gravel. Any place that sands the roads during winter is a bitch on a motorcycle for the first month or so of riding season, particularly in the city. Take 'er easy, look well ahead in the corners, and when you see gravel, don't look at the gravel, look where you want to go, and the motorcycle will follow.

[3 Justin 3]

I'm riding around Balzac so it shouldn't be too bad. I think we're just doing parking lot for a lot of it.

[3 Justin 3]

So I got on the bike today. Was a lot of fun, drove around in circles and the like, haha. Basically just rode around in the "friction zone" and in first gear.

My problem is the damn bike never goes into neutral when the engine is on. I have to kill the engine every time to get it into neutral. I'll be in first and I come to a stop, and I am supposed to put it into neutral, so I tap up, then when I go to check (going into the friction zone), I just pull away, AKA I am still in gear. Getting really annoying because of my test next Wednesday they said I have to perform a stop where I put the gearbox into neutral, then back into gear and pull away. I'll try a different bike tomorrow and see if it is the bike or just me.

I'm driving around in a 2007 CBR125 by the way. They have a ton of motocross bikes, some cruisers, and maybe 3 CBR's. The CBR is nice because there is no choke or anything so starting it is a breeze. But that effing gearbox is pissing me off!

Going back tomorrow 30 minutes earlier so I can practice some more before the lessons start.

I stalled maybe 12 times HA. But by the end I wasn't stalling anymore so that's a positive. I kept letting go of the clutch without giving it any gas in first and "stall". But by the end I was good.

A couple of the guys in my group seem to have had some practice already.

Ah well, tomorrow I go and look at the R6 I am really interested in. Hopefully it is in good condition, has all the paper work, and has no "surprises" because if I don't find anything wrong and the paperwork is all good, then I'll be getting it.

[Mad Mel]

When you're missing neutral, is the bike shifting up to second, or sticking in first? Some bikes are easier to get into neutral by dropping down from second. It should have a neutral light on the instrument cluster (it's usually a bright green light), look for that before letting the clutch out.

Yeah, the stalling is the downside of smaller displacement bikes. No torque, so you gotta giver a little bit. Good in a way, teaches you good technique and keeps you from being sloppy. I've been riding a Bandit 1200 & 1250 for five years, and then bought a F800R a few months ago. I stall it every now and then (eg. this morning) because I'm not used to having to give it the throttle when taking off.

[fundmark19]

Don't worry justin I was driving around all summer when my buddy was showing me and I stalled a ton. I hope I remember the progress I made last year and can not stall as often