First ride on bike other than my 636!

[stefano]

Well... it had to happen sooner or later... monogamy just ain't a lifelong thing

In reality I had already ridden another bike, which was the bike I used to pass my exam with - a Honda Transalp 600. But that doesn't count as I had no experience and was so worried about doing everything right that I never stopped to "take the bike in"...

Fast-forward to the 636 which I bought without either test-riding it, test-riding any other bike, or even sitting on the 636 or any other bike for that matter... thank God I can keep it upright at the stop lights

I have had it for 2 years now and have never ridden any other bike. I had the chance to ride a friend's Ducati Monster ST2R, but at the time I still had less than a year's experience under my belt and just didn't want to take the risk... those things are expensive

Fast-forward to this Saturday - I went for the last canyon carve of the season with my riding buddy, who has a Z 750. We've ridden several times together but never talked about switching bikes. On Saturday we stopped towards the end of the carve, where we had about half an hour to get home, so I just threw it out there, "You wanna switch bikes?" At first he was hesitant but then he's like, "Yeah sure, why not!" I think he was in the same position I was in last year with my other friend... he only bought his bike in March of this year!

Anyways, to shorten the story a bit, it was great fun! That Z750 is a great little toy Here is a little comparison of the 2 bikes from my point of view:

Seating position: no contest. That bike is a thousand times more comfortable than mine. Your weight is concentrated on your butt, not your wrists! Even though we had been riding for 7 and a half hours, switching to his bike felt like sitting on the Lazy Boy at home

Engine: a draw. Let me explain... to start off with, it must be stated that my bike has 30 more hp than his. So, in a straight battle, there would be no contest - my bike goes faster. The thing is that his bike's power delivery is much smoother... and in my opinion much more suited to the street. He has less hp, yes... but he also has more torque in the low and midrange. So when you crank the throttle with his bike, the engine "bites" immediately and then tends to slack off as you reach redline. Mine is the opposite... you crank the throttle and nothing happens for a second, then it starts building, then it all comes on in a flurry of rage However for street use his engine is better. Out of the slow corners you just whack it and the bike pulls you out. With mine you have to wait... and it's less fun!

Handling: again a draw. The Z750 is MUCH easier to flick into the corners, and much quicker to change direction. Mine is much better in mid-speed corners when you are already leaning - the bike is much more planted and goes round the corner on rails. The Z is a lot more wobbly - after the initial turn-in, keeping it leaned requires very smooth riding else both the front and back "pump" and the bike wobbles around. But for the type of roads we have around here, there is a lot more direction-changing, a lot more turning in, than long sweepers where you can rail. And mine, I have noticed, is A LOT more difficult to turn in and to change direction... you have to muscle the bike into the turns, wheras with the Z, a simple flick of countersteer will do the trick. In addition, you have to use your body a lot less. With the Z you can hang off the bike if you want to, though it's not really necessary. On the 636, if you don't hang off the bike... she just won't turn

Conclusion: I love my bike. I wouldn't change it for the world. But objectively, for a rider who wants to have fun in the twisties, knowing he will only be doing a limited amount of track riding, and doesn't want to have to WORK the bike but just turn it on and go... the Z 750, compared to my 636, is the ticket

And now that I've tried the 750... I sure would love to give her bigger sister a ride... Mayo, Ed... how far you guys away from me?

[daemon]

well....
i'm just across the pond...

a fellow rider here has a z750 as well and i have yet to ride it,but i know how well her and i are capable of railing the twisties...
she's fonder of the long sweepers and i just love to flip my beotch around like a red headed stepchild.

the throttle control of the Z1000 takes a bit to get used to,but once your there you will know why the call it a hooligan bike

[bennice]

If you ever get a chance, try riding a bike with a twin engine instead of the I-4. You should hit up the guy with the Duc again to see if he's still willing to let you take her for a test spin.

Variety is good!

[stefano]

Mayo, have you ever ridden a SS?

I ask because I always knew what "railing the corners" MEANT... I just never knew what it actually FELT LIKE until I rode my friend's Z... in the sense that my bike rails the corners... his does not! It's like riding a bucking bronco! I am sure a few suspension tweaks would help steady the bike in the corners, but there is just a world of difference between the 2 bikes, suspension tweaks or not. His, on the other hand, like I said, is much easier to chuck into the corners and change directions with.

Bennice, for sure man, I can't wait to try out a V-twin, from what I've been told, it's exactly the kind of engine I'm looking for... all the grunt down low

[zedx11]

setting up the suspension would make a world of difference I'm sure.

I know what you mean about the handling difference between bikes. even from year to year it can be different. the 06/07 10 is like what you are talking about having to manhandle in corners, the 08 that I test rode doesn't seem to be like that.

[bibi28]

I have ZX6R 2005 and I just tried ZX6R 2008 the other day and...........let me tell you. It felt like another brand bike to me.

[stefano]

Originally Posted by zedx11

setting up the suspension would make a world of difference I'm sure.

I know what you mean about the handling difference between bikes. even from year to year it can be different. the 06/07 10 is like what you are talking about having to manhandle in corners, the 08 that I test rode doesn't seem to be like that.

Funny, I'm quite sure my friend's model is the 08, the one with the butt dark pipe.

Take my "review" with a pinch of salt, as this is the only other bike I've ever ridden, but being used to my 636, it really felt wild in the corners!!!

[stefano]

Originally Posted by bibi28

I have ZX6R 2005 and I just tried ZX6R 2008 the other day and...........let me tell you. It felt like another brand bike to me.

Please explain.

[Svetlana]

mwuhahahahaha it's always good to switch things up (speaking of bikes, of course pfftttt)

Ideally, get a canyon carver and a daily ride....

[trikebubble]

Interesting. I've always liked the looks of the 750, and the Z1000 of course.
From my observations, when we were in Italy, the Z1000 and 750 were by far the most popular Japanese bikes on the road. They seemed to be everywhere.

[bibi28]

When I took it to the twisties I kinda felt that you can hold on to a gear longer than normal without sacrificing speed as the Ninja flier in an instant to 16,000rpm, beyond the gear's flash and into a euphoric range of revs.
At higher speed I noticed in no time you can trail the brake deep to the apex. The slipper clutch works better then on my 2005 zx6r
Riding overall I would say that the transition from brakes to turning to power is seamless.
Another usual ZX6R thing I noticed on corner exits the front end tends to get light but it is something that you get used to after a while.
I think it is a very nice 600cc rocket.

[zedx11]

Originally Posted by stefano

Funny, I'm quite sure my friend's model is the 08, the one with the butt dark pipe.

Take my "review" with a pinch of salt, as this is the only other bike I've ever ridden, but being used to my 636, it really felt wild in the corners!!!

I was comparing the ZX10, 06/07 to the 08 ZX10. you don't have to switch styles of bikes (SS to standard or even to cruiser) to feel a difference in handling. the nomad feels different than the V2K and not just the motor.

clear as mud?

[daemon]

i've rideen many different bikes in my days.
although i tend to like a more upright handling style for me.
being as how i am far too large for the bike i ride.
it is easy for me to tip the ZED to it's extreme and rail outta the corners.
i'll say this again.
i may not be the fastest,buti'm sure good at faking it.

have a look at a bit of footage i put up on the "video dump"

i'm running with a co-rider who is on a gixxer thou...

YouTube - Left Hand Canyon

[CrazyCracka]

yea Ive swapped bikes and ridden a lot of different bikes other then my own. Its always fun to do it and do a sorta mini bike review in your own eyes haha

as far as the 07 zx6r compared to the 06 there is a big difference for sure, but I still could ride my 06 faster than the 07, but maybe thats because Ive ridden it so much. But the 07 just felt like a smaller bike, less grunt down low but once it opens up its a blast just like the 06.

[stefano]

Originally Posted by bibi28

When I took it to the twisties I kinda felt that you can hold on to a gear longer than normal without sacrificing speed as the Ninja flier in an instant to 16,000rpm, beyond the gear's flash and into a euphoric range of revs.
At higher speed I noticed in no time you can trail the brake deep to the apex. The slipper clutch works better then on my 2005 zx6r
Riding overall I would say that the transition from brakes to turning to power is seamless.
Another usual ZX6R thing I noticed on corner exits the front end tends to get light but it is something that you get used to after a while.
I think it is a very nice 600cc rocket.

That is interesting.

Indeed I have heard that the 07/08 ZX6R is proving to be a better "track weapon" than the 05/06 model (better turn in and agility), even though many say that the powerband is simply way too biased towards the high revs and that the bike lacks low-end grunt.

I personally would never go for another bike that has less low end than my 06 636... I want more!

[stefano]

Originally Posted by zedx11

I was comparing the ZX10, 06/07 to the 08 ZX10.

Well you could have explained yourself better

[stefano]

Originally Posted by daemon

i've rideen many different bikes in my days.
although i tend to like a more upright handling style for me.
being as how i am far too large for the bike i ride.
it is easy for me to tip the ZED to it's extreme and rail outta the corners.
i'll say this again.
i may not be the fastest,buti'm sure good at faking it.

have a look at a bit of footage i put up on the "video dump"

i'm running with a co-rider who is on a gixxer thou...

YouTube - Left Hand Canyon

That's some nice riding right there. Do you have any videos where someone is filming you in action? Hard to tell how someone rides from onboard...

I don't doubt you can carve the canyons, I was simply curious to know if you had ridden a SS so that you have a means to compare.

As I've said, I've only ridden 2 bikes in my life. But in my limited experience, you RAIL corners with a 636... you do not rail them with a Z750... you hang on for dear life!

Maybe I was just trying to ride it too hard

[stefano]

Originally Posted by CrazyCracka

yea Ive swapped bikes and ridden a lot of different bikes other then my own. Its always fun to do it and do a sorta mini bike review in your own eyes haha

as far as the 07 zx6r compared to the 06 there is a big difference for sure, but I still could ride my 06 faster than the 07, but maybe thats because Ive ridden it so much. But the 07 just felt like a smaller bike, less grunt down low but once it opens up its a blast just like the 06.

Yeah definitely fun to swap bikes... something I'll be doing a lot more of in the future!

If you were to buy a dedicated track toy, would you go for the 05/06 or the 07/08?

If you were to keep a bike for mixed street and track use?

[CrazyCracka]

If you were to buy a dedicated track toy, would you go for the 05/06 or the 07/08?

Id get an r6!! haha no but between those two Id probably go with the 07/08 just because ohlins makes a full 25mm kit for it and the rear shock doesnt have the remote reservoir on it. Of course this is speaking as if money isnt an issue hehe!

If you were to keep a bike for mixed street and track use?

If I had a dedicated track bike I probably wouldnt take another bike there, specially one I used on the street, but right now Id either go 848 or the new cbr 1k. Although if it were strictly just street riding Id be VERY tempted to get a hypermotard

[stefano]

Originally Posted by CrazyCracka

Id get an r6!! haha no but between those two Id probably go with the 07/08 just because ohlins makes a full 25mm kit for it and the rear shock doesnt have the remote reservoir on it. Of course this is speaking as if money isnt an issue hehe!



If I had a dedicated track bike I probably wouldnt take another bike there, specially one I used on the street, but right now Id either go 848 or the new cbr 1k. Although if it were strictly just street riding Id be VERY tempted to get a hypermotard

For sure, the biggest thing I have to complain about on my 636 for track use is that ridiculous rear shock that you have to be a nuclear physicist to change the preload settings... what's up with that??? There's gotta be an easier way!

I will definitely be hanging on to my 636, when I get another bike I'll probably turn it into a track toy (where it really shines - 600 supersports are made for the track, not the street, there's just no way around it) and... get a 1098