[N3GATIVEZER0]

Hello, I'm a 20 year old guy in Orlando, FL who has recently been bitten by the urge to get a motorcycle. For awhile I didn't think I'd care for a sportbike at all and was probably going to go with a Honda Magna or something to that effect, but my girlfriend's dad (a 55 year old psychologist) convinced me that a sportbike might be cooler. Yeah I know it sounds wierd but I was all , "I don't care about looking cool, I don't need a crotch rocket, I just want to ride around on a motorcycle." Then he said, "Ah, guys your age usually just put on a backpack and ride on one of those sportbikes and go". I'm not sure if it was reverse-psychology, but if it was he sucks at it. After decided I might want a sportbike I did a bit of digging on the prices of differnet bikes and bam, here I am. In a few months when my budget allows I'm going to either buy a new 250R or a used 500R depending on what's around. Heck, if I can get a used 250R I might go for one of those. Only real reason I would want to go new is to save myself some cash once I break something on the bike. Either way I have months until I've put enough away for the safety gear and the motorcycle. Oh quick question, I've been trying to find different color schemes for this bike but I haven't seen any real list. Can you help me out?

 

[gorillahandz]

Hello Negative Zero, you're making a great choice in the 250R or 500R. They're both great bikes to learn on and inexpensive to insure. I'd suggest buying used because depending on how good of a price you get you can sell it close to what you paid for it in a year or two, which basically means you rented the bike for little more than the insurance cost.

As for the list of color schemes maybe this site can help you out:
http://www.ninjaguide.com/specs/
Check the spec sheets for the colors available for that particular year. That site is pretty cool in that it has a lot of info on the Ninjas. Check out that forum too if you have any questions there. Good luck, and don't forget to take the Motorcycle Safety Foundation Beginner Rider Course ( http://www.msf-usa.org/ ) Good luck!

 

[QKENUF4U]

good to see you have more than 2 brain cells in your head. dont fall for the SQUID **** about that bike being too slow/ugly etc. just look at their back tires and ask them about the 4" wide flat spot and 2" of UNUSED tire on the sides. lol learn how to use that bike to its max. and youll be passing the SQUIDS on the outside. maybe you cant go 160mph and ride wheelies for miles and miles but who *uckin cares, your riding.
its a good choice and even though your not required to have insurance get it anyways to COVER YOUR A$$ and the other person that may be involved your accident (if you have one,knock on wood)
good luck

 

[nathan600r]

Get a used one, in a few years it won't lose it's value so much, and it will be cheaper not more expensive.....I'm not sure where you got that idea.

 

[NinjaGirl]

Welcome!! :wink:

 

[2WheelFun]

Welcome and good luck on your purchase!

 

[N3GATIVEZER0]

sorry, didn't realize there was a main lobby for this type of stuff.

The reason I said it seemed better to get a new one was because around Orlando all I seem to see are bikes that people are selling either at or barely below the MSRP of the new model of the same vehicle. I've got plenty of time before I buy so I'll keep an eye out.

Has anyone bought a bike off of ebay? I wouldn't have originally considered it at all but 250r/500r seems to be much cheaper in other parts of the country.

 

[N3GATIVEZER0]

so what are the steps to get into the saddle of a bike? is it like

1. go take a ridercourse
2. go buy gear
3. go buy bike

?

 

[Freakinout]

so what are the steps to get into the saddle of a bike? is it like

1. go take a ridercourse
2. go buy gear
3. go buy bike

?

Take the MSF Safety course ( www.msf-usa.org )
I'd say buy bike and gear at the same time. That way you can get gear that won't look funky with the bike.
You should be able to find dealership to try on gear, if it fits you will wear it.

 

[2WheelFun]

I found my bike on www.cycletrader.com

It was located on the Western side of the state so I drove around 450 miles to get there. I spoke with the salesman a few times on the phone and with his help I decided to buy it. At the time I could not find a bike around here. I had been looking for about a year when the one I bought popped up. It was worth the trip and it's a pleasure to drive.

 

[bikeaholic]

re

rider course,rider course,rider course :grin:

 

[Green Knight]

good to see you have more than 2 brain cells in your head. dont fall for the SQUID **** about that bike being too slow/ugly etc. just look at their back tires and ask them about the 4" wide flat spot and 2" of UNUSED tire on the sides. lol learn how to use that bike to its max. and youll be passing the SQUIDS on the outside. maybe you cant go 160mph and ride wheelies for miles and miles but who *uckin cares, your riding.
its a good choice and even though your not required to have insurance get it anyways to COVER YOUR A$$ and the other person that may be involved your accident (if you have one,knock on wood)
good luck

Just in case that first part was directed at me (no I'm not taking offence to it, if you think you can out ride me in the twisties I'd be up for the challenge) I'll take a pic of my new tires once I get em worked in about the middle of next summer. FYI I have about 1/4 to 1/2 an inch of a chicken strip on my ZX9R , thats a lot less than most of the people here I'd wager. There is just a lack of good twisties around here . Have to go about 60 to 80 miles away from home just to get to some decent roads for that kinda stuff . If I'm going to get called a squid cause I think a 250 is ugly by all means, change my title to squid . Slow? Yeah, compared to mine its slow but its all some peole need. I didn't pick my bike on speed. In fact I know it has more power than I need. I picked it on looks and comfort.

But on the other hand, great that you're getting into bikes and it is great you're starting out small. You'll learn how to ride a bike much better on the smaller one to start you off with. (no, I'm not a hipocryte. My first bike was not my 900 ) I started on an old 750.

 

[N3GATIVEZER0]

it's not that i care to start off small, i just want to start off cheap. Those two things just seem to go hand in hand.

 

[Green Knight]

it's not that i care to start off small, i just want to start off cheap. Those two things just seem to go hand in hand.

I can totaly agree with that. There is no use in putting HORDS of cash into a hobby you might not want to continue....


WHAT AM I SAYING!!!!! MUST RIDE MUST RIDE!!!!


Ok, but really. Yeah, your first bike should be a cheap one. I'm sure glad it wasn't a $6,000 bike that I low sided when I get a patch of sand on a road when i was a noobie. I hope you do enjoy our sport though and continue your entire life. Having a motorcycle is like belonging to a special club. No matter what brand or what size or what kind you ride, you still belong and you will understand what I mean. You'll meet new people you would never know if you didn't ride and you will have things to talk about you would normaly never talk about.

Good luck man, rubber side down.

 

[ispeed77]

welcome to the forum. i will agree with some of the others in saying buying used might be the way to go, especially for a first bike. whether you decide to upgrade or not, you'll be better off learning on a used bike. that said, i swear by ebay. i have purchased numerous items of there, including my truck and an old Bronco. i also sold a couple bikes. i would recommend it, but that is me. either way, good luck and keep us posted.

 

[N3GATIVEZER0]

Great! So can you give me any kind of tips when looking into items that I see on ebay? What type of questions should I ask and what should I be looking for on the bike? I usually see a few without a posted vin number and that gets me suspicious but is it normal for people not to post it? I see many "salvaged" titles online, should I totally not even consider buying those?

 

[ispeed77]

hmmm, tips for ebay. well, i would set up an account. that way you can click "watch this item" and it will go into your list. you can watch quite a few items at once so you stay up on what is out there. you can also do a search and then save that setting to be emailed to you with updates. meaning, if you search for a specific model or accessory, you can set it up to email you updates every day of new listings within your search parameters. you may not need to do this, as they have a lot of the models listed now. as far as the vin #, that probably just means that the person was lazy or didn't have the info right in front of them when they posted the auction. you can ask them to add it to the listing, at least for piece of mind. i think i would probably do that, just so you know the vin that you are getting. salvage titles are a personal choice. you can get some deals, but you can also get into problems. there are people on here that have gone that route and have had good luck. if you are careful and can see that the person appears to be listing truthful info, then go for it. but, again, it comes down to personal choice. good luck with your searching, hope that helps you out some.

david

 

[N3GATIVEZER0]

I'm an ebay pro when it comes to normal stuff, but a motorcycle is a different story mostly because I know so little about them.

About the salvaged thing, what is that all about? Does it mean I have to pay some extra insurance fee, or that I have to get some type of special paperwork done or something? Also what about motorcycles with titles in other states, how does that work if I want to use it here in Florida?

 

[ispeed77]

i don't know Florida rules, but as far as the out of state titles, you shouldn't have a problem there. all you do is bring the old title to the registry like you normally would. the salvage stuff may be a little different. i am not sure if the registry needs paperwork deeming it road worthy, but i would think not. the only thing i know about those is that if you were to get a loan for the bike, the bank might need some paperwork on it, like an inspection from a certified place, or something like that. i highly doubt you would have any problems registering it.

 

[2WheelFun]

When I bought my neighbors 650 Yamaha he had put it storage after his divorce in 1985. It sat in storage until February of 2004 with 3400 miles on it. When he sold it to me he never could find the paper work (registration, title) so I had to take it to DMV and have them do an inspection and get a new title for it. Even though my neighbor was the original owner and could vouch for his ownership....to many years had passed and it had fallen out of the DMV database. It took all of 15 minutes for the inspection and the paperwork to be completed and then I headed to the licensing dept and got the new title / registration.