The General Motorbikers Discussion Thread

[British_Rover]

Originally Posted by KaJuN

You might as well try a low cash offer. The worst you'll get is a "no" and then you can work up from there. Heck it worked with my Disco, I offered $1000 less than the asking price and he took it.

In other motorbiking news my scoot has a new addition which I posted a photo of in the group. I figured it was a good way to mark the first anniversary of my bike's first ride in over three years and my first ride ever.

Nothing wrong with making a low offer at all as long as it is reasonable. What you don't want to do is make a low ball stupid offer as that will just insult the person in a private party sale. I get low ball stupid offers all the time in sales but I don't let it insult me because I don't have a personal connection to the product. In a private party sale sometimes people can be very attached to the object which is why you sometimes see truly ridiculous asking prices.


There is also nothing wrong with asking for all the money when you know you have the right product in the right situation. I did that twice last week with new cars that would normally sell between 3,000 and 5,000 dollars off as I felt the unique situations of each sale would let me get a higher price. In both situations I gave the gentleman prices that would usually be too high but because of the unique situations I thought I could get more.

The first customer counter offered with a price about a 1,000 dollars less then my original offer which I accepted. Total discount on that vehicle was about 2,000 dollars or 3,000 dollars less then normal.

The second customer wouldn't give me a specific counter offer so I just offered up an additional 500 dollars off and he accepted. Sometimes people just want to feel like they won. The additional 500 dollars brought the total discount to about 1,000 dollars or about 2,000 dollars less then normal.

[Bugatti's Aftershave]

Thanks for all the tips guys, but I was just about to head over there and the guy suddenly calls me up to say that he sold it. I was really looking forward to owning that bike, too.

[JuggernautRM]

Wsup guys. I have become interested in motorcycles for the past year. The fact of gas prices, parking problems have made my small interested in bikes into a real consideration in buying one. I've always liked them and wanted to get one, but now I have a reason to get one.

I've been looking at the bikes and I have realized that I lean more to Harley style bikes instead of the japanese rice rockets.

Bikes that kinda look like this one

and this one
and this one
are what I hope I can eventually get to riding later on. But I know I have to start somewhere. Now I was hoping you guys would give me advice and tips on what kind of bikes to start off on so I can get used to riding these types of bikes so I can eventually start riding those.

[Spectre]

There really is only one choice for those beginners intending to ride cruisers, isn't there?

Honda Rebel 250:

[BlaRo]

^ I wonder what that would look like lowered with a bobbed fender.

And you could always go for the MRC-special Suzuki Eliminator 125 - a.k.a. what I learned to ride on:

[Spectre]

The 125 isn't powerful enough to go on a freeway...

[BlaRo]

Originally Posted by Spectre

The 125 isn't powerful enough to go on a freeway...

I was more being sarcastic anyway.

[tigger]

Originally Posted by JuggernautRM

I've been looking at the bikes and I have realized that I lean more to Harley style bikes instead of the japanese rice rockets.

Well if you can swing the costs, go for a Harley. But prices for those bikes and related parts (both factory and aftermarket) seem to be pretty inflated. I've wanted an old Harley, chopped up into some kind of street-fighter/cafe-racer thing, for a long time now but the cost is prohibitive. Now I just want to get my hands on a '70s Honda or Yamaha and build something crazy like this ...


But I'll probably just wind up fixing my Yamaha; getting 40mpg (instead of 16) would be nice right about now.

[Blind_Io]

I started on a 1986 Honda Shadow 500 - but then again, I'm Sasquatch.

[Redliner]

Originally Posted by Blind_Io

I started on a 1986 Honda Shadow 500 - but then again, I'm Sasquatch.

I am 6'2" and rode a Honda Strada for 8 months

before upgrading to a Suzuki GSXF750.
I felt like this sometimes:

[JuggernautRM]

Im about 6' tall and around 210 pounds. So anything really small might not be comfortable for me.

[Jon]

DEAR GOD PEOPLE...

I just went on the back of an R1 with it's reigns free and i think i'm a changed man

THE ACCELERATION... MY GOD THE ACCELERATION.. I blinked, looked down and all of a sudden we're doing 130mph.. When he lined us up down a massive straight road, set of the bomb in his right wrist.. My expression in my helmet was just '' constantly.. I couldn't believe how fast this thing could get to such speeds..

I don't know how i'm gonna get on my 125 in the morning

[avanti]

welcome to the world of crotch rockets, there is nothing quite like it!

Sell the civic and upgrade your bike as soon as you hit 21!

[Jon]

Originally Posted by avanti

welcome to the world of crotch rockets, there is nothing quite like it!

Sell the civic and upgrade your bike as soon as you hit 21!

Sweet fuck hell fire I am..

[avanti]

^^ Good boy, I do recommend the Suzuki GSX-R750, the best of both worlds!

[Jon]

I've got my heart set on a CBR600 to be honest.. I love the look and the sound of the thing..

[Karoug]

Originally Posted by Jon

DEAR GOD PEOPLE...

I just went on the back of an R1 with it's reigns free and i think i'm a changed man

THE ACCELERATION... MY GOD THE ACCELERATION..

Welcome to our world.. There's no turning back!

[Spectre]

If you want a ludicrously fast Honda, try the RC51, CBR1000RR, or the CBR1100XX.

Originally Posted by avanti

^^ Good boy, I do recommend the Suzuki GSX-R750, the best of both worlds!

What, the world of going stupendously fast and the world of bikes that are totally unforgiving and tend to get their riders killed?

[Peter3hg]

OK motor bicycle people. Exams are now finished () so it's time to look seriously at changing my bike. There are various options but I have largely narrowed it down to these two.

Honda CBF500. It's a 54 (September 2004-March 2005) plate, done just shy of 10,000 miles and they want £2,395.



Kawasaki ER6. This is on an 06 (March 2006-September 2006) plate, 12,000 miles on the clock and going for £2,495.




There are various pros and cons for each. The Kwak is more powerful but this is largely redundant as I'm restricted to 33bhp for over a year anyway. The Kwak is also more exciting and comes with better brakes and suspension. The Honda is likely to be more reliable and has better build quality.
At the moment I am leaning towards the Honda as 90% of my riding is commuting a reasonable distance to Uni so comfort and reliability are important.
I seriously considered the Suzuki SV650 but at 6'4" and 19st, I found it very cramped when I sat on it.
If anyone has any other suggestions I'll be glad to here them but I have ruled out most others for various reasons.

[hansvonaxion]

For big guys looking for a 250cc or low power bike I can recommend a Honda Hornet 250. It uses the same frame as the 600 and 900 so its a relatively big bike. It handles well, has a comfortable riding position, looks good and uses the same engine as the CBR250 which is a real screamer.

250


900