Looking to buy an older beginner bike for the wife!

[silascopathic_imp]

yea, that is a good point. I am going to see what her thoughts are on Saturday night when she comes home from the class.

[HondaJon_imp]

Seems like everyone outgrows the 250's pretty fast, here are a few suggestions that should prevent a "250 trade in" ;

Suzuki SV 650 - This bike is just fun to ride, great balance and low $$
get a 2003 or newer (Fuel Injection).

Nighthawk 750 - lots around, easy to ride, low maint.

New Honda CB 500F -ABS is available - great option to have, especially for a brand new rider.

[silascopathic_imp]

good suggestions HondaJon. She is definitely itching to get one soon! ahhaha

[oldgoat01_imp]

Smaller bikes are much easier to handle, easier to recover from mistakes (the toe dab maneuver) and tend to cost less to repair if dropped. (there is a reason why they use the bikes they do for the safety courses). Get a bike that is too heavy or cumbersome and she won't like riding. Get a bike that is easy to ride and she may like it and want to move up. If she does, you can flip a used 250cc bike for what you paid for it. Shop around and you can probably even make some $ since a used 250cc with 34000 miles is worth the same as one with 39000 miles and it won't take anywhere near 5000 miles before she will know if she likes it. Plus she is more likely to know what she wants in a bike after having ridden one awhile. So I vote used 250 knowing if she likes it, you may be out a couple of hundred, if not, you may be out a couple of hundred. But what the heck do I know, my wife won't get near my bike.

[silascopathic_imp]

old goat, those are some choice words.. you make a good point. Thank you

[frankflynn_imp]

my wife has become interested in riding so i got her a used honda hawk as a starter bike. it is a 400 cc 2 cylinder parallel that is even available with an automatic. i got a 78 hawk 2, which even had front disc brake. it has enough power to pull us both along with no problems, and me (at 185#) at 90+ mph. mileage is also 40+ mpg, and seat height is just over 30". it weighs in at only 326 pounds--roughly 200 pounds less than a cb750 or cb1100.

unfortunately after hearing about the automatic hawk she wants one of them instead--and for some reason they sell for considerably more than the 5 speed versions, opposite of the cb750 automatic which sells for much less than the 5 speed version.

jt

p.s. at around $1k for a nice used/running bike i figure she can ride it a while and if she gets tired of it i could give it away and be ahead of buying a newer model.

[Deanohh_imp]

Didn't see anything yet on what bike SHE wants. Let her pick it.... Reason for choice doesn't matter... Take my word for it.

[meowguy_imp]

I used a very nice Honda 250 Nighthawk at the MSF course. It was a sweet little bike that felt much bigger than it's size. And, it's a Honda of course.

[fishmitch_imp]

check out my 1975 cb400f in the classified forum.very nice beginner bike. she will look like she's riding a mini 1100.thanx,mitch

[bubblerboy64_imp]

Personally I think it wise to start small and work up even if it does cost a little money. The thought of needing to trade up shortly after buying a first bike is a positive not a negative. Let her be the judge but there is no reason NOT to buy a 250 and then move up a size or two in six months or so. Money for this is cheap. Getting in over her head could be a very serious mistake. We tend to forget but it can be challenging enough for a new rider why add to it. Spend the couple bucks to do it safely. Buy her a nice used 250 for $2500 and if you loose $500 on it be happy for it. If you get her a larger bike and it goes down for her you at the very least will spend three or four time that money if no injuries.