• There has been a recent cluster of spammers accessing BARFer accounts and posting spam. To safeguard your account, please consider changing your password. It would be even better to take the additional step of enabling 2 Factor Authentication (2FA) on your BARF account. Read more here.

is there a big difference between 500 and 600 or 750

Karbon said:
1.3k miles in ONE YEAR,
Click to expand...

1.3K in a year is very far from enough. Personally, from my own experience at that mileage I did not even think about about changing from my 250. I just started thinking about maybe changing a bike at about 3.5K - 4K. And it took me a some ~1K more miles/ couple month to finally commit to that decision.

Its all about you, your experience:
- what is your age? Age affects your judgement.
- what is your car driving experience?
- did you have any accidents, tickets?
Sounds like insurance company? Yes, they know why all this matters, statistically. Check your rate on 600cc, it might tell you something about should you go there.
 
I think what the OP is trying to say is that he has ridden his 250 for 1300 miles and now wants to know if he should get the 500 as planned, or skip up to a 600 or 750.
 
andy75 said:
My question is there a big different going from a 500 to a 600 or 750.
Click to expand...

Yes. A Ninja 500 is what, like 40-odd horsepower? A 600 makes 110, a 750, what like 130-140 now? Plus the suspension is much more taut and jarring, the riding position much more extreme and the throttle much more sensitive. The torque curve is linear, not flat, which means the power curve is parabolic.

Who cares though? Just like the rest of us did, you want one. You will, you'll think it's a crazy bike at first, then get a speeding ticket or two, then after a couple of years and a test ride on something less track-biased you'll realize it's not what you really want. Today that means you end up on a supermoto, but by then supermoto will be dead and it'll be the next big street bike trend. Then you'll realize that this bike's motor is much more useful, but you can't carry shit with you, leading you to your next bike purchase.

Right about then you'll realize you miss the rush that your first sportbike brought you, so you'll buy another one, but only ride it occasionally, mostly on sunday mornings.

Buy what you want, or let others tell you what you want and then be unhappy because someone else is running your life. Just don't blame others for the potential misfortune. You either make your choices or you don't; you don't get to own the good ones and blame others for the bad ones.
 
p4i1 said:
1.3K in a year is very far from enough. Personally, from my own experience at that mileage I did not even think about about changing from my 250. I just started thinking about maybe changing a bike at about 3.5K - 4K. And it took me a some ~1K more miles/ couple month to finally commit to that decision.

Its all about you, your experience:
- what is your age? Age affects your judgement.
- what is your car driving experience?
- did you have any accidents, tickets?
Sounds like insurance company? Yes, they know why all this matters, statistically. Check your rate on 600cc, it might tell you something about should you go there.
Click to expand...

Curious, what made you believe that after 5k miles you were ready for a modern super sport?
 
Karbon said:
Curious, what made you believe that after 5k miles you were ready for a modern super sport?
Click to expand...

Not exactly to 600. But the problem is that if you want a "track" machine, with sport riding position there is no other choice on US market other than going to 600. All other bikes are more street oriented with standard riding position. If there were 450RR I would rather take it
 
1300 miles in a year isn't enough to know what you don't know.

IOW, I would suggest staying on your current ride for a while - quite a while.

Whatever you do, the worst possible decision would be to go from a starter bike like your 250 to something that's faster and less forgiving than an Indy car, like a 600.

If you must move up, do so down the road, say after another 5K miles or so, and then consider a V twin, or a twin. Better ergos, suspension, plenty of power, etc.

Use your current ride to explore twisty roads and build up your skill set.

Bottom line, a sport bike will get you in trouble faster, faster than your brain will be able to avoid it. You have to work up to it.

It's like learning to glide or getting your rating in a Cessna 172 and then transitioning directly into an F/A 18 without the benefit of training or simulators. Believe it.
 
OP. I'll skip the discussion on experience as that has been well covered already (i.e. go out and ride more!). But read rritterson's response...the numbers 500, 600, 650, 750 are misleading, as one would assume there is a correlation between size of number and "difficulty" where in fact there isn't. A 650 is easier for a new rider than a 600 in many cases. The more useful numbers are horsepower and torque. Generally speaking bikes with significantly larger torque and horsepower numbers require a higher degree of skill than bikes with lower numbers (especially if we are talking about a difference by factors of 2 or 3). These require enough experience to keep your survival instincts at bay so you don't abruptly grab a handful of those rather powerful brakes (overwhelming your contact patch) nor accidentally and abruptly give too much throttle at an inopportune time. One needs to be "smooth" (slow gradual transitions) and that is much easier to learn on a less responsive machine.

My opinion is that for the early stages of riding, which you are in, one should keep with a "smaller" bike meaning 250, 500 (e.g. ninja 500), or an "easy" 650 (like the SV650 as has already been mentioned). Although a 250 is all you ever need (to quote GaryJ), it's nice to have a bit more acceleration available if you are on the freeway or want to pass someone.
 
Last edited:
Get the ninja 500 , 650 or SV650, learn to ride a twin well then get the inline 4.
Where twins are almost easy to ride, a 600 supersport is actually some work to ride, at least for me.
 
p4i1 said:
Not exactly to 600. But the problem is that if you want a "track" machine, with sport riding position there is no other choice on US market other than going to 600. All other bikes are more street oriented with standard riding position. If there were 450RR I would rather take it
Click to expand...

Are You riding on the track?
 
^^You couldn't get better track advise that AFM199 gives...and I'm thinkin he didn't advise a 600 for you.

I'm betting you will be riding that 600 on the street, with little or next to none track time, or dedicated set-up for the track.

I could be totally wrong...since never met ya...but...I hope you can prove me wrong..cause I have high hopes for You.....in spite of this 600 issue.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for all the inputs

thanks all for the information.
I an not a speed nut, I just thought a bigger bike like a 650 would be more comfortable to ride, I know when I had my 250 I was getting blow around on the hwy, so on my Ninja 500r I was more stable because of the weight and the ride was better also the power of going 70-80mph without the motor screaming.
I think I will stick to my 500r for a while until my skills pick up, since I am only a Sunday morning rider. Ya no need to get over my head with a 750 and crash. Thanks all and hope to meet you guys on groups rides later on.
 
A GSXR750 has substantially more torque than any 600 across the powerband, hence the high-siding, rear-sliding behavior Ernie was referring too. Don't get one because you think you are too fat for a 600 or think you'll be bored on a 600. IMHO, they're for a track rider who has 600 seat time or an EXPERIENCED street guy who doesn't want a liter bike, maybe because of insurance or something, or just wants a powerful bike that handles a little better.

I also agree with everyone else, at 1300 miles your skills are pretty rudimentary and you'd be better off with a cheaper bike that's easier to ride for quite a few more miles.

Edit, just read your post above and think you have good judgement. Please forgive if I sounded like I was piling on:)
 
Last edited:
Speaking from my experience, I started out with EX-500 and moved on to GSXR-750, take your time with the EX-500. It's a fun, light-ish bike and you can toss it around the corner pretty easily. I spent about 8k miles commuting and riding twisties before upgrading. I still love the 500 and don't want to part way with it.
 
andy75 said:
thanks all for the information.
.................... Thanks all and hope to meet you guys on groups rides later on.
Click to expand...


:thumbup

Hope to see you down the road !
 
My supermoto is about to be for sale. Might be good middle ground but it's really just a toy, not a bike you can tour on unless you are super manly which I am not.
 
under 8 months and little less than 8,000 miles (new rider) on a 250cc...cruising 80+ mph on freeways, bridges, rough roads, strong gusts of wind, passing trucks...no problems now...stable at any speed...but, need to practice the twisties and leans more...sprocket changes basically keeps me entertained and never bored...front is quite easy to replace for different riding conditions...bigger for higher cruising speed...smaller for tire spinning wheelie popping torquey little beast...if you feel like your bike is underpowered for your weight or feel like you can handle more power, and don't mind cutting down a little on the top cruising speed...just go one size down on the front sprocket (or, three up on the rear and longer chain)...sprocket changes can really bring new fun to your old bike...if you think you can handle even more power, go for both...1 down front and 3 up rear...
 
Last edited:
andy75 said:
thanks all for the information.
I an not a speed nut, I just thought a bigger bike like a 650 would be more comfortable to ride, I know when I had my 250 I was getting blow around on the hwy, so on my Ninja 500r I was more stable because of the weight and the ride was better also the power of going 70-80mph without the motor screaming.
I think I will stick to my 500r for a while until my skills pick up, since I am only a Sunday morning rider. Ya no need to get over my head with a 750 and crash. Thanks all and hope to meet you guys on groups rides later on.
Click to expand...

:thumbup

Consider a track school in the next year or two before you buy a "faster" bike.

You will find that often the fastest riders are NOT on the sportiest bikes.
 
The difference between a Ninja 500 and a GSXR 750 is huge. Even 500 to any sportbike 600 is pretty big.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top