Thinking about getting a motorbike

Anyone own motorbikes here?
Any opinions or advice for someone interested in possibly getting one?

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en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzuki_Bandit_series
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I'm not looking for a crotch rocket to speed with.

I have a 2001 Heritage Springer I'll sell you. Of course, using the word "motorbike" probably means you're a Eurofag, so I don't know how you'd get it over there.

Bikes are badass. Pic related is my bike. Ask me anything, OP.
Maybe also specify where you live and how old you are, since that matters into what advice is better for you and what you can or should do best.

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to further elaborate, I am interested in the relatively low cost of maintenance/operation and a balance of fuel efficiency and comfort for when I go on 6+ hour long road trips across states.

bike owners are suicidal fucking morons

tell us how you really feel

Good. Since you're in the land of the free, you get it the easy way.

The US motorcycle license is universal, that means once you have it, you can ride -any- motorcycle you want, no restrictions like here in European caliphate.

Go look up the nearest Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) license course, it costs about 250 bucks and counts as the practical portion of your license exam. You'll also need a DOT approved helmet and maybe also gloves. You can get a brain bucket for as low as 40 bucks (but you really should get a good one)

The bike you're looking for for long tours is the Honda Goldwing. Pretty much what you're looking for based on your description here.

Cost of ownership/maintenance is almost nothing compared to a car, but here are some pointers to keep an eye on:


bikes with a chain drive (many of them) need to have their chain lubed every 600-1000km (750 miles?) and cleaned when dirty.

Both cleaner and grease are literally just spray cans you spray on the chain. No scrubbing required if you stick to the interval. You can forego the lubing entirely by attaching a Scottoiler, a 30$ aftermarket automatic lube dispenser.


every 30k miles or so, depending on the bike.
Noteworthy part of the maintenance since it requires tools and the average joe goes to a mechanic for this. Time-consuming work and is usually the most expensive part of the service list, with up to 800 dollars in more extreme cases.


bike tires only last 3000 to 4000 miles or so. That's just how it is. If you're doing highway miles look into getting a car tire on the rear wheel, it's called darksiding and would actually make sense in your case.

All in all, bikes will always out-economy any car per mile driven, unless you pit some hyper-sportsbike against a 3k shitbox civic.

Hope that helped.

you gonna die

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This

Death is quick, messy and spectacular.

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Choose a Suzuki GSF bike user. Incredibly smooth and balanced, perfect for a beginner. I recommend the GSF-600
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzuki_Bandit_series

just get a normal bike

meep meep only kikes use motorbikes tbh no homo

i had one.
it scared the shit out of me
sports bikes are a death cult

i would suggest getting a 4 stroke dirt bike first and becoming quite proficient on that first.

Skid on your side or back unless you want to mutilate your penis.

This. I would even go as far as suggesting you start with a shitty moped before getting a real bike, it's a big step up from a pushbike and you really can't afford any accidents with it. Hitting the throttle a little harder than you intended can end with you getting decimated by a car.

one thing i found when first riding was how difficult it was to corner sharply at high speed. it was so easy to understeer and suddenly you're on the fucking verge or right in another lane and you cant get the bike back quickly. or you panic and then hit the breaks and then you're even more fucked.

get a wr250 or something similar and learn basic control on some soft forgiving earth unless you want to die

I was surprised at how fast it actually feels. You can be going 20mph and it feels like you are going super fast, I don't know if it is because of the wind or something but 20mph doesn't feel that fast in a car. I was also surprised at how tricky it was to get a hang of the brakes I expected to just be like a fast push bike but it really isn't. It's a lot of fun though, it just feels very dangerous.

Good advice. Yeah if you're going to be riding performance style you better have some good meats on you're bike that are made for it.

I don't know if this is a possibility for you but you ought to get a proper education, including lots of cornering at speed, emergency braking without ABS, and counter-steering; all on a track. This is what will eventually save your life. Learn it by heart so you can and will do it in an emergency situation. Find a school to teach you.
I know the quality of drivers/riders education in American nations is piss poor and barely makes you proficient enough to turn the vehicle on, but with motorcycles you best believe it's you that's going to die if you fuck up. So take it seriously.


Goldwing is a pretty shitty place to start. Especially in the absence of proper professional instruction. Somewhere in the 600 range is going to be much more manageable as a first bike. Until you learn by heart how to keep a bike upright and walk with it a 400kg bike is a pretty unmanageable thing.
If you're going 1000+ touring, there's also the option of a BMW, which I would personally prefer. I delude myself into believing that BMW is better at computer control than Honda. Also the market here in The United European Emirates is flooded with cheap, reliable '90s BMWs. They'll go 300k (km) easy, so one sitting at 150k might seem like it's done but it will serve you well for decades.

If money is an issue, maybe a Suzuki GZ250, but the effective speed limit will be right around 100km/h so not ideal if you want to go on the highway. Also it's a Suzuki, so you had best be good with tools. It'll be good in the city though, and cheap on gas. Plus there's always parking for a tiny bike.

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This guy is all over the place. . He should get his shit together.

No, bikes are not badass. Only some of the riders are.
gif related

lol wtf. ebin.

Is that a professional stunt?

you're joking right?

No, the save seems too perfect. Why would he plough into the back of a car like that? What I mean is is it a rough cut from a movie or something.

Because he's weaving like a moron and the car cuts him off. He was just extremely lucky.

you're exchanging safety and comfort for speed and parking space. come back at me after you slam the pavement at 260 miles/hour you fucking moron. i don't know if you motorbike owners have a low opinion of yourselves, hate yourselves, or if you're straight up damaged. is it because you think it's cool? you think it's cool to go super fast in a leather jacket and a helmet? what are you gonna do when it's summer? either way, you will always smell like gasoline, engine oil and sweat. you're better off jumping off buildings, at least this way you'll cause less harm to people. fucking fags.

they're called motorcycles you fucking pleb

If you do manage to make a Kawasaki H2R street legal then the top speed is still only 249mph, and it's going to be difficult for you to get to that speed anywhere near a pavement.

It would be difficult to get to it on a straight track. Most people just can't handle that level of speed.

i was just trying to make a point. what if you go flying off your bike after an accident?

What if I go flying out the window of my car after an accident?
Take appropriate steps to protect yourself and just ride like you have some common sense.
If I lowside on my bike I'm wearing impact protection on my knees, hips, elbows, shoulders and back, as well as copious amounts of abrasion protection in the form of goretex, kevlar and leather over my entire body. If I highside I'm gonna hope that I don't snap my back in half upon landing.
No it's not as safe as a properly equipped, large, modern car with 21 airbags all around for safety but then my car is a VW Up! which is, let's be honest, pretty damn basic.
I don't really see the point in arguing about the relative safety of various classes of transport. You're probably driving a comparatively small car when you could be driving an 18-wheeler, which would be a lot safer. Probably by a comparable amount to the bike:car ratio of safety. If you're outside of an urban area in the US it's not even that impractical; but presumably you enjoy driving your car. Well, I don't like driving cars. I enjoy riding a motorcycle, and I don't have to ride like an imbecile to do so.

And agile as a fucking cat. His reflexes and balance seem to indicate he must have been on an incredible adrenaline high when he crashed. Not super surprising, it's addictive tbh.

Tits or GTFO.

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