Transitioning from a cruiser to a sport bike | GTAMotorcycle.com

Transitioning from a cruiser to a sport bike

malinda

Member
Hi, I have been riding for a couple of years on a Vulcan 500. I wanted to try out a sport bike next, and have been eyeballing a few in the 600cc class (namely GSXR and CBR). However, when i made the trip to the local dealership, I saw the Triumph Daytona and all the other models went right out the window- it's been my favorite sport bike for a while now! The seating position was less aggressive than i thought it would be, and i basically fell in love!

I know that it is a huge leap from the Vulcan, but was wondering, has anyone else made a transition like this? Or is it better to start off with a smaller sport bike?
 
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How much riding experience do you have? How mature are you on a bike? I went from a 450 to a 750 after a half season...but that was from a Nighthawk to a Sabre. Still a big step, but I was going cross continent. Going to a SS is a different story. Depends on your experience and control.
 
Wow, that is a big leap! I have 2 years of riding experience. Still love the cruiser, but also want to try a sport bike!
 
Wow, that is a big leap! I have 2 years of riding experience. Still love the cruiser, but also want to try a sport bike!

You might be disappointed, the 600 class especially is dead below 7-8-9k rpms

Cant really use them in their powerband until your doing license suspending speeds.(Or so i hear)
(By the time the real power starts to come on, your already on the radar of most cops in your area)

Not to mention insurance costs.

See if you can test ride before you buy.

Would be kind of silly to buy a SS only to ride 80 km/h all day
 
get both. Maybe try an older SS to start.

It's not just about the power band though. The riding attitude is different.
 
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suppose it would be agile compared to a cruiser.


Just be sure to get the insurance quotes before getting the SS
 
I don't think that's an option-I'm 5'3 so would need to have it lowered, at least until I'm more used to the bike and feel comfortable holding it up at a light with one foot down.
 
What would be the advantage of getting an older SS?Or are you strictly talking from the perspective of potentially dropping it?
 
I don't think that's an option-I'm 5'3 so would need to have it lowered, at least until I'm more used to the bike and feel comfortable holding it up at a light with one foot down.

I don't think that's an option-I'm 5'3 so would need to have it lowered, at least until I'm more used to the bike and feel comfortable holding it up at a light with one foot down.
 
i think he probably means to see if you like it or not, so if you dont, you can sell it or not lose too much money on it.

As opposed to getting a brand new R6 for 13k(They dont update them anymore anyway so theres no difference between current and older gen, for the reasons i stated above about their lack of street usability, in addition to saving money, you wont be missing out on much anyway)
 
Yeah older is less $$ and marginally less power. Go for a older sport bike as opposed to a newer SuperSport. Maybe something like ZX6 or Katana. I've had both and they are tamer than my current bike and definitely tamer than my past Gixxer....all 600cc.
 
There are a few nice-looking "sport-touring" bikes in the 600-650 class. They have the advantage of more usable power at legal speeds so to me, they are a little more fun for everyday riding. At 5'3", you have a lot of options as most bike can be lowered for very little money. The FZR has an adjustable seat. Sage advice earlier of buying and trying before selling your existing ride if you have room and funds. You can always "undo" for the price of the tax & transfer if you dive into the used market.
 
STOP. Before you go any further, check into insurance prices, and whether you can even get insurance for one.

Also, lowering a bike messes with the suspension, and changes things, usually in a not nice way.
Not the best thing to find out when you accidentally enter a corner a little too fast.
If you can shave down the seat enough, that would be the way to go.
 
In my opinion go for it. I don't think an SS is a great bike for a new rider not just because of the power. The whole experience can be overwhelming with the riding position, how sensitive the controls are and learning to ride all at the same time. If you've ridden a reasonable amount over the past two years you can pick up on riding a SS. Be careful of the front brake at first as it will be much much more powerful then what you are used to, but learn that front brake as you will rely on it much more then you have been on a cruiser. Otherwise respect the bike and have fun. I actually find sport bikes a little bit easier to ride then cruisers.

If you do end up getting one and are going to lower it get it done by someone that knows what they're doing. You want to minimize any changes to the geometry of the bike.
 
Went from a 04 gs500 to 09 gsxr 600 at the end of my second season. Was a terrific experience. First couple times I took it around I was pretty sure it was going to kill me. Now it's second nature, very happy with the choice and I ride it 100km every day.
Found out the previous owner went - 1/+2 which gave it a lot of bottom end pep. I also notice it surge forward a little at 5/6k rpm telling me it's ready to go, so don't worry about never having power.

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
 
There are a few nice-looking "sport-touring" bikes in the 600-650 class. They have the advantage of more usable power at legal speeds so to me, they are a little more fun for everyday riding. At 5'3", you have a lot of options as most bike can be lowered for very little money. The FZR has an adjustable seat. Sage advice earlier of buying and trying before selling your existing ride if you have room and funds. You can always "undo" for the price of the tax & transfer if you dive into the used market.

I actually called up a friend who had an FZ6R and recently got gsxr750, and he said it was still a massive adjustment for him. I've been thinking for a while that I wanted a sport bike next. I was thinking maybe the end of the season, or next year. But i was actually hit by a car last week going through an intersection. The guy was at a full and complete stop, but poorly timed an attempted turn because he stepped on the gas when I was already there. I just got word yesterday that the bike is probably a write off :( Still waiting to hear from the adjuster, but it sounds like most likely I won't be able to go back to my old ride
 
You might be disappointed, the 600 class especially is dead below 7-8-9k rpms

Cant really use them in their powerband until your doing license suspending speeds.(Or so i hear)
(By the time the real power starts to come on, your already on the radar of most cops in your area)

Not to mention insurance costs.

See if you can test ride before you buy.

Would be kind of silly to buy a SS only to ride 80 km/h all day

You can rev a bike (or any vehicle for that matter) up into the power band if you need to without even going anywhere. It'll just put a bit more wear on the clutch but the wet clutch on a sport bike is designed to handle that to a point. My 125 2-stroke needs to be revved over 6k for decent power if you want a quick launch, rarely have a problem out accelerating the other traffic doing that even though I've got way less power on tap than say a 600.

Insurance would definitely be the killer for this plan for me.
 
STOP. Before you go any further, check into insurance prices, and whether you can even get insurance for one.

Also, lowering a bike messes with the suspension, and changes things, usually in a not nice way.
Not the best thing to find out when you accidentally enter a corner a little too fast.
If you can shave down the seat enough, that would be the way to go.


Also, since you mentioned insurance, despite it's popularity on this board every insurance company I've talked to about lowering a bike said they would not insure a lowered bike and would not honor any claims made on one that has been lowered at all.
 
Went from a 04 gs500 to 09 gsxr 600 at the end of my second season. Was a terrific experience. First couple times I took it around I was pretty sure it was going to kill me. Now it's second nature, very happy with the choice and I ride it 100km every day.
Found out the previous owner went - 1/+2 which gave it a lot of bottom end pep. I also notice it surge forward a little at 5/6k rpm telling me it's ready to go, so don't worry about never having power.

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk




gsxr600 was one of my top choices for a while actually. was it overwhelming going from the 500 to 600? One thing i'm prepared for is a super responsive throttle and brakes. What were some of the things you found scariest on your first ride?
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk[/QUOTE]
 
gsxr600 was one of my top choices for a while actually. was it overwhelming going from the 500 to 600? One thing i'm prepared for is a super responsive throttle and brakes. What were some of the things you found scariest on your first ride?
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
[/QUOTE]
Just be lean forward and hold on the first time. After a few rides everything is natural. Mine came with a/b/c mode. Full power/half throttle, full power/half power full throttle.
Use B if you're just getting used to it, but now I don't even touch it and run A mode all the time.

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
 

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