GSXR's are great
bikes. 750's have always been awesome. They handle, they're light, they got
power. Now the best thing you can do is put that bike away for about a year or
two! I'm serious. Modern 600's are quickly becoming too big to start on.
750's are way way way beyond what you can use on the street and outright
dangerous in the hands of a novice. I can guarantee you that unless you turn
out to be a world class level racer, you will not come close to 50% of what
that thing is capable of on the street. I'm not trying to put you down, I'm in
the same boat and it is for that reason that I don't see myself getting on a
sportbike of similar displacement on the street in my lifetime. Let me give
you an analogy. Say you're trying to learn to drive. Would you start with a
Formula 1 car? I didn't think so. And with bikes, it's not only about safety.
Your level of enjoyment and how quickly you learn will be inversely
proportional to how scared you are. In the case of this particular bike,
you'll be scared to death and never learn anything. If you do stay on two
wheels, it'll probably be through always keeping it out of rev range and going
slower than a Harley. Sound fun?
What to learn on instead? Suzuki GS500E, Kawasaki EX500, Buell Blast, Honda
Nightawk 600 or 750 (it's not a sportbike) are all great. Don't be afraid to
get too small a bike; be afraid to get too big a bike. Enough preaching
though. Let me try to answer your questions.
- how much did you pay for insurance (6months....1year)
- As much as I preach about safety, I haven't been the most law-abiding citizen.
For one, I haven't had a stable street bike in a long time. Last one I rode on
the street was a CBR 600 F3 (just like my race bike) and I never got around to
insuring it (don't tell anyone). I sold it because I kept getting stopped by
po-po. So, I'm not sure how much it would have been. It all depends on your
driving record, your age, and the vehicle in question. It pays to shop around
of course, so call up a few places before settling on one, but see how much
your current carrier will charge to put a bike on the same policy as your car
(if you have one insured right now). Oh, and insurance is another reason 750's
are no good for your right now. That shit in NY even with a good driving
record would probably be in the neighborhood of $1000 a year for someone your
age. Quite possibly more. To start somewhere, check out
http://www.progressive.com and do their quote. Se what it comes out at.
- what shop did you take your bike...i'd like to become friends with a shop
- I'm not impartial about NY shops. I love Cycle Therapy
(http://www.cycletherapynyc.com). They're a great bunch of guys and I've been
friends with the owner for a few years. Note I never mentioned that they're
great mechanics. They're average. Don't expect miracles. I haven't taken a
bike to a shop in some time and for a good reason -- shops suck. They're not
malicious, it's just that they're expensive and they're not careful and no
matter how great of a mechanic you are, the fact that it's not your bike will
affect the work you do. So guess what, Cycle Therapy, being on good personal
terms with me and having me in the back helping out and giving me breaks on
parts and all that still would fuck up with certain jobs right in front of me.
You won't be able to do everything yourself right off the bat, but the quicker
you start, the more money you'll save and the happier your bike will be. How
to learn? First, whatever bike you end up riding, get a proper factory manual
for that model for that year. Get some books about masics of how bikes work.
There's a buttload of info online too. But you can't learn everything
yourself. There's a really awesome mechanic in NY by the name Armen Armirian.
He teaches bike mechanics classes with hands-on instructions in a number of
schools a few times a year. I think his email is "amirian@yahoo.com". He is
very knowledgable and a great guy, always willing to help. Get in touch with
him. If the email doesn't work, you could probably call Queens College and ask
about his classes. Also get on a mailing list so you can get in touch with
people and ask questions. NYCMoto is a really good one. Search for them on
the web.
- any advice....any tools or books i should invest in?
- Tools. Never buy crappy tools. It'll cost you much more than the difference
between the crap and the good stuff. The best shit you can buy is made by
Snap-on, but it's very expensive and they don't sell their stuff in stores.
However, Craftsman is quite sufficient until you become a professional
mechanic. Take a car and get your ass over to Sears. To get enough things to
start with, you'll probably end up dropping no less than $400. Sounds like a
lot? It's only the beginning. Right now I could spend $1000 in 20 minutes
without blinking an eye on tools I actually need. Here's what to get for
starters:
- wrenches (real wrenches, not that adjustable crap) -- 8 through 19 mm
- sockets -- Sockets can be long, medium and short and they can be for 1/4",
3/8", or 1/2" ratchet drivers. Get short and medium 1/4" sockets from 6 to 12
mm; short and long 3/8" from 10 to 22 mm; and finally short ones for 1/2" from
like 17 to 29 mm. Medium and long sockets can sometimes be substituted with
extensions, so you don't have to go crazy with them covering all sizes, but
short sockets are very important.
- extensions and adapters -- Get 3 extentions for each driver size. Get
adapters. At least these: 3/8" to 1/2", 3/8" to 1/4", and 1/4" to 3/8".
- ratchets -- You want at least 3 basic ratchets to match the 3 driver sizes.
- torque wrenches -- If you know what I'm talking about that's good, if you
don't you really need to hit the books. Basically it's a tool that allows you
to torque down a bolt or a nut or anything that can be turned with a ratchet to
a specified torque value. It's very important and you want to make sure you
get a good one (click type as opposed to a dial type -- just ask someone at
Sears) and under no circumstances drop them. Craftsman ones can be had for
somewhere between $60 and $100, so definitely don't drop them. You want at
least two: one that goes up to about 80 ft/lbs and one up to 50 ft/lbs. There
will be a big overlap, but the reason you want more than one is because these
things get inaccurate in their lower operating range, so even if the big one
has a 20 ft/lbs setting, you don't wanna use it for that. To store them, you
should unwind them to the lowest setting and also send them off one a year or
so to get calibrated.
- multimeter -- Yes, electrics suck, but sometimes your bike is dead and it's
some stupid electrical problem. You'll need to be able to measure voltage,
amperage, and occasionally resistance.
- tire pressure gauge -- Don't they have those at gas stations? Yes, but they
might as well not have them at all. You want to get one that is NOT a sliding
thingy type, but rather has a dial, digital or not, and also a bleeding valve
would be nice. Also if the hose is too short, it'll make it difficult to get
to the nipple on the front wheel because a lot of bikes nowadays have two big
brake discs up front. Having right tire pressure is vital to your safety and
you wanna check it often (like every day you ride). I check it on my race bike
every time I come out of the pits.
- screwdrivers -- Don't go cheap here. It's very tempting. Spend around $40
on a reasonably decent set. It should have different lengths, and very
importantly have #1 and #2 screwdrivers for both flathead and philipshead.
They also have to feel good in your hand, so try to hold it before you buy it.
There are a number of other automotive tools to get -- too much to remember
right now, but those are the most important ones. You'll also have plenty of
moments when you need a tool and don't have one, so your tool collection will
grow and improve as long as you keep working on the bike and learning more
about it. Aside from tools, you'll need a rear bike stand (most sportbikes
don't have center stands). Those things help when you need to keep it upright
or the rear wheel off the ground. I recommend Pit Bull, but if you don't use
it a lot, you can get away with a Lockhart Philips. Go to a bike shop to get
one.
There are plenty of good books. I don't know specific ones about mechanics,
but I can definitely recommend some stuff about riding skills. Keith Code
raced in World GP's in the 80's and has written a few really nice books about
riding and racing. Check out Twist of the Wrist, Twist of the Wrist II, and
The Soft Science of Motorcycle Road Racing. His language is simple and
sometimes repetitive, but gets the point across and you understand the reasons
behind everything he's talking about.
Okay, last couple things. Get good gear. No, get great gear. A lot of people
think a small novelty helmet and sunglasses is good enough. At the risk of
sounding insensitive, when they get their brains splattered all over the road,
they were asking for it. Spend no less that $400 on a full face helmet. There
are many different kinds. I love Arai, but they're expensive. Without
sacrificing safety, but with a little less comfort, you can go with a Shoei or
HJC. There are other brands, so go to a shop and just ask them and try
different ones on. A thing to remember about helmets is that they work exactly
once. You dump it and the helmet has marks on it -- chuck it and get another
one. Never buy a used helmet. You'll need gloves. Again, you have a big
variance it price. Basically you want thick leather with flexibility, good
fitment, and plenty of padding. It also has to cover your wrist and go OVER
the sleeve of your jacket. I like Held a lot (about $100). Hand injuries are
lasting and very painful. Boots. You want protection for your shim, a hard
soul, your ankle flexible, but protected from the side. Heavy duty hiking
boots can be okay, but I recommend real motorcycle boots. Jacket and pants.
The best thing is a one piece racing suit, but it's not the most comfortable
thing to wear in a club and it doesn't impress chicks any. Again, you're
looking for thick leather, padding (shoulders, knees, elbows). If you can get
one with a back protector built in, that's great. If not, or the one that's
built in is a pitiful little plate that doesn't do anything, get a separate
back protector that covers your entire spine. Kidney padding would be a plus
too.
After you spend over $1000 to look like an alien, learn to ride. Get some
comfort on the street, but as soon as possible after that get your ass over to
the race track for a school. A lot of people think they know how to ride and
don't need to race, so why take classes? First of all, being faster is not
bad. Secondly, just because you can go fast, doesn't mean you have to, but at
normal street speeds you will definitely be a whole lot safer. Thirdly, you
will never ever be able to do on the street what you can do on the racetrack.
At the moment I don't have a street bike and I couldn't give two shits. I
think riding on the street is boring. I'm not being judgemental, it's just
that the track is that fun. Trust me. I don't remember what the good schools
back east are at the moment, but take a look at http://www.teampromotion.com
and ask around on NYCMoto.
Above all, have fun. If it's not fun, it ain't worth it. Sorry for such a
long message, but this is like one tenth of what I could tell you. So, take it
easy and be safe. Ask me anything that comes to mind. Good luck.
=====
Alexey
1995, 1998 Honda CBR600F3 (CCS)
1981 Ford Econoline
Briggs & Stratton
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