So TJ you are saying say £750 will only buy a knackered 125?

Yup

Have a look on autotrader – there is a honda CG at £800 that might be OK and a few damaged repairables / write offs including a Yamaha TW at £950 that might be OK and would be a nice bike if it is OK

TJ is talking sense he can just rough people up the wrong way when he is making a point sometimes 🙂

I think what he is saying if your not careful you could be put off before you get chance to experience the fun side of riding.

Having a bike you can actually use is important. If its going to be a toy and for fun it actually needs to be fun. If its not it will rust in the garage. I might ride 50miles to visit a mate for no reason on my bike but would not do that in the car as the journey will be part of the reason for going. Would not do that on a 125 as it would be tiresome. But I also would not go just round the corner as I always put my leathers on so can’t be bothered to do that for a 1 mile trip down the road so I either walk or take the car. So I would probably not bother using a 125.

125’s carry a premium because its easy for people to access them without a lot of peripheral cost. They don’t do a lot of miles before they need work and can be quite tiring to ride. Also tend to be owned by people running them on a budget and can be neglected.

So if you have something that is useful you will use it more and enjoy it 🙂

I would probably make more of these decisions after you take your CBT, but have no fear, a 125 will be tons of fun in the short-term.

Love mine, although it’s a scooter 😉 *beep beep*

Whatever you get, make sure it’s reliable. You don’t want to be worrying that it’s going to break down on you.

During my CBT, the Honda 125 I was on felt a bit poo – the gears weren’t that easy to get and it took a while to start 🙂

About helmets, don’t buy second hand (well I wouldn’t). Most people say if a helmet is dropped, it needs replacing – with second hand stuff you can’t trust that it’s not damaged – besides, you have try it on for size 🙂

For example the is a nice SUZUKI GS 550 E on autotrader for £700. Looks in decent condition, bulletproof motor, nice bike , won’t have been thrashed and abused by learners or commuters probably. Classic insurance so cheap to insure. Lots of miles tho

Thats a bike you would enjoy owning and riding

Yes but a GS550 could have been dispatched….

I have a nice 749S that gets used less than my Orange Five, in fact i have ridden it twice since the MOT in March!

However with my new found interest in cycling I have lost half a stone and feel great!

I was not old enough to ride a bike when they were built. Look really cool though.

Thanks gents that is clearer…however getting qualified for a 550 etc will require a CBT anyway…and trying a 125 is unlikely to lose me much money if I decide to sell it on?

do your CBT on a hire bike then have a think.

How about an Enfield Bullet, brand new about £3k and if it breaks down just go into the nearest Indian restaurant and one of the staff will be able to fix it.

FFS this could go on forever. 😯

Al – why don’t you go and get a lesson or two on a hire bike and see how you get on. You’ll have a much better idea after a couple of hours actually riding and you can take it from there + the school might be able to give you some options or know of suitable bikes for sale.

Ta TJ and Woody – My plan has for some time been CBT on a hire bike & have a think (I may even try to borroww kit).

do your CBT on a hire bike then have a think.

Yeah, doing your CBT on your own bike is actually a bit of a challenge as you can’t ride it to the test centre. So unless you have a trailer or a van it all gets a bit complicated.

Blimey a wee trawl on Bitetrader does seem to show that you can get a better 500cc than 125cc for <£1K!

Anything between 126cc and 500cc is a bit of a no-mans land between learner bikes and toys. Certainly where the bargains are.

Yup. Beause hardly anyone buys 125s new they command a premium in the secondhand market.

But I’d need a 125 for a bit to get the experience to do the proper test to get to ride bigger bikes no? Even the 33bhp limit?

Sorry, I just find the whole testing regime convoluted.

I was confused too.

DVLA site.

Direct and accelerated access
Riders age 21 or over, or those who reach 21 before their two year restriction ends, have other options.
Direct access
After taking Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) and the theory test, the practical test may be taken on a motorcycle with a power output of at least 35kW…

So it looks like you can widen your scope for a bike beyond 125cc.

Take a good look at the Suzuki GS500 – it is a very capable bike for the money. It’s heavier than a 125 of course, but it’s a better package than any 125. I rode one (on loan) before I bought my Ducati Monster and I reckon it would have been a more practical choice. You’ll also probably find a good one secondhand at a much better price than a decent 125 because they tend not to be bought by hotheads.

cynic-al – Member

But I’d need a 125 for a bit to get the experience to do the proper test to get to ride bigger bikes no? Even the 33bhp limit?

Sorry, I just find the whole testing regime convoluted.

No – you do a direct access course with a riding school – just lessons on a hire bike.

You can ride a 125 to get road experience – you cannot ride anything bigger until you have done a teston your own. You do direct access on a 35 kw bike – basically a modern 500 or above. You can ride this on the road when under instruction but not on your own

This is by far the most sensible approach for someone over 21 who wants to ride for fun. Spend the money on the direct access course and get a full license.

being a bike rider and a car driver the Direct access course and lessons will be enough

There is a training school on seafield road. Go have a chat to them

Not quite suitable as a first bike……but you can get quite a lot for <£1k as several people have been telling you 😀

So the paths would be:

1. CBT then direct access course both on hired bikes. (bit daft, no practice)
2. CBT then play on a 125 for a bit then direct access course on hired bike (slightly less daft).
3. CBT then play on a 125 for a bit then buy 500, have lessons and direct access course that (least daft).

There is an option to do the test on a 125 which then allows you up to 33bhp (or k?) bike?

Some lovely 70s bigger bikes on there…would they be OK brake/handling wise?

TJ your comments are making more sense now…I was caught up in wanting to try/dip my toe in at minumum cost…and may still do so.

There is an option to do the test on a 125 which then allows you up to 33bhp (or k?) bike?

Yes, do the test on a 125 and you’re limited to a 33bhp bike for 2 years.

al

THIS SITE explains it all quite well with costs etc.

Thanks Woody….I find that website badly drafted and confusing!

1. CBT then direct access course both on hired bikes. (bit daft, no practice)

This is in fact the most sensible idea. CBT, direct access, buy suitable bike (not a 125 which will cost a premium due to there being people who don’t have the option of a bigger bike) then practice as much as you like. We call it riding.

Seriously it’s not making sense to me: Ignoring hiring/buying, I think it’s

CBT then…

1. further test (theory and practical) on >35kW = ride anything afterwards
2. further test (theory and practical) on <35kW = ride up to 25kW afterwards

Direct access is quite a serious amount of training – its by fart rhteh best way IMO. Just remeber you don’t know it all. You are only going out on the road on your own once youhave significant amount of training – safer than just CBT tehn ride a 125.

An older middleweight will be a more fun and safer option than a 125 at the same price point – ad more chance of getting a well looked afdter bike

Stuff like that GS 550 will be spot on for what you want. Fast enough to be fun, not too big or heavy, not to highly strung. Spot on for a sunny days cruise and pose

Hang on….CBT and A2 license = bike up to 33kw…would those bikes not be OK?

EDIT Ah I see A2 only £200 cheaper than DAS

Thanks Woody….I find that website badly drafted and confusing!

I thought it would be perfect for a lawyer 8)

Re the GS550 that TJ is recommending – I had a GS650 a few years ago and can confirm it will do exactly as said ^^.

Having just been out in a torrential thunderstorm I realised that while I wouldn’t mind going back to a cheapo 125cc hack for commuting I’d most definitely want to still be using good riding kit!

My current Gericke and Altberg stuff never lets in a drop – back when I was a teenager I only had a 2nd hand waxed cotton jacket and some leather work boots and would have got soaked.

Oh no I appear to have a copy of “Classic Motorcycle” magazine under my arm…

Tell you what, seeing as you’re taking the blame from my missus when she finds out about my ‘new’ BMW, I’ll do the same for you.

Only I’ll bet my missus is bigger than yours…

Hello cynic-al, just to give you some hope I am selling my wifes (with her knowledge) R reg Suzuki GN125. She bought this when it was one year old, it now had 4147 miles on it. She is the second owner. Just had new battery, plug, oil, oil and air filter fitted by myself. Garaged all it’s days. Small dent in tank (paint solid and some pitting on fork lowers. Price £575. All paperwork MOTs, etc. Not what I would call knackered. It is located in scotland so probably no use to you but they are out there.

If I didn’t already have an SV 650 then I’d be perfectly happy with a “modern” 500 twin such as the GS 500 developing 50 odd bhp.

Let’s put it in to context. Probably the greatest 500 racer for the ordinary man was the Manx Norton, beating many multi-cylinder bikes in the right circumstances and it developed 47 bhp. OK the GS 500 won’t handle as well (but will probably stop better) or do 140 mph but who wants to do that anyway.

It’s in the riding. About two years ago I came up behind a gaggle of sports bikes dithering about on a twisty road and passed the lot of them but had to use possibly threequarters of the 18 bhp available from the small two stroke I was on.

People tend to make the mistake of overbiking. As the saying goes, “Add lightness and simplicate”.

People tend to make the mistake of overbiking. As the saying goes, “Add lightness and simplicate”.

Bow to such wisdom…

I do enjoy little bikes like the SV650 or the CB500 but for the sort of riding I do I find bigger bikes (like my CBF1000GT) are better. It’s not necessarily that they’re faster, more that they’re more relaxed and comfortable on longer rides.

For shorter distance stuff like commuting the CB500 is a great bike though, and it also handles pretty well.

Cupra

That sounds like exactly what he’s looking for !

Don’t think I could feel relaxed on anything doing only 40 to the gallon (MCN figure for CB 1000 GT). In 40,000 plus miles the SV has averaged 56 (best 64, worst 45). I would hope for similar from a CB 500.

“People tend to make the mistake of overbiking. As the saying goes, “Add lightness and simplicate”.”

“Bow to such wisdom… “

Not my saying, I’ve known it used a few times, usually in relation to the smaller Guzzis. But I’ve witnessed the overbiking often enough.

My direct access consisted of cbt for one day, half day training for mod one then mod one in afternoon next day full day training next day half day training then mod two. Total cost including test fees was 525 so not too much and it was a doddle

But as I said before our lasses 2003 gn125 was only 625 but needed fork seals but cheap enough, its mint and hardly used 😉

BSA bantam 🙂