Blandit 650...

Aneeewayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy, back to the thread topic. Dan please do an interested write up for us, I for one am intrigued about it

Got one after the SV. Good little bike. Very heavy, but comfy, pulls much better with a pillion, and when your moving its still ok to chuck around. Totally different bike to the SV. For what i use mine for, its better than the SV, big tank and good mileage too.

Only issues I have are typical cheap suzuki bits furring up, and i try to keep it cleaned and fully maintained.

Don't worry I will let you know once I have ridden it a bit more.

I quite like em (but then I would, I'm old). Definitely a tad more 'transport' than 'soul' but it possibly cuts it better than the SVS as an allrounder.

Was given a 650S last time my Honda was in for service - it was much better than I expected. Had it for a couple of days while they tracked down the right tyre for my bike. Comfortable, good commuter, handled okay, did evrything okay... great value at the price it is. I'm sure you'd need to keep on top of the cleaning to keep suzukifur at bay...

Highlight was asking my wife if she'd like to see my new bike when she previously said it was the big D if I got another bike...she's a tall woman and strode out into the garden like a colussus before the penny droppped and she said, 'You've borrowed it!' Well, I never said I'd bought it... and don't think I'll be buying another bike any time soon...

I had another ride out on Friday, I was a little sore from it, but it was fun, I'll write up my thoughts later.

At the same time (ish) that I bought the SV a friend bought the Bandit SA (both are K7 versions).

He's really happy with it, but it is his first bike, we're planning a meetup sometime soon for a swap n play.


All things being well he'll bring it to the AR.

Don't get me wrong, its a bit wallowy, a bit lardy, not amazing performance, but as 1st bikes (or even experienced bikers) its a damn good work tool/weekend run around.

Stepping off my old mans Benelli straight back onto it made me appreciate its "worse" points, but also its good points. If i could afford another bike, i'd definatly keep it as the work horse n let the missy take it out on weekends

Like the SV, good bike for what it is.

Right, my thoughts of the New Bandit 650...

First thing I notice when I set off is the weight, its all at the top, all 200+ kgs of it. Now I've ridden a few top heavy bikes in my time, like my old GT750, but it did make the bike feel very wallowy on the road when I first rode it.
This did make the bike feel rather fat, and it had been a while since I have ridden something with 'flat bars' rather then clip-ons so I don't imagine that helped.
The power in this bandit does seem to come in alot lower then the other bandits and similar bikes that I have ridden in the past. Which does give you a bit of a pull on the bars, but you will still be ringing its neck to push those top end speeds. This bit of lower end power means that you can pull away quicker at the lights and the bike also seem so pull OK in low revs for quick manovers without changing gear. This should help in town work when you filtering through traffic and such, while also giving you better crusing speed on the motorway.
The suspension and ride of the bike seemed to cope with most things and was a improvement on the SV, but then my SV's suspension is rather old.
But you can still feel its a budget set-up that doesn't cope with everything.
Handling of the bike seems sound enough once you get over the weight and feel of the bike, with the wide bars helping you throw it about. But these also mean that it high position and wide layout mean it can be difficult to filter in gaps I could have easy got the SV through.
But at the end of the day this is a budget bike and something for first timers and commuters alike that could easy munch up the miles judging by the fuel performance I got. Even without a screen and just the little clocks to shield you from the wind blast it seemed just enough. Oh and a nice comfy seat.
So if you want a IL4 with plenty to fiddle about for the future with it having a huge after market base this could be for you, but the top heavy weight might put some people off. I struggled a little bit to get it on the centre stand with my sore ribs.

Nice one dan Might have to go and have a go on a new one