SV650 or Bandit 600S?

I owned a blandit 6 as a first bike and it does exactly what it says on the tin in a very reliable fashion. Good first bike, good commuter (arguably better than the SV), but it doesn't excite you the way the SV does. Either would be ideal as a first bike, I'd say the difference is that you'd get away with being a little more ham fisted on the bandit.

Can't comment on the Yam, but your instructor is talking b_llocks. Do that too energetically on any bike mid corner and you're likely to step the back end out and find yourself on your backside.

Test ride, test ride, test ride.

V is my first proper bike. Sure, I didnt expect it to be quite so fierce on the downshift

Shocked me too lol

Hi, I have ridden many things in the past for 50cc scooter (still do) to a turbo charged hayabusa. The sv is a good bike to start with and excellent if you are experienced enough to push it, the down shift is interesting if your not used to it but after riding it for a short while you will get used to there habits. I have to say riding a bandit for 6 months as a carrier it was good for the commute but doesn't quite have the umph of the SV also like you say the Bandit gets boring after a while. Out of all the bikes i have owned and ridden the sv is the most fun, easy to ride and reliable. Build quality on all Suzuki's is not great but look after them and they are spot on.

The turbo hayabusa by the way was stupidly, ridiculously fast!!!!!

p.s welcome to the forum.

Also test ride both because only you can make the decision of what's right for you.

Cheers

Liam

As someone who went out and bought a curvy as a first bike (never riden anything until doing my DAS) i can definatley recomend it as a first bike. It can cope well with mile munching, i did 400 miles in a day on mine with no problems. plus its got enough character for when you want to go for a blast and I was suprised just how well it went when put against sports 600's on a track day. don't let the fact that its a v twin put you off you get used to it in no time.

ps
welcome to the forum

[L3nny]

I bought an SV as my first bike, only negative is that at low speeds the throttle is a bit snatchy which when I first started took some getting used to.

On the plus side the power comes in at an even rate throughout the rev range so it's much easier to predict, unlike an IL4 which has a power band at the top.

I have ridden a Bandit and a Fazer 600 and they seem boring compared to the SV

Originally Posted by L3nny

I bought an SV as my first bike, only negative is that at low speeds the throttle is a bit snatchy which when I first started took some getting used to.

i'd agree with that,

Originally Posted by mikky

My instructor has totally put me off the bike.

he can’t recommend it to a new rider because of the torque of the V-twin, and I can see his point. He reckons in the wet, through a corner, if you shift down one too many gears, you could be in trouble when let the clutch out and pull the throttle.

So come on… should I leave the SV till I get some more experience, or go for one straight away?

Surely this could happen with any bike?!?! You'd have to be pressing pretty hard I reckon to have that happen on an SV...and besides you should have the gears sorted before you are in the corner so you'd only get into to trouble if you were being a bit silly in the wet.

Just get what you want. My SV is the first bike I've ever had and I think it's a brilliant first bike to have. No complaints at all. It's light, quick enough and easy to ride.

I passed my test and got straight onto my sv (ok its restricted but it still has the torque) and im yet to do any thing like that you shouldnt experience any problems i wouldnt of thought unless you did bang right down the gears

Originally Posted by ophic

The SV is fine. Like changing any bike, get used to it before you nail it. The Bandit is fine too but somewhat bigger and heavier. And uglier. Mind you you've said you like curvies so taste could be a problem here

Bandit might have slightly more power(but hardly noticable)the sv makes up for it with the torque & fun factor....sv all the way imo(in the shape of a pointy)

Originally Posted by sv-robo

Bandit might have slightly more power(but hardly noticable)the sv makes up for it with the torque & fun factor....sv all the way imo(in the shape of a pointy)

Bit of a pointless excercise but:

Bandit 600S 78bhp, 208kg, 375BHP/Ton

SV650S 70bhp, 165kg, 424BHP/Ton

Fazer 600 95bhp, 189kg, 502BHP/Ton

All these are for the manufacturers specs, so obviously they ain't accurate, but it shows that the Bandit is a slug compared to the SV and a hell of a lot slower than the Fazer.

Last track day I did, my mate brought his old Fazer along and everyone was shocked at just how bloody quick it was, it's not really a valid comparison to the bandit, which in effect is a parts bin special which just happened to take off in sales.

As said before, if I had to ride 400 miles, I'd take my Bandit, if I was out for an afternoons fun, I'd take the SV.