SV650 or Bandit 600S?

I’m doing lessons at the moment, but I’m on the look out for my first bike. Now I’m a big fan of the SV650 – I like the look of the bike (I’m a curvy lover… pointys don’t do it for me) and they sound great, especially with twin exhausts, but here’s the deal breaker: My instructor has totally put me off the bike.

He thinks that the bike is nice enough, but 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. He’s an ex police rider, so I trust his judgement…

He’s recommended I go for something like a 600 Fazer or a Bandit, and to be honest, I like the look of the faired bandit 600S. It would be a perfect bike for me to commute to work on, which is what I'd mainly use it for.

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

[yorkie_chris]

Nah he's talking balls.
What I would be wondering is why is an "ex-police" instructor telling you to get to the middle of a corner in the wet, bang down a gear and let rip with the throttle?

If you get your braking out of the way before the corner, go in at a neutral throttle and then power out of it gently, you'll be fine. If you bang it down and bray it, then you'll be going sideways on any bike including bandits, fazers etc.


Though many would say the bandit is a better commuter.

[ophic]

I jumped on an SV after 8 years off bikes. My experience 8 years previously was on a 50 and a 125.

I did have an accident - I took a sharp corner too fast in the wet and slid it. Nowt to do with torque.

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 isn't a factor here

pfft i had a MT-03 660cc single loads of low end torque (redline 7000, max torqe was 4500rpm about cornering rpm) and i came from a 50cc moped and had no problems, plus the bandits boaring, same for the fazer 600 now the bandit 12 and fazer 1000 are a wee bit difforent

so in other words the sv will be fine

Utter balls. SV is my first proper bike. Sure, I didnt expect it to be quite so fierce on the downshift, but I did it once and didnt even get as far as letting the clutch out fully before pulling it back in, changing gear and making a mental note on the subject.

I like my bikes like I like my women... curvy, well polished and with a good set of bungs...

I AM tempted because the Bandit looks like such a good commuter, but I think I'll get bored with it after a while because it's a little boring... Anyone on here ridden the bandit 600 to compare it to the SV?

[ophic]

Originally Posted by mikky

...with a good set of bungs...

yup i have and its like riding a plank of wood on wheels (my oppinion) its a bit like a gs500 *shivers*

havent riden a fazer 600 but have a 1000 and it a big bike and bloody fast (was on privat land) handled well and the brakes are mint so could be a contender (600 is a bit diff thogh)

[fizzwheel]

Originally Posted by mikky

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. He’s an ex police rider, so I trust his judgement…

So dont ride in a way that you operate the gears like that then...

I'd be inclined to get what you want. If you like the bandit then give that a try. I've riden both.

The bandit is a better mile muncher and the seat is much comfier. The faired bandit makes an excellent motorway commuting tool. Its fun to ride, it takes a little more muscle to move about than the SV does and to get the best out of the engine you have to rev it and work the gearbox, but this can be a lot of fun. IMHO it is a mistake the write the bandit off because you think its boring, especially if you havent ridden it.

The SV is a little lighter and the chassis is better. If you like to ride and press on a little I'd say get the SV, the Faired S model copes just as well with the motorway stuff as the bandit does.

Its just down to which every engine characteristics you prefer and which one you like the look of best.

Dont listen to your mates, or take advice on a forum. The best way to evalute both bikes is to test ride both and make your own mind up.

Owning both a Bandit and an SV, I'd say your instructor is talking rubbish, drop a gear in a corner on a Fazer and it'll use it's extra 15-20 bhp to spin up faster than an SV would. A Bandit is just a big lump comapred to the SV and would probably bore you to to death!

Why the hell would you be changing down mid corner anyway?