Daytona 650 as First Bike ?

A friend of mine has been riding a 125 on L-Plates for about 6 months now.

He's planning on doing DAS soon and has started looking at "big" bikes.
He wants a Daytona 650, I suggested that as well as the insurance cost, the Trumpet might be a little to "hot" as a first machine.

Am I being over protective or am I just jealous ?

Unless he's minted, the the insurance will be an issue for sure.

Steer toward an SV......

[Viney]

Originally Posted by thor

Unless he's minted, the the insurance will be an issue for sure.

Steer toward an SV......

Or any of the otehr top 600 budget class

SV
ER-6
GSX600
Duc Monster
Bandit
Fazer
Hornet

etc etc

However, if he has the money and wants it, then go for it, its a nice bike althought not my cuppa tea

He was originally looking at an SV, he sat on mine and really liked it.

I think another mate of his has just bought a 675

Speak to Ed, he's just got one (a Datona 650 that is...)

[northwind]

I'd call that a bad decision myself... Lovely bikes, but they're pretty sharp- good brakes, quick handling, great chassis. At the best, he'll not be able to ride it to half of its potential, but it is a bike that could get you in bother, simply because the chassis will do just about anything- including lots of things you don't really want to do, especially when you're just a beginner.

Plus, not cheap to fix.

Plenty of people go and buy a SS600 as a first bike and isn't the Daytona (new one) aside, seen as the softer one of the class?

I'd not be too worried from a safety POV (although the SV can get you in plenty of trouble), might want to try and talk him round on the grounds that he probably won't be a very fast/good rider, if he never has to learn to corner quickly and just makes up his speed on the straights.

The only barrier is insurance.

My 636 is like a pussy cat when riding normally. You just have to build up gradually and not just give it full throttle on the first ride. If anything buying a brand new one that needs running in would be the best idea. I think most people buying these bikes have the sense to show the machine a bit of respect and gradually build up and sometimes more experienced riders that don't want or can't have supersports machines don't give them credit for that.

I lost a lot of money because I got the SV first so I recommend he gets the bike that he really wants to start with. I dare say many people jump straight on these bikes for the image and not because they plan on riding them at the limit everywhere. It's just a nice thing to own and you don't have to fully exploit it. I am sure your average super car owner doesn't buy it to travel at 200mph+.

As said the SV can kill you within seconds anyway. Whats more it can't teach you how to handle the SS600 at the point where its performance envelope exceeds that of the SV - I don't know what to expect the first time I take the 636 over 10k rpm for example. What ever bike you get there comes a time where you have to enter unknown territory with it and if you haven't got the sense to do that in a gradual and controlled manner then you are better off sticking to a moped.

My main advice is to not do it on a budget. If he can't afford fully comp insurance and is gonna take seven or eight grands worth of new bike out on the road then he should think twice.

I have a Daytona 650.

I'm not a 'hotter 'n' hell' rider but I love the bike. The bike has other qualities besides speed - although it has more than enough of that. It has looks to die for, it has terrific road presence, it turns heads like no other bike I've had, and it sounds triffic even with the standard can. I don't get wrist/back/neck ache after 15 mins, the vision is perfect and you can see more than your elbows in the mirrors. Its handling is a delight.

It's very, very quick. It has a revvy engine and it's all too easy to get the front in the air if you're a bit heavy handed with the throttle. And it's so sure-footed and so quick that I could understand how you could get into trouble on it.

It's expensive to insure and the parts aren't cheap. I would do a small amount of business mileage but I couldn't get business cover on it at all. But I had a bad off on my SV 2 years ago and it's haunting me on premium So for a newly qualified rider, might be difficult to get a sensible quote.

As in all things, it depends what you're looking for. As stated, I bought mine for things other than speed (although I'm starting to like that quality too ). It doesn't need to be ridden aggressively and it isn't a wild bike, so a newb would probably be quite confident on it. But it really is quick, so caution and restraint would be necessary, but as long as you're sensible then I don't really see a problem TBH as long as you can get insurance for it.

[northwind]

Originally Posted by Ceri JC

Plenty of people go and buy a SS600 as a first bike and isn't the Daytona (new one) aside, seen as the softer one of the class?

Well, sort of. It's the most comfortable and makes its power in a more progressive way due to the strong midrange. But there's nothing soft about the handling- the brakes are pretty good, the suspension's good, but the chassis is fantastic. And that's what I think would maybe be a problem- it'll turn on a 5p piece, and how often did you want to do that when you were first starting out?

Power is easy to modulate, the throttle goes both ways after all and frankly if you're going to be a danger speed wise on a Daytona it'll be the same on an SV, they all go fast enough to squish you. But fast handling, and powerful brakes, really can mess you up, and are harder to learn.