Quote:
Originally Posted by Cheater
Nice bike, Crompsin! I have to agree with everything you said. My son was looking at the 750 Honda and found the 1100 Shadow Sabre (your bike only in black) and since it matched the bike I had at the time, it was a no brainer, he's thrilled with it.
Jimellow, you said you just completed the safety course and are looking for a used bike because you will likely drop it a few times? That scares me. If you completed the course successfully, dropping the bike is something you shouldn't even be thinking about. Start out on the back roads until you are comfortable with the bike, and watch out for the cagers, sometimes they just don't see us on the bikes. I'm not sure where you are in Pennsylvania, but I ride along the Delaware quite often, nice ride. Post a picture of whatever you purchase and I'll be looking for you on the road.
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The only reason I mention being concerned about dropping the bike is due to me reading it numerous places online: "Don't invest heavily in a first bike, as it will likely be dropped once or twice," etc. During the riding portion of the safety course, I had no issues, aside from stalling numerous times along with everyone else. The instructor did tell me I'll need to slow down once I hit the roads, and that's valid advice, as I tend to drive faster than average in general. Beyond that, I didn't come close to dropping the bike at all. In my experience, bicycles are easier to drop than motorcycles due to the pedaling motion and rocking of the body when exerting oneself fully.
Crompsin: I'm a tall, but not that heavy either. I weigh about 175, and that's after transitioning to weight training after running and doing cardio type things for most of my life.
In regards to power... In cruisers, what are the benefits of more power in a bike? In sport bikes, it's obviously faster acceleration and top end speed, but are there any differences or other traits that power in a cruiser affects? As a lighter person, can there be too much power to the point where it's excessive, even dangerous?
Also, do you have any general price ranges for the types of bikes you recommended? Is age of the bike a concern, or do they hold up well if maintained properly? I'd be looking to buy used, but would still like a quality bike that has staying power.
Your bike looks very nice, and in my browsing online it seems cruisers are generally in better condition when sold used than sport bikes. This makes sense, as I gather it's a more stable, and safer, riding style so the bikes are less likely to get damaged. With that said, I've only browsed a few cruiser ads to date, but most sport bikes listed had a high rate of suffering road rash of some sort.
This has been a very informative thread. I'll likely come up with more questions as I browse and talk to others, but please leave any and all comments if you have any to share.
EDIT: I'm not realistically expecting to find a decent bike for $1,000. That just happened to be the price stated by the guy I met at the party, and his bike certainly wasn't in good condition by any means. I'm willing to pay for quality, but would like to establish some price guidelines so I can have something to work with. With that said, saving some money and spending less is a wonderful thing; thus my desire to buy used.