Originally Posted By: 02SE
Originally Posted By: BusyLittleShop
You won't know for sure what suits you until you take a MSF safety course...
http://online2.msf-usa.org/msf/Default.aspx#&panel1-1
The best advice so far.
Agreed.
The MSF coarse is a good place to start. Before balking at it with the "I already know how to ride, why should I spend the money on it" comment that many have. Often time insurance companies will offer a discount for taking it and following courses. My MSF course paid for itself in the first year with the discount I got on my insurance and I have received a discount for it ever since.
You have the added bonus that you might learn something that you didn't know or may be able to correct bad habits you have started now that you are aware of them.
As for finding a bike that fits what you want. That is going to be different for every one. I truly suggest not just internet shopping but swinging a leg over as many as you can. Even if you don't go on a test ride that 30 second sit can tell you a lot in how comfortable you will be on it. As in; yes a good fit as is, absolutely not or the hmmm maybe with a few changes.
I have logged several hundred thousand miles on various bikes. All of them had some thing to offer. The bikes with the most seat time and what I enjoyed about them are:
'80 KZ650, Basic simple street bike. OK at just about everything but excelled at nothing. Put roughly 60K on it. Sold many years ago.
'76 Harley FXE converted to a FL with 12" apes, solo seat no luggage. Classic Harley cruiser riding position. Some performance work, runs strong and fairly quick for a 38 year old bike. Great bike for long solo day rides or running around town visiting people. Logged about 20K the first year and have averaged about 5-10K a year since I have owned it(16 years).
'99 Fatboy, Virtually stock appearance, large leather bags, more performance engine work than I care to admit to but when you are a mechanic it's just parts and time. Quick, fast for a cruiser with a rather light handling feel. The large bags serve well for week long camping trips. Really fun bike that fit multiple roles from around town picking stuff up/dropping it off to the longer stuff. Bought new, has roughly 65K on it.
'82 Maxim 550, just going to say this was the most un-fun bike I have ever owned. Sold. put 10K
'78 XS100, Way too much engine work, but was good for burning a back tire off. Fun big power heavy street bike(120+hp). Cornered like a brick and was only somewhat streetable when it was done. Sold after the work,
'96 Vulcan 800 Classic, Fun cruiser. 12" bars, seat and nothing more than gutting that air box, rejet and exhaust. Really fun snappy cruiser that would serve multiple roles for most anyone. Sold, put on about 30K
'82 Honda Ascot, 500cc single, works performance/supertrapp exhaust and a rejet. Otherwise stock. This overall is probably the funnest bike I have had. You could do a few hundred miles a day, again good for long day rides and a blast around town. Light, flickable, snappy. Not the fastest by any means but was in a size power range that allowed you to push your limits and its limits at a reasonable speed. Basically a XL500 dirtbike on street tires. Sold, roughly 25 - 30K
2011 FJR. Sport tourer(bought new this year). Good handling, cornering and almost a excess of power. Luggage off, makes for a sportier feeling around town, luggage on it is just big over powered long distance cruiser comfortable on those long trips. Owned for basically 3 months of our/my(work) usable riding season(July-Sep) with one ~2,500 mile trip and have 7K on it.
One thing you find when you get to street bikes is what many like me find out. Most all bikes will have something you enjoy about them and no one bike will fit all your "wants" all the time. What is comfortable for you may not be comfortable for some one of the same build as you. Take the time to think about what you want to use it for, around town bar hopper with no luggage, around town with some luggage, lazy cruises, attacking some twisties and what is comfortable for you in a sitting position. Riding a 250cc 2-stroke on a track 20 minutes at a time where you are standing up most of the time is a far cry from a leisurely 3-4 hour trail ride on a 450 4-stroke where most of your time is spent sitting. Likewise street bikes are another world apart.
You may like the looks and style of one type of bike but if it doesn't fit your uses you wont spend as much time on it as you would like. Suggestions from others are good to get random ideas you might not have othewise thought about, but you need to know what you are after first.