Motorbike for communiting?

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS THE UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUM (INTERACTIVE)
41

if you’re talking bigger bikes and restricter kits — try looking at 400cc machines plenty around - restricter kits are available all you gotta do is buy one for the paperwork and then if asked to produce paperwork you can — no one is ever going to strip your motor to check if the kit is fitted :smiling_imp: :smiling_imp:

600cc bandit is too heavy if kit is fitted - feels breathless and useless my cousin had one before he got his cbr600 and he did the restricted for 2 years thing and whilst he was restricted he had a cbr400 gullarm and i can tell you straight that it wasn’t restricted :smiley:

when going for your test go for the restricted test - then get a bike below 600cc you can a bandit 600 or cbr400/600 get a restricter kit for the paperwork and just ride the ■■■■ thing :grimacing:

42

Just be sure to look at the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) before jumping in and buying a bike for commuting “because it’s cheaper to run”. Tyres, insurance, servicing, riding kit etc, plus the cost of financing/depreciation all work against the savings you might make on petrol (and a larger bike may well use more fuel than a small car).

If, like many drivers, your commuting takes place outside of “rush hour” you may well find that using a bike is no quicker, and may even take longer than using the car due to the time spent kitting-up and de-kitting at either end of the journey. I use a one-piece oversuit over my regular work clothes, but it was Not Cheap (see TCO above…) and suiting-up with helmet, gloves, boots etc still takes a few minutes twice a day.

A larger scooter (e.g. Suzuki Burgman) would probably be ideal for most medium distance commuting - easily enough power to cope with A-roads and Motorways, plus some protection in the event of light rain etc and enough built-in luggage space to carry a typical driver’s kit-bag (and store your helmet and gloves while you are at work).

Of course, the main problem is that you get hooked on motorbikes and end up wasting significant chunks of your hard-earned cash on your “habit”… I started on bikes when I was 16 years old. Tried several times over the past 35 or so years to give them up, but always end up buying another one.

43

Roymondo:
If, like many drivers, your commuting takes place outside of “rush hour” you may well find that using a bike is no quicker, and may even take longer than using the car due to the time spent kitting-up and de-kitting at either end of the journey. I use a one-piece oversuit over my regular work clothes, but it was Not Cheap (see TCO above…) and suiting-up with helmet, gloves, boots etc still takes a few minutes twice a day.

When I take the bike to work, it can often add an hour to the journey there & sometimes as many as 3 hours on the return journey home.

Very few people can ever work out why this is so !

In my 4x4, the journey is 12mls. On the bike it varies between 12mls & 100mls :smiley:

44

Chas:

Roymondo:
If, like many drivers, your commuting takes place outside of “rush hour” you may well find that using a bike is no quicker, and may even take longer than using the car due to the time spent kitting-up and de-kitting at either end of the journey. I use a one-piece oversuit over my regular work clothes, but it was Not Cheap (see TCO above…) and suiting-up with helmet, gloves, boots etc still takes a few minutes twice a day.

When I take the bike to work, it can often add an hour to the journey there & sometimes as many as 3 hours on the return journey home.

Very few people can ever work out why this is so !

In my 4x4, the journey is 12mls. On the bike it varies between 12mls & 100mls :smiley:

:laughing: :stuck_out_tongue:

45

I love motorbikes but there’s no way I could go up the Thanet Way with one on a Monday morning, carrying a duvet, a week’s worth of food and clothes and six cartons of Capri-Sun. :wink:

46

foxy stars:
if you’re talking bigger bikes and restricter kits — try looking at 400cc machines plenty around - restricter kits are available all you gotta do is buy one for the paperwork and then if asked to produce paperwork you can — no one is ever going to strip your motor to check if the kit is fitted :smiling_imp: :smiling_imp:

600cc bandit is too heavy if kit is fitted - feels breathless and useless my cousin had one before he got his cbr600 and he did the restricted for 2 years thing and whilst he was restricted he had a cbr400 gullarm and i can tell you straight that it wasn’t restricted :smiley:

when going for your test go for the restricted test - then get a bike below 600cc you can a bandit 600 or cbr400/600 get a restricter kit for the paperwork and just ride the ■■■■ thing :grimacing:

Disappointing to hear a professional driver recommend that a colleague drives otherwise than in accordance with a licence :cry:

A restricted 600 Bandit or similar will top 110mph which is plenty for most riders, but as already mentioned the rules have changed so here is a summary in a nutshell:

At 17+ do a CBT and ride a 125 with Ls, take your test and ride without Ls but still stuck with a 125
At 19+ take a test on a 395cc+ bike and ride up to 46.6bhp (check the detail on this)
After 2 years take a test on a 595cc+ bike to ride unlimited.
If you are 24+ you can come straight in at the biggest bike stage but if you’ve done the middle stage you could be on a big bike at 21.

There is no longer an automatic upgrade, you have to take a test to go up each stage.

Check here.gov.uk/ride-motorcycle-moped

47

I have used a motorbike for work for at least twenty years. I use it all the year round but for the last couple of years haven’t used it when its really icy, but it does have to be bad before I leave it at home. If you are using a bike just to commute then I would suggest getting some thing like a Suzuki Burgman which some one else also suggested.
For the last two and a half years I’ve ridden a Honda Deauville nt 700 which is fairly ideal as a all round bike, it gets used for just about every thing, ride outs at the weekends, shopping and touring. It is a heavy bike but well balanced and easy to ride and the brakes on the 700 are very good, once you get used to the linked system.
Like some body said biking can be addictive. I passed my first test and got my first bike when I was fourteen, legal where I lived at the time. I’m now sixty three and still get a big kick out of it.
Large motorbikes are brilliant to ride but very expensive to run. My previous bike was a Yamaha XJR 1300 and will always be my favourite but when you gave it some welly you would be lucky to get thirty mph. Riding through the winter wrecked the chain which meant new chain and sprockets every year @ £120 plus and then there were the tyres and insurance. Having said that I kept it nearly seven years and did over sixty thousand miles on it including two trips to the south of France. Would have taken it to Italy but a neighbour knocked me off it ten days before we were due to go so I had to hire a bike.
It doesn’t take long to put the gear on in the morning cause I don’t wear any. Just helmet and glove and the usual stuff I wear at work. Wouldn’t recommend it to a newbie, it a personal chioce.

48

voodoo1:
Looking at getting my Bike license for the Up to 350CC motorbikes, :question:

Beats traffic :smiley:

Anybody got a bike and what is the thoughts of this, i do intend on keeping a car.

Thoughts please. :neutral_face:

I use a scooter to do a 40 mile round trip. I fuel up every 3 days with it and it only cost’s me £12 a week in fuel. Only bad thing about it though is when it’s cold. Get the right gear and your warm but your face will feel it. I’ve been caught out a few times with the snow but i am out in all weathers on it.

I use a 125 Honda PCX. 120 miles to the gallon, stop start when in traffic and has never let me down. Don’t buy a burgman as you will be buying tyres and a new exhaust every 6 months. Goods bikes out there but do your research before you get one

49

Ffffffforget bikes for me…work of the Devil :smiley: like whiskey . the affects :open_mouth: :open_mouth: turn me into a Crazyman… :grimacing:

50

not quite for commuting but here is my rg500 1986 square four 500 two stroke, a complete animal of a machine.youtube.com/watch?v=2585ZxexmUM

51

Best bit of advise I can give is-
Stick to the 350/low powered bike for at least a year, don’t go for a sports bike ie R1, Blade, GSX’r etc/Baby versions, you will only feel like Valentino Rossi & you will never beat him (he works his magic on the track with nothing coming the other way)

Get something more practical. Restricted 600 Bandit or Fazer or one of these motorcyclenews.com/MCN/Newri … ew-riders/ (maybe not the 900) I ride a 1250 Bandit, riding position is a lot more comfortable for me than a sports bike.

Keep it clean & maintain it, oil the chain regularly & make sure the lights all work. BE SEEN/BE SAFE.
Rack & topbox are useful.

I would go for something second hand for my first bike/not too expensive. Wear protection/Gravel Rash Hurts. Most bikers I know have had an off within the first few months, 2 wheels are not as forgiving as four wheels, pull the front brake on-on gravel or even in the wet too hard & it won’t just slide like you car, it will send you into a world of Pain & Expense.

There’s lots to learn Hand/Feet Coordination, Braking, Positioning, Overtaking, Slow moving traffic/filtering, watching out for Billy Boy/Girl Racer, Eye to Eye Contact/make sure they’ve seen you, Wet roads, Icy roads, BLOODY DIESEL ON THE ROADS & ROUNDABOUTS (how many Drivers on here have filled up then got distracted & forgot their filler cap ■■?) Wheelies & Stoppies !!! :smiling_imp: (on private land of course)

Take advise where ever you can get it, there’s a few courses out there like Bikesafe run by the Police-
youtube.com/watch?v=L180bhYy_1g

It’s one of the Best things I ever learnt to do, started at 16 & still playing on Bikes at 52, hopefully will still be doing it if I make 80. Good Luck & BE SAFE.

52

martinviking:
Take advise where ever you can get it, there’s a few courses out there like Bikesafe run by the Police-
youtube.com/watch?v=L180bhYy_1g

+1

There are free courses that are ran by various groups too, well, free… maybe chip in for fuel / bacon butty for the observer.

I also did a ‘defensive riding course’ that I was required to do to get my insurance for the bike courier job, not seen them advertised for a few years, but it was an amazing course tbh.

53

twozuluzlu:
not quite for commuting but here is my rg500 1986 square four 500 two stroke, a complete animal of a machine.youtube.com/watch?v=2585ZxexmUM

Stunning! i`ve just gone back to my mis-spent yoof.

54

…

55

1968kg:

foxy stars:
if you’re talking bigger bikes and restricter kits — try looking at 400cc machines plenty around - restricter kits are available all you gotta do is buy one for the paperwork and then if asked to produce paperwork you can — no one is ever going to strip your motor to check if the kit is fitted :smiling_imp: :smiling_imp:

600cc bandit is too heavy if kit is fitted - feels breathless and useless my cousin had one before he got his cbr600 and he did the restricted for 2 years thing and whilst he was restricted he had a cbr400 gullarm and i can tell you straight that it wasn’t restricted :smiley:

when going for your test go for the restricted test - then get a bike below 600cc you can a bandit 600 or cbr400/600 get a restricter kit for the paperwork and just ride the ■■■■ thing :grimacing:

6

Disappointing to hear a professional driver recommend that a colleague drives otherwise than in accordance with a licence :cry:

A restricted 600 Bandit or similar will top 110mph which is plenty for most riders, but as already mentioned the rules have changed so here is a summary in a nutshell:

At 17+ do a CBT and ride a 125 with Ls, take your test and ride without Ls but still stuck with a 125
At 19+ take a test on a 395cc+ bike and ride up to 46.6bhp (check the detail on this)
After 2 years take a test on a 595cc+ bike to ride unlimited.
If you are 24+ you can come straight in at the biggest bike stage but if you’ve done the middle stage you could be on a big bike at 21.

There is no longer an automatic upgrade, you have to take a test to go up each stage.

Check here.gov.uk/ride-motorcycle-moped

+1

Also, were you to have a serious accident and injure/kill someone the police are very likely to strip the engine and check you have a restrictor kit if you claim you have. If it’s a legal requirement for you, without it you are riding not in accordance with your license and as a consequence would have no insurance. You could be in very hot water…

Bikes are great for commuting…best thing is to get the cheapest to run option you can for your circumstances. Depends on the length of the commute, but under 20 miles a 125 is adequate…250 if it’s motorway.

If you fancy a bike for fun as well though something a little bigger would be a better bet.

56

We have a Honda PCX125, bought it brand new last August. It was around £2500, with interest free finance from Honda. Great bike, and both of us just have our CBTs, not sure if we are going to go any further with the tests.

One thing though, don’t buy any of the Chinese bikes, quality and reliabilty are not good and you will find a lot of bike places won’t service them, or even touch them unless they really have to.

57

Roymondo:
Just be sure to look at the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) before jumping in and buying a bike for commuting “because it’s cheaper to run”. Tyres, insurance, servicing, riding kit etc, plus the cost of financing/depreciation all work against the savings you might make on petrol (and a larger bike may well use more fuel than a small car).

If, like many drivers, your commuting takes place outside of “rush hour” you may well find that using a bike is no quicker, and may even take longer than using the car due to the time spent kitting-up and de-kitting at either end of the journey. I use a one-piece oversuit over my regular work clothes, but it was Not Cheap (see TCO above…) and suiting-up with helmet, gloves, boots etc still takes a few minutes twice a day.

A larger scooter (e.g. Suzuki Burgman) would probably be ideal for most medium distance commuting - easily enough power to cope with A-roads and Motorways, plus some protection in the event of light rain etc and enough built-in luggage space to carry a typical driver’s kit-bag (and store your helmet and gloves while you are at work).

Of course, the main problem is that you get hooked on motorbikes and end up wasting significant chunks of your hard-earned cash on your “habit”… I started on bikes when I was 16 years old. Tried several times over the past 35 or so years to give them up, but always end up buying another one.

125cc scooter i run and the following cost’s for me are as follows

Fuel per week £13 - £15 a week 40mile a day in riding

Tyres £100 a go and replaced every 3 months

Servicing every 2500 miles

£16 years tax

All that’s of the top of my head

58

Trucker’s Girl:
We have a Honda PCX125, bought it brand new last August. It was around £2500, with interest free finance from Honda. Great bike, and both of us just have our CBTs, not sure if we are going to go any further with the tests.

One thing though, don’t buy any of the Chinese bikes, quality and reliabilty are not good and you will find a lot of bike places won’t service them, or even touch them unless they really have to.

I’ve had mine now for 2 years. Not had one problem apart from having to buy a new battery as it went dead. Must say though it is always being used and is always at top speed 63 Mph 40mile round trip and still feels like new

I do have a question though. My scooter is a 2011 plate. When is it due a MOT?

59

2014/ 3 years from registration

60

In the mid late 70,s i used a Honda 90 for work in all weathers. I had blue thermal trousers and vest under my uniform. once i got underway in my Marathon i was sweating all day and sometime away for the week so it was the first night before i could dis robe and then sleep across the seats. I had my first wife , house and this thing called a mortgage .I would have done any thing to save a few bob,for many years now i have bad back aches around now my hips are starting
If i can go back to my first bike ,was my dad,s 49 cc pedal start moped that he used for work until he could afford a car[ Anglia van ] anyway around 14 years old i used to ride this when i could buy the petrol across the fields with friends . other bikes but the best was a 200cc tiger cub street legal or at least then. On my 16th birthday i was on the road with a 500cc bsa with sidecar. A full size sidecar but being 16 i cut the roof off. Subercubes brother inlaw went out 2 days before me with a 650 cc triumph a plank of wood and an almost toy wheel as a sidecar ,. We both passed the test in a week. i also had a 650 tribsa could not afford a triton then, i rebuilt that in my bedroom, mum and dad not so happy.
forward 1991 Manila rent a bike guys says got a new 750 yam i said i,ll take the 180 off road style. was like 20 years since i rode a bike. 3 hours later i changed to the 750 cc.
1993 I bought a new ZZR 1100 took it to Italy after dropping my case of clothes the week or so before. I cant do 160 or 180 but i did do 120 around the Turin ring road early 1 sunday morning
2012 had a scooter here for couple of weeks . wife lent money so we have the goods. took it for a ride, i felt so uneasy small wheels .
2013 had a 150 motorstar off road style took that out,all works big wheels…i hoped they would not redeem that bike…they did…Now i want to ride while i can