[JIB]

that's cool. we're all entitled to our opinions... if we weren't, this would be one helluva boring forum!

[scottynoface]

i have read this before, but after getting my first/current bike. I think a 600 is a good bike to start with, at least for me. Im not a small guy (235lbs) and the 600 has enough speed for me. i might get a bigger bike in a few yrs or even a newer 600. im also kind of glad i got it later in life (32yrs old). i think if i would have gotten it back when i was 18 or 20, i would have wanted bigger/faster and probably would have hurt myself with speed.

Well yeah, the Katana 600 is a good bike to start on because it's not powerful enough to really get you in trouble...try learning on a Ninja or GSXR and see what kind of rider you would have turned into...

http://www.kawiforums.com/newbie-corner/116620-new-rider-crash-amputee-please-read.html

[rodgermoore]

Was wondering what manual to buy clymer or haynes? I have a 1989 katana 1100 and was wondering what manual everyone was going with? and which specific edition and year range? (got a clymer and it was wrong year, and everything was about the 600 and very diferent. Thanks Noob

[jjhussell]

Good post. I am so glad that I didn't get a 600r. It would have been a mistake. My friend bought an r6 and his brother a 1000 as starter bikes. they had ridden dirt bikes but it really isn't the same. My friends wife was on the back of his brothers 1000, before they got married, He rear-ended a car on the interstate. He was going 90 and the car was going 60. She ended up in the hospital for months. Tons of road rash and other nasty things like broken pelvis, ruptured spleen and many other problems. My friend really hasn't ridden much in the last year. He had wrecked his bike (minor little low speed lay downs) more time than he or I care to count. Moral of the story, if you think that a 600r or anything bigger is good for a beginner you may end up hurting someone else more than yourself. I'd hate to have to live with that.

[STULER]

while I agree with the sentiment, I do feel that a responsible person would be able to handle any bike as a starter- it's just a matter of respecting the machine.
I would never have bought anything smaller than a 600 for my first bike, and am super happy that I ended up with my 750.

The katana should have been entered in as a good starter bike due to the lack of serious "power" The sv 650 and the kat are similar. Like the list said "just some are listed" the kats are heavy but absolute awesome starter AND advanced bikes.

[HemiKat]

The katana should have been entered in as a good starter bike due to the lack of serious "power" The sv 650 and the kat are similar. Like the list said "just some are listed" the kats are heavy but absolute awesome starter AND advanced bikes.

I agree, I think the Kat is such a great bike because it doesnt have the power to get a novice in trouble, but has the potential to be a great bike when handled by someone with more experience.

[kleaving]

I hadn't been on a bike in 20 years and my Kat 750 was the perfect re-introduction to motorcycling. Very forgiving yet had a really nice and predictable powerband. If I'd first gotten an R6 I would've wrecked for sure.

[Jedison]

I love my Kat as a first bike. It seems sluggish enough in a good way for me to learn on! I'm also not afraid to rip it apart and learn how to work on a bike due to it's age either. I initially wanted your typical gsx-r or whatever else but my girlfriend's brother convinced me to get an old Kat in the classifieds for a first bike. I think all he let me do for the first week was practice first gear and clutch control and do figure 8's in a parking lot at night. I think Kats are definitely a good beginner bike, and I love riding mine.

Next season I probably will upgrade or get something a bit lighter (mostly something fuel injected), but rather than sell my Kat I think I'm going to keep it too, or sell it to a friend who's thinking of starting too.

[spatula6554]

Good post!

[worm-]

I plan on getting a larger bike eventually, so the kat will be perfect for my wife in a few years when I get something a little bit larger.

[Red007]

Well yeah, the Katana 600 is a good bike to start on because it's not powerful enough to really get you in trouble...try learning on a Ninja or GSXR and see what kind of rider you would have turned into...

http://www.kawiforums.com/newbie-cor...ease-read.html

That is a matter of opinion. I don't know why people say the katana 600 is slow, its not a slow bike at all. I have raced people on sport bikes and have won, its how you ride and your skill-set. I have a brother who owns a 2009 Kawasaki ZX-6R whom cannot keep up with my 1993 jetted stage I GSX600F.

I wish people would stop saying that the katana is slow, cause its not what people make it out to be.

[Jedison]

That is a matter of opinion. I don't know why people say the katana 600 is slow, its not a slow bike at all. I have raced people on sport bikes and have won, its how you ride and your skill-set. I have a brother who owns a 2009 Kawasaki ZX-6R whom cannot keep up with my 1993 jetted stage I GSX600F.

I wish people would stop saying that the katana is slow, cause its not what people make it out to be.

I would say they're underpowered but not slow, based on my very limited experience, but really why do you want to shoot off from a light suddenly anyways?

[05RedKat600]

That is a matter of opinion. I don't know why people say the katana 600 is slow, its not a slow bike at all. I have raced people on sport bikes and have won, its how you ride and your skill-set. I have a brother who owns a 2009 Kawasaki ZX-6R whom cannot keep up with my 1993 jetted stage I GSX600F.

I wish people would stop saying that the katana is slow, cause its not what people make it out to be.

You just proved his point. Starting on the slow, old Kat made you a better rider. Your buddy starting on the ZX6 has a fast bike but can't ride for poo apparently. Always more fun to ride a slow bike fast.......

[Red007]

I would say they're underpowered but not slow, based on my very limited experience, but really why do you want to shoot off from a light suddenly anyways?

I don't know, but katana's are not not "slow" bikes, I guess its what you compare it to and the rider.

[sekter]

while most of our kats do fall in line with the 600cc+ inline 4 category...it seems that it is still an excellent option for a first bike...due to how it actually ISN'T a super-sport