[cameron]

The Kat (at least the pre-98 models) have no room to tuck under the windscreen or the ability to fully get down on the tank (and be able to see) to make very tight turns.

ok bs you can tuck in on the pre kats i owened on and did all the time. as far as which bike would be the fastest? it will almost allways depend on the rider! i was just hacking on the seriousness of this debate.

[dweezel93]

The Kat (at least the pre-98 models) have no room to tuck under the windscreen or the ability to fully get down on the tank (and be able to see) to make very tight turns.

Sorry pal.... I wasn't questioning how far down you could get on the tank midcorner..... I was questioning why you would try to tuck in under the screen while cornering, when you should probably be up, looking through the corner......

[allblackkat]

think you coulda used a smaller pic for that demonstration?....


I would rather get an '09 650r....looks way better...IMHO.

[dweezel93]

think you coulda used a smaller pic for that demonstration?....

I apologize. I stole it from another thread here. It was simply the first picture I saw that showed what I was describing.

[allblackkat]

no worries mate....

i've seen way worse use of large photos...

plus I see that your new here any way... welcome to the site.

[Imagin]

Kawi is being smart. Their taking the "it looks like a beginner bike" out of the argument so people will actually look at the smaller bikes to learn on (thank you GOD what they did to the 250)

What kicks me is how WELL kawi sells the 250's but no other maker wants a slice of that pie. Last I checked its their best selling model by far.

[Sambo1987]

I almost bought one! but got a deal on my kat i couldn't pass up. Upright riding position, easy to handle, pretty light and flickable bike. Not too much power, good if you are still learning.

Would make a good commuter bike as it's a twin and supposedly gets like 50-60 mpg and very nimble

[XKillerEliteX]

Nice bike go for it

[freight dog]

Frankly, if the Ninja 650 had been available when I bought my bike, I would be posting on www.ninja650.com instead of here. The Katana may not be faster, but it has a better forum.

The way I remember it, a GSX600F has more peak power by maybe 5 horses, but being a twin the Ninja out torques the Kat, it's lighter and was designed in 2005, instead of 1988.

I also love seeing the "Pair-a-Nines" team racing tuned Ninja 650's in the Sun Trust races. Makes me want one still.

[CookieMonster]

I agree, With the numbers they should run the same. Maybe different gearing???? Becuz everytime I ran with my buddy on his 650R I feather the throttle so I could stay behind him. I didn't even bend over ( Plus, I didn't trust him playing around like this) But then again. Its like you said the riders makes the different. So Im done with this which is better. It all Bull****. When theres no hard data to prove it. The sh** stops at the track.

So, what's your point? I smoked my friend on his '08 CBR600 with my 650. It's the Indian, not the arrow. For the sake of this thread, I'll say the Ninja is comfy but the padding on the seat starts to feel a little thin after 200 miles. The FI is nice, especially on those very cold mornings. You never have to worry about the valves, carbs, plugs or much of anything really. Low and midrange torque are very usable, but it is a dog over 100mph. I-twin exhaust sound sucks, aftermarket pipes or not.

Another big downside of the bike is that the only suspension adjustment is a 7 notch preload on the rear. No dampening, and NOTHING for the front (which didn't bother me since it's designed for a 210 lb rider & I go between 210-230). 2 up can be of concern if you & the lady are not slim little high-schoolers. All the way up on preload, and about 20 lbs over the max payload was still wallowing quite a bit, and the wife (who is not leggy and only 5'3" in shoes) was quite uncomfortable on the back after 30-45 minutes. It is also not advised to lower this bike, as the only way to do so is by a link that repositions the lower mount point of the rear shock, taking a crappy shock installed at a weak angle and making it crappier and weaker.

The '06 & 07 came stock with the Bridgestone BT020. That tire SUCKS! They had very little stick, very little feedback and only lasted 6700 miles with my fat *** on 'em. The 021's that superceeded them are said to be terrific tires.

I loved the out-of-the-way exhaust since I didn't have to worry about burning myself on, and more importantly my toddler sticking his hand on. Lack of a center stand kina sucked and instrumentation was very bland and uninformative.

I think the real consideration is how much touring/2up riding you'll do, and how much you care about the one sitting on the back. All in all, I'd take the Ninja over a Kat 600, and would take a Kat 750 over a Ninja650. A Kat 750 with a sprocket change is right up my alley, but I could really care less for 120+ mph. I don't get to do the track much, and if I did I'd be shopping a 675.

[scottynoface]

The 650 will burn a Katana up to 100 mph. Then the Katana will take over. Apples to oranges.

[Psycho1]

The 650 will burn a Katana up to 100 mph. Then the Katana will take over. Apples to oranges.

All dependent on where, riders skill and modifications to either one. I walked all over 2 650's a few weeks ago on a wide open uphill stretch of 4 lane highway from around 70mph on up, and I never really even needed to hit 5th gear to do it. In a tight canyon with a better rider, it's highly possible the 650's might outrun me, but not because of any power advantage. They do seem to handle pretty nice though.

[JimG4652]

I think I remember reading somewhere that with a good rider, the 650's are supposed to be in the 12.10 range in the quarter from the factory...but I could be wrong. So, it would beat a stock Kat 600, if the guy riding the 650 halfway knows what he's doing.

[scottynoface]

All dependent on where, riders skill and modifications to either one. I walked all over 2 650's a few weeks ago on a wide open uphill stretch of 4 lane highway from around 70mph on up, and I never really even needed to hit 5th gear to do it. In a tight canyon with a better rider, it's highly possible the 650's might outrun me, but not because of any power advantage. They do seem to handle pretty nice though.

Well yeah, but thats the generic disclaimer for comparing any kind of bike for sporting capabilities. I wasted a gsxr 750 through a 5 mile section of twisties, but obviously if the guy knew what he was doing it would have been much closer.

[zuma]

Just got here, welcome to you. I looked seriously at a new 97 Ninja 650R when I bought a new 06 Kat 750 two Octobers ago...I like the inline 4 as opposed to the two cylinder...but now I have a 00 Ninja zx600e with pipes on each side, and it will run circles around the 750 Kat as well as the 06 600 Kat I had previously. I was strictly a Katana guy until I got a good deal on the Ninja. I like both bikes well. Not too hip on numbers or statistics, obviously.