NEED QUICK ADVICE about buying 96 katana 600 thoughts?

[sesomb]

Hello,

I'm thinking about buying a used 96 katana 600. price is $2500. Bike is in great condition some scuff marks, new tires, brakes, etc, jacket and helmet incuded.Has roughly 5000 miles on it.

About me. I'm 6'1" roughly 300lbs.

Question is what do you guys think? Will this bike handle my size?? any other thoughts about this year of kat?

Thanks in advance,
-B

[chinto]

Re: thinking about buying 96 katana 600 thoughts?

Hello,

I'm thinking about buying a used 96 katana 600. price is $2500. Bike is in great condition some scuff marks, new tires, brakes, etc, jacket and helmet incuded.Has rought 5000 miles on it.

About me. I'm 6'1" roughly 300lbs.

Question is what do you guys think? Will this bike handle me? any other thoughts about this year of kat?

Thanks in advance,
-B

Great bike. That's some seroiously low mileage. Hard to comment on the price without actully seeing it, but 2500 is a pretty decent price on a bike with only 5000 miles on it. It isa bit old being a 96 and I would try to get it for lower. Are you a new rider? if not, how long have you been riding and what bikes have you owned? This sort of information will drum up more information and avice for you.

if it is your first bike, I think it is a good choice. Some people will insist that you go with the 750, but the truth is the 600 has enough power to do what is expected.

[sesomb]

Been riding for about 5 years. Don't have that much experience with sport bikes. Mostly riden dirt/street, and yamaha touring bikes. I've rode friends 600 CBR's before and such. Rode a friends 250 Ninja but people say 250 is not enough for me "SIZE"

[chinto]

Been riding for about 5 years. Don't have that much experience with sport bikes. Mostly riden dirt/street, and yamaha touring bikes. I've rode friends 600 CBR's before and such. Rode a friends 250 Ninja but people say 250 is not enough for me "SIZE"

The 250 is definitely too small. sounds like you are looking to enter into th sport world. The Kat is a good intro to sport bikes. Definitely one of, if not the, most comfortable full fairinged bikes out there. What you lack in power you make up for in comfort. I am a pretty big guy and rode a 600 for about 8 years before I swapped the motor out for a 750. I never really got bored with the power, but i am definitely enjoying the upgrade in power I gained with my Busa.


Sounds to me like a good bike for ya. if you have some experience it may be worth waiting on a 750 (but i think the 600's look better anyway )

[sesomb]

Been riding for about 5 years. Don't have that much experience with sport bikes. Mostly riden dirt/street, and yamaha touring bikes. I've rode friends 600 CBR's before and such. Rode a friends 250 Ninja but people say 250 is not enough for me "SIZE"

The 250 is definitely too small. sounds like you are looking to enter into th sport world. The Kat is a good intro to sport bikes. Definitely one of, if not the, most comfortable full fairinged bikes out there. What you lack in power you make up for in comfort. I am a pretty big guy and rode a 600 for about 8 years before I swapped the motor out for a 750. I never really got bored with the power, but i am definitely enjoying the upgrade in power I gained with my Busa.

Thanks for the information. Were you able to ride anybody with you being a bigger guy? the guy wanted 2800 but came down to 2500. I thought it's not a bad price for starting out. Probably better than spending 7000 to find out I don't really ride it that much. Ya Know.
Sounds to me like a good bike for ya. if you have some experience it may be worth waiting on a 750 (but i think the 600's look better anyway )

[BLACKACIDEVIL]

I bought my 96 with 4700 miles and it came with a helmet for $2000. So $2500 is not to bad of a price. I'm 6'2" and about 235-245 lbs. and it's comfortable enough for me. I think you would be fine riding it and the power is good enough for a your first sportbike. I really don't think you would be disappointed if you bought it.

[sesomb]

I bought my 96 with 4700 miles and it came with a helmet for $2000. So $2500 is not to bad of a price. I'm 6'2" and about 235-245 lbs. and it's comfortable enough for me. I think you would be fine riding it and the power is good enough for a your first sportbike. I really don't think you would be disappointed if you bought it.

THanks, I can also get a 2007 250 ninja for the same price. I've looked over on the 250 ninja board and there is people there my "size" and can ride the 250. I'm trying to weigh a 11 year old 600 or a new 250 for my first sport bike. Any thoughts?

[BLACKACIDEVIL]

I wouldn't even waste your time with a 250 if you already know how to ride because you'll be bored by the end of the week with it.
Can you test ride the 250 Ninja? If so, you should. It's a great entry level bike but it gets old quick.
The Kat is a great bike to learn maintenance on and it's very forgiving as far as learning to ride a "sportbike".
When I first bought my Kat my plan was to ride it for a couple seasons to knock the rust off and then buy a GSXR 750 and give the Kat to my brother but after riding it for the last couple months I think I'll keep the Kat to commute and take long trips on and use the GSXR for the twisties, lol.

[The CyberPoet]

IMHO: go looking for a 98-02 Kat instead. You should, if you search diligently, find one in the $2500-$3k price bracket in decent-to-great shape.

Why the suggestion on the newer bike? Because it's less likely to be in need of serious help than a 12 year old bike that wasn't ridden regularly, plus parts are still readily available in the Suzuki supply system if you find you need something. At 6'1" and 300 lbs, you'll probably feel a bit better protected by the larger fairings as well should you ever hit bad weather while on the road.

Here's a checklist that you should use to help make your decision -- it will help keep you from buying a junker:
CyberPoet's Used Bike Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist.

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

[Mark3748]

I bought my 96 with 4700 miles and it came with a helmet for $2000. So $2500 is not to bad of a price. I'm 6'2" and about 235-245 lbs. and it's comfortable enough for me. I think you would be fine riding it and the power is good enough for a your first sportbike. I really don't think you would be disappointed if you bought it.

THanks, I can also get a 2007 250 ninja for the same price. I've looked over on the 250 ninja board and there is people there my "size" and can ride the 250. I'm trying to weigh a 11 year old 600 or a new 250 for my first sport bike. Any thoughts?

Yes, you can ride a 250, you'd be better off with a 500, but those itty bitty ninja's are fun! and if you start thinking about going to a 500, a Kat 600 is a lot better bike for the money.

I just went through the same thing, trying to decide between a Ninja and a Kat, I wanted the 250 because they are just awesome, fun to ride, 70+mpg, good enough in the twisties to keep up with the big boys (most of the time at least). But, I knew I was going to be on the highway a lot, and I'm a big guy myself (6'4" and 290) so I was thinking about going with the Ninja 500. All the dealer had was a yellow one, which is probably my least favorite color.

I looked around and found this beautiful 2005 Kat 750, with 4198 miles (I was happy to not live through another break-in) and fell in love. I'd had plenty of experiance with Katanas before so I knew that it couldn't be beat for commuting and fun, I decided the extra cash was well worth it.

[Tjums]

Hi there
I stood in the same problem when I was buying mine.. I went for the pre 98 kat – most because I felt in love with the design, and what I could do with it… (mod wise) – I’m a big fellow to, and on 6’2” the pre 98 is a bit small, but I hope to ”correct” that with another rear shock ..

The bike runs perfectly, and have power to make i fun to..
The Cyberpoet might have a point in buying the 98+ kat instead, having bigger fairings and being a bigger bike overall… then it just up to you if you like the design..

Nice riding..