Hello, Thank You, and One Question

[04'E-blue]

I just wanted to say hello to everyone, and thank you for all of the great info. I've been reading like crazy, but I just finally made an account. I am planning to get a 2006 Katana 600, and I figured that I would want to post some questions in the future. I actually have one question right now: I've heard that the Katana is a fairly heavy bike, and I was wondering if it was going to be bad (as in too much power, or hard to control, etc) for my first bike? (Note: I'm 5'10" and only weigh about 150 lbs). I'm sure this question has been asked a million times, and you guys are a little biased, but any opinions are greatly appreciated. Thanks again! - Max

[Zepp]

It is a great first bike. Are there bikes better to start out on, sure, Ninja 250. However, most people outgrow the 250 too quickly. If you are going to buy a bike that will keep you happy for years to come and is still rider friendly, get a Katana. The bike is a bit heavy but you are tall enough that it shouldn't be a problem for you.

Start out by practicing in an empty lot. Once you get comfortable, drive slowly around the neighborhood.

The only issue with the weight for a newbie that you have to watch out for is when you are turning slowly, be careful. The bike is very forgiving to newer riders in the power dept.

Go take an MSF class first if you have never ridden a bike. After the classs you will have been taught everything that you need to know in order to start riding safely. Then just practice.

Don't worry, you will be fine. Many riders have started out with the Katana as their first bikes.

[BIGKAT1100]

The Katana is a good starter bike for someone that at least has ridden something before (just to be familiar with how the mechanics of riding works). Other than that, I'm in agreeance with my man Zepp. Start out slowly and definately take the MSF class.

[giggles88]

welcometo KTR its a great first bike has just enough power to get you educated in riding practice at slow speed in pkg lots get a feel bit unbalanced i find going slow 1st and 2nd gear do some circles left and right stop starts don't be in a hurry to go fast you will know when you feel comfortable to head out on highway good luck lots can be learned here
i have a 04 750

[KatanaSoldier]

It is a great first bike. Are there bikes better to start out on, sure, Ninja 250. However, most people outgrow the 250 too quickly. If you are going to buy a bike that will keep you happy for years to come and is still rider friendly, get a Katana. The bike is a bit heavy but you are tall enough that it shouldn't be a problem for you.

Start out by practicing in an empty lot. Once you get comfortable, drive slowly around the neighborhood.

The only issue with the weight for a newbie that you have to watch out for is when you are turning slowly, be careful. The bike is very forgiving to newer riders in the power dept.

Go take an MSF class first if you have never ridden a bike. After the classs you will have been taught everything that you need to know in order to start riding safely. Then just practice.

Don't worry, you will be fine. Many riders have started out with the Katana as their first bikes.

Ditto to all of this!

Welcome to KR!

[BigRedKitty91]

The 600 is a great bike to start with. I started on a XS650 (cruise style) didn't ride it much though, I hated the bike, not comfortable. My first real bike was a Katana 750. As a friend of mine put it it is all in how you turn the trottle. The 600 is a very forgiving bike when it comes to low speeds, I had one of these also I rebuilt it. They are easy to work on as well. I am a girl if you couldn't figure out from my user name. Now I ride a Katana 1100. I am 5' 7" and yes I am going to tell my weight, 155lbs. I do just fine.

All I can suggest is relaxe and take it one step at a time and you will be just fine, as the previous person said.

Oh, I didn't take the class, but would suggest it.

[versionpardner]

I don't know what your previous motorcycle experience is but mine was with my Dad's Harley Softail and other Japanese V twin cruisers my friends own. If your worried about weight go ride a Softail. The one big thing that I found totally different control wise is that the Kat's throttle is a lot easier to use. By that I mean it is touchier. Take it real easy with the throttle only a little gas is needed to get it moving. You don't need to man handle it to get it going. But the Kat is the first bike I have owned (it's an 06 also) and I still love it's power and handling. Yeah there are faster things out there but none of them can do what I need the Kat for ie commuting and joyriding.

[The CyberPoet]

I'm going to say that it's too heavy to be a good starter bike, too powerful to be a good initial learning platform, esp. for someone who clocks in at 150 lbs. This is my general advice to most new riders, for all the reasons below [standard repost]

Standard advice:

Find a bike that fits your build well, where you can put both feet on the ground and lean the bike between your thighs left and right a bit. The bike should be cheap -- $1k - $2k price range (preferably something you can afford in cash), physically light and nimble, and not all that powerful (preferably with a fairly narrow powerband). If you wreck it during your learning curve, you won't cry at the financial penalty of it, and if you don't wreck it, you'll be able to get out of it whatever it cost you in the first place... It'll also teach you better riding habits.

The Ninja 250 & 500's are an ideal starter bike... [Newbie "riders"] would learn far better habits on the smaller bike than on a typical Katana (for reasons I'm about to explain):

There are certain great advantages to starting out on a small, nimble, high-rev'ving bike with a low total cost. Among others, you will learn to use the handling and power with far more finess and far more skill than you would on a larger, more powerful bike like the Kat. To put that into terms that make sense to someone coming from the car world:

When Colin McRae, the world-champion WRC (world rally cup) driver first started to drive (age 12 - 14), he did so swiping his dad's 1972 Ford Fiesta/Escort with a miniscule 1.2 or 1.4 liter engine. It had power nothing -- manual steering, manual brakes, and high-rev'ing engine with little torque. This taught him everything from precise handling to carrying speed through corners, finess and control, matching shift-speeds and proper gear selection. If his father had owned a Cadillac Eldorado with a 501 cubic inch engine and automatic-power-everything, he would have never had the opportunity (or the need) to learn proper gear selection, finess in handling, traction and handling loss of traction, etc. -- the huge engine and huge car just never require it of the driver. In the same sense, a larger, heavier and more torque-rich bike never require you to learn certain fine nuances of riding... you can just punch out in whatever gear for a passing maneuver, you don't need to carry speed through corners, etc. And there's the crux -- if you learn these skills as habits with your first bike, they go with you for the rest of your life. On the other hand, if you don't learn them at the beginning, unlearning mediocre and poor habits and learning the better/advanced habits later is very difficult and something many never master...
Thus, for all the same reasons that McRae went on to be the winningest rally champ in history, I say to you, get the Ninja 250 or 500, or a bandit 400, a nighthawk 450, etc., and start there. By the time you move up in a year or three, you'll be riding circles around at least half the guys who started on a Katana, and doing so with great confidence.

Now all that said, if you're not worried about every being a great rider (satisfied with being a mediocre-good one), live in a fairly unpopulated area (not massive amounts of road traffic) and plan on simply cruising leisurely, it can be a reasonable first bike. But that's rarely the case for most first-time riders

PS - if you haven't read this yet, go read it: http://katriders.com/vb/showthread.php?t=61328

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

[burnin_rubber_24_7]

yeah dido what cyber said but if you have your heart set on getting the katana, don't worry, i'm your size and this is my first real bike (as not a 1980 honda) i'm doing fine controlling it. like they say...be careful doing u-turns ect.. just be ready to put foot out it you are going too slow turning around. i think you'll be happy.