Need some advice on choosing between a 600 and 750.

[Guitarman]

Howdy KatGurus!!!

I am looking to get out of my cruiser and into a Katana (already did lot's of research and for my price range a used Kat is the way to go). I will be riding mostly two-up on the Kat as i have an SV650 for solo blasting. My question is that in my area there are lot's of used 600's but not many 750's. In fact i've only seen one used 750 (a 1992 with 33,xxx miles). Does the 600 have the ergo's and power to do two-up trips without too much hassle or should i try and get the older 750. These trips are 300-400 miles per day for 4 days or so - a long weekend usually. We are 375-400lbs together (me defininetly being the bulk of those numbers ). Thanks very very much for any insight you might provide.

Have a great day and ride safe

[Psycho1]

My 600 is comfortable enough for me to do 400+ mile days, but the wife starts getting uncomfortable somewhere around the 300 mile mark on the back. We haven't tried long weekend rides yet unless it's been limited to around 250 miles per day or so, with overnight stops to visit family, or to spend the night in a hotel. My 600 has been modified quite a bit, so I have plenty of power for 2up riding with us at a combined weight of around 330-340lbs, but I would probably recommend the 750 for the higher bars, and extra torque at low rpm's. The extra power should allow you to ride smoother using less rpm's. I'm not sure but the rear seat might also be more comfortable on the 750's. I added an extra 1/2" of padding to my rear seat on the 600 and that seemed to help the wife out quite a bit. Last Nov I bought an old '86 Fazer 700 for us to use on the 2up rides. The wife's a lot more comfortable on that, and the extra torque makes for a lot smoother ride for her, but I miss having the wind protection of the Kat once we get over about 75 mph on the freeways for long periods of time. Another option you might want to look into would be the GSX650F.

EDIT: Welcome to the forum. I just noticed you're in Reno, I'm just outside of Klamath Falls, and the wife and I will probably be riding down to Carson City occasionally to visit a friend that lives down there. Maybe we could get together some time and take the wives out for a ride. If you ever make it to the Klamath Falls area, shoot me a message here before you head up, and I'll see what our schedule looks like.

[The CyberPoet]

I used to 600 - 1k mile days on my '00/'01 Kat 600's and they handled it just fine -- perfectly capable of running 80 - 95 mph two-up with hard-luggage with no issues (that's 360 lbs of load weight between us and the luggage). Like Sprague, my other half was usually done by the 250 - 300 mile mark, although the Corbin saddle with the backrest for the rear passenger extended that to 450 miles if I gave her 30-60 minute breaks every 150 miles (food, attractions, etc). The fact that she's as tall as me was a large part of the problem -- because of the seating height differences, she sat higher than me and caught lots of wind on the head (pressure on neck) that made her hit fatigue-levels faster than me.

As far as I'm concerned, for two-up touring, the only difference between the 600's and 750's is a bit of extra torque that's generally lost when riding two-up (because you don't want to slam the passenger around). Because the 750 runs lower compression ratios than the 600, the power difference isn't as large as the displacement difference would imply...

What kind of distances are the two of you hoping to cover?

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

__________________________________________________ ________
CyberPoet's Katana Maintence and Upgrade Parts Offerings
The Best Metal Steel Aluminum Motorcycle Tire Valves in the World, plus lots of motorcycle & Katana (GSX600F / GSX750F) specific help files.

[Guitarman]

Thanks for the input gurus. It sounds like a lower mileage 600 would work out just as well for me as the higher mileage 750. I really appreciate the thoughtful and helpful replies!

[VifferJim]

Suggest you take them both out and get a feel for them before you buy. An additional .150 ltr isn't much in the grand scheme of things, but I gotta tell you I loved my pre-750 set-up so much more than my pre-600 set up.

The last thing anyone should do is buy one thing only to wish they'd gotten something else...

[Tech]

Get yourself a 750 and be merry.

[DreKat]

Love my 750!

[squiggy]

What kind of price range have you settled on?

[Dfurgi]

got a 750 and I love it, doesn't hurt to have the extra power if you need it

[Guitarman]

I am looking in the $2500-3000 range. I guess i could use some suggestions on years to look for as well. Thanks again for all the replies Great site. I missed out on a 1991 600 just yesterday. 12k miles and $1800 seemed like a decent deal. I'll just keep looking.

[The CyberPoet]

If you're in the $2500 - $3k range, you should be able to shop 01 - 04 model years with no issue.

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

__________________________________________________ ________
CyberPoet's Katana Maintence and Upgrade Parts Offerings
The Best Metal Steel Aluminum Motorcycle Tire Valves in the World, plus lots of motorcycle & Katana (GSX600F / GSX750F) specific help files.

[jbo197]

If buying a 600, you may wish you had a 750.
If you buy a 750, you will never wish you had a 600 ~

[Zepp]

Get the 750, especially if you will be doing a lot of two up riding

[Goblin414]

I have a 93 750 that my wife and I 2 up quit often. I am 320 and my wife is 160 total 480 and my bike pulls just fine. The seat could use a little extra padding to keep the wife happy but we pull 3 to 4 hour stints regularly. just hope that shock holds out!!!!

[GSXfs600]

Sounds like low power is nothing new to you? I still think the 750 is the way to go! Same bike as the 600 with a little more comfort and 20 more HP!