Katana750 vs. CBR600RR

[Wilson]

I have a chance to buy a low mileage (1600), mint condition 2006 CBR600RR. Great price. It will require me to sell my low mileage (3100) mint condition 2006 Katana 750. I'm not an aggressive rider. I occasionally ride to work or around town. I will probably be out of pocket $500 if I can sell the Katana for a fair price. Just curious what the group might do in this situation.

[steves]

A lot of it will depend on your personal preference for the ergonomics, but I hear the CBRs are nice bikes.

[97gold-Ryan]

my friend has a cbr 600 f4i and loves it. i rode it a couple of times and its a real responsive bike, better for stunts and stuff like that. the katana 750 is more comfortable for regular riding though.

[ctandc]

The 600 is more powerful than your 750 Kat. It's also lighter. Remember the 2006 KAt 750 is pretty much identical to the 1998 Katana 750 (slight cosmetic changes aside)...

The riding position is a lot different....comfort depends on YOU. You can't even go by height, weight etc...

Personally I think the later model 600RR are comfy TO ME (6ft 3, 240lbs) WHEN COMPARED to other SS bikes on the market.

And don't forget the math problem.

I don't know what you paid for you Kat, or what you are thinking you can get for it...but depending on where you are located, used bikes aren't moving at all...plus in MOST states it's not exactly prime riding weather (Buyer's market for sure).

I do know that the Kat's resale value isn't it's strong suit...

You'd be lucky to get $3500 for you Kat selling it to a private buyer. Knock probably $1000 off that for trade in.

Another thing to keep in mind...

While you have a 750...compared to the 600RR the Kat is night and day different. You might get away with too much throttle in certain situations on the Kat...the same throttle on the 600RR might end up with you staring at the sky...

[Kreylyn]

Sport bike, or Sport Touring bike...

Would you prefer to drive a Camaro or a Grand Prix?

CBR will be lighter, quicker, more responsive... at the cost of some comfort. How much of a difference really plays in how much you drive it, and for how long at a time.

Once ina while for less than 30 mins... not much reason for the Kat.

CBR will probably hold a higher resell value by a little bit as well.

Krey

["K"]

What the difference in insurance premium?

[scottynoface]

I'm not an aggressive rider. I occasionally ride to work or around town.

It would be a waste of a CBR. Keep the Katana.

[acraze]

friend just got a 02 CBR 600 engine and we are going to mount that thang to a gocart frame. One thing I know, I will learn about a cbr engine.

[bobthebiker]

The CBR isnt a commuter friendly toy, its much more of a track oreinted bike with lights. really.

the kat is a comfort based bike, aimed more toward well, you know the stuff a kat is good for.

obviously the CBR is much lighter, faster, more powerful, and in general, a VERY durable/long living motor. they fare well in constant heavy acceleration, high speeds, stunt riding, such as wheelies, and similar tricks.

its your pick which bike you play with. I remember my 87 CBR was VERY unfriendly to jim& the twins down there, no matter how I sat but that may just have been me. most likely the newer bikes are much more comfortable about this aspect.

[LAsunbird86]

Two of my riding buddies had cbr's 01+'s actually. They LOVED them, and they seemed like great bikes. For $500, its a heck of an upgrade.

[BIGKAT1100]

The CBR F4i is a great street weapon, the RR is the sport weapon. That being said, if you were getting the F4i, I'd say go for it, it's a great product. From what you said your riding habits are, you prolley wouldn't be happy with the RR. Now, there are also stories of people that tasted the blood of the SS and were all in from there .... It's a you thing. See if the owner will let you test ride it.

my .02

[scottynoface]

Now, there are also stories of people that tasted the blood of the SS and were all in from there

It's like crack with a motor.

[delkampg]

i wish i would of seen this when you first posted it cause i feel like im getting in a little late. but here it goes.

i started out on a kat 600, but havnt had it for over a year now, but i just bought an 06 600rr, just like the one you are looking at. ive put 1400 miles on it in just a few weeks. and this is my review, ill probably copy and paste it in the review section also...here is a pic also, since then i put a full slider set on it, and had to cut the fairings for the frame slider, but it turned out really nice.


i dont remember the kat 600 that much and never got to go threw the twisties with it, so i cant compare it much to that kat. but the 600rr is very light and very fast, compared to the kat. its able to power wheelie at 35 mph, although i dont really have any desire for that. also once i accidentally hit the rev limiter in 1st, and going into second i dropped the clutch a bit and the front tire came up (its important to note this was about 70mph)
i havnt gotten to take it into the mountains yet, and most of the riding ive done has been highway, commuting miles. the seating position is very aggresive, and alot of weight is on your wrists, im young which probably helps, but i dont find the position to be a problem on long rides though.
i use it as a daily rider, and my car moves only about once every 2 weeks, i get groceries on it, made trips to home depot, the bike store, ect. like i said, the position isnt that bad, for me, but the money that it takes to maintain it is higher..and it seems to nickel and dime you pretty good.

for instance, tires, to have this bike and not go to the twisties is pointless, thats what this bike is made for and belongs, which means instead of tour tires i went with sport tires. they were more expensive and will wear faster. Insurance is also more expensive obviously, when i had the kat i was paying 35 and had "high risk" ins. now im older and dont have a driving record anymore, and i pay 55/month. its liquid cooled, so you have to buy that. valve adjusments are every 16k miles, which i thought was resonible though.
the powerband is good, but like others have mentioned, these bikes dont have anything below about 7k, but it redlines at 15. and it has power through all the gears, even a considerable amount in 6th, in the higher rpms.
in conclusion, these bikes are made for the track/twisties. if you dont do that kind of riding then you dont really need one of these bikes. they arnt the best for going around town with because like i said, it doesnt do much in the lower rpms. as much commuting as i do, i spend an equal amount of time in the twisties (and hopefully eventually on a track) so im very happy with this bike so far, with the limited amount of time ive got to go around corners. once again, if you dont do alot of aggressive riding, you shouldnt get one of these. there are pleanty of other sport tour bikes that will have a better position for you, and almost as much power that would fancy your needs better.

[Wilson]

Thanks for all the insight. I'm going to check the CBR out, but it's probably not the bike for me. One of the things I was looking for was a stiffer ride. What settings do most folks use for their suspensions to get a firmer ride?

[Nero]

The CBR's a lot more civil in ergos than people give them credit for, though it will never match a kat in that category. The power and flickability will be like night and day. It's your choice, but I'd take a long sit on the bike and see if it feels like 'home' before I bought it.