Hi Guys,

I felt like it was rude to just disappear without saying 'thank you' and 'goodbye.'

Early this season, I traded my 2015 CBR500R in on a 2016 Suzuki Bandit 1250SA. Great bike. Unbelievable torque. But my girlfriend got her first ride on it and decided she loves riding with me. While the bike had plenty of power, the seat was not comfortable for her; she was always fidgeting. Also, it was sneaky fast. Rode that for only 1500 miles or so before trading it in on a '19 Versys 1000. That one has a great big, thickly-padded passenger seat. Not quite as sneaky fast either, as it makes power a bit higher up in the revs. It also has that lovely long-travel suspension.

My parting thoughts on the little CBR:

+ Great engine; I loved the power curve
+ Great quality
+ Nice & light (compared to other bikes that are as capable, long range)
+ Good looks
+/- Geared too low for US street riding. Easily fixed by going up a tooth, they say, but I never got around to it.
- No provisions for proper wind protection
- Too expensive for what it is, new. It's not an $6700 bike. More like $5500.
- Heavy clutch pull. The Bandit's was a bit lighter and a lot smoother. The Versys' is a LOT lighter and a bit smoother.
- Gearbox was not great; it got caught between gears pretty often. The Bandit's was flawless; Suzuki's reputation here is deserved. Hard to tell on the Versys, under the mushy quick-shifter.

It made a great lightweight, one-up touring bike. In retrospect, I should've bought a used CB500X instead, saved $1k and geared it up. I sat on one a couple weeks ago, and that bike is more comfortable, but still has the heavy clutch.

Thanks for all the tips and good camaraderie.

If you're on advrider, I'm user Smaug1 there and I'll see you around in Road Warriors or Battle Scooters.

[QUOTE=Smaug;930268]Hi Guys,

I felt like it was rude to just disappear without saying 'thank you' and 'goodbye.'

Early this season, I traded my 2015 CBR500R in on a 2016 Suzuki Bandit 1250SA. Great bike. Unbelievable torque. But my girlfriend got her first ride on it and decided she loves riding with me. While the bike had plenty of power, the seat was not comfortable for her; she was always fidgeting. Also, it was sneaky fast. Rode that for only 1500 miles or so before trading it in on a '19 Versys 1000. That one has a great big, thickly-padded passenger seat. Not quite as sneaky fast either, as it makes power a bit higher up in the revs. It also has that lovely long-travel suspension.

My parting thoughts on the little CBR:

+ Great engine; I loved the power curve
+ Great quality
+ Nice & light (compared to other bikes that are as capable, long range)
+ Good looks
+/- Geared too low for US street riding. Easily fixed by going up a tooth, they say, but I never got around to it.
- No provisions for proper wind protection
- Too expensive for what it is, new. It's not an $6700 bike. More like $5500.
- Heavy clutch pull. The Bandit's was a bit lighter and a lot smoother. The Versys' is a LOT lighter and a bit smoother.

It made a great lightweight, one-up touring bike. In retrospect, I should've bought a used CB500X instead, saved $1k and geared it up. I sat on one a couple weeks ago, and that bike is more comfortable, but still has the heavy clutch.

Thanks for all the tips and good camaraderie.

If you're on advrider, I'm user Smaug1 there and I'll see you around in Road Warriors or Battle Scooters.[/QUOTE


The very best of luck to you.

Superplasma]

Ride on safe and long my friend. I can understand with your explanation why the 500 isn't really suited to your needs anymore. Mine has become my regular fun work commuter bike, where my CBR600 is my weekend smile inducer. It certainly has it's limitations, but it was a bike built to a limit anyway. Mods can only get it so far as well, so it never surprises me when someone trades up, or in my case, supplements it with another bike (or 2...eventually 3? lol) Enjoy the ride!

Hate to see you leave but also understand why you’d move on. Was thinking about selling mine as well but may just supplement it with another.

I do have two bikes now, the Versys 1000 and the Yamaha SMax 155cc scooter. They compliment each other well.

Droman: those earlier CBR600s like you have were GREAT bikes. It was before they got so race-committed that they got uncomfortable. I remember wanting an F2 SO BADLY in high school. The F4is were the last of the comfy ones, I think. At least until they came out with the CBR650s more recently.

Added one more '-' to the list in the original post.