Compare SFV 650 to N1K
Hey guys. I noticed today the request for the SFV650 and Ninja comparison.
First, let me say that I'm kinda tall (6'3" roughly) and about 205 lbs. My legs are long. When I decided last year in April to get a motorcycle, I just wanted a regular bike. The SFV 650 seemed ideal. It wasn't expensive ($6400 new after tax and such).
Within about a month, I realized I'd bought the wrong bike. I could only ride for about 20 minutes before my glutes started to hurt-- it was almost unbearable by 40 minutes.
A friend of mine told me about Corbin seats. Distance was important to me so I bit the bullet and spent $460 on a saddle. The quality was awesome (it better have been for that kind of coin). It only added another 20 minutes to the comfortable duration of riding. By September, I'd logged a painful 2,300 miles, fallen in love with motorcycling, and decided to get THE bike for me... Enter the N1K...
It fits me so much better! I can ride for about 60 minutes before I need to stop and stretch. And then I jump right back on, ride for another 60 minutes, and repeat. Often, I'll ride 300 miles in a day (a little fatigued but nothing a short rest and some dinner can't overcome).
As far as how they ride, the N1K is a monster compared to the SFV 650. The Suzuki might have impressed me when I first got it-- but the Kaw is literally twice the bike.
The SFV was MUCH more nimble, though. In fact, I rode both of them in the same afternoon recently and some might argue that the more technical roads (like the triple-nickel in southern Ohio) would be much more enjoyable on the Suzuki. It was a very fun bike-- it just was more of a commuter than a recreation machine.
All in all, I wish I would have learned how to ride and learned what fit me on a less expensive machine. For those of you looking for your first bike? Just get something cheap-- you can buy 250cc starter bikes for $1,000. Do that so you don't lose any money deciding your riding style and what you want to do on a bike...