What is a good reasonably priced beginner sport bike?

Derek B: What is a good reasonably priced beginner sport bike?
I have been interested in the Suzuki Bandits and SV 650s because they are good beginner sport bikes that you can pick up for under $ 2500 used. Is there any similar bikes that you would recommend along those lines?

Answers and Views:

Answer by patricia b
The ninja 250 could be something to start with

Answer by Loki
The Honda CBR 600 is the most forgiving sport bike. The CBR 600 generally has a good balance of power and torque, and it is less likely to do a front flip on you if you have to slam on the brakes. If you’re just looking for a good beginner bike I would go with the Honda Shadow 600.

Answer by Thedude27
Sv650 is a very good choice, its probably the most recommended starter bike. You might want to stay away from full faring bikes because they are expensive to drop. T he other good thing with the SV is that once you outgrow it you can turn in into a decent track bike.

Answer by XYZ
The SV is an excellent choice for sure. Here are just a couple examples of what you should expect to pay used.

https://www.cycletrader.com/find/listing/2002-Suzuki-SV650-89867661

https://www.cycletrader.com/find/listing/2003-SUZUKI-SV650-SV-650–94432211

Answer by YZF750R
SV650 or Ninja 650R are great choices. They aren’t classified as sport bikes though. These are sport tourers, or hybrids.

Kawasaki makes the ZZR600 which is a sport bike that isn’t race tuned like the ZX-6R. Yamaha makes the YZF600R which is also a sport bike that is not race tuned like the R6. Suzuki doesn’t have a non race 600 bike. They had the Katana but you don’t want one of those anyway.

For $ 2500 you will be purchasing some headaches along with the bike. You’ll need about another $ 1K to get something decent.