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Only thing I’d add to what you’ve said is that I’d spend the money now on quality gear. A 125 will still do 60mph or so and if someone pulls out on you, well you know the consequences and I wouldn’t want to be sliding down the tarmac in a £100 helmet and budget trousers.
Factor in some money for boots too. It’s rather inevitable that you’ll drop the bike at one time or another and even a lighter 125 could crush your ankle if you’re still sat on the bike when it fancies a nap
PhilDAS-
spend the money now on quality gear
The plan was to buy a helmet that I wouldn’t need to replace, and the free jacket is a proper bike jacket my mate just doesn’t fit any more. I was hoping that some semi decent second hand trousers would see me through. Boots and gloves too (can’t say I was massively enthusiastic about second hand, but needs must).
I do appreciate that buying good kit is a necessity. Part of me was just doing mental maths trying to figure out how to get on a bike quickly, but I’m starting to realise that I’ll probably need to invest/save a bit more cash than initially thought.
Eg, I was trying to get on the road for about £1500, buying a 125 bike for £7-800 etc.
And it’s mid winter. Tax bill is due at the end of January. I’m functionally unemployed with my field of work being completely dead due to corona. But wangling my way to getting a bike for cheap seemed really appealing, albeit probably a bit stupid.
Nef
Thanks for taking the time to offer advise everyone - really appreciate it.
Basically I just wanted to get on any bike. I just need something to get out the house on. Buying a more fun car was the catalyst. I really enjoy going out driving in something that is actually fun to drive, buy I realised that I needed to not rag the shit out of my daily that I need to be working. And that working on a car/throwing money at it isn’t a good idea. No amount of cash is gonna make a 2ltr estate into a sports car after all.
The main reason I wanted a 125 was simply because it meant I could get on a bike sooner with my budget.
Cbt, 125, helmet, and trousers, with a jacket for free off a mate was something I could afford in the next few months. And hopefully not lose too much on the resale of a 125.
But if I wanted to get a big bike, I’d need to budget way more for the bike - 3k vs 1k. And I’d need a proper suit to wear, rather than just trying to get by with what I can beg and borrow. And hopefully through riding a 125 I’ll get a better idea of what bike I actually want. I’m old enough to go straight for my full license and I’ve been driving for over a decade so I don’t need to worry about that side of things.
In my mind, I want something 600cc, plenty torque, enough fairing that I can nip on the motorway, but mainly just something to enjoy on the B roads round here in Yorkshire. I don’t want it to be too heavy. I don’t want it to be going over 100mph to come alive. Thoughts of touring Europe and Scotland appeal, but it seems silly to buy a bike based on such a far fetched plan. I also appreciate that I need to actually ride more to know what I want. I actively want to avoid the situation where I buy something niche, only to discover I don’t actually enjoy that kind of riding.
I had a go on my brothers 250cc 4 stroke scrambler on some forestry track and really enjoyed it, and my bro seemed pretty confident in my handling capabilities.
Fuck knows though. My bro passed his test 2nd or 3rd time, despite being super capable on bikes and other stuff, which kinda shits me up about wasting cash going straight for my full license.