Downgrading to a Bandit

[_Troy_]

Good afternoon all.

My Ninja has just today received 12 months MOT (with only one issue found!), and it got me thinking. Now is quite possibly the best time to sell it for maximum money. It's just had slight work, it runs like a dream and has 12 months MOT.

However, i've been thinking about selling it for a while, mainly in time for the winter months, as it's not the sort of bike designed for it. I'd also love a bit of spare cash! At the moment I use it every day you see, and the short commutes and runs around town aren't really what a sports bike are for. Don't get me wrong, i do weekend runs, tours and all sorts on it too, but come the harsher months these just wont happen much.

So i am thinking about selling up and buying something cheap and simple. So what does anyone think about getting a Bandit 6? I know they are boring and heavy, but that's kind of the idea of downgrading. I will likely see a big return on my insurance cost, as well as some on the fuel bill, not to mention on the sale of the Ninja.

So is it worth it? Will i see much money back on fuel/insurance? Are there any other bikes worth considering? (I've thought about the 500's, but want a bit more power and a slightly bigger body. Also like the IL4 setup).

*Just for extra info, mine is a 1999 G2 model, runs like a dream, but has almost 45K miles on it.
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Current bike: ZX6R J1
Previous bikes: CLR 125 | GS500 | ZX6R G2 | SV650

[mfactor]

Got a bandit 600 after years of mega sportsbikes, best move I ever made, had great fun on it, most fun since my 125 days, got me into nakeds in a big way, ended up with a speed triple.

More licence friendly as well

Do it

[Matt-]

Bandit's are lovely bike's and also a pleasure to ride,
i would say they are everything you want, some torque , Fairly quick
fuel consumption is surprisingly good as well and to be honest most thing's like brake's and little bit's like that are dead easy to change if you have some knowledge of how to use a ratchet and a Haynes manual,

Once i have had my NSR for a while i am going to upgrade to a

Bandit 650 06" + Lovely looking machines and with a Scorpion can they sound the bollex
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RIP jack (wheelie king), you will never be forgotten.
Current Bike's - Road Legal TZR 125 Pitbike, Aprilia SR50R 2010

[c-m]

I don't know what the 600 is like compared to the 1250, but I recently had the later on loan (11 pate), and it leaves a lot to be desired.

Initially it seemed nice pottering about town. Comfortable and easy to ride, if a bit on the lardy side.

Outside of town though it was poor. The brakes were shockingly bad, suspension was far too soft too.

The wind blast wasn't at all bad at over 90mph (on a private road), but the vibrations were terrible. It almost seems need another gear.

The paintwork was poor, and the bike looked at though it had been built down to a price.
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Motorcycle headlight bulbs and HIDs
Blogging about my bike and trips
https://ridershandbook.com/

[T0MMY]

Whilst this seems to me like a thinly disguised For Sale thread I would say a Bandit offers literally nothing your ZX6 doesn't apart from maybe being slightly cheaper to buy and insure. Fuel economy won't be that much better and there's nothing wrong with using a ZX6R round town or in winter...that's what mine does quite happily. I doubt you'd get much for a 45,000 mile G2 as they're already cheap so I would just keep it.
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ZX6R + CBR600RR

[Slacker24seve...]

Don't do it. The motorcycling equivalent of watching paint dry.

There's plenty of other mildly interesting nakeds; CB400 would be my choice.
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Triumph Daytona 675 track bike + girlfriend's Honda Hornet 600
Selling a hack/winter bike for less than a grand? PM me.
Banger rallies are ace

[scorps]

bandits are great fun, i had the 12 and cried like a girl.............oh hang on I am a girl when I sold it. I did loads to it to tart it up and never had a problem with it, would have prefered that over the gixer but the bandit was the forst one to get an offer on it. I only sold it because I didnt have enough room to keep two bikes when I moved.
You certainly arent downgrading.
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Do not presume that I am male.

[T0MMY]

[Mikey3]

Hornet *cough* hornet.

Mike
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'04 Yamaha WR450F
'99 SV650 Streetfighter Project - mid build
'Motorcycling is about what you do; not about what you own, or how much you spend on it'

[_Troy_]

This isn't a for sale thread, not even sure I want to sell yet. Just trying to give all info, such as I don't have a broken bike that needs replacing.

Insurance will surely drop a little, and costs of consumables must be lower. I'm not expecting excitement, just a good bike to keep me going. I know my bike isn't worth much, and I've been looking at £800 bandits and such, so not expecting anything of quality!

Mike - no. I'd save nothing on purchase price, insurance or fuel, and my bike is faster
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Current bike: ZX6R J1
Previous bikes: CLR 125 | GS500 | ZX6R G2 | SV650

[Mikey3]

[carb0n]

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?p=3274938

just paid £850 for mine 1996.

[Paris2]

Like I have said, you will save a few hundred on insurance and a small amount on fuel. I doubt you will make more than a couple of hundred on sale/purchase as yours can't be worth more thank £1,250?

Still, I would do it. A bandit 6 is perfect, cheap and cheerful. You don't need a sportsbike, a naked will be perfect for town as you never go on motorways.
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Current Ride: Daytona 600

[_Troy_]

I've seen bandits starting at £600 and going up, hornets start at about £950. I'm not after the same speed, winter is coming after all, and my main aim at the moment is to save money.
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Current bike: ZX6R J1
Previous bikes: CLR 125 | GS500 | ZX6R G2 | SV650

[_Iain_]

As far as i've been told;

Bandit 600
Bandit 650
Bandit 1200 - however absolutely drinks fuel.
Bandit 1250 - and i quote; "Gutless piece of shit, i got it because my old 1200 was great" He sold it after a month of ownership...
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Please be aware that the above post may be full of complete nonsense.
Riding: '07 KTM Duke II, Baotian BT49QT-20 Driving: '88 Volvo 340

[metalangel]

Absolutely hated the 09 reg 650 Blandit I had as a courtesy bike. It was shiny and new but felt really cheap trying to pass itself off as higher quality.
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Previous: 2002 Honda CB500 (sold), 2007 Suzuki SV650SK6 (crashed), 2005 Yamaha FZ6 Fazer (sold). Currently bikeless
"A faired bike will get you 10x more clunge than a unfaired one." -Marlboro Matt