Learner motorcycles

tnwoolley

Do any of you discerning chaps/chapesses ride a Honda CG125?

Doing my CBT soon with a view to getting one of these to save £££ on the commute (100+mpg!)

Just wanted to hear what they are REALLY like.

Also, any viable alternatives at this price point?

Ta.

tnwoolley

PS I'm 6 ft 2 so will it be ok size wise or will I look like a man on a childs toy?!

lovewales

Have a look at the Honda CBF 125, my hubby who's 6' rides it no problems and when we bought a new one in Feb they were £1700.

There was very little review wise then but there may be now. It does silly amount of mpg, and we have had no problems as yet.

ramemtbers

just sayin but have you seen the apprillia rs 125. thats quite nice.

sparrowlegs78

If you are 6 ft+ look at the Hyosung 125's as they are nearly full bike size, or even the Honda Varadero 125.
All good bikes and decent sizes for the taller rider
Caz xxx

Northwind

CG is one of the classic learners, they're well priced, indestructible, they keep their value, they cost buttons to insure... And though they do admittedly look like they're from 1970 (they are) they're not actually any less good on the road than the CBR125 or similiar. I wish I'd got one.

Or, a Yam SR125 is good too, pretty similiar really.

Please don't get a daft sporty 125... Like that new Yamaha- looks like an R6, sounds like a lawnmower, goes like a 125. But costs a fortune, costs more to insure, and if you drop it you'll do at least half a grand's worth of damage each time. There are good sporty 125s but as long as you're on CBT you need to keep it restricted... The RS125 is fantastic at full power but it's pretty wheezy when restricted. Handles beautifully though.

If you want a 125 that doesn't look like it should be riding around calcutta, the dirt bike/supermoto options can be good- they're more expensive but they're not just silly pretend bikes, and there's some benefits- good riding position for visibility frexample. DT or DTR125 maybe. But they're a lot more common as theft targets.

lovewales

DT and DTR's at the moment are a silly price as they are 2 strokes and they have stopped making them because of the emissions laws.

As for the RS 125 don't go there if you need it be reliable and you don't have endless pockets we had one for 8 yrs that we broke up and bunged on ebay a couple of months ago. It used to eat speedo cable drives £68 every 6 months (or guess the speed), it also had 3 engine rebuilds and was genrally very expensive.

Other than that it looked nice - I rode it once and said never again it was far too twitchy in the front; that could have been me being used to bigger bikes and not particularly wanting to be back on a 125. :?

Northwind

Ah yeah, good point, the WR's the 4-stroke isn't it. Or is it the XT?

tnwoolley

Good stuff.

Have got my heart set on the CG but will have a gander at the Hyosung too.

I quite like the old 'retro' 70s look. I'm def more a cruiser than a racer!

paul.skibum

I friend of a friend learned on a Varadero 125 - he was a big lad and got on well with the extra height and reach. Looks like a proper bike too and doesnt sound too asmatic. He got a deal on his and took it back to the shop after passing to upgrade and they pretty much gave him his money back less 200 quid against a new Ducati so that was pretty low rental for 6 months riding!

I rode a CG on my CBT and found it OK - at 5'6" it wasn't exactly low to the floor for me but I'd imagine at 6+ you can get both feet down easy but may get a little leg cramp at any distance. Riding it for a day made my hands buzz and I was glad to get back on my mtb for the journey home!

Daz555

CG125 is a classic reliable commuter and dirt cheap to run. However, I know that if I was going for a 125cc myself, I'd go for a motocross style bike and would put proper road tyres on it - knobblies are lethal in the wet.

CG125 is unlikely to get nicked of course and this is always handy. Smaller bikes and scooters are a big target for random scrotes.

Personally, I'd steer well clear of random Korean or Chinese brands.

Northwind

paul.skibum wrote:

I friend of a friend learned on a Varadero 125 - he was a big lad and got on well with the extra height and reach. Looks like a proper bike too and doesnt sound too asmatic.

They're nice those. But a bit slow. IE, slower than my diabolical Virago 125 was Also seem to be a bit expensive to fix if you bin them, lots of momentum when they fall. Pretty cool though.

Oh, there's a thing. Don't get a 125cc cruiser. Don't be me! They are ridiculous :oops: But if you must, get an old Virago, they're the nicest ones and look better than the big Viragos Plus the centre of gravity is about 30cm up so they're kind of hilarious to ride slowly. But really, don't.

pte1643

tnwoolley wrote:

Good stuff.

Have got my heart set on the CG but will have a gander at the Hyosung too.

I quite like the old 'retro' 70s look. I'm def more a cruiser than a racer!

The CG is a perfect choice for cheap transport.

Yes, they do look a bit old, although the "Newer" (Brazilian made) ones are slightly less OAP-esque.

Mate of mine at work bought one from new years ago (1976, R-Plate). He's only just got rid of it (within the last year), with 98k on the clock and still going strong.
He only got rid because he wanted to go back to a scooter before he gave up biking... He's 60-odd now.

CG's are absolutely bullet proof.

P-Jay

You can't go wrong with a CG, there's a reason why every single bike school uses them, just don't buy an ex-riding school one, ha ha Well not my one anyway, the guy before me (and probably the 6 before him) destroyed it. I, of course, was born with Rossi level skillz and rode it beutifully - yeah right.

If your intention is to take your full test, pay as little as possible for something safe and you'll chip it on for the same money whe you're ready for your first 500 (or bigger if you're old enough to do your DAS.)

As above avoid the super-trick superbike looking 125's there's really no cred in something that looks like a R1 with skinny tyres and is probably slower than a lighter CG.

tnwoolley

Thanks everyone.

I'm 26 so could do DAS or get full license quite soon but I figured the insurance premiums would cost more than the bike itself, plus I'd probably just crash a 500cc+ bike on the first corner!

I'm gonna scope out a few CG's and a brand new '09 CBF125 with only 600 miles on it (and £500 off RRP!) thats near me, ride that for a year or two then see about upgrading.

Daz555

If your are 26 then you might as well go for Direct Access anyway even if you decide to stick with a 125cc. You then have flexibility to ride whatever you like.

You'll learn on a larger bike of course but don't worry about that - low-performance, learner 500s are actually easier to ride than 125s.

jake_tenfloors

+1 for the hyosung.

Had one for a year while i had my cbt before my test. Really great bike for the taller guy & looks like a fullsized bike.
You can still get 80+ mpg and even though its extra weight, still quicker than the cg.
Another upside is that if you decide to move onto a bigger bike, your less likely to drop it because your use to a bigger, heavier bike.

Heres a pic of one next to a Zx6r.



Jake