want to buy my first bike... and cant decide what to get... dont wanna spend more than 3grand on it...

looking at the f3... 1998ish?..
yamaha yzf600r
and some oldl ninja zx6rs...


i cant find any good reviews on google at all on the f3...

so far... its hard picking between the honda and the yamaha...

any suggestions guys?

 

im a new rider myself n i have a 98 f3 my friend owns a 99 r6 both are good to learn on i rode the r6 n it was good to go . the thing i like about the r6 that the f3 doesn't have is that the r6 stock tire size for the rear is 180. not that i want a bigger tire for my f3 just that tire deals are much easy to come by for 180 combos than say the 160 for the f3.go check the yahama forums sure u can get some help there . but i have had my bike for over a year now n not a complain . only thing is that its cold n wet so i can't ride . []

 

yea.... im not talking about the R6... im talking about the yzf600r... its a completly differnt bike.

 

my 2nd bike was a 97 f3. absolutely loved it. easy to work on, very forgiving to a newish rider. parts were kinda cheap and widely available. nice power and gets up and goes when twisting the throttle. i loved it soo much, i put about 4500 miles on her in 3.5 months. but then sold it for my new ride (check sig).

 

I've got a 97 F3 right in the garage next to the 929 and the f2. If that tells ya anything. Honda. Period. Ok that's prolly too biased. For a starter bike, that's a good one. It does have power that could get ya into trouble, but it's more controllable. More importantly, they are relatively easy to fix, and the parts are inexpensive. You should easily be able to find one for less than $3 grand.

 

I suspect I'm going to be a minority here but...

IMHO, a 600 sportbike (regardless of year and make) is not a beginner's bike. While it may be a better choice than, say, a liter bike, there are better choices. I suggest:
- Ninja 250
- Ninja 500
- CBR 400
- FZR 500
- GS 500
- Seca II

there are others but those are the ones I can think of off the top of my head.

Even better get one of these bikes, take it to the track, learn to carry the corner speed. When you get a 600, you'll be spanking the liter bikes.

Many on this board will disagree with me on this though.

 

I have had a ton of bikes, some by every Jap brand, and while I like Yamaha's build quality,I think theF3 is a little better bike the 600R...namely its way lighter....and its design roots are just as deep as the 600R. The 98 ZX6R is a good bike too. I have both a 98F3 and a 98 ZX6R (and a 2001 zx6r). You won't likely be disappointed in any bike you get, they are all very good, and each has its stengths....picking one by "winning" comes to splitting hairs....back them the manufactured were still trying to make a grocery getter bike that could win on sunday....since then they have dropped that idea and gone with two separate bikes.

While the 98 F3 isn't on this page, but just about everything else is....a year newer or older...other brands and such. The is a 1997 600CC shoot out....perhaps the source of your indicision.In 98, honda improved the shock linkage in the rear, and that was about it....there was litle need to touch it.

http://www.motorcycle.com/mo/manufac.motml

 

The F3is a great bike!

They have very few mechanical problems, and the frames are strong as oxen. Cam Chain Tensioners are crap, you'll have to replace that one with an aftermarket version or fab your own.

The F3 is a decent all-around bike. Nice low-end power with a nice powerband, around 7K RPM's in first, and around 8K in second. The bike will go fast and will be very comfortable getting there.

The banana seats, although looked down upon by the majority of sportbikers, are some of the most comfortable ever made in my opinion. I've sat on quite a few bikes now and this seat takes the cake, and if you're talking about distance, fagedaboudit.

The F3 will go anywhere you want and ask for more. A very nice trip-taker that is a blast to carve out twisties with. The bike itself isn't one of the lightest, but at 407lbs. dry weight, it's about average. That translates into a bike that will respond well to rider input and manuevers very well.

Also, the F3 is a very well-balanced bike. You'll notice from riding a few other bikes from the same time-frame, that the F3 is a much more, "mount and ride," where some of the other bikes require becoming a bit more familiar with their, "personalities." The F3, especially for dirtbike crossovers, is a no-b.s., hop on it and ride kinda bike. The geometry of the bike is such that you lean into corners nice and tight, some people have even made nice track bikes out of their F3's.

Now for some cons (not many). There isn't an easily accessible storage compartment without the addition of an aftermarket trunk kit. Tire dimensions are 12/60/17 and 160/60/17 which is a good looking set of meats, but some people crave that 180 rear tire... they like 'em fat. The F3 will take it, but it throws everything good I mentioned earlier off. There is a lot of plastic on these bikes too, and to get behind the cluster and to the headlight - it ALL has to come off. Also, alot of F3's had the problem of the third (center) section of tailpiece breaking tabs.

Other than that, the F3 is a fantastic bike to start on (it's only gonna do what you tell it to). I've seen many F3's with some high miles on them for sale, and they'll still hold a pretty dang good price for a bike that was manufactured more than a decade ago. I have 26K miles on mine, and I have vowed to put another 20K on it next season.

Oh and one more thing... these F3's are like Mustangs - parts are EVERYWHERE!

Also, I donated a super-short article to Wikipedia on the F3 (couldn't believe no one had done it yet). It's very short and only entails the F3 series and some differences among them. Anyone interested in adding some more to it, please do! Let's get all the F-bikes listed on there. Seems we're the responsible party for that

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996_Honda_CBR600F3

Have fun getting your new bike and when you do, let's see some pics!

 

I love my 98 F3, it has problems sure, all bikes have weaknesses, but the Honda is a sweet little bike and the things that may (do) go wrong with are a an easy fix and worth it. I've wanted to trade up many times since I bought it new (for the sake of a newie), but once my bum hits the seat I forget all about that.

 

My F3

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