Wanted first bike: Honda CG125 or Yamaha SR125 or Suzuki GZ125 marauder

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1

Hi everyone,

Just passed my CBT and will be making my transition from commuting on my car to commuting on a bike, looking for a good runner with a good engine for a few months (till I pass my DAS) of commuting from Maidstone to London.

I’ve been ebaying and looking on auto trader, but bikes in good condition are pretty rare and those that are in good condition are either far away or far over my budget.

I’m looking to get one in the next 4 weeks and have a budget of no more than £850.

It doesn’t have to be pretty, I don’t mind scratches and what not, just needs to be 100% road legal and start first time from cold (which is a tough thing to ask from a SR125 :), but one likes to dream).

Please either pm me here, or give me a buzz on 07414505880, everyone calls me Ken.

Thanks!

2

Hi Daulex,

I have looked the 125 bikes to all over London, the best deal what i found was in brick lane bike’s. Its a small shop off the Brick Lane and they specialise in 125cc bikes you should go and have look in there as last time when i was up there they had bikes around 1000£ . I know its bit more you are looking to spend but you never know what they have in there now. hope that this helps

3

For a £650 budget you don’t really have the option of narrowing it down to three bikes. I don’t know much about the Yamaha and Suzuki mentioned in the title but I can tell you the Honda CG is very sort after amongst learners, city couriers, etc which is why you will struggle to find a good one for £650.

I strongly recommend you increase your budget to £1000 and get a Honda CG because there is more chance you will be able to sell it quick for what you paid.
OR
If you are flexible in terms of brands, etc. Get something like a Sky Jet (Chinese Honda copy). You can get one a year or two old for £650 easily with a couple of thousand miles. It only needs to last you 4 months of commuting after all.

4

Thanks for the advice guys, I’m getting the same feeling after a while of searching.

Pushed my ceiling to 850 (I really can’t go higher), and still it’s tough finding something worthwhile.

5

SR125 FTW

started on the 5th push every time (starter motor was dud) :stuck_out_tongue:

seriously though, theres a shop in cricklewood that does exactly the thing you are after.

the website is **** and uncomplete, but worth a visit (though the owner doesn’t admit that he could ever be wrong about something)

http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/ldmotorcycles/index.htm

6

Wow! That website really is terrible!

7

Have a look here buddy …

Bike Trader clickety click inter webby linky

8

@Boris that really was the worst website ever… it looked more like he had created it in word! :smiley:

But he does have a C90 for sale… I wonder if it is the one with the round light… ooooh I’m getting itchy fingers…

9

At least he has stock matching his dated site!

I think we should all go C90 racing! :hehe:

10

Thank you Boris, you’re the man.

That awful site is great. I’m going there this Friday. I’m a web developer and will see if I might interest the owner in a bit of help :wink:

I’m currently bidding on a 2003 Yamaha SR 125 with some light cosmetic damage, that ends on Friday at 4pm.

So my plan for this Friday: pick up my AGV K3 Gloss black helmet (I’m so bloody happy about it, it fits my weird head shape perfectly and doesn’t make me look like a racer wanna be - really stupid if you’re on a 125cc custom bike) in the morning (and get some gloves from the same shop), go down to LD motorcycles at around 2 pm, see if there is anything worthwhile, get it if yes. If not: win the bidding war on ebay for the mentioned sr125 if no and try to pick that one up same day.

@art, I check it every day, most of the bikes there are “sold” already and are only there to attract business to the dealers, who usually have the bikes just like that one, but only a few hundred quid more. :frowning:

@daniel, I did my CBT about a week and a half ago, it was -9© (coldest day of this year at the time) when we came to the bikes, which were 2001 sr125’s, they both started, but would cut out if you tried to give them gas, so we had to wait for 15 minutes for the bikes to heat up, while we froze. The bikes did however perform beautifully while we did our 2 hour ride, while I had to stop like a sissy, cause my fingers froze off. I say sissy, because I grew up in Latvia and used to go to school when it was -25, so I didn’t feel very proud of myself when I was bitching about the cold when it was “only” -9.

With all that said, I have to take a step back for a second and realise: I haven’t been this excited since I bought my current car (colt czt), really missed this childish “oh boy, oh boy, oh boy” feeling, can’t imagine what my first big bike purchase is gonna be like.

11

@ daulex - I remember the feeling :). You best take some tissues with you when you go big bike shopping :wink:

12

i had similar, though my 125 was my brothers old one, rebuilt and given to me as a 17th birthday present :smiley:

meaning that it was already sitting on my driveway for a while, and i had seen inside her :hehe: before my CBT.

but my first big bike was much more of an oh sh*t, how am i going to survive with all this power :stuck_out_tongue:

13

Got the Yamaha SR125 (2003, 25k miles on the clocks, £580!). Feel free to close this thread.

14

Wow, nice price! Where from

15

where’s the pics??? :stuck_out_tongue:

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@szymon, ebay (the auction ended at 4am). It does have a few issues (needs new cluctch cable, new chain and sprockets, rear tyre is 50% worn and the right handlebar stopper thingy is broken, so the frame needs a bit of welding), neither of which really expensive, but once everything is done, it will be an ok price to pay for a bike in such a condition.

@boris, here’s an ‘artsy’, low light pic: http://instagr.am/p/HhTOihO_Y2/ It’s a bog standard SR 125. One of the very last ever made for that matter (2003 is the last year they made them).

I’ll be posting up a big ‘story’ thingy on the weekend, detailing how I managed to do 140 miles between maidstone and milton keynes and how I did that in 7 hours and first impressions about the commute.

17

wemoto is now your friend :stuck_out_tongue:

http://www.wemoto.com/bikes/yamaha/sr_125/99-03/