Yeah, kind of an appealing image isn’t it?! Something else I gotta tick off before i die! :D:D:D
I’ve had both a Hornet and a 625 SMC (moto) and can confirm what NJ says - the Hornet is a better ‘all-round’ bike which should suit you fine for learning to ride properly in both city and out of town environments.
Also that a Supermoto is not fun for long distance/ time riding i.e. motorway.
Although, I wouldn’t say my SMC was ideal as a ‘learning (big) bike’, it was much more fun that the Hornet and demanded throttle twisting at every opportunity 
(gotta love the ‘machine gun’ sound of a single!!!)
You would be hard pressed to take the Hornet green-laning and when it went over (oops) it was soo easy to pick up and generally untouched!
Perhaps something like a DRZ 400SM would be a good start!
Good points, all well made. Hence I keep a lil’extra summit in the garage just in case I do ever get on to a Jizzstream ride (along with my Passport and some provisions, obviously!). Although, mine a real sack-o-sh1t and I’m sure road based bikes would redress the all-rounder stuff a little.
What about something like a Versys?
Also love the look and sound of a shiver… (but then surely not as reliable as the Hornet…)
Seriously, give the XT660X a try. I rode it to Belgium a couple of times and it’s absolutely fine long distance. Really can’t see how a Hornet would be better “all-round”. At the end of the day, it’s what you like riding, and there’s no point really comparing an IL4 with a single.
[quote]
Lupine Lacuna (27/12/2010)
What about something like a Versys?we wont tollerate that kind of language arond here
[quote]
driesie (27/12/2010)
I can’t see how it wouldn’t 
yes, but as the OP is/ will be a new rider, that information is not yet be available due to lack of experience.
True, they are different, but comparing the bikes and their suitability for use in different circumstances is exactly what we are doing and what needs to be done if an informed opinion is to be reached, surely?
Take a look at some specs:
Hornet/ XT600x/ DRZ400sm (all 2007 models):
dry WEIGHT =
178kgs/ 177kg/ 134kg
POWER =
74hp/ 43hp/ 40hp
POWER to WEIGHT (higher = ‘better all-round IMO’)
0.4335 HP/kg/ 0.2674 HP/kg /0.2985 HP/kg
TANK SIZE =
15L+4L res./ 15L /10L
From that, we understand that the Hornet would be the best of the three in both city and motorway environments and that, apart from a horribly small tank size, the DRZ would be the most fun around town (powerful and light enough) and cheapest to insure (subject to various factors) - which I found of utmost importance as a new rider.
PS. the ‘motos’ will be no good if you are a bit of a short-arse, like myself, the Hoon will be fine though 
Check out the Hornet’s Nest for more info one the best all-round bike - http://www.hondahornet.co.uk
Hornets rock!!! nuff said:D:w00t:
The above figures + ‘cult bike’ + on MCN 100 bikes shortlist = no brainer
That’s stupid logic in my opinion. According to that, a R6, S1000R, or any sort of sports bike would be the “better all-round” bikes as they’ll have a much better power to weight ratios than any bikes discussed here. My superduke makes 120bhp compared to my old XT’s 50bhp, and I wouldn’t say it’s a better “all-round” bike. It’s quicker, usually more fun, but way more expensive, not as quick through town, will get nicked much faster, triple the price to insure, doesn’t take as much luggage etc etc.
It’s not about power, it’s about usable power, and more importantly, how much fun it is to ride. I personally find IL4s very dull (I’m not into sportsbikes, where I can see the point), find singles and twins much more fun.
Please go and try some different bikes and pick what you love, not what people say.
Surely if we all rode the “perfect all-round bike” we’d all have a Bandit? The 600 for newer riders, the 1200 for the more experienced. There’s a very good reason we don’t, and it’s not because the Bandit isn’t a good bike.
We’re being too partisan on this and are not helping the OP! 
Original OP - for a first bike that will do town and distance then get any of the mainstream Japanese 600 road bikes.
Anything from the last decade will be well designed and reliable so it all comes down to personal preference.
Sorry, I can see that it might have been difficult to follow what I meant. I assumed that, to that point, we had been discussing the three previously mentioned bikes rather than all bikes; in this case by ‘better all-round’ I meant of the three bikes being cited.
This depends on the OP’s choice, who else is to say what is more important in this case.
Me too, so far (of the 8 PTWs I’ve had since I started riding)
+1.
Err… you mean Hornet
Dry weight figures are complete works of fantasy & more discredited than a Lib Dem politician, cult bike is a meaningless term that the aficionados of pretty much every sht car/bike produced in the last 50 years use to self-justify their choice in the face of their laughing mates & MCN hasn’t printed a word of non-bollcks in the last 20 years…
So, you’re correct, anyone that takes any of them serious is indeed a no-brainer… :hehe:
I should have been more specific when I first started the post, I just wanted to start a bit of a debate on what people see as good around London. If we were to discuss what a new rider like me would want in particular, it would be (and please dont take my attempts at humour too seriously):
-
Easy around town, given I am a cyclist and used to smashing the highway code to bits to get somewhere quicker, could not stand the idea of having something impossible to move in traffic or squeeze through tiny spaces.
-
Fast enough to **** on any car, as I hate all car drivers (concerned about sv650 with this - especially as I like the idea of going up to 70 without changing gear - is that even possible without a sports 600?)
-
Good fuel economy so that I don’t feel like its a needless extravagence (concerned with Hornet about this)
-
Bearing in mind a major use will be weekend trips away to the peak distrtc, Wales, going climbing, I need enough capacity to store luggage and quitre a bit of equipment like a tent etc comfortartly, and given the miles am not convinced about a naked bike
-
Look cool (obviously! - To be honest, I like the llok of every bike except things like Versys!)
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Be able to pull wheelies without using the clutch (i am interested that the 1250 Bandit is the stuntster bike - also interested cos it might be an allrounder)
-
Have as fat a tyre as possible (+for the Hornet :))
-
Not be a joke to insure (5k Versys is about 500 quid, a 3k Horney is coming out at about 300 - not bad)
9 I do love the sound of v twins
10 i hate ‘doing things for passion’ and the idea of having something unreliable or having to constantly mainatain in winter annoying (hence concern with suzkis and corrosion)
So from this my shortlist would be:
Bandit 1250 (good alrounder, but questionable in hevay traffic?) Bandit 600 might be boring.
Hornet (naked, thirsty, but not much else wrong with it)
SWv650 (Cheap, faired, better on fuel, sounds nice but lower riding position and slower). Gladius I cant see the point in since although updated its twice the price and naked.
Triple (extragvegnt and expensive compared to others but looks amazing)
Versys (practically speaking seems to be the best of the bunch but the bike initially will cost more, and it looks gash comparively - after all, there is plenty of time in my likfe to buy a BMW)
Talking of BMW somwething maybe like a f800s - little bit different, eats the miles good mpg (am I said mentioning mpg as a so called biker?)
Shiver - supringly good value, exotic, sweet sounding, but most likely more epxensive to run
finally an absolute banger, which for me is streagnely appealing. I also admit to liking the Cb500 and feel their is plenty to learn from it. I did my DAS on this but have also rode the er5 which was boring by comparison.
What was your budget again?..
That’s a bit cynical Pat - granted the use of the term ‘cult’ might be a bit of hyperbole, in which case maybe ‘following’ is a better term - in which case the Hornet has developed a serious following (over and above any of it’s rivals) for good reason.
I’ve ridden and owned enough bikes by now to have something to compare the Hornet too - so I can honestly say it deserves the praise it gets - the fact that so many other people who know the bike say the same thing including most bike journos just confirms me in my opinion. Have you ever ridden/owned one?
Kwak z750 is my choice of town bike & tourer. Cheap to insure, enough oomph to get you out of trouble in town and holds its own on motorways. Took it round the Alps this summer and it was spectacular - looks quite nice too - only downside is it’s thirsty… Q
The hornet is good but the versys beats the hornet in every aspect of town riding apart from looks. And let’s be honest, you won’t pull any fitties with a hornet, so what difference does it make?
I’ve had 3 hornets before and I’d take a versys over one every day. Damn good bikes. Wish I still had mine.
@ Lupine -
The fuel economy on my Hornet was not at all bad, although I never did calculations, however the tank was small so it meant fewer miles between fill-ups (about 90 in town IIRC).
First time it hit reserve I didn’t know that was the problem and was MacP’ing myself that I’d bought a melon (it was a pre-loved 1998 model) 
1st pic - me at Brands.
2nd pic - some subtle bling added to an '03-'06 (?) model making it look the dog’s :w00t:s IMO
Attachments
Wasn’t cynical, wasn’t even commenting on the bike in question, it was pointing out that the reasons you gave for buying it were based on fantasy figures, a meaningless word & the opinion of a journal that’s so dreadful it makes the Daily Mail look like a quality, balanced bit of media, so therefore pretty pointless.
For the record, I borrowed a ride on one of the original models years ago, found it to be a good compenent bike, handled nicely (noticably better than the comparative 600 Bandit), but it was definitely nothing to get excited about.