Yamaha YZF600 Thundercat

Hi, i have just passed my bike test and now looking for my first bike
for leisure. I have found a 1996 thundercat with 38000 miles going for
£1700.
Is the milage to high?
Is this a good first bike?

Thanks in advance

Addy

 

Really good bike but it rots if left out anywhere near the sea.
I rode one again in 2005 and was amazed again by how quick and stable it
was.

 

They're not bad. Mileage is OK but note it should have had the shims,
coolant etc changed during the major service at 28K. Otherwise it's
the standard Yamaha 4K service interval.

 

Nice bikes, but that price is about £400 too high.

No, but for the money, yes.

No. You'll kill yourself.

 

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On the other hand, any bike you couldn't kill yourself on would be far too
boring to even consider buying.

 

This is also true

 

'Big' bike, yes. As a pure learner machine, though?

 

Thanks for all your comments, i was worried about the milage but you
have all opened my eyes to other issues. Im in my 40's so i think i am
sensible on a bike. I wont kill myself, but someone else might!

Thanks again

 

Plenty of our generation survived 250s with dreadful tyres and worse
brakes. I know the Thundercat is a lot faster, but so is everything,
and tyres, brakes and roads are all much better.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, that's true. But:-

1. There was a lot less traffic on the roads back then.

2. It's the sheer power and acceleration of bikes like the 'Cat that
catch out a newbie. Nothing, but nothing, certainly no car this side of
a topline Ferrari or similar, can prepare a newbie for the way something
like that goes.

The usual scenario seems to be: "****! Jesus! Hell! A corner. jam on
brakes...."

CRUNCH.

 

I had a fazer 600 which is almost the same; as my first bike after
passing the test. As long as you are nervous then it shouldn't kill
you, Rear shock will be gone by now though, unless replaced.

 

Ural Dneprs are tricky fuckers and they're not in the mega power class.

Thinking about it I've crashed more MZs than other bike so they should
now be officially referred to as widowmakers.

 

ITYF the only thing that's the same is the engine

 

I sometimes don't get past "F"

 

Lots of people used to die on MZs and BMWs, but that was normally due to
snipers.

 

Are you dead then?

 

yeah, 'cos you died most times you crashed them, right?

 

Yes.

 

Yes.

 

Too bloody good by half, the bastards.

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Following on from your over 40s are fast comment. The over 40s you refer
to in the main all learnt their craft on old and unforgiving machinery
and technologies.

It's not too difficult to outride those bikes so they (we?) soon learnt
the limits of the machinery. As better bikes were bought the learning of
limits became incremental.

Someone who comes in on a good modern machine doesn't have that learning
curve or experience of a machine beyond its limits draw on.

It's a theory, anyway.