| Author | Message | ||
     Jcjohnson33 |
My wife wants a Buell, but she is only 5'3". Is there one that she could comfortably sit on and touch the ground? Where she isn't trying to balance the bike using her tip toes? | ||
| Alfau |
It's like buying shoes, if they don't fit don't buy and if you do expect pain. | ||
| Nillaice |
The xb9sl was the lowest Buell iirc You could lower any bike, but some can only go so far I made an xb9s fit my wife's 28 inch inseam What is her inseam? That's gonna be your detirmining factor | ||
| Ratbuell |
If she's comfortable on her toes, there's no reason not to ride that way. I know a lot of people who are comfortable on their bikes even though they can only get ONE toe down. Buells have a very low center of gravity, and are lightweight and easy to balance. If she has decent muscle control and confidence, she should be able to tripod one with no problem...but that comes down to her comfort level (and not yours - remember that!). I'm guessing you want a twin - so I won't state the obvious in a Blast. Tuber - M2L XB9 - XB9SL XB12 - XB12Scg All three of those were factory lowered bikes, with scooped out rider seats and narrower seat horns to allow legs to be closer together (down from the hips, instead of out-and-down). cg bits can be put on a Firebolt as well - forks and rear spring, anyway. | ||
| 86129squids |
Bad news for the "wee people" I'm afraid... it'll take some serious research to find a proper steed for your honey. Not a Buell, but if you can find a Yamaha XV250, aka Virago 250/Route 66, they're good machines with a low seat. IIRC, the early '90's XV535's sat pretty low too... these bikes haven't changed too much through the latter year models. Sport bikes will be slim pickin's I'm afraid. Back to Yammies- a YSR50 would do the job no doubt, but you'd wanna do something about the motor or lack thereof... there was a nutjob last year who put a YSR50 on CL, bike had a CR125 motor stuffed into it! Seems I remember some of those BMW F650's could be dropped down pretty low too. Depending on what she wants, a "custom" build might be just the ticket. | ||
| Fast1075 |
I am 5'3" with a 27" inseam. I ride a 2004 XB12s with a "low" seat. I cannot get both feet on the ground at the same time. I learned to "tripod". It was something I just had to get used to. I sort of slide over to one side and put one foot flat on the ground, but I have to choose one or the other. Yesterday I stopped by the Honda shop for some stuff for my scooter (the most fun you can possibly have around town), and checked out the new 500 twin. It felt very nice, and I could get both feet on the ground at once. Not flat foot, but secure, felt low compared to my Buell. The ergos felt very good, at least just sitting in the showroom. | ||
| 46champ |
The 2008 sales brochure says the XB12SCG seat height is 28.5 inches a regular XB12S was 30.1. The seat on your 1125R is 30.5. I can remember sitting on them at the dealer and the SCG's felt tiny the 2 inches is huge. | ||
| Ljm |
If she definitely wants a buell, then the Scg is a good choice. I had one, and am 5'4". Could touch with both feet although not entirely flat. There is some sag and you can massage the foam in the seat and get another inch or so. But it is a light bike and easy to manage one foot at a time. We have a 600 katana that is a kid bike and I am not sure what the seat height is but I can flat foot it easily. It is a really nice bike, bulletproof and handles really, really easily. As she get's comfortable though, she can ride most anything. The Mrs. rides an 1125r and she is 5'2" | ||
| Trojan |
Seat height is only one measurement to take into account. Most importantly is seat and frame width. Unfortunately the Xb Buell has quite a wide frame so even on low models some people have trouble touching the ground with both feet (although you why need to get both feet on the ground at the same time on a bike is a mystery to me). If she wanats a V Twin then I would look at the Suzuki SV650 or Gladius models. | ||
| Sifo |
If it's an option that she is open to, Sportsters come from the factory as low as 26.8 inches. Low is one of the things that HD does effectively. The Blast claimed 25.5 inches with the low profile seat, 27.5 with the standard seat. It would help much to know her riding experience and expectations of a bike. |
