MazzaMazoo

Good advice, I will do some research on the dealer.

Hi, thanks for the welcome. Chinese bikes, a bit like marmite it seems . One of the main reasons I would go for one is that loads of the usual learner bikes are too high and seem heavy to me, the Chinesey things offer so much choice. If you're average height you have so much more choice. I know you can learn technique, but it's difficult to learn that when you're crapping yourself thinking you will drop a bike that's too big / heavy etc that's what happened on my ( first ) CBT and I ended up going somewhere else that listened to me more and gave me a choice of smaller bikes. The other reason for choosing new and Chinese would be that it is under some sort of warranty and for a newbie you have some of peace of mind that the thing isn't going to seize up on your first ride out. I've looked for used and hardly anything comes up near me that is smaller and in my area.....so yes I would love the perfect used Japanese bike but I could be waiting a long time. I will probably go and look at some new bikes to get an idea of what I want and see what comes up in the new year 2nd hand, fingers crossed!

It's a bit difficult as I don't drive, so pretty restricted really!

Hi bender and rennie @bonio. Yes I would definitely consider a VanVan. It seems they are quite hard to find. I'm guessing December/Jan is not the time of year many bikes are for sale.

Thankyou

Yep, have been looking at the Benelli TNT and the BN 125, I like the looks of the BN between the two. .....I might go and have a look next week!

Yeah, there are adaptations or I could even get motorbike boots with a few inches of lift....but I really didn't feel confident on the YBR, so definitely want something smaller at least for now to build confidence with really. I would love a Honda grom but they can be pricey ( especially new!) , I was looking at more classic bikes too as I don't really want to buy Chinese. Now I'm at the stage where I could go and buy a bike but can't seem to find what I want near me. I thought I had...but have read some nightmare stories about that particular dealer selling death trap 125s Buying used seems daunting when you don't know much about the mechanics.

Hi everyone and Hello Dynax, thanks for the welcome! I did my CBT two weeks ago and am in the process of looking for a bike to buy, I am vertically challenged at 5 feet 2....well sort of with my boots on. I have been looking for the last week at what's available and I might go for something classic, light with low seat height maybe a Suzuki SR 125. I did have a go on the usual learner fodder of a Yamaha YBR and I really didn't like it, I was on tippy toes and it felt too heavy.....so that's where I'm at, looking for a small learner bike somewhere near Manchester