New rider, 1980 KZ750H first bike ever

Hi all, new member here from Alberta, Canada. I have wanted to get a motorcycle for as long as I can remember and I am turning 40 in September so I figured it was as good as time as ever. I have never driven a bike before, not even a dirt-bike so there was a bit of a learning curve that I am still trying to figure out. I was hoping that this would be a decent starter bike for a mature rider and it has not dissapointed at all. I got the bike for about 600$, it only has 18000 KM's on it and runs very well. The seat is cracked pretty bad but I bought replacement seat covers on ebay and hopefully will get that done soon. One of the rear signal lights was loose but I shimmed it up with some lockwashers and its good as new now. The only other thing is the horn doesn't work but its just the horn itself and I found a replacement one on ebay pretty cheap. I was hooked from the minute I started it up and look forward to enjoying it for a long time.

Please take a MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) course where you live if possible, this will teach you how to survive in traffic, as many a new rider on such a large bike can quicky get in over their head in trouble when problems come up. Ask at the local dealers where and when the course begins.

With the creation of texting and other distractions, car drivers can look directly at you and still not see you. I treat myself as the "Invisible Man" when riding on the street. Even LEO's (Law Enforcement Officers) with their lights and sirens are for the most part ignored(except when they pull someone over & then everybody else watches their speed).

My late uncle wrote this. LINK

Be safe, ride well!

Thats not too much bike for a beginner really. But for no experience at all I would have gone smaller. Either way its a bike you can keep forever, so thats really good.

Just remember to always be looking for trouble on the road. Id say half of drivers are completly oblivious to anything going on around them. At least a few times a week someone comes into my lane, or pulls out right in front of me. Most of the time at least once a day.

Just stay off of cars asses, if you cant see over the car infront of you, use left side of the lane to see around it. Bikes cant brake as easily as cars.

Oh, and watch out for moms driving big vehicles like vans, most of the time they are on the phone and are not paying attention to the road. I always watch out for those, they are the most oblivious.

Welcome, Mike!

I'm a brand new rider myself with a Kz440 and I'm learning every step of the way. I love the above advise of 'look out for Moms'! Made me laugh.

Sounds like you and I are the same sort of total beginners, so I'll look forward to following your posts and I'll offer whatever I can.

Here are some pictures. I found a few more problems with the bike but I am slowly getting everything figured out.

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Welcome! :laugh: Your bike definitely looks great!

Finally got a chance to go for a reasonably long ride today after being too busy saving lives the last few weeks to get out for a ride. Managed to get a nice 80KM ride in today. This really is a fun bike to ride and lots of power despite the fact its over 30 years old. I would assume back in the day this was one of the faster 750's out there. Bike is running really well and I figured out my problem with 5th gear. It was that I'm a moron. I was miscounting the gears somehow, fifth works just fine. It just seemed strange that it would be about about 5000 RPM's at around 110 KM/Hour which is why I thought there should be another gear but I guess its just geared that way. I'm taking my class 6 (motorcycle) license next week so wish me luck guys.

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Nice bike for a first bike!
I've been riding pretty much most of my life, and the one thing that I think is most important to share with you, is that now you MUST assume that everybody's out to get you. You know for sure that that dude sitting at the intersection up ahead is waiting there just so he can pull out in front of you. Or the old lady in the car next to you is about to run you off of the road.
Because that's exactly how it happens. About six weeks ago, I was riding down a two lane highway, no traffic in front of me or ahead of me. There was a car sitting at the next pull out. It was as if she was thinking, "wait until I see the whites of his eyes, then pull out". Because that's what she did. I got close enough to see that she was looking me right in the eyes, then she goosed it. I hit the brakes hard and barely made it around the back of her car. I've had lots of close calls just like that. But sometimes they make the situation even worse by realizing their mistake and slamming on the brakes. So just beware of that.

Got a deal I couldn't pass up on a newer bike. Its a 2005 Suzuki S83 (VS1400) I have to say that so far I definately still like riding my Kawasaki 750 much better. Will probably take some time to adjust to a new and heavier bike then I might like it more. I do like the floorboards better than the pegs that I have on the 750, and I really like the look of the S83 as well. I'm definately keeping my 750 for as long as the wife will allow (which is hopefully for good).