Yet Another Rider In Florida

PolygonFla · 02-04-2007, 05:11 PM

Hi,
I'm also named Richard and live in Florida. I have been posting in this forum for a little over a week now, so I guess it is time to do an intro. My plan was to wait until I had my bike.

I was pretty sure I wanted to buy the Zongshen GS250 sport bike. (think Ninja 250 in flat black) But after seeing all the fun you dual sport guys are having I am beginning to rethink that plan. It certainly didn't help matters taking the MSF course this weekend.

They had two dualsports at the class and needed volunteers to ride them, so I took my class on a Suzuki DR200 and one of the other students was on the Kawasaki Sherpa 200. I loved riding that bike and it seems like it would fulfill all of my requirements for a commuter with the added benefit of some lite trail rides on the weekend.

Later this week I am going to head down to the local Zongshen dealer and see if he will price-match an internet dealer on a new Sierra. I can't see spending more than $1300.00 or so on that bike when I could order a Roketa or Lifan for $1030.00 delivered. I figure I will be spending the first weekend lock-tighting everything no matter what the dealer say was done in the "dealer prep".

By the way, for anyone who hasn't taken a MSF course, I highly recommend you do. I took a motorcycle safety course 20 years ago in Texas but retaking it was a great experience. It is nice to practice low-speed and emergency maneuvers on someone else's equipment. I aced the written test and lost a point for failing to down-shift during the emergency stop on the practical exam.

This is getting long winded, so happy trails for now.
Rich

Roketarider · 02-04-2007, 05:32 PM

As a beginner rider(riding for 4 months now) the MSF was a great course for me. Give me a little more time and I am going back for the advanced course.

Welcome.

ambassador · 02-04-2007, 09:44 PM

Welcome Richard, I too live in FLA and just got my bike the other day (06 Lifan 200gy-5) I have pics of it on some of my other posts, look them up, anyway I got my bike $1205 to my door from T-motorsports through E-bay, just browsed through tonight and they are still selling them.. Not a huge difference between the Lifan and the Suzuki except for price and maintenence I guess? You have to maintain any bike, It is a 87 Honda XR200 clone..No damage in shipping, took 2 weeks from CA to FLA which is not that bad, good communication and tracking #'s provided, I would have NO problem dealing with this company again as I am looking for a set of 4-wheelers for my twins..I did have to help the driver get it off the truck (read my post on that.) but that really wasn't a problem..Glad to hear you took the MSF course, I took one some 20 odd years ago and still use what I learned everyday on a bike and in my car.. If you need any advice on these bikes, you are in the right place, the guys on here are great and will answer any and all of you questions, good luck on your pursuit..

P.S. My bike did not come with the ever so holy COOL BOY stickers although I may contact T-motorsports and see if I can get some...

PolygonFla · 02-05-2007, 09:05 AM

Hi Ambassador,
I have read your posts here and enjoyed them. I was planning on e-mailing you or IMing you when I got my bike.

I'm sure we could get Tape Works to make us some cool-boy stickers. Maybe even in that retro-refective vinal they have.

culcune · 02-05-2007, 04:40 PM

PolyGon, what about the Zongshen? I was hoping you would buck the trend and purchase the Sierra so we can all live vicariously through you, LOL

However, I am fairly certain that you won't get the Zongshen for $1300. The other bikes come wrapped in a crate and you have to assemble them, while the Zongshen is built and ready to go. I am pretty sure that Scooterescapes will take care of licensing for you, as well; something that the mail-order companies won't do. (For the record, I do not know Scooterescapes other than from the Yahoo! Group he started ("home" page here, under groups, under 'Zongshen'), but as you stated, you sat on the bikes in person). I would advise to make a deal with him for an on the road bike; if that fails, go through mail-order. The Zonghsen is a great bike, and you are one of the few people in the US who has a Zongshen dealer nearby. Consider one--for all of us!! :roll:

PolygonFla · 02-05-2007, 05:51 PM

Hi Culcine,

My original plan before finding this forum was to get the Zongshen GS 250, the little sport-bike. But after riding a dual-sport for 3 days I may just have to get the Sierra. I want both now :(
$1800.00 plus another $200.00 in tax seems like an awful lot for the same basic bike as you guys have.

If I can talk them down some, it sure would be nice to be near the dealer I bought from.

At this point I am still up in the air. I won't have the cash until next week and who knows. I will go down and sit on them both again and see what happens.

cajunkym · 02-05-2007, 07:43 PM

Welcome Polygon, I'm glad to hear your hooked on those Knobbies.

culcune · 02-05-2007, 07:50 PM

Have you read Beerslayer's thread, "the good, the bad, and the ugly" on his Qlink/Zongshen? The Sierra is actually a different bike according to him, more Yamaha-based than Honda as the "common" GY's are. Contact him, as I think he looks at this site every so often, and he can help answer any questions that his thread didn't. I have last year's ('06)wholesale prices, and the Sierra is quite higher than their common GY, the Ranger 200, that they have on their site, but have run out of (I think these end up as other brands' bikes; i.e. Roketa, etc., so they don't push their own brand as much)

$2000, all things being equal, is not out of line for this bike, as an asking price, but you might/should be able to negotiate a better deal, especially that these aren't all that common. If worse comes to worse, if you can't get the deal you were after, then you could always go the "bargain basement" route, and roll up your sleeves, and put a mail-order bike together--and this isn't a bad thing, either. Let us know how it turns out...

ejcycles · 02-06-2007, 07:51 AM

Hey Rich
Welcome to ChinaRiders! Enjoy the ride!

Bruce

chris5150 · 02-08-2007, 05:40 PM

just letting you know if you go to the dual sport forum we are setting up a florida trail ride for around april. i have a couple people from this site. and a friend and his wife who have bought china bikes as well. check it out and add your input. and welcome.

02-04-2007, 05:11 PM	#1
PolygonFla Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Florida USA Posts: 196	Yet Another Rider In Florida Hi, I'm also named Richard and live in Florida. I have been posting in this forum for a little over a week now, so I guess it is time to do an intro. My plan was to wait until I had my bike. I was pretty sure I wanted to buy the Zongshen GS250 sport bike. (think Ninja 250 in flat black) But after seeing all the fun you dual sport guys are having I am beginning to rethink that plan. It certainly didn't help matters taking the MSF course this weekend. They had two dualsports at the class and needed volunteers to ride them, so I took my class on a Suzuki DR200 and one of the other students was on the Kawasaki Sherpa 200. I loved riding that bike and it seems like it would fulfill all of my requirements for a commuter with the added benefit of some lite trail rides on the weekend. Later this week I am going to head down to the local Zongshen dealer and see if he will price-match an internet dealer on a new Sierra. I can't see spending more than $1300.00 or so on that bike when I could order a Roketa or Lifan for $1030.00 delivered. I figure I will be spending the first weekend lock-tighting everything no matter what the dealer say was done in the "dealer prep". By the way, for anyone who hasn't taken a MSF course, I highly recommend you do. I took a motorcycle safety course 20 years ago in Texas but retaking it was a great experience. It is nice to practice low-speed and emergency maneuvers on someone else's equipment. I aced the written test and lost a point for failing to down-shift during the emergency stop on the practical exam. This is getting long winded, so happy trails for now. Rich
	0

02-04-2007, 05:32 PM	#2
Roketarider Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 124	As a beginner rider(riding for 4 months now) the MSF was a great course for me. Give me a little more time and I am going back for the advanced course. Welcome. __________________ Roketa DB-07A 200cc
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02-05-2007, 04:40 PM	#5
culcune Join Date: May 2006 Location: Yuma, Arizona Posts: 9,035	PolyGon, what about the Zongshen? I was hoping you would buck the trend and purchase the Sierra so we can all live vicariously through you, LOL However, I am fairly certain that you won't get the Zongshen for $1300. The other bikes come wrapped in a crate and you have to assemble them, while the Zongshen is built and ready to go. I am pretty sure that Scooterescapes will take care of licensing for you, as well; something that the mail-order companies won't do. (For the record, I do not know Scooterescapes other than from the Yahoo! Group he started ("home" page here, under groups, under 'Zongshen'), but as you stated, you sat on the bikes in person). I would advise to make a deal with him for an on the road bike; if that fails, go through mail-order. The Zonghsen is a great bike, and you are one of the few people in the US who has a Zongshen dealer nearby. Consider one--for all of us!! :roll: __________________ "They say that life's a carousel, spinning fast you got to ride it well..." TGB Delivery Scooter 150 TMEC 200 Enduro--carcass is sadly rotting in the backyard
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02-05-2007, 07:50 PM	#8
culcune Join Date: May 2006 Location: Yuma, Arizona Posts: 9,035	Have you read Beerslayer's thread, "the good, the bad, and the ugly" on his Qlink/Zongshen? The Sierra is actually a different bike according to him, more Yamaha-based than Honda as the "common" GY's are. Contact him, as I think he looks at this site every so often, and he can help answer any questions that his thread didn't. I have last year's ('06)wholesale prices, and the Sierra is quite higher than their common GY, the Ranger 200, that they have on their site, but have run out of (I think these end up as other brands' bikes; i.e. Roketa, etc., so they don't push their own brand as much) $2000, all things being equal, is not out of line for this bike, as an asking price, but you might/should be able to negotiate a better deal, especially that these aren't all that common. If worse comes to worse, if you can't get the deal you were after, then you could always go the "bargain basement" route, and roll up your sleeves, and put a mail-order bike together--and this isn't a bad thing, either. Let us know how it turns out... __________________ "They say that life's a carousel, spinning fast you got to ride it well..." TGB Delivery Scooter 150 TMEC 200 Enduro--carcass is sadly rotting in the backyard
	0

02-06-2007, 07:51 AM	#9
ejcycles Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: 11481 State Route 44 Mantua, Ohio 44255 Posts: 1,112	Hey Rich Welcome to ChinaRiders! Enjoy the ride! Bruce __________________ Thanks, Bruce @ Endless Journey Cycles "Phone Calls Only" ~330-274-0098~ Hours: Tue.-Fri. 10:00-6:00 Sat. 10:00-4:00 EST. Dealer for: Lifan, Crossrunner ATVs. http://www.endlessjourneycycles.net
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02-04-2007, 09:44 PM	#3
ambassador Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Bradenton, Florida Posts: 1,200	Welcome Richard, I too live in FLA and just got my bike the other day (06 Lifan 200gy-5) I have pics of it on some of my other posts, look them up, anyway I got my bike $1205 to my door from T-motorsports through E-bay, just browsed through tonight and they are still selling them.. Not a huge difference between the Lifan and the Suzuki except for price and maintenence I guess? You have to maintain any bike, It is a 87 Honda XR200 clone..No damage in shipping, took 2 weeks from CA to FLA which is not that bad, good communication and tracking #'s provided, I would have NO problem dealing with this company again as I am looking for a set of 4-wheelers for my twins..I did have to help the driver get it off the truck (read my post on that.) but that really wasn't a problem..Glad to hear you took the MSF course, I took one some 20 odd years ago and still use what I learned everyday on a bike and in my car.. If you need any advice on these bikes, you are in the right place, the guys on here are great and will answer any and all of you questions, good luck on your pursuit.. P.S. My bike did not come with the ever so holy COOL BOY stickers although I may contact T-motorsports and see if I can get some...
	0

02-05-2007, 09:05 AM	#4
PolygonFla Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Florida USA Posts: 196	Hi Ambassador, I have read your posts here and enjoyed them. I was planning on e-mailing you or IMing you when I got my bike. I'm sure we could get Tape Works to make us some cool-boy stickers. Maybe even in that retro-refective vinal they have.
	0

02-05-2007, 05:51 PM	#6
PolygonFla Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Florida USA Posts: 196	Hi Culcine, My original plan before finding this forum was to get the Zongshen GS 250, the little sport-bike. But after riding a dual-sport for 3 days I may just have to get the Sierra. I want both now :( $1800.00 plus another $200.00 in tax seems like an awful lot for the same basic bike as you guys have. If I can talk them down some, it sure would be nice to be near the dealer I bought from. At this point I am still up in the air. I won't have the cash until next week and who knows. I will go down and sit on them both again and see what happens.
	0

02-05-2007, 07:43 PM	#7
cajunkym Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 40	Welcome Polygon, I'm glad to hear your hooked on those Knobbies.
	0

02-08-2007, 05:40 PM	#10
chris5150 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: lakewood, co Posts: 116	just letting you know if you go to the dual sport forum we are setting up a florida trail ride for around april. i have a couple people from this site. and a friend and his wife who have bought china bikes as well. check it out and add your input. and welcome.
	0