The 959 ain’t a slow bike in the right hands, I know that! An instructor came past me on one on the outlap once at Donington. As he was alone I stitched myself on. I was on my rocket ship V4S and was struggling to stay with him. Granted, he was a quicker rider than me but I was left impressed with the 959…
I absolutely adored my 899 it was a cracking bike. it did feel slow though. But on the road it made a lot of sense. disclaimer: sold it for a 1299 though
The 959 is much easier to ride hard; the engine doesn't tie the chassis up in knots. I've downsized from an SL1199/FE1299 to a 959 Corse and actually enjoy it more; I'm also faster on it as I'm less frightened to open the throttle. I do miss, however, the excitement of the bigger engines.
i ask because ive seen an 1199 for 8k and it seemed cheap given you can pay much more for a decent 959 however, im a crap rider and moving up from a 749 to a 899/959 makes more sense for spirited road and track i think or can i just press some buttons on the 1199 and tame it until i become an epic rider like some of you lot
The 959 will make you a better rider imho; its all about carrying corner speed. You can't simply make up lack of pace on the gas. That's why California Superbike School (UK) , used to predominantly use 959s rather than the 1299s
I moved to an 899 from a 675 and it was glorious on the road and absolutely adored it too. Best suited bike I’ve ever ridden for my limited skills I think.
Go 1199, I went 996 then 999 then 1199, before the 1199 I rode some well sorted 899s on circuit, I made the right choice, I never get to a circuit and wish I had less power, and as @bradders says they can be dialled down.
will it be as chuckable and confidence inspiring as i understand the 899/959 to be? the weight is similar enough i think
The 959 will feel different chassis wise to the 1199, the swingarm pivot etc is different, IMO the 1199 doesn't have amazing front end feel completely out of the box, compared to the 959 that just seems to have a little bit more flex (not the frame, but more the steel subframe, the smaller diameter forks etc). If you think you are power craved or used to litre bikes then get a 1199, but personally I think the 959 is pretty good, just needs better brake pads for track use.
well thats decision made thanks for the input folks the cheap 1199 has now gone and i have a decent value 959 locked in my sights
