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Post by joeydigger on Sept 20, 2008 21:28:05 GMT -5
Have you seen this 250cc chopper by Hi-Bird Motorcycles? It looks nice compared some of the other bikes out there. It looks very clean. I like the chrome out 250cc V-Twin aircooled motor. Have anyone owned one of these choppers? Can you give me some feedback? So far I can’t a local distributor or dealer. These can be ordered from China in container load only. I have never owned a bike before and don’t have too much knowledge on motorcycles. This looks like what I wanted. It is clean and stylish looking from the pictures on Hibird website. The 250cc motor is big enough for me to get on the freeway. I am not a speed junky. It would be used on local surface streets. I would how well it handles on stop and go traffic, turns, and everyday beating. From what I have heard was they did a lot testing on it and would hold up to all those daily wear and tear. I wonder what the bike would sound like. I don’t like those Harleys with the cut off pipes where you could hear them a mile away. I would go deaf after a month. No offense to all those Harley riders. I like to stay incognito. Let me know what you think……. Here is the link to their site: hbmoto.com/Products_view.asp?id=61 |
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Post by rerun2 on Sept 20, 2008 22:01:33 GMT -5
It should not be a difficult bike to handle, they did not rake out the front end which can cause all manner of unwanted characteristics. I would suggest a design other than a chopper for a number of reasons which I will not get into.
Any geared cycle is going to get to be a pain in traffic, no way around that. Open road it really doesn't matter, but constant shifting in traffic gets real old real quick! ;d
A Honda Rebel is a great 250cc motorcycle, as is the Yamaha Ninja 250, the little Ninja will sneak up on 100mph if you don't weigh a ton.
The CFMoto V3 is a Chinese motorcycle that seems to be pretty good. The V5 is as well. This Hibird is not a model I have seen much of, so I can't make any assessment of it.
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Post by Jacine on Sept 20, 2008 22:19:31 GMT -5
Looks like it designed to compete with the Honda rebel and the Yamaha star 250. Will depend on price and performance.
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Post by chaajoad on Sept 20, 2008 22:27:51 GMT -5
joey - this is just my opinion. I know it will be looked at as hostile but it's really not. You put the question on a public board and here's my opinion.
I think it looks goofy.
It might be cool if you're 14 but using a 250cc scooter engine on a small bike trying to look like Peter Fonda's chopper is - IMO - amusing. It's like guys who buy a used tiny Toyota pick-up and then spend a ton to jack it up, accessorize it, make it look all bad. Just buy a new 150 with nice rims and be done with it.
If you insist on this route, I personally like the 250cc bikes that look more like small motorcycles. I think CF Moto has a model. Now that I look at Jacine's post - yeah, that one. To me, it's a cool looking little bike.
Plus - if something goes haywire with the deal, you won't even have a drop shipper to holler at, right? I'd be very, very careful about this deal.
Stay safe on whatever you pick.
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Post by WarrenS on Sept 21, 2008 10:31:15 GMT -5
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Post by kitcarguy on Sept 21, 2008 10:48:44 GMT -5
These 250cc chinese choppers just don't look right. I have noticed this so many times with chinese bikes, scoots, etc.
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Post by jpn on Sept 21, 2008 13:35:41 GMT -5
Looks more like a Bobber, than a Chopper. For a Chopper look, the Roketa MC-51 comes closer.
I could be wrong, but I think a Chinese 250cc V-twin motorcycle passed me (going the other way), yesterday. Looked almost like a Harley, but kinda 'skinny' for a Harley. Exhaust sounded kinda Harley (the V-twin sound), but with something along the lines of a 125cc dirtbike exhaust mixed in.
Definitely a little odd at first encounter, but I can't say I wouldn't be interested in trying one.
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Post by earlwb on Sept 21, 2008 20:28:56 GMT -5
That isn't a bad machine from the way it looks. I believe they cloned or copied the Yamaha Virago 250 engine from a few years ago. It is a air cooled 250 V-twin engine, with clutch and 5 speed tranny. Not bad. It might be interesting to see how much they sell for.
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Post by joeydigger on Sept 22, 2008 1:13:17 GMT -5
Thanks for all the feedback. I do appreciate it.
From what I have heard a dealer in Florida will be getting them in one month or so. I really like the 250cc V twin chopper. I was told that it is the size of a Honda Rebel. I did my research and Hibird is a large motorcycle manufacturer in Chongqing. The parts and service should not be an issue it is an all metal bike built by a good size motorcycle factory. So far they have sold motorcycles, scooters, and ATVs in Africa, Europe, and USA and maybe other places in Asia as well. They have EPA and DOT on this bike already. So that makes me feel a lot better. But anyway, the dealer in Florida briefly mentioned the retail cost of this bike projected at around $5000. I know the scooter is more practical but I really like the chopper. It’s nice to have something a little different from the crowd. I think I will get it. Besides I can’t pick up no chicks with a scooter..haha.
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Post by joeydigger on Sept 22, 2008 1:15:03 GMT -5
by the way..
how do you attach a pix along with the posting?
thats kind of useful.
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Post by jpn on Sept 22, 2008 5:50:24 GMT -5
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Post by rerun2 on Sept 22, 2008 20:10:14 GMT -5
For the money, I would consider a Honda Rebel and getting it customized a bit... ;d
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Post by madmanjustice on Sept 22, 2008 20:40:13 GMT -5
joey - this is just my opinion. I know it will be looked at as hostile but it's really not. You put the question on a public board and here's my opinion. I think it looks goofy. It might be cool if you're 14 but using a 250cc scooter engine on a small bike trying to look like Peter Fonda's chopper is - IMO - amusing. It's like guys who buy a used tiny Toyota pick-up and then spend a ton to jack it up, accessorize it, make it look all bad. Just buy a new 150 with nice rims and be done with it. If you insist on this route, I personally like the 250cc bikes that look more like small motorcycles. I think CF Moto has a model. Now that I look at Jacine's post - yeah, that one. To me, it's a cool looking little bike. Plus - if something goes haywire with the deal, you won't even have a drop shipper to holler at, right? I'd be very, very careful about this deal. Stay safe on whatever you pick. i can't tell if you actually read the post and looked at the picture before making this response...  |
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Post by WarrenS on Sept 22, 2008 21:35:35 GMT -5
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Post by chaajoad on Sept 24, 2008 1:05:12 GMT -5
Wow - that's a 250? Looks a lot bigger. Great bike for a college kid or local runs ...
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Post by earlwb on Sept 24, 2008 7:33:22 GMT -5
Yeah the Yamaha 250 is designed to look big. They add fake fins to the engine to make it look larger, and put the whol thing into a large frame with a long wheelbase. So it looks about the same size as the bigger Yamaha V twins.
The 250's use a chain final drive whereas the bigger ones use a shaft drive.
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Post by chaajoad on Sept 25, 2008 0:49:32 GMT -5
If I had all kinds of cash, I'd get one just for grins. But I'd feel REAL goofy at a light on one of these and a guy on an Iron Horse or Big Dog rolls up ...
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Post by dean on Sept 25, 2008 2:28:39 GMT -5
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Post by chaajoad on Sept 26, 2008 4:41:58 GMT -5
Dean - Gave you a bone. Guess two can play at this silly game. More will be forthcoming.
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Post by scooterscheaper on Oct 10, 2010 5:21:30 GMT -5
Hey if anyone is interested in the Hi bird 250cc Chopper V-Twin..... As of Monday the 11th we will have the bike available for immediate sale for only $2995 with shipping only $299 anywhere in the continental USA (except for CA since the bike is not able to be sold there). When I see some of these posts stating the bikes are 5k I can't believe it. www.scooterscheaper.comOh yeah.... We also carry bikes from Keeway, Clevland Cycle, Rhino Motorcycles, Kikker 5150, and of course Motobravo and Roketa. |
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Post by tomcas on Oct 10, 2010 8:18:29 GMT -5
I own a Yamaha Virago 250 (still sold as a V-Star) from which the Chinese have copied this almost exactly. For a small or beginner rider this is a perfect bike. It has ample power for cruising on the highway at 70mph (tops out at 90mph) gets between 80 to 105 mpg. I enjoy shifting and never, ever, have found it to be a pain. The use of gears over CVT belt are part of the reason this bikes gets better mileage then scooters of comparable displacement. Having owned and worked on Japanese and Chinese bikes I would advise against buying the Chinese version because the Viragos are so much more reliable and yet still relatively inexpensive because of the plentiful resale market from people upgrading. It's common to find them with extremely low miles and priced between 2 to 3 thousand dollars. The Honda Rebel 250 is somewhat comparable but with a little less power, slightly smaller, and lacking the V twin look and sound. The stock pipes on the Virago are relatively quite but still have the V twin sound. Both these Jap bikes will easily go 50 to 70K miles without rebuild. I think new V-Stars are selling for about 3,800.  |
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Post by enduros on Oct 10, 2010 8:37:57 GMT -5
I wouldnt trust Hi-bird seeing as how they cant keep their website up and for the money most people want you are much better off with a Japanese 250 or a Johnny Pagg or CF-Moto cruiser. Especially with parts in mind, it doesnt matter how big a company is in china. Getting parts over here can be a pain even for bikes like my LF200 which was one of the first china sport bikes its still hard to get certain parts.
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