Suzuki GSF 600N Bandit

The Bandit 600 virtually created the middleweight budget bike class when it appeared in 1995.

Based around a similar design to the 1990 Bandit 400, the Bandit 600 used an oil-cooled engine in a basic steel frame. Budget suspension and braking components kept costs down, and the Bandit was a lively, capable performer. It had just enough power to count as a 'big' bike while remaining unthreatening for novices, so was a popular choice for post-test riders.

The traditional round headlamp and chrome-finished exhaust were matched by a colour-coded frame and silver-finish engine which gave the Bandit a healthy dose of attitude.

The first update for the Bandit, in 2000, had a new frame and updated TPS carburettors.

Bennetts on the 600 Bandit

That was when the GSF600 Bandit was released, helping light a fire under the budget naked middleweight class started just a few years before with the Yamaha XJ600 Diversion.

Like the Divvy, the Bandit used a tried and tested powerplant – the motor derived from the oil/air-cooled GSX-R750 mill, found in the GSX600F sports 600, notoriously known as the ‘Teapot’ on account of its all-enveloped fairing.

Chassis parts are often thought of as being below-par, but they were actually shared with the-then top Suzuki sports-touring middleweight the RF600. Sure, it was still a bit soft and only adjustable at the rear for rebound and preload – but it worked well. The motor was unstressed and good for 75bhp and a top-end of 120mph+, while the painted steel tubular cradle almost aped the aluminium double cradle of the earlier GSX-Rs. With that sort of family reputation, it is little wonder they called it ‘Bandit.’

With its amazing knack of offering a total more than the mere sum of its parts, the Bandit sold incredibly well – the £3999 price tag helped. What also helped was the lower gearing to give some low-down oomph and the excellent ergonomics and geometry which gave it real agility out on the swooping country roads or in the urban sprawl.

The GSF600N was joined by the 600S in 1996 – thanks to the addition of a half fairing and both versions vied with big brother 1200 Bandits and the FireBlade as Britain’s best-selling bike of the 1990s.

Since then age has perhaps not been kind to the Bandit. Newer models complemented it in the Suzuki range (such as the SV650) and rivals such as the Fazer 600 and Honda Hornet provided more thrills and/or looks for similar wedge. Worse, the ravages of a few UK winters often had some of the cycle parts of the Suzuki rusting, so a well-looked after Bandit soon became hard to find. By the time the bike had a thorough revamp, with a new, straight frame, longer wheelbase and a host of other changes in 2000 it had really lost its edge.

Today the double-cradle early models of 1995-96 are possibly in the waiting room for ‘modern classic’ status, which means the prices are still low, but some chancers (dealers) will stick a £1500 tag on a bike with plenty of surface patina. Dig deep and find a tidy privately owned one that’s been looked after.