Alternatives to the fzs1000?

[duxsy]

thanks everyone for the input, a lot of food for thought.

Cbf1000, more like a grown up  Fzs600 than any other bike I've ridden, (I owned a Fzs 1000 at the same time as my 600 so have done direct comparison). Kawasaki Z1000SX about the closet I've ridden to the 1000, very nearly bought one(that good) but bought a new model crossrunner instead (flawed and no longer in the garage).

very interesting, can you tell me a little more about this? is the cbf1000 easy to manoeuvre at low speeds, would you be able to do a u-turn easily on a normal street?
how does the cbf and fzs 1000 compare?

If the original poster is considering a gen 1 thou then it seems a bit pointless talking about £6-12 bikes - no gen 1 is worth that right now. Also the luggage issue was brought up so  to my mind there's some obvious alternatives that haven't been mentioned:Bandit 1200 / 1250: cheap,  large engined half faired bike that can be found with rack / top box / panniers already fitted at previous owners expense if patient or lucky.CB1300 SA: half faired again, top box is easy, I don't recall seeing panniers on one but it will obviously take soft luggage and will probably outlast the human race and still start on the button and purr nicely.ZRX1100 / 1200 - quite cool, very meaty but (dare I say it?) even less build quality than the Suzuki. I've ridden and worked on one that's toured and, well, it needs a good deal of maintenance to keep it tip top.R1150R - a more left field choice but big, torquey, comfortable and will most likely come with luggage fitted, just add a screen. I've owned one and it's surprisingly good - but not as reliable as the roundel would suggest.All viable alternatives and available for around £3k.

spot on, I'm after a cheaper option which will take luggage. thanks for the recommendations, off I go to research them all!