from a first time bike buyer (2months ago) i’d say get an older 600. you’re going to be too afraid of a newer bike to ride it right. i’ve been babying my bike and i feel my learning curve is skewed because of it. i’ve been very cautious on it, which isn’t a bad thing, but i def. dont feel as comfortable on it as i think i should be, if that makes sense. the way i spend money though, i knew if i bought a $1500 bike to learn on, when i had the $3000 i wouldn’t have been able to afford a nice bike, so i bought this one. honestly i wouldn’t think twice about buying aaron (bialecki) 's vfr. it’s a pretty good starter bike, and doesn’t look horrible.
as for size, i wasn’t crazy about the size of the tank on the gsxr. i did like the f4i, and the zx6r, but thought the r6 was perfect for me and i’m not too different of a build from you.