Motorcycle gear shifting.

[Greyd]

A couple of questions for you bike riders out there. I'm practicing on my bike (1981 Honda CM400)

1) When coming to a stop - you just downshift to 1st gear while applying brakes - correct? You don't need to go 3rd, 2nd, 1st - you can just drop straight to 1st?

2) Are there specific speeds for certain gears? For example 20 mph or less = 1st gear, etc. Or is it just simply by feel?

3) When using the clutch - it should be clutch then shift gear then let go of clutch? I'm assuming shifting the gear happens very quickly after grabbing the clutch. I'm also assuming the the whole transition should be faster and smoother as I get used to it.

I've never driven anything with a clutch before - I've been out riding and my gear shifting seems kinda "jerky" for me.

Any other recommendations, advice would be appreciated.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

1) You have to go down through the gears. You cannot bypass gears. You can just keep clicking down through them.

2) You learn by ear. At first use the tach to keep within your power band, but listen to how it sounds. You quiclly learn when to shift without paying it any mind.

3) Yep. that's how you do it. Clutch, shift, release.

 

[grrl]

Don't just drop down several gears, that can jerk the bike or cause the back tire to swerve.

As for shifting, like WinstonSmith says you can learn by ear, but also pay attention to how the bike responds after you shift. If you shift too early you'll lose power in the next gear because the RPMs are too low.

 

[Greyd]

Is there any difference when you are coming to a sudden/emergency stop? (in terms of shifting down?)

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

In an emergency situation, screw shifting. You havent time. Grab both the clutch and brake. After you slow, then snick down to whatever gear you need to get going. BTW, when you shift you have to give gas as you release the clutch. That makes thngs smoother.

 

[Greyd]

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
In an emergency situation, screw shifting. You havent time. Grab both the clutch and brake. After you slow, then snick down to whatever gear you need to get going. BTW, when you shift you have to give gas as you release the clutch. That makes thngs smoother.

Ahhh.....thanks for the info. any other words of advice from anyone?

 

[grrl]

In an emergency also use both brakes (which you should be doing anyways) unless you are in a turn.

 

[bigshot]

how do you ride a crotch rocket...how does shifting work and how does the clutch work.

 

[DaiShan]

Originally posted by: Greyd

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
In an emergency situation, screw shifting. You havent time. Grab both the clutch and brake. After you slow, then snick down to whatever gear you need to get going. BTW, when you shift you have to give gas as you release the clutch. That makes thngs smoother.

Ahhh.....thanks for the info. any other words of advice from anyone?

Wear a helmet

 

[Crazymofo]

How about take a training class like the MSF course! Best thing a new rider can do to save his ass on the street...

 

[boyRacer]

Originally posted by: Greyd

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
In an emergency situation, screw shifting. You havent time. Grab both the clutch and brake. After you slow, then snick down to whatever gear you need to get going. BTW, when you shift you have to give gas as you release the clutch. That makes thngs smoother.

Ahhh.....thanks for the info. any other words of advice from anyone?

If you have the time you can try taking an MSF class... you'll definitely enjoy learning how to ride a lot more after. Ride safe!

 

[boyRacer]

Originally posted by: Greyd

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
In an emergency situation, screw shifting. You havent time. Grab both the clutch and brake. After you slow, then snick down to whatever gear you need to get going. BTW, when you shift you have to give gas as you release the clutch. That makes thngs smoother.

Ahhh.....thanks for the info. any other words of advice from anyone?

If you have the time you can try taking an MSF class... you'll definitely enjoy learning how to ride a lot more after. Ride safe!

 

[N8Magic]

Don't forget, countersteering is your friend.

 

[Greyd]

Originally posted by: boyRacer

Originally posted by: Greyd

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
In an emergency situation, screw shifting. You havent time. Grab both the clutch and brake. After you slow, then snick down to whatever gear you need to get going. BTW, when you shift you have to give gas as you release the clutch. That makes thngs smoother.

Ahhh.....thanks for the info. any other words of advice from anyone?

If you have the time you can try taking an MSF class... you'll definitely enjoy learning how to ride a lot more after. Ride safe!

Yeah, I'm definately taking the MSF course. However its booked till november around here. I'm gonna try to walk in in about a week. Whether or not I get my license before then - I'm still taking the course - I heard its really good.

 

[Jeff7181]

Manual transmissions in a car or in a bike require a feel for the vehicle. Some people are quicker learners than others. My ex had a 96 Mustang with a manual... gawd I feel sorry for that transmission... I think it was 6 months before she could drive without stalling it ever.
Anyway... usually people use the engine to help slow the car down... downshift, let the clutch out slowly and give it some gas. You should work your way down through the gears like that until you're ready to accelerate again.
Think of how the tach needle moves when you're upshifting... you want it to do basically the same thing, only backwards when you're downshifting... if that makes any sense... if it doesn't... just think of it as climing up the ladder, and then back down the ladder... you have to come down step by step... can't jump =)

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Originally posted by: bigshot
how do you ride a crotch rocket...how does shifting work and how does the clutch work.

With any type of motorcycle you squeeze the lever on the left handgrip to engage the clutch. The gearshift lever is operated by the left foot. My Hayabusa, and a great many others are "one down, five up" which means that from the neutral position you push down one click to get in first. You then lift with your foot moving through neutral to second, then to third etc.

 

[Crazymofo]

Originally posted by: Jeff7181
Manual transmissions in a car or in a bike require a feel for the vehicle. Some people are quicker learners than others. My ex had a 96 Mustang with a manual... gawd I feel sorry for that transmission... I think it was 6 months before she could drive without stalling it ever.
Anyway... usually people use the engine to help slow the car down... downshift, let the clutch out slowly and give it some gas. You should work your way down through the gears like that until you're ready to accelerate again.
Think of how the tach needle moves when you're upshifting... you want it to do basically the same thing, only backwards when you're downshifting... if that makes any sense... if it doesn't... just think of it as climing up the ladder, and then back down the ladder... you have to come down step by step... can't jump =)

If your coming to a complete stop then all that is a waste of time... on the other hand if you are heading into a curve then that is very helpful because downshifting doesnt make the nose dive as bad as the front brakes...

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Originally posted by: Crazymofo

Originally posted by: Jeff7181
Manual transmissions in a car or in a bike require a feel for the vehicle. Some people are quicker learners than others. My ex had a 96 Mustang with a manual... gawd I feel sorry for that transmission... I think it was 6 months before she could drive without stalling it ever.
Anyway... usually people use the engine to help slow the car down... downshift, let the clutch out slowly and give it some gas. You should work your way down through the gears like that until you're ready to accelerate again.
Think of how the tach needle moves when you're upshifting... you want it to do basically the same thing, only backwards when you're downshifting... if that makes any sense... if it doesn't... just think of it as climing up the ladder, and then back down the ladder... you have to come down step by step... can't jump =)

If your coming to a complete stop then all that is a waste of time... on the other hand if you are heading into a curve then that is very helpful because downshifting doesnt make the nose dive as bad as the front brakes...

Along these lines, in a non emergency situation, you want to brake BEFORE you enter the curve. You dont want to put too much load on the front fork in a turn, and in fact you want to start accelerating before exiting the curve. This shifts the weight towards the back wheel.

Oh, one common mistake is to look to close to the front wheel in a turn. You want to look a significant distance away into the curve to get the best line.

Edit: If you get into racing, you can learn the trick of sliding the rear tire while in a turn. That makes the back come around sooner and decreases the time spent in a curve. That gives you a faster lap.

 

[Jeff7181]

If your coming to a complete stop then all that is a waste of time... on the other hand if you are heading into a curve then that is very helpful because downshifting doesnt make the nose dive as bad as the front brakes...

Not really... using engine braking saves your brakes =)

 

[Crazymofo]

Originally posted by: Jeff7181

If your coming to a complete stop then all that is a waste of time... on the other hand if you are heading into a curve then that is very helpful because downshifting doesnt make the nose dive as bad as the front brakes...

Not really... using engine braking saves your brakes =)

I'd think that engine braking would damage your engine and it would be a lot cheaper to replace brakes then the engine... But if you're me then I wait till the very last minute to brake so engine braking takes to long anyways

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Originally posted by: Crazymofo

Originally posted by: Jeff7181

If your coming to a complete stop then all that is a waste of time... on the other hand if you are heading into a curve then that is very helpful because downshifting doesnt make the nose dive as bad as the front brakes...

Not really... using engine braking saves your brakes =)

I'd think that engine braking would damage your engine and it would be a lot cheaper to replace brakes then the engine... But if you're me then I wait till the very last minute to brake so engine braking takes to long anyways

Engine braking wont hurt anything, provided you arent dropping from sixth to first or some other dumb stunt, but how effective it is depends on the size of the engine. A 400 cc bike wont slow nearly as quickly as my 1300 cc.

 

[The Stigenator]

First take MSF course.. but since your trying to add that's a good thing... also check into Honda Riders Edge and Harley's Learn to Ride or whatever its called.. they are similar tests prices do vary a bit but are competetive.

Next buy this book TOTWII (Twist of the Wrist II) its a good bike to learn about cornering and stuff.

As for shifing.. when you normally downshiift, If I got time then I just downshift to first as I close on to the stop sign. If I dont feel like doing so I brake to teh stop sign and then while doing so shift to first. I come to a stop put my foot down and then take off. Always land on first.. so you can take off if there is an emergency.

If I am coming to an emergency stop I pull clutch and hit the brakes hard (my bike stalls if I dont pull the clutch in on hard braking). However some people say not to do that. In emergency braking start with rear brake (faster to hit that) and then hit the front in harder force and let up on the rear (if your rear brake is locked then just keep it locked unless your in a road condition like gravel where you got to let it go and reapply slowly).

If I am coming from a fast stop non emergency I just brake and downshift really fast.. Always land on 1st.. saves a lot of hassles.


edit: Engine braking is for downhill and stuff and it wont hurt the engine. I hate it when my friends say it will.. I do it all the time.. its normal.. Just dont over engine brake it. When on the canyons I am in 3rd or 4th gear around 8K rpms.. so it engine brakes enough for me to slow down and lean into a turn and get back into the powerband..heheheh

 

[geckojohn]

I just got a Yamaha YZF600R... Its an awesome bike - 600cc's of pure riding fun!

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

Originally posted by: Crazymofo
How about take a training class like the MSF course! Best thing a new rider can do to save his ass on the street...

ditto that. You need to take a MSF class.


You want to be in a gear that is appropiate for your speed. So, you need to shift down in sequence, as you slow down. The reasons for doing this are :

1) you can use the engine to slow down,
2) should you need to take emergency action, you are in a gear that will give you good acceleration

there are probably other reasons...

I think of NO reasons to shift all the way down in preparation of stopping. What will happen when you pop the clutch in 1st when you are still doing 40 mph? ... you won't like that one bit......

 

[xEDIT409]

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith

Originally posted by: bigshot
how do you ride a crotch rocket...how does shifting work and how does the clutch work.

With any type of motorcycle you squeeze the lever on the left handgrip to engage the clutch. The gearshift lever is operated by the left foot. My Hayabusa, and a great many others are "one down, five up" which means that from the neutral position you push down one click to get in first. You then lift with your foot moving through neutral to second, then to third etc.

When you want to downshift, do you press the gearshift lever down? And on the HUD, does it tell you what gear you're in?