Riding Technique - Manual Gear Changes

[Suffolk]

Hi folks, I could do with some tips on how to perfect the art of manual gear changes. I've ridden an auto twist and go for a number of years but tomorrow will be picking up a new CBF125 and I don't want to kill it (or me)!!!

On my cbt I rode a manual ybr125 and whilst I did the gear changes well enough to pass they were ropey as hell. Without sounding an arse I don't mind buggering up things on a training schools bike but I do want to make sure my bike is well looked after.

So I think what I'm really getting at is can peeps post up a ste by step process for changing up and then the same for going from say 30mph to a stop.

Many thanks

SPM

[pinkyfloyd]

Oddly enough changing gears seems like a nightmare until you actually get used to it and before long it will become second nature. When I was not on the bike I would "practice" while on the bus, in a car, what ever, Sure I may have looked a pillock but at least when I got onto the bike it was easier to replicate the actions.

You already know the basics of how to do it, all it takes is practice so sit and practice while sitting on the computer reading this. Release your throttle, pull your clutch in, shift up and then release the clutch and throttle on gently. You would be surprised at how easy it all becomes after a few days on the bike.

Changing down is the same. When on the bike listen to the engine, it will tell you when you need to change down. Release the throttle, listen to the engine, when the pitch gets very low, clutch in, change down, gently feed the clutch out. Some blip the throttle to match the revs to the gearing. Thats just a little twist of the throttle just before you release the clutch but focus on the basics first.

Practice everywhere, watching the bikes on TV. Car, taxi, etc. All will help make the motions second nature. After that you wont even think about it.
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illuminateTHEmind wrote: I am just more evolved than most of you guys... this allows me to pick of things quickly which would have normally taken the common man years to master
Hockeystorm65:.well there are childish arguments...there are very childish arguments.....there are really stupid childish arguments and now there are......Pinkfloyd arguments!
Teflon-Mike:I think I agree with just about all Pinky has said.

[grant965]

Strangely enough, on my thundercat, changing gears doesn't feel as natural as it does in my peugeot 206. However, i think its mainly because the t'cat is known for a large gap between 1st and 2nd
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Ex bikes: 05 Suzuki En 125, '98 Yamaha Thundercat, '08 Honda cbr125, '05 Kawasaki z750, '03 Triumph Daytona 600, '91 Kawasaki ex250, '03 Hyosung Comet 125
Current Bike: '02 Suzuki TL1000R

[superleeds76]

i was the same always had sit and screws and i had never drove a car
passed cbt fine and had a cbr 125 waiting for me
i was really worried about screwing the bike up so took it gently round the housing estate were i live a few laps before out on the main roads
it will come surprisingly quick i use mine every day for work and love it so dont panic if i can do it trust me anyone can
happy riding

[AlexW]

Have a look on youtube, theres a few vids on there.

Do a few slow changes to start with, don't get carried away trying to do it fast. It will all come naturally.

[_Iain_]

And no points whatsoever for trying to catch the boy racer infront & pressing the pedal down instead of up...
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Please be aware that the above post may be full of complete nonsense.
Riding: '07 KTM Duke II, Baotian BT49QT-20 Driving: '88 Volvo 340

[Alpha-9]

Gears were something I worried about the most before I rode a bike
Now i'm riding gears are the last thing I think about

don't sweat it, you'll get used to it in no time
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Fzr-600 1999

[arry]

[Alpha-9]

[J.M.]

[Alpha-9]

[J.M.]

[Alpha-9]

[Sako]

or you could just clutchless upshift to save messing around with the clutch.





(don't really try this yet please!)

[Alpha-9]

[Scythe]

[Taught2BCauti...]

I have always found it easier to get into Neutral from 1st gear, than from 2nd, but it takes the same amount of upward movement to go from 1st to 2nd as it does to go from 2nd to 3rd, etc.

When accelerating and changing up, pull the clutch and wait for the revs to drop before shifting.

Shifting down, pull the clutch and increase the revs a bit before shifting.
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Honda Varadero XL125(V8)
www.TheFutureIsHere.eu

[arry]

[Suffolk]

[swampy]

I guess form your nick that you have some ties to Pompey, only if you're around here, I'm quite happy to go out to a carpark (or rideout) with ya to see if I can offer some tips in the real world.
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"I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me." Hunter S Thompson
"Faster, faster, faster, until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death..." Hunter S Thompson

[Teflon-Mike]

ON CBT you will have practiced finding the clutch 'bite point' but with the bike stationary.

On the move, the loadings on the clutch can make the actual bite point move about a bit.

At a stand still, it takes quit a lot of force to get the mass of bike and rider initially moving; whereas once it IS moving takes less force to just keep it moving.

Its the 'sliding the washing machine under the counter' principle.... takes a bit of a shove to get it to slide, but once going slides pretty easy.

Same thing during gear changes.

When you pull the clutch 'in', when rolling, it will actually take more lever movement to make the plates disengage drive, than when the bike is stationary, and when you release it again, it will start to transmit force before it is as far back out.

Next; Little bikes will not flatter clumsy gear changes.

The little engine, making perhaps a 1/4 the power at peak of relatively tame 500, will be geared lower to get the same 'force' to get you moving, so it will run out of revs and demand an upshift at a much lower speed than a big bike.

Typically, something like an EN or YBR will be maxed out in first at possibly less than 20mph... max out a GS500 in first and you are possibly pushing 40 or more. So your first gear change comes up sooner....

'Momentum', wot keeps you moving when there is nothing to positively shove you along, is Mass x Velocity.

So your little 125, weighing 120Kg instead of 200Kg, and needing a gear change at maybe 15mph instead of 30, does NOT have very much of the stuff!

And if you take too long, with the clutch hauled in and no drive, you wont coast as far, and you will loose more precious speed, before you get the drive back on.

You Dont want to 'Rush' or 'Snatch' the change, just be aware, that your little bike, will not flatter you... and let you know in no uncertain terms when you are making a muff of it!

This is good! If you can make nice smooth changes on a tiddler.... you can do them on ANY-BLUDY-THING!

Now; clutch control is important, but TIMING is all.

Boot the box, before you have the clutch in, bike will lurch. Haul clutch before you're off the gas, bike will scream and dive.

Its all about the co-ordination.

And to get that, PRACTICE - PRACTICE - PRACTICE, there is no substitute!

Find a quiet estate and practice. Take your time getting the co-ordination, and practicing getting the shift nice and smooth, and unhurried.

DONT worry, if at first, slow changes mean that the bike labours as you get the clutch out in the higher gear, having let it roll too long and lost a bit too much speed... just work on the smoothness and precision and getting that clutch and throttle timing, balancing the speeds.

Important thing is the throttle.

As you let the clutch in to change gear, unless you roll off, the engine revs will rise.

So natural tendancy is to let the throttle RIGHT off, to stop it screaming;

but then as you start to let the clutch back out, the load will make the revs 'drop', and you have to get the throttle open again, or you will have engine braking from the closed throttle,

and you will be doing the 'Learner Lurch' after the shift as the bike dips under engine braking as the clutch goes out, and then have to accelerate to get the thing back to speed.

So take your time, and practice getting that 'feel' for both the clutch and the throttle, thats not just governing the engine speed, but the load as well.

TIP: dont be too timid and try practicing from a walking pace, going between 1st and second, you NEED some speed in order to have reason to change gear, as well as to give you the momentum to coast through the time you have no drive with the clutch in.

YBR will be comfy enough on 20-30mph roads doing 20mph in 2nd or third, so to keep speed, and momentum up, try practicing 2nd to 3rd shifts and 3rd to 2nd down shifts, to build confidence.

Also avoids the hazard of the unintended 'Neutral' going through from 1st to 2nd.

As far as shifts to Neutral are concerned... I find that its more reliable to bang all the way down the box to 1st, to be sure where I am, then snick the half shift into N.

And TIP: when trying to snick N; it can help if you have a LITTLE drag on the shafts for it to actually latch into the slot. So hold the bike back on the brake, and just let he clutch drag a TINY bit to put some tension on the cogs as you snick it into the middle position.

Now, a lot to ponder, but dont sweat it too much. Probably wont make so much sense until you go do.

So Stop Thinking - Start Riding,

and go practice 2nd to 3rd, and 3rd down to 2nd.... get the road speed up, and the 'rush' to make the change down!

Have FUN!
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My Webby'Tef's-tQ, loads of stuff about my bikes, my Land-Rovers, and the stuff I do with them!
Current Bikes:'Honda VF1000F' ;'CB750F2N' ;'CB125TD ( 6 3 of em!)'; 'Montesa Cota 248'. Learner FAQ's:= 'U want to Ride a Motorbike! Where Do U start?'

[karoshi]

[J.M.]

[pinkyfloyd]

[Baisemontchou]

This is still a great vid for starting out & gear changes - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdySkge4aKM