Should bikes have a reverse gear?

[Fahd]

I know it sounds like an incredibly stupid question because unless you're some sort of gymnastic clown you can't balance a bike backwards, however with incredibly heavy bikes like the Suzuki Hayabusa why don't they just put a reverse gear on to help the rider out, for example I can't see it being very fun trying to roll one of those backwards uphill even if it does increase your leg strength like nothing else on Earth... Anyway before I get flamed and told it's just being lazy, it's just an idea & this is a forum after all...
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[veeeffarr]

Dangerous as fuck on a sequential gearbox?

T

[St0rmer66]

As Toby hinted on, only if it was separate to the other gearbox somehow, so you couldn't accidentally select it.

I think the Honda Goldwing already has a reverse gear anyway.
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[Jamie S]

Honda goldwings have , but on a bike that big you need it.

Edit. ^ beat me to it

[hmmmnz]

the goldwings have a reverse gear, and a electric center stand
basically a car with only 2 wheels
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[Jamie S]

[Whosthedaddy]

[Whosthedaddy]

[Evo]

I started my RS50 in reverse if that counts (Reverse Bump)

Lost my balance and barely staid on. It was a new thing to me so had to try it.

Can you start all bikes like that ? Running the drive(While in gear) in reverse then trying to start it and it goes backwards.

Surely it causes unwanted damage however.
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[Ariel Badger]

[LeeWat]

A bloke at work has a Goldthing and he told me his reverse gear is done by the starter motor, so the reverse is used before the bike is actually started. As to the electric mainstand, the one on his is an hydraulic one (called landing gear) and operates at slow speeds aswell to stop him dropping the 1/3 of a ton bikecar (stabilisers come to mind).


Lee.

Fahd, you can balance a bike backwards when you've riden them long enough, i never have a problem with my bulldog going backwards up the incline behind my garage, except when its wet and slippy like now
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[G]

A Hayabusa isn't /that/ bad as far as weight goes, however the obvious thing to do would be to turn it around and use the engine, if it's an issue .

As mentioned, it's not going to be fun to go at any speed using an actual 'reverse gear'.

[Lone-Wolf]

Wotcha.

My Cossack outfit had a reverse gear. Excellent for screwing the head up on car drivers They just don't expect the thing to go backwards.
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[Finglonga]

[colin1]

reverse gear wouldnt be dangerous, but it would be an added expense that many bikers wouldnt want to pay for

heavy touring bikes being the exception i guess
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[stinkwheel]

Many 2-strokes will run backwards if you bump them that way or if you overadvance the ignition to a massive degree. 4-strokes will not.

It's easy enough to coast a bike backwards down a slope, riding one backwards under power is nigh-on impossable. I tried it on my mates police Ural which has a reverse gear lever on the drive-shaft, designed for use with a sidecar. It was an entertaining experience.
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[BorderHooner]

Hayabusa heavy? I'm 5ft 8"-12st 4lb and have no problem at all man handling my Busa. Then again I could just be strong, I simply bent down and lifted my Firestorm up after dropping it on the verge.

Reverse gears are obviously for wimps.
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[Diggs]

The trick is to push them downhill only!

Incidentally, i saw a Goldwing with stabilisers last week on the Huddersfield ring-road. I was about to cross as this Wing pulled up - as it did, stabilisers appeared from either side and before the bike actually came to a stop, they were down and taking the weight. I watched the bloke set off, and within a few yards they had retracted once more...

Off topic I know, but relevant in a roundabout kinda way...
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[funmonkee]

My Vmax is fairly heavy, but I can pick it up. You just have to think a bit ahead and don't park up pointing down hill etc... always roll back into a space
I see alot of people trikin vmax etc and always wondered if what trouble they get into without a reverse gear...
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[lozzypop1]

I think it would be a bad idea.

Car drivers already blame each and every accident they can on the motorcyclist, imagine how pleased they would be if they could rear-end people then say that the rider reversed into their car?
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[krebsy]

It would be handy for the occasional time when you've parked down a sloping driveway and there's not enough space to turn around (like my folks).

My Garage is up a slight incline with a raised angled kerb and I normally park forwards then roll downhill back out, but If I'm working on the bike or cleaning it on the hard standing on the garden side then it would be handy to be able to reverse it into the garage. manhandling it up the slope is hard because as soon as it reaches the dropped kerb it takes a hell of a lot of effort to get it into the garage.

Then again, I might just fit a slow winch instead and draw it into the garage that way..

K.
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[Spoon261]

The starter motor sounds an interesting way to reverse a bike.

I assume the starter motor is a normal DC electric motor, so if you reverse the polarity, the motor will spin the other way and reverse the engine.

Does it hurt a 4 stroke to go backwards, with the spark plug turned off?

[DEN MONKEY]

Being a short ass and feelin like a retard tryin to paddle backward up hill, I wouldn't mind it.

I always manage though. Get off and push the bastard
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[Ravo]

[Tarmacsurfer]