Is riding near redline bad? | GTAMotorcycle.com

Is riding near redline bad?

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drumstyx

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I went on the highway for the first time the other day, and found that in 6th gear I was WOT and at 6-7k to just hit 100km/h. I probably should have shifted down, upped the revs a bit then gone to 6th again for more torque. Redline is 9000 (or was it 9500...I think it's 9000). Is it dangerous to ride near redline (say, 8000) for a period of say, 40 minutes? I plan to go from Hamilton to mississauga on a monthly or so basis.

What about riding near 7k (pretty much right at 100-110km/h...if I can get it there)?

Oh, I should mention, I have a 1983 GS400E.
 
You can change the sprockets so it's not revving so high on the highway, but you'll loose some power. I bounced a CBR 125 off the rev limiter from Whitby to London and it survived. I would say it won't hurt your bike to be between 7000-8000 if your redline is 9000-9500.

-Jamie M.
 
drumstyx said:
I went on the highway for the first time the other day, and found that in 6th gear I was WOT and at 6-7k to just hit 100km/h. I probably should have shifted down, upped the revs a bit then gone to 6th again for more torque. Redline is 9000 (or was it 9500...I think it's 9000). Is it dangerous to ride near redline (say, 8000) for a period of say, 40 minutes? I plan to go from Hamilton to mississauga on a monthly or so basis.

What about riding near 7k (pretty much right at 100-110km/h...if I can get it there)?

Oh, I should mention, I have a 1983 GS400E.
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No, it shouldn't hurt as long as you don't redline it constantly. I used to have a ninja 250 and on the freeway I'd be anywhere from 9-11k revs, which is close to the 13k redline. After 17,000km it was performing well, the valves were in check and the mechanic said it was in great condition when I got it looked over before selling it.
 
Are you guys nuts?

A 20-year-old 400 at (or near) redline for 40 minutes, ad the question is will it last?

Answer: of course it will, for about 9 days. And then, boom. Then you'll be just another schlup on GO from Hamilton to Mississauga.

My advice: either relax, do the seed limit and preserve your poor Suzuki GS400E, OR buy an '09 crossplane R1 and pull 6,750 RPM at 170 kph in 6th.

One or the other, else...boom.:protest::book::disgust::
 
Not sure ^ is right or not but my old 06 GS500F was nearly redlined by me daily for 20 minutes or more and was fine. But..my old bike wasn't 20 years old.
 
Believe it or not guys, '83 was THIRTY years ago...lol.

I guess the real question is: what qualifies as "near" redline? Is 2000RPM away OK? I just checked, and the redline is in fact 9500, so let's assume I wanted to hit 7500 and stay there...what about 7000?
 
Mr. Lowside said:
Are you guys nuts?

A 20-year-old 400 at (or near) redline for 40 minutes, ad the question is will it last?

Answer: of course it will, for about 9 days. And then, boom. Then you'll be just another schlup on GO from Hamilton to Mississauga.

My advice: either relax, do the seed limit and preserve your poor Suzuki GS400E, OR buy an '09 crossplane R1 and pull 6,750 RPM at 170 kph in 6th.

One or the other, else...boom.:protest::book::disgust::
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I'm totally fine with doing the speed limit, especially on the highway! If 100km/h at ~7k RPM (with a 9500 redline) is acceptable, I'm perfectly happy with that. 7k is 75% of usable RPM (25% under redline), do you think that's alright?
 
On my 94 250r last year I ran near redline most of my highway commute. This was about 16,000km last year. It did fine with regular oil changes and maintenance.
 
drumstyx said:
I'm totally fine with doing the speed limit, especially on the highway! If 100km/h at ~7k RPM (with a 9500 redline) is acceptable, I'm perfectly happy with that. 7k is 75% of usable RPM (25% under redline), do you think that's alright?
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I'm not a good person to give technical advice at all.... but I kinda go by ear/feel. If it sounds too screechy or growl-y I kick it up/down. My bike redlines around 10800, and from what I've observed I keep it around 5-8k for lower gears, and around 7-10k in higher gears.
 
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I think I read a story last year about a guy who went from the florida keys to alaska on a brand new cbr 125 - redlined all the way with no issues at all. Probably not advisable, but...
 
Gsus said:
I think I read a story last year about a guy who went from the florida keys to alaska on a brand new cbr 125 - redlined all the way with no issues at all. Probably not advisable, but...
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Yeah, I see ninja 250's on freeways on youtube all the time, I'm sure they're revving pretty high, but the whole concern hinges on the fact that it's a 30 year old bike.
 
toysareforboys said:
You can change the sprockets so it's not revving so high on the highway, but you'll loose some power. I bounced a CBR 125 off the rev limiter from Whitby to London and it survived. I would say it won't hurt your bike to be between 7000-8000 if your redline is 9000-9500.

-Jamie M.
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Like I said though, I was WOT and couldn't bump past ~6500 RPM. Granted, I was going into a solid headwind, but wouldn't adjusting the sprockets (bigger in the front, let's say) take me further away from that wonderful peak torque (8000)?
 
drumstyx said:
I'm totally fine with doing the speed limit, especially on the highway! If 100km/h at ~7k RPM (with a 9500 redline) is acceptable, I'm perfectly happy with that. 7k is 75% of usable RPM (25% under redline), do you think that's alright?
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For your safety, I would strongly advise you not to ride at the speed limit on the highway. I'm not sure if you've tried it before, but if you survive the first time, you won't ever do it on a bike again.

-Jamie M.
 
toysareforboys said:
For your safety, I would strongly advise you not to ride at the speed limit on the highway. I'm not sure if you've tried it before, but if you survive the first time, you won't ever do it on a bike again.

-Jamie M.
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Interesting. I'm still here.....

Do it safely, as in always be in the right most lane, and you'll be fine obeying the law.
 
drumstyx,


If you're ok with doing the speed limit, do it. Ok, 20km/h more, or 40 hph more. Fine. You'll be fine.

But if you're planning on ringing neck of your 400E for 40 mins at redline on a 30 (not 20, sorry, my bad) year old bike, then, well, be prepared for boom time.
 
drumstyx said:
Like I said though, I was WOT and couldn't bump past ~6500 RPM. Granted, I was going into a solid headwind, but wouldn't adjusting the sprockets (bigger in the front, let's say) take me further away from that wonderful peak torque (8000)?
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If you're finding you need max power in top gear, then increasing the final drive ratio probably isn't a good idea. You'll be fine, probably ... maybe? No liability assumed if it explodes (make sure your valves are in adjustment!). HOWEVER, I would make the following two recommendations. 1) Check your oil level FREQUENTLY, particularly before and after highway trips. If your bike has any oil consumption issues at all (not even necessarily anything wrong, some oil consumption can be normal) then being run at high RPM all the time will only make it worse. Your GS has a dipstick instead of an oil window, so stuff a rag or something under the seat. 2) I would try to make sure the engine has been warmed up a bit before you hit the highway... this is less of an issue for modern small displacement bikes (CBR125, Ninja 250R) because they are water-cooled. If your trips don't start right next to the highway, then you're good.
 
TwistedKestrel said:
If you're finding you need max power in top gear, then increasing the final drive ratio probably isn't a good idea. You'll be fine, probably ... maybe? No liability assumed if it explodes (make sure your valves are in adjustment!). HOWEVER, I would make the following two recommendations. 1) Check your oil level FREQUENTLY, particularly before and after highway trips. If your bike has any oil consumption issues at all (not even necessarily anything wrong, some oil consumption can be normal) then being run at high RPM all the time will only make it worse. Your GS has a dipstick instead of an oil window, so stuff a rag or something under the seat. 2) I would try to make sure the engine has been warmed up a bit before you hit the highway... this is less of an issue for modern small displacement bikes (CBR125, Ninja 250R) because they are water-cooled. If your trips don't start right next to the highway, then you're good.
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Valves are in adjustment right now, did them about 300km ago. Oil...well I've got 2 leaks, filter cover o-ring and oil plug crush washer. That'll be addressed probably midsummer, but I always keep a keen eye on the oil level because of it. Also, I always warm it up to a point where it doesn't need choke, and yeah, I could warm it up further before any highway work.

Revised question to all though: What percentage of available RPM do you consider 'near redline'?

Edit: I should also note that I'm pretty sure I'm a bit power-deficient. I'd bet the carbs could do to be synced and cleaned. This might make a difference on where I need to be, and what sprockets I can run.
 
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I have no experience with that bike, but my 1982 450 Honda didn't need to work that hard on the highway (after cleaning the carbs, adjusting valves etc). Why is the bike working so hard at 100? When I got rid of the 450 it would still be accelerating through 150 (indicated). Before I read the bike type, I thought he was talking about a 125.

Drumstyx, bike speedos are notoriously optimistic, 100 indicated may only be 90, be careful you don't get run over.
 
drumstyx said:
Valves are in adjustment right now, did them about 300km ago.
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What gap are they set at? The 450 was sensitive to the gap. My memory is foggy on the direction, but setting the exhaust to the minimum tolerance and intake to the max (or vice-versa) really woke up the bike. Just playing with the valve settings was good for another 20 km/h on the top end (and therefore more power in reserve when cruising on the highway). If I hadn't experienced it, I would have doubted that changing the gap (while remaining within the recommended tolerances) would do anything.
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