Hi! I just started on riding and passed on M2 course but I'm still having difficulties understanding when to shift/downshift? Is there a particular rpm I must aim for or speed?
Thanks for the help!
The engine makes more power with higher revs (up to a point, of course). So, ideally, the more power you need, the higher in the revs it should be.
The small engine in that bike is probably not happy below 5000 rpm if it has to do anything useful at all. So, there is a sliding scale for where in the revs it "should" be, ranging from somewhere around 5000 rpm for puttering around at steady lower speed without acceleration or hill climbing, to close to redline (around 13,000 - 14,000) for maximum possible acceleration or hill climbing.
Hi! I just started on riding and passed on M2 course but I'm still having difficulties understanding when to shift/downshift? Is there a particular rpm I must aim for or speed?
Thanks for the help!
This isn't something you will get a feel for by yourself, best to join up with a few experienced riders and let them help.
I rode one of these for a few years, bought it for my son to learn, loved riding it myself! Presuming the stock sprockets are on the bike, your shifting should be something like this:
This keeps you in the proper bands for torque and HP on this bike. Once you get a about 2000 km under your belt, you will start to feel the right time to shift. That's when you can start experimenting with using higher RPM's.
As for downshifting, be careful when doing this -- it's easy to lock the rear wheel if you're too aggressive on the way down.
This isn't something you will get a feel for by yourself, best to join up with a few experienced riders and let them help.
I rode one of these for a few years, bought it for my son to learn, loved riding it myself! Presuming the stock sprockets are on the bike, your shifting should be something like this:
This keeps you in the proper bands for torque and HP on this bike. Once you get a about 2000 km under your belt, you will start to feel the right time to shift. That's when you can start experimenting with using higher RPM's.
As for downshifting, be careful when doing this -- it's easy to lock the rear wheel if you're too aggressive on the way down.
That depends what the purpose is for the downshift.
If it's because you are coming to a stop and you actually expect to stop (e.g. stop sign), it's fine to do the downshifts, one at a time, when the engine drops to just above idle speed in each gear. Normally after the second-to-first downshift I'll hold the clutch in until actually coming to a stop ... engine braking in first gear is quite strong and can cause a lurch.
If it's because you are slowing down and you expect to resume at a lower speed (e.g. the speed limit dropped) or accelerate away after slowing down (e.g. after rounding a corner), then downshift to the gear that you will need in order to resume or accelerate, a second or two before you anticipate needing it.
If it's because you expect to overtake a car, then do the downshift to the gear that you will need for accelerating before you actually need it. Normally you will see your overtaking opportunity coming, and do the downshifting a couple seconds before it arrives.
If it's because you are climbing a hill and she's running out of steam in the higher gear (when riding in hilly country on a smaller bike, this is part of the deal) then you will have to do the downshift as part of getting up the hill.
P.S. If you have a car with an automatic transmission and it has a tachometer ... pay attention to what it does. All the same concepts apply, except that instead of it doing the shifting by itself, you have to do it ... and you have the ability to anticipate traffic conditions, something which a normal automatic transmission cannot. Downshifts when coming to a stop can be hard to pick out ... because it's doing them when the engine drops near idle speed. Just because you might not be able to see it happen doesn't mean it isn't happening, because it is.
Rule of thumb... not that I follow. You don't have a gear indicator on that bike so you kinda need to get a feel for speed and gears, that doesn't take too long. For beginners, the best advice I can give you is to gear down when the throttle isn't feeling responsive, on your bike that will be when the RPM drops below 5000rpm.
If you're coming to a stop, or slowing to below 20kmh, just coast down with clutch in -- thy to shift down as you decelerate to match the speed to the right gear, don't release the clutch until you are ready to accelerate again (which means no engine braking). I say this because engine braking is a skill that you don't need as a beginner -- there's enough to learn and you don't want to be overthinking all the controls and techniques that can be used. Master the basics first, then start working on advanced skills.
Your first objective its to stay upright and safe for 2000km -- that will smooth out shifting, turning and braking for most riders.
Hi! I just started on riding and passed on M2 course but I'm still having difficulties understanding when to shift/downshift? Is there a particular rpm I must aim for or speed?
Thanks for the help!
Is a learned thing, is also different for different motorcycles. Some knowledge of motor mechanics helps immensely, but it is still something that needs to be learned through experience and requires some experimentation before you will be shifting with finesse imho.
Is absolutely one of those things that requires you to hear what is going on with your engine so don't be wearing ear plugs for this one.
... you will know you are doing it right when you can shift the gears in your standard transmission more smoothly then an automatic transmission can shift.
Make sure that when stopping you are in 1st gear when you come to a complete stop. You don't want to be fumbling at the stop trying to get into 1st or stalling trying to take off and you were not in 1st.
Also the transmission on a motorcycle shifts between gears far easier when the bike is in motion this is why if you come to a stop and then try to shift down to 1st it usually will not do it.
Also the transmission on a motorcycle shifts between gears far easier when the bike is in motion this is why if you come to a stop and then try to shift down to 1st it usually will not do it.
Look at pics online of how a motorcycle transmission is made. If the engagement dogs don't line up with the engagement slots in the adjacent gear, they won't go in. Won't shift. If the shafts are spinning then it just has to wait a fraction of a revolution until they will go in. At a stop ... maybe it shifts, maybe not, and if it doesn't, you have to rock the bike back and forth to get the shafts into a different position so that it will shift.
Best practice is to downshift through the gears as you slow down, while still moving. Obviously if you have to do a panic stop, this is a lower priority than stopping (deal with getting back to first gear later), but under normal circumstances ... do the downshifting while still moving.
In a perfect world; always be in the right gear range to be able to go from brakes to acceleration without having to search for a workable gear range first.
Or let the clutch out a tiny bit while downshifting into first, it should click in, then you can pull the clutch back in again. If it's still difficult, give it a bit of throttle as well.
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
