At what speed(MPH) should i change gear?

[dynax]

At the moment during the running in period i have been taking it easy, generally changing gears as i would in a car, 1st gear to 10 mph then second to 20 and 3rd to 30 etc, but as bikes are capable of higher rpm's and mine hasn't got a tachometer fitted, what would be the general rule of thumb be as a guide to upshifting according to speed,

[raesewell]

There is no hard and fast speed for changing gear, just use your ears if the engine is screaming you should have already changed up.

[Guest Richzx6r]

My view is that if the valves are hitting you in the chin then it's time to change up a gear

Go hard or go home

[dynax]

Going for a ride later, so will have a play with her, don't want to make her scream too much but will give her a good hard ride

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

The main thing running in is to not let the engine labour. So keep the engine spinning freely, especially in higher gears.

Better to let is spin up a bit than struggle at low rpm. As said, don't thrash it at high loads until you've got past the running in period.

[dynax]

The recommended milage for the 1st service is 311, at the moment i have done 224, so pretty much 3/4's there, so running a little harder might not be too bad an idea

[geofferz]

At the moment during the running in period i have been taking it easy, generally changing gears as i would in a car, 1st gear to 10 mph then second to 20 and 3rd to 30 etc, but as bikes are capable of higher rpm's and mine hasn't got a tachometer fitted, what would be the general rule of thumb be as a guide to upshifting according to speed,

 

General school of thought is to take it a bit easy during running in (some disagree, but I don't see how it can hurt) but after then go nuts. I change up when the shift light goes on, which I have set to 10k rpm - peak of the power band. About 75mph in 1st gear

[dynax]

Not had her screaming much but did manage low gear high rev's, and she seemed happy enough, nothing seemed too much, she was revvy in 3rd at 50 but still seemed as if there was a little more she could give, but at the slower speeds in 2nd she is quite responsive, also over cooked a corner and had to put in some extra lean to bring her round, not quite knee down but had a lot more lean than i usually do, so put another 30 mile on her and i think she enjoyed it

[fastbob]

Use the force Luke .

[Smithers]

It all depends on how sympathetic you are to your engine and transmission. Too low a revs and your putting unnecessary load on bearings. Screaming the guts out of it in the lower gears and not going very fast is just a waste of petrol (it won't hurt the engine though). You need to strike a balance where your in the right gear for what your expecting from the bike. I've got six gears on mine and it never goes into six unless I'm doing fast motorway miles. NSL roads it's lucky to get gear 5.

Edit: When you're in traffic the last thing you want to do is be going up and down the box. Find a gear that will cope with the normal flow of the traffic and don't worry about it revving a little high.

[mike_smith]

An old rule of thumb was 2/3 of the redline

so If the redline is 12000 rpm then dont go over 8000 rpm

[dynax]

An old rule of thumb was 2/3 of the redline

so If the redline is 12000 rpm then dont go over 8000 rpm

 

Great if you have a tacho , have to go by engine sound and speed

[manxie49]

To many variables to answer this with anything that's going to be top drawer advice, like others have said, listen to the engine, what you hear will tell you when you need to change, don't let the bike labour and don't ride with the engine screaming its nuts off, find the right gear for the prevailing traffic conditions and whilst running the bike in don't hold it at the same speed constantly for long periods, above all, enjoy it and have fun.

[Justarn]

The recommended milage for the 1st service is 311, at the moment i have done 224, so pretty much 3/4's there, so running a little harder might not be too bad an idea

Don't you have a service at 311 to change out the oil and minute filings from the running in process. Probably best to get that done before you throwing all them about at high rpm

Edited August 8, 2019 by Justarn

[dynax]

The recommended milage for the 1st service is 311, at the moment i have done 224, so pretty much 3/4's there, so running a little harder might not be too bad an idea

Don't you have a device at 311 to change out the oil and minute filings from the running in process. Probably best to get that done before you doing all them about at high rpm

 

Going in next week for the service

[dynax]

To many variables to answer this with anything that's going to be top drawer advice, like others have said, listen to the engine, what you hear will tell you when you need to change, don't let the bike labour and don't ride with the engine screaming its nuts off, find the right gear for the prevailing traffic conditions and whilst running the bike in don't hold it at the same speed constantly for long periods, above all, enjoy it and have fun.

 

Pretty much what i'm already doing, got some nice roads around here that cover various speed limits, and some nice twisties to get some lean going

[fastbob]

Yeah , all good advice . I wasn't being flippant by the way . There are certain situations in life where the best thing to do is to stop thinking and start feeling . But it isn't easy if you have not been riding long enough for your actions to become instinctive . Even after 40 years of riding I still take a long time to get really in tune with a new bike . The main trick is to form a bond of empathy with the bike and just treat it reasonably . Question , do you regularly ride a bicycle ? If you do just try to think of the engine as your legs . You wouldn't try to climb a steep hill in 21st gear . Well not unless you were one of these lycra clad masochists .

[fastbob]

Depends on the bike but another good rule of thumb is just keep those needles parallel to each other . But in this particular instance, as was clearly pointed out in the original post , this would not be possible . But as I say , it depends on the bike so I thought I would offer this observation for anyone else who might be perusing this thread seeking general advice .

Edited August 8, 2019 by fastbob

[raesewell]

In post #1 he says there is no tacho.

[skyrider]

in that case he will just have to feel the revs

[Joeman]

Thrash it, blow the engine, and demand a new bike..

Better that it blows up early on in your warranty period than after.

[Guest Richzx6r]

It being a 125 the only way to ride it is flat out its what they are made for unless you have mechanical sympathy then just ride like miss daisy on a Sunday morning jaunt

[fastbob]

It being a 125 the only way to ride it is flat out its what they are made for unless you have mechanical sympathy then just ride like miss daisy on a Sunday morning jaunt

 

There is wisdom in your statement now that I think about it . If I was out on the open road on a 125 I probably would be wringing every last ounce of performance out of it and I would soon work out what gear to be in . The one that gets it up to top speed and keeps it there !

[dynax]

Some interesting views, i really wish some of you could see her in person, yes she's a 125 but as a bike is so much more than your average 125 runabout that you would rag the arse off

[fastbob]

Some interesting views, i really wish some of you could see her in person, yes she's a 125 but as a bike is so much more than your average 125 runabout that you would rag the arse off

 

Well let's have some more photos please .