gearing

[simon1963]

hi all

Ive changed the gearing on my new 20 plate tracer gt to 17f and 44 rear

im going to go even further to a 39 rear as i like a low reving bike and am going to tour europe hopefully,   but in any case

will have a choice. 

i renewed the chain as well

has anyone else gone this route

it might be a coincidence or because of, but the cruise control is playing up now so im going to change it back to standard to see

if it fine there and then make a judgement

fantastic great bike

, 

[betoney]

That sounds like a drastic change, 1 tooth on the front is equal to about 2.5/2.75 teeth on the rear, so wanting to change 1 tooth on the front and additionally 6 teeth on the rear is a HUGE change. 

A lot of riders change their gearing the opposite direction to get the rpm's more optimally in the "smooth zone", the motor usually smooths out around 5k rpm's or slightly above.  I have a 47 tooth rear sprocket and really like how the bike responds.

This motor was designed to rev and when ridden at lower rpm's in higher gears it feels 'lumpy' (for lack of a better term) or like it is lugging the motor.  When I am in 6th gear, I can usually feel it start to feel rougher if I drop speeds too far and usually have to drop to lower gears to get it to feel optimal, ie never using 6th gear unless on the interstate or over 65-70mph. 

One other thing to consider is when using a specific type of motor, whether low rpm cruiser of higher rpm sport-type bike like the Tracer, the engineers decide gearing based on optimal rpms and power output, a cruiser doesn't have gearing to put the optimal rpms at 6k and a sport-type bike doesnt have gearing to put optimal rpms at 3k, thats not how the bikes were designed.  Sure you could do it, but at some point you would be asking yourself if you should get a bike designed for the type of riding you intend to do, generally speaking the larger the motor, the lower the operating rpm's. 

[simon1963]

Thanks for your response. It seems lots of owners of this bike are like you and I am in the minority but it’s how I like to ride. I am gauging my choice of gearing on how it pulls away in first gear - making sure i don’t have to help it too much with the clutch. 
when I first test rode the bike I immediately sensed for me it was too revvy first gear was almost a waste of time using and I was regularly going up 2 gears at a time and could go almost anywhere in 6fh gear. Now the bike has a
much longer first Gear and all the gears have some meat in them. Personally it is so much better with the new gearing and when I go even lower I may decide I have over done it but I definitely will not go back to how it was when bought new. 
I forget to mention I have a black widow de cat exhaust on it which sounds awesome and I don’t feel any lumpiness in the engine so maybe the exhaust helps with this.I have bought this bike for touring as I am in the process of retiring at 57 and have picked the perfect bike 100%.  I absolutely love this bike and can honestly sayit has changed my life and I am very happy. Thanks very much for your comment. It’s what this forum is all about. I also have a colour coded 50 litre Yamaha top box on it which is great for carrying gear securely 

 

[betoney]

12 minutes ago, simon1963 said:

I have bought this bike for touring as I am in the process of retiring at 57 and have picked the perfect bike 100%.  I absolutely love this bike and can honestly sayit has changed my life and I am very happy.

That is the important part, that it feels perfect FOR YOU and makes you happy. 

I would just be wary if riding in steep mountainous conditions as acceleration WILL be affected and you will have to be in a much lower gear to make climbs.

Enjoy the bike. 😎

[simon1963]

Thankyou kind sir and yes I am thinking of having to stop on a steep hills and making a hill start with luggage so some testing still to do but as a ex competent Mx racer and some common sense somewhere up there in the grey matter I think it will be ok I also carry a pillion here in England and Evan Lyme Regis is on my mind which is stop start in the Town and a favourite destination of mine at the moment 
thanks again 

[nhchris]

Interesting topic guys.  Below is a torque curve (blue) for the stock CP3 motor.  As you can see it is relatively flat at 58 lbs from 3k to 9k RPM.

Given that, would a gearing change cause a different curve shape, especially at lower RPMs?? Or does the torque curve retain the same shape no matter what the final drive gearing is?

Edited September 29, 2020 by nhchris

[GTO MIKE]

13 hours ago, betoney said:

That is the important part, that it feels perfect FOR YOU and makes you happy. 

I would just be wary if riding in steep mountainous conditions as acceleration WILL be affected and you will have to be in a much lower gear to make climbs.

Enjoy the bike. 😎

That's what nice about chain drive ,the ability' to adjust gearing and with the 6 speed  and short gearing on the tracer ,plenty of options to suit your ridding style . I have found with stock gearing that at 60mph its in a sweet spot and quiets down the Trans and smooths out.

[simon1963]

Hi guys

thanks for your comments and fascinating what different peoples ideas are. For me the stock gearing at 60 mph was reving unnessacarily high by a long way. I want to take the bike to Romania and imagine lots of miles on straight roads to get there and it would drive me crazy to hear it reving away like that when I could have changed it. But I also am thinking of the hills to encounter once there and exploring the villages and towns but am confident the engine is torquey enough to cope with this 
with cars I never could drive a auto matic As it drove me nuts when they continually Kick down through a roundabout or corner when it’s nice to just use the low down torque To drive out  -  so I geuss it’s just my style and with it at 17 - 44 atm is  million per cent better than standard in my opinion and whether I over cook it by going 17  -  39  remains to be seen .  My gut feeling is It will be perfect on open roads but not good for the small hilly towns and villages so I may go 17 - 41 and settle with that 

 

[nhchris]

I went with 17 and enjoyed the change on my FJ.  The bike feels much less busy at 65-75  mph.  Which was my goal.

Around town I am one gear lower than before.  No problem.

[PhotoAl]

Be interested to know what bike you had previously.  My previous bike was a BMW F800GT, twin with 8,500RPM redline.  Before that it was a Kawasaki ZX6R 636 with a 16,000RPM redline.  I really struggled with the BMW at first because of the difference in sound and knowing when to shift by listening to the engine.  With the Tracer GT I'm more back in my happy zone.  I did get used to running the BMW at lower RPMs and light throttle to stretch gas mileage which is important in the western states with long distances between gas stations.  That engine would happily trundle along at 2,500RPM with light throttle.  Too much throttle and it sounded like the tin can full of rocks was being shaken too violently.  I have found the Tracer GT to be much better in that respect.  It saw over 1,000 miles of open highway and interstate on the trip back home and I never noticed any buzzyness or vibrations.  I would certainly recommend checking out starts at the bottom of a steep hill.  My driveway is steep, not too difficult but takes careful throttle and clutch work.  Too little throttle and too much clutch and it boggs, add some throttle and in on the clutch and you discover twitchy throttle.

[simon1963]

Hi 

my previous bike was a 1980 rd250!!!! But I have been a motocross rider in my 20’s and recently.   I forgot to mention the computer is recording 68 mpg (thanks for jogging my memory)which floats my boat. Also I have no issue with ignition position, tyres, foot pegs,  seat  so the bike gets 10/10. It’s the blue one.   Thanks guys

[Dodgy Knees]

Just for interest....what revs are you reading at 60mph in 6th gear. ?

[simon1963]

Hi

with 17 - 44   4000 I think but will check tommorow and update. Still to high though 😂

[Buggy Nate]

I would literally split the crankcase for a shorter first gear for lane splitting. The rest of the gears could be a tad taller. When your motor is tuned properly you can use the full rev range without snatchiness.

Edited September 30, 2020 by Buggy Nate

[simon1963]

Thanks for suggestion but absolutely no. I’m near enough now and I’ll probably try a 41 and call it a day. It’s a lovely bike and the engine is great

thanks for all your comments