Shifting With the Clutch

billyp330
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416
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4/3/2017
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Dorset, OH US
4/12/2018 5:40am Edited Date/Time 4/12/2018 5:41am
peelout wrote:
next time you go to the track take your clutch lever off and set up a corner track and just work on the technique. takes practice...
next time you go to the track take your clutch lever off and set up a corner track and just work on the technique. takes practice, but soon you'll never think of using your clutch in corners.

basically the idea is to go faster through corners you are either on the gas or on the brakes. as you're entering the corner you are braking and down-shifting which will keep the engine from stalling out without pulling the clutch in. as said above, pulling the clutch in will allow the back wheel to lock up and force a straight line turn, this is bad unless doing a brake slide. watch some Gary Semics videos on it, i'm sure there's something on youtube.
As I mentioned in a previous post, I will be working on this next time I ride. I feel I will have to take lever off, because I have a mental block, telling me i need clutch in so i don't stall.

Thinking about this more, the last time i rode (while at Durhamtown, I love that place) i knew i was going to OJ the shit out of a small double right before a corner so i braked up the face with no clutch in, bc i just kind of last second panicked and slammed on brakes, and I somehow applied the perfect amount of rear brake, to where i didn't stall the bike and i still landed the jump perfectly. It did scare the shit out of me though, as i'v never been comfortable with the whole dragging rear brake on a face technique. So i guess what I'm getting at is, apparently i do have enough bike experience to know how much brake to apply in my subconscious, just need to get my conscious brain to shut off. I do tend to way over think things while riding.

It is so weird how the brain works sometimes haha
mx_phreek
Posts
2008
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10/7/2009
Location
Manchester GB
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4/12/2018 1:26pm Edited Date/Time 4/12/2018 1:27pm
Only time I use clutch is to put it in gear and set off really and obviously stop. I've never used the clutch to shift up or down on any of my bikes and never had a problem and clutches last forever lol. It's just a micro blip of the throttle on upshifts to make it butter smooth. The only time I feather the clutch on upshifts is on the start if the soil is really deep and heavy and i dont want it to drag the power down with blipping on the upshift. Now all my bikes are 2 strokes if that makes a difference.
4/12/2018 1:55pm
So I have read this whole thread.....Does everyone agree that you don't use the clutch?? This seems insane to me, I treat my bikes like my babies. I feel like if I don't use my clutch I am punching my baby in the face....
Robgvx
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3681
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4/1/2008
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GB
4/12/2018 2:29pm
So I have read this whole thread.....Does everyone agree that you don't use the clutch?? This seems insane to me, I treat my bikes like my...
So I have read this whole thread.....Does everyone agree that you don't use the clutch?? This seems insane to me, I treat my bikes like my babies. I feel like if I don't use my clutch I am punching my baby in the face....
Really, you don’t need to use the clutch to change up or down. Your transmission is built to take it.

You need to use the clutch for other stuff though

The Shop

4/12/2018 2:40pm
So I have read this whole thread.....Does everyone agree that you don't use the clutch?? This seems insane to me, I treat my bikes like my...
So I have read this whole thread.....Does everyone agree that you don't use the clutch?? This seems insane to me, I treat my bikes like my babies. I feel like if I don't use my clutch I am punching my baby in the face....
It's a dirt bike. Nothing is built to last forever. Proper maintenance, good oil and a wash after every ride will help way more than clutching every chance you get. Bikes and tolerances are so good nowadays. To each their own though. Whatever makes you reduce doubt while riding is a good choice.
4/13/2018 3:04am
These transmissions are designed to allow for clutchless shifting. I typically don't use the clutch on up shifts. If i do, its just barely grabbing it...
These transmissions are designed to allow for clutchless shifting. I typically don't use the clutch on up shifts. If i do, its just barely grabbing it with my finger to release some of the load on the transmission, allowing the gears to mesh. The more powerful the engine, to more you have to let off or release load on the transmission in order for it to shift. On my 125 i barely need to roll the throttle hand back for a shift to occur. On the 450, the rollback is much more pronounced.

On my street bikes, i actually preload the shifter with my foot, then blip the throttle hand to allow the bike to shift.

Some sport bikes have quick shifters which trigger an ignition cut precisely at the point of shifting, allowing you to hold it wide open and bang the shifter without having to roll off the throttle. Wonder why that hasn't made it into the motocross world yet (for up shifts, mainly)?

This (long) video does a decent job explaining clutchless shifting:

https://youtu.be/2D_XxTFrq4M
There is. (But for supermoto) same engine..

I tried my friends fc450 with qs. It was a Spanish prototype that needed some tweaking but it worked pretty good, just a sensitivity issue (easy to touch the lever by mistake just a bit and it cuts out) and since mx-bikes are 1 cylinder it does cut out a little rougher than my cordona on my cbr (that cuts 2 and 2 cylinders a few milliseconds apart) for a smoother engagement.

Mx vise, I really don't think of it, I use it when I need to:

4 stroke only on braking if I drag rear brake. Some upshifts wfo.
2strokes only when I bog it or in the air and tapping the rear for the chicks and legswag Grinning

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