4-5-6 - How to ID top gear

[GatorTrae]

This is my first post on the site. I just joined last night!
My 05 GS500F is pretty new to me, in fact I've put less than 300 miles on it.
I wanted to pass on this little gem of insight I had last weekend while riding around.
I'm calling it the 4-5-6 or 4000-50-6 if you want to.
I kept wanting to upshift at higher speeds, but alas the gears are fairly close together.
I can go as slow as 40 in 6th, that's crazy. I often skip 3rd and 5th.
In normal city driving I've found that I was getting in top gear around 50 mph and 4,000 rpm.
Running them together results in an easy to remember 4-5-6.

Let me know what you think.

[weedahoe]

Not being rude but if you are skipping gears and not meaning to, you need to learn how to ride.

Get off the street. Go find an empty parking lot or long country road and practice. Even better, go take the MSF course

In the meantime, something like this can help

[Janx101]

ease up on the gas pedal weeds!!    .. young fella was just 'splainen his 'hot tip'  .. i made some worse statements when new here myself!! 

i dont think he meant to say he stuffed his gearchanges!! ... i read it as he deliberately double shifts ? .. just takes things easy and relaxed like... ....... or possibly keeps trying to change gear while going over potholes or speedhumps!! 

now then Trae ... what you will likely also notice .. is that consistent cruising along with your 4-5-6 ... (which i think is a good mnemonic!!) .. you should get about 350 - 400km/220-250 miles on main tank before you need to switch to reserve.. (with the large tank model bikes anyway) .. once you get into the groove some more... and start twisting the faster handle!!.. that will drop.... by up to/about
120km/75 miles .... i mean that much sooner.... not that much in total distance ... 

[weedahoe]

I didnt mean anything bad by it. I just dont want him/her to be out in traffic and get hurt. IMO, shifting isnt hard. No one ever taught me how to shift in a car or bike. I just learned by doing. But I never trying to learn on an open road either. I hope the OP is already in an open parking lot trying to learn

[BockinBboy]

I read it same as Janx. That the OP deliberately up shifts twice on occasion. I do this in low to no traffic situations when I need a cruising speed and I don't need a power band (maybe a Sunday stroll?).  But when unpredictable cages are around, I cruise at a higher rpm (like 5.5k) so I can get to the power band quickly if I need to suddenly. Generally, knowing your selected gear will become much easier as you progress on the GS. The 4-5-6 would be easy one for a person new to the GS to remember though. So its a good little thing to take note of.

- Bboy

[shonole]

I read it same as Janx. That the OP deliberately up shifts twice on occasion. I do this in low to no traffic situations when I need a cruising speed and I don't need a power band (maybe a Sunday stroll?).  But when unpredictable cages are around, I cruise at a higher rpm (like 5.5k) so I can get to the power band quickly if I need to suddenly. Generally, knowing your selected gear will become much easier as you progress on the GS. The 4-5-6 would be easy one for a person new to the GS to remember though. So its a good little thing to take note of.

- Bboy

x3.  Seemed like he intentionally skipped gears, not that he did it accidentally.

[codajastal]

I read it same as Janx. That the OP deliberately up shifts twice on occasion. I do this in low to no traffic situations when I need a cruising speed and I don't need a power band (maybe a Sunday stroll?).  But when unpredictable cages are around, I cruise at a higher rpm (like 5.5k) so I can get to the power band quickly if I need to suddenly. Generally, knowing your selected gear will become much easier as you progress on the GS. The 4-5-6 would be easy one for a person new to the GS to remember though. So its a good little thing to take note of.

- Bboy

x3.  Seemed like he intentionally skipped gears, not that he did it accidentally.

+4
me too

[anoopb]

i don't want to get yelled at by weedahoe but what do you guys mean when you're referring to the power-band?

i don't intentionally skip gears weedahoe. like never!

must be nice to have six gears btw. lucky!

[Twisted]

i don't want to get yelled at by weedahoe but what do you guys mean when you're referring to the power-band?

i don't intentionally skip gears weedahoe. like never!

must be nice to have six gears btw. lucky!

Engines usually have a rev range where they perform better. Not that the GS has much of a power band it will accelerate better at certain revs than at others.

[gsJack]

......................what do you guys mean when you're referring to the power-band?..............................i don't intentionally skip gears

Don't know about others but my stock GS500 power band was 7000-9000 rpm.  Max stock hp is at 8500 and nothing is gained going more than 10% over max hp since the power drops off rapidly after 8500.  Shifting the GS down one at 9k if your still accelerating results in a drop to approx 7k rpm putting you right on top of the torque curve where you want to be.

Doesn't mean much on the city streets but running in the mountain twisties with bigger bikes it matters.  I remember running 7-9k rpm for hours in the mountains back 10 years ago when I was a kid of 70.  Now I'm trying to recall the last time I went over 60 mph.   

I never got into the habit of skipping gears on a GS hitting them all up and down, but I did it all the time on my CB750K years ago.  Didn't need all of those gears on it but rowing the GS down the road with the gear shift lever is part of it's fun.  The GS needs it's 6 gears and they are nicely spaced for keeping it in the power band.

[weedahoe]

Maybe I misread or took it wrong. I apologize if so. But I never and never will skip gears. You wouldnt do it in a car driving down the road would you? I might change gears sooner as you dont need to wind them out but skipping, I dont see the need

[jestercinti]

Ok, time for Jester's opinion here.

Cincinnati is the city of 7 hills.  Therefore, going downhill, I skip 1 or 2 gears.  Steep hills.  Makes sense to me.

I have a 17 tooth sprocket, so I can't skip gears on flat surfaces.  Mister had a good indication of top gear.  If you frequent the highway, remember a speed correlates to an RPM. 

So for me, 80MPH indicated correlates to 6000 RPM.  I have a modified bike, so YMMV.

[shonole]

Maybe I misread or took it wrong. I apologize if so. But I never and never will skip gears. You wouldnt do it in a car driving down the road would you? I might change gears sooner as you dont need to wind them out but skipping, I dont see the need

There's nothing wrong with it.  I do it occasionally.  In fact, the new mustangs have skip shift, which forces you to shift from 1-4 if you're not hard on the throttle. 

[cbrfxr67]

I never ever skip gears either,.....

40 in 6th? if you do and it works, then rock on

[GatorTrae]

Great to get so many responses so fast.
I'm new to riding but I've been driving manuals since I was 14 (kids do the darndest things). I'm 36 now so no shenanigans for me.
Yes I do skip gears on purpose.  If I'm winding out 1 and 2 then I'm well over the speed limit and don't to use 3rd, just hitting 4th for a few then on up to 6th to cruise.
The low low speeds in 6th was just an experiment.
Yes the 4-5-6 is just something to help me remember. If it fits you or something similar then great.

I appreciate the defence from you guys. Weeds that was a little aggressive to read for a newbie, but it's cool - you're just looking out for me. right!

I've not done the BMSF and don't want to hear it from you guys. The intermediate course is lined up for next month after I've hit 500 miles.
It's cheaper, does not take my WHOLE weekend and will not bore me with stuff I can figure out from reading and talking with my buddies.
-- ZIP --   Flame suit attached - Let it rip!  LOL.

[fetor56]

Sounds like what your doing is reasonable.....just don't get carried away.
Remember,cops are like sharks....it's the one u don't see that get's ya.

[GatorTrae]

Sharks they are for sure.  Normally I am just going with the flow of traffic, never more than 10 over the limit. 
Most of the time I'm behind a car and not able to let it rip.  Even then, since I'm new, it's nothing crazy.
I really really dont want to be one of those guys adding to the stats of crashes in the first 5 months of riding.
If the wreck doesn't kill me, my wife will. And that could be the end of my riding for a LONG time.
The force is strong with this one -

Suppose this is why I'm always finding top gear and just cruising at 50 or so.
I can't wait to know my gas mileage.   My car is a '06 Infiniti G35 with mods to about 300 hp so I get only 20 mpg.
My speed fix is satisfied with that.

So, off to dinner with the wife. If all goes well, I will not be back on the boards tonight. 

[comradeiggy]

IIRC in the manual it says that at constant speeds over 35mph they recommend 6th gear.

[gsJack]

The shift points shown in the Owners Manuals are ridiculously low and must have been set by someone that never rode a GS500.    Most of the local hilly twisty back roads that I ride now at 45-55 mph are done in 5th gear, I rarely ever see 6th unless I hit the local freeway.  I like the standard GS gearing and try to keep my bike close to it.  I had a 140/70 Roadrider (same OD as a standard 150/70) on it with a 15T front sprocket.  The revs/mph were standard but when I put a 150/60 rear (same OD as stock 130/70) on it I was shifting back and forth between 5th and 6th on those same roads so I changed back to a standard 16T front sprocket to give me oem equivalent revs/mph and was running along happily again in 5th on those roads.

[vinny]

Seems everyone has a different opinion on this, or maybe different gearing?
My way of remembering it:
4th gear: +1
5th gear: 1:1
6th gear: -1

As in, if im at 60mph:
in 4th = 7K rpm
in 5th = 6K rpm
in 6th = 5K rpm
(For what its worth, im pretty sure my gearing is stock & using stock sized tyres)


I ride as low as 30mph in 6th sometimes.. as long as its levelish ground she seems to handle it..
As for shift point, anywhere from 3-10K, depending on my mood, she pulls well enough from 2K, so why rev so high in town?
*edit* Oh, i also skip gears a bit too, doesn't hurt.