Which is Better?

[Charger4U]

When shifting is it better to do it with the clutch lever? Or without?

[capriceman]

?

I'm lost what are we talking about?

[Cory Wolfe]

...I'm lost too. What do you mean?

[Charger4U]

Ive always wondered wether or not it was better to shift gears on a motorcycle with or without using the clutch lever? Either way has never bothered me but ive always wondered which was better for the engine?

[regfootball]

i am not skilled enough to match the revs to be able to do that without wrecking something.

[Intrepidation]

You should be more specific in the initial post dude Anyway I dunno...

[Nick]

I haven't driven a bike enough to be able to comment (that will change soon though hopefully)...

But I know in a car you can shift without using the clutch easily (that is, when you aren't starting from a stop)...just gotta know the shift points.

[trinacriabob]

Personally, I would always use a clutch (never personally driven a motorcycle, though). It's there for a reason.

The only time I don't use it is if I park a manual transmission car in a perfectly level spot (garage), at which point I put it in neutral and set the parking brake. Never had a problem. On a grade, I will usually put it in first and apply the parking brake.

So glad to have an automatic trans. Whew.

[Z-06]

Always with the clutch. My dad got pissed one day when he saw me doing that on his Suzuki.

[Cory Wolfe]

  Charger4U said:

Ive always wondered wether or not it was better to shift gears on a motorcycle with or without using the clutch lever? Either way has never bothered me but ive always wondered which was better for the engine?

Clutch > No clutch... Just because you're able to do it, doesn't mean its good for the transmission.

[Oracle of Delphi]

Don't fondle your clutch, you'll go blind! :rotflmao:

[Charger4U]

  blackviper8891 said:

Clutch > No clutch... Just because you're able to do it, doesn't mean its good for the transmission.

nothing i said implyed that shifting without using the clutch is a talent nor did i say it was good for the transmission. thats what i was asking

Edited May 3, 2007 by Charger4U

[Nick]

So, to answer your question, it is better to shift using the clutch.

[Cory Wolfe]

  Charger4U said:

nothing i said implyed that shifting without using the clutch is a talent nor did i say it was good for the transmission. thats what i was asking

Meanwhile, nothing I said implied that you implied any of that. It was a general statement to answer what you were asking. Silly boy.

[scharmer05]

I had a clutched ATV for a while and only used the clutch when initially putting it into gear when stopped. I never used the clutch once at speed. Drive a truck the same way. The old timers will grill you for not using a clutch though. I have yet to wreck anything so far. I owned that ATV for over 3 years as well and probably put over 7000 miles on it (a guess as it did not have a speedo or odometer, probably a pretty low estimate though).

[Sixty8panther]

  scharmer05 said:

I had a clutched ATV for a while and only used the clutch when initially putting it into gear when stopped. I never used the clutch once at speed.

Yup. Same here... BUT, was Charger4U talking about cars?

Certain cars are the same way, but it's a good idea to use

the clutch in 99% of cars just for wear & tear purposes.

My Datsun has synchromesh gears & yet it is IMPOSSIBLE

to get it out of one gear & into another w/ that car, even

at speed with the RPMs matched. I've tried.

[z28luvr01]

I think most non-Harleys have wet clutches, so you could ride them all day if you wanted to. If that's the case, definitely use the clutch.