Shift without clutch.... much?

[LongRanger_imp]

I used to do it years ago, but I ride less aggressively these days and don't really see the benefit anymore. Done properly, however, I don't believe it damages anything. That being said, occasionally I'll preload the shift lever in preparation for an upshift, hit a bump, and unintentionally snick it into the next gear when I wasn't expecting to. No foul.

[mattmcuomo@yahoo.com]

I don't do it all the time. I only do when I'm accelerating quickly and I don't want to loose grip from the bars! I guess it stems from riding dirt bikes!

Sent from my C6725 using Tapatalk

[jmc1100_imp]

Many years ago I changed my Husky 350 enduro into a motard ,different wheels and tires,I called it my frostheave special. The engine and gearbox were so smooth I caught myself upshifting without clutching, it worked great,I never repeated that on any other bike. Odd..

[Pterodactyl_imp]

I use clutchless upshifts (after2) very occasionally.

Cheers

[jazzmans_imp]

I did on almost all my previous bikes, but I don't on the CB. part of it is due to the 'gentle' nature of the bike.
I don't on my FZ09 either, but the manual specifically states Do Not Clutchless shift.(which is interesting, first time I've seen a manual be that specific)

[mattmcuomo@yahoo.com]

I found it smoother even at low speeds... after 1st and 2nd.

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[the Ferret]

I am amazed that many people do this. Just never occurred to me to even try it. I even raced motocross (pretty successfully) for 10 years and used the clutch on every shift.

[Motogeezer1949_imp]

I've gone clutchless all my life, every bike I've owned, even at the 1-2 shift. Never had a tranny or clutch or related problem and I've had plenty of bikes on which I racked up over 70k miles. There's no need to use the clutch except for starting, stopping and downshifting, AND after a while, after one learns to match revs, one can downshift in pretty near every gear with the exception the 2-1 down shift.
The motorcycle tranny is constant mesh, unlike mostly all auto/truck trannys, so it's a non-issue, a no brainer. Hurts nothing unless one is a totally inept rider.
Plus, I've never replaced a clutch cable

[AzBob_imp]

After 1-2 on the upshift only for me. There are, of course, caveats:

1. Pre-loading the shifter in preparation for the shift can bend the shifter forks; don't do that. I know a lot of places on the Internet prescribe this method as how to do it (and some transmissions, like that on the BMW K1600 require it or else it won't work), however, it's still bad. Don't touch the shift linkage until you're read to actually shift.

2. Shifting without the clutch WILL eventually wear out the dogs on the mating gears because you're putting much more pressure on them than would be otherwise. If your bike starts to pop out of gear after a while, this is why. Each transmission is different and how long it takes to wear the dogs down to the point that they no longer positively engage the next gear is a variable. On my CBR, I have 19k miles and have been shifting like this since new and that transmission is rock solid. The transmission on the CB1100 isn't nearly as precise, however, and I'm guessing not nearly has heavy duty as the CBR has tons more power to deal with. Which brings me to my next point:

On the CB1100, I have noticed that, on occasion, a clutchless upshift will leave the shift lever in the raised position, rendering it inoperable until negative pressure is applied via deceleration (e.g. negatively loading the transmission) to fully engage the gear, nudging the shifter fork and fully rotating the shifter drum). Because of this, I can't, in good conscience, recommend that anyone do this with their CB1100. It is my opinion that the transmission isn't built for that kind of abuse and an owner will eventually see a failure. As always, do what you will as it's your machine and pocketbook. :-)

[the Ferret]

ok..trying to learn here..old dog and all

If this is common practice and won't hurt the tranny..why was it such a big deal that Yamaha didn't have a seamless tranny in MotoGP year before last (allowing clutchless shifts) while Honda did? (and Suzuki is behind because they still don't)

It was claimed clutchless shifts with the seamless gearboxes were responsible for a gain of 2/10s or 3/10ths per lap.