Bikes "Happy Place"

[johnnyj_imp]

Hi All,
I have about 1k miles on my 2013 CB1100 now and wanted to ask a dumb question.
I have noticed that when I get above 3250 RPMs or so the bike seems to be vibrating and revving quite high, even though friends assure me this is normal, I wanted to ask the question to ones having this bike.
I have read all the posts about changing the sprockets which I will most likely do but it seems to me that when I am 2750 to 3000 RPMs the bike feels good to me (not lugging and has good pick up when throttled).
I want to form good habits and maximize engine and transmission life, so the question being what would be the ideal RPM range to keep this bike "happy".
Thanks in advance for any advice,
Johnny

 

[Inhouse Bob]

I'm sure you will get a lot of differing opinions on this one :angel:
My uninformed opinion is that since the "power band" on the bike is north of 4000 RPM, that is where the motor is "happiest' in terms of load. Don't confuse vibrations with an unhappy motor. Vibrations come when the various parts of the bike "harmonize." On this bike, I get most vibrations between 3900 and 4500 RPM. On my KLR it is at a bit lower range. But both bikes settle down above a certain point and get smooth again.
Long ago, I commuted on a long street with a speed limit of 25 miles per hour. On my CB 400, that speed sat right at the point where I felt like I should shift up. But when I did shift up, the bike was somewhat less responsive. Anyhow, I was on the fence as to which gear to cruise in until the day I very nearly got hit. I was in the higher gear and when I needed to get going RIGHT NOW, the bike just sorta chugged out of the way. From then on I've kept the RPM up.

 

[Capo]

I have resorted to short shifting, getting the bike up to 4th and 5th, and leaving it there, letting the torque do the work. The high frequency vibes of the CB do not agree with me, and I feel it in the seat as much as the bars in the 3- 4500 rpm range in the lower gears. And up towards the redline, I feel it pretty bad. It's a characteristic of the bike, and many inline 4's, nothing wrong with it, per se, but it's not an attractive element of the CB experience for me. Other's results no doubt vary.

 

[the Ferret]

I'm a 2500-3500 guy. Never been over 4500 that I recall.

 

[treytexag_imp]

I don't think I've had my new CB over 4500 either. Of course I'm still under 600 miles, so I'm being "careful" in how I ride it. I like the fact that it pulls strong without having to "wind it up" . . .

 

[dave]

That depends on what you mean by "happy". On page 33 of the 2014 owner's manual there are recommended shift points. What are you used to riding that makes you think the CB1100 vibrates quite high? I know my VFR800 is silky-smooth compared to my 2014 CB1100.

 

[johnnyj_imp]

Thanks very much for the replies, I have a friend who is very sharp when it comes to motors and he had warned me about "lugging" the engine and talked about the harmful effect of carbon deposits. I just want to make sure I am not starting out with bad habits that will shorten the life of my engine or tranny.

That depends on what you mean by "happy". On page 33 of the 2014 owner's manual there are recommended shift points. What are you used to riding that makes you think the CB1100 vibrates quite high? I know my VFR800 is silky-smooth compared to my 2014 CB1100.

Thanks Dave,
That's the problem is I don't have much to compare too as this is my first bike for 30 years or more. I started out on the Honda 50 mini trail, then a Honda 70, a Honda SL100, a Honda CR125 and a good friend in high schools parents had a pair of CB's a 750 and a 350 which we would ride on occasion (of course when they were gone or sleeping). But since High School I have maybe ridden 2 others, one was a 750 Nighthawk which I didn't do too well on but that's another story.
I did recently ride a friends Suzuki 600 GSX-R and that also seemed to be a high revving but that thing redlines about 15k instead of around 8k.
Thanks again

 

[kmoney_imp]

You're not going to hurt it with any reasonable cruising RPM. Personally I tend to keep it at 3200-3800 in second gear when riding in the city, mostly because I want instant power on if I have to get out of the way of something. If you read about the engine, they did design some harmonics into it by slightly having the valve timing out of phase, so this will likely be part of the vibration you feel.

 

[johnnyj_imp]

You're not going to hurt it with any reasonable cruising RPM. Personally I tend to keep it at 3200-3800 in second gear when riding in the city, mostly because I want instant power on if I have to get out of the way of something. If you read about the engine, they did design some harmonics into it by slightly having the valve timing out of phase, so this will likely be part of the vibration you feel.

I had noticed the recommended shift points on page 29 of the 2013 manual and the bike is around 2k to 2.5k with their recommendations.
I guess that's what got me to thinking I should be "lugging" it.

 

[JustPassinThru_imp]

I've wound mine up to. IIRC, 6000rpm. It really does smooth out in the higher levels.

It ALSO pulls against the rider. My fear is losing my hold on one of the grips, having it get away from me at upwards of 70 or so...and becoming a front-page newspaper article.

It's kind of a ticklish act. Easing it up to high RPMs seems silly and hard on the motor. But...when I'm in a hurry, trying to outrace a clot of cars or something...I start up in first, shift up normally at around 1900rpm...and then, in second, put the coal to it. You can get up to 65 in second. Pause a moment and then shift up two or three. And then you cruise...easy on the throttle; nice and quiet; and the vibrations, while sharp, are not severe. You don't see your mirrors blur, for example; and I haven't had any parts come loose in 5000 miles.

I packed my handlebars with lead shot. That seemed to make a difference; but your experience may vary.

 

[kmoney_imp]

You're not going to hurt it with any reasonable cruising RPM. Personally I tend to keep it at 3200-3800 in second gear when riding in the city, mostly because I want instant power on if I have to get out of the way of something. If you read about the engine, they did design some harmonics into it by slightly having the valve timing out of phase, so this will likely be part of the vibration you feel.

I had noticed the recommended shift points on page 29 of the 2013 manual and the bike is around 2k to 2.5k with their recommendations.
I guess that's what got me to thinking I should be "lugging" it.

I had noticed the recommended shift points on page 29 of the 2013 manual and the bike is around 2k to 2.5k with their recommendations.
I guess that's what got me to thinking I should be "lugging" it.
I'm not sure about this for bikes (I know it applies to cars), but EPA (and possibly european) testing sees vehicles shifted using the manufacturer's suggested shift points, so these may be artificially low to max out economy and minimize emissions. These shift points may not actually get the best driving performance out of the engine. If you were to scale the rpms to an average car engine redline (say 6k rpm) the reccommended points would be like shifting at 1400rpm.

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[Capo]

Despite what we all feel or think, or in my case, what my perineum is telling me loud and clear, the CB, like all motorbikes, has a distinct torque and HP delivery. This is the 2013's. Torque builds gradually, with a nice flat peak in the 4k range. There is little benefit to revving the bike much past 6500 rpm. Except to, perhaps, dislodge a kidney stone.

 

[Dharma_Jones93_imp]

I'm glad I read this thread. I'm coming from big twins, so lugging was always a concern (especially the adventure bike with the reply tall first gears). I've noticed I haven't been getting quite estimated gas mileage, but I've been running in the 3500-4500 range. There is no hesitation in the motor in the lower ranges but the torque is definitely not there. I think this week I'll try 2500 or so when steady cruising.

 

[HikerToo_imp]

I'm a 2500-3500 guy. Never been over 4500 that I recall.

Mostly 2K to 3.5K...although unlike the Ferret, I still enjoy the occasional red line shift :biker:

 

[redbirds_imp]

Same here. The CB has so much low end torque there is little reason to rev to the limiter. I short shift mine and the motor never feels like it's lugging. Just the kind of power band I like in a motorcycle.

 

[kDiqq_imp]

Haha I've been running my bike like I stole it since I got it. I read a lot on engines breaking in and some of the technology used nowadays to hone and bore jugs. A lot of guys believe the 'wait 600 miles' is a carry-over from when machining practices were more primitive. I tend to believe it. I was sold when I read a study a guy who builds dirtbikes did. He took several bikes and instructed owners to beat on them as hard as possible at 0 miles and others to follow the break in procedure. The ones beat on dynoed more power and had more apparent cross-hatching left in the bores. No loss in longevity was ever observed.

I've bounced the limiter a few times on accident (what is that, like 9000RPM?) to no ill effect. Honda was good in picking the max safe RPM. To keep up with Houston traffic, I'm almost always cruising between 3000-4000RPM. No windscreen sucks, but otherwise no issues. My fuel economy is great, oil great, and power is fantastic.

 

[treytexag_imp]

Haha I've been running my bike like I stole it since I got it. I read a lot on engines breaking in and some of the technology used nowadays to hone and bore jugs. A lot of guys believe the 'wait 600 miles' is a carry-over from when machining practices were more primitive. I tend to believe it. I was sold when I read a study a guy who builds dirtbikes did. He took several bikes and instructed owners to beat on them as hard as possible at 0 miles and others to follow the break in procedure. The ones beat on dynoed more power and had more apparent cross-hatching left in the bores. No loss in longevity was ever observed.

I've bounced the limiter a few times on accident (what is that, like 9000RPM?) to no ill effect. Honda was good in picking the max safe RPM. To keep up with Houston traffic, I'm almost always cruising between 3000-4000RPM. No windscreen sucks, but otherwise no issues. My fuel economy is great, oil great, and power is fantastic.

Man, the CB has "reintroduced" me to how much the Houston traffic really sucks. Every car out there is texting, or playing with their radio, or looking somewhere else - scary place to be riding - for me anyway.

 

[kDiqq_imp]

Haha I've been running my bike like I stole it since I got it. I read a lot on engines breaking in and some of the technology used nowadays to hone and bore jugs. A lot of guys believe the 'wait 600 miles' is a carry-over from when machining practices were more primitive. I tend to believe it. I was sold when I read a study a guy who builds dirtbikes did. He took several bikes and instructed owners to beat on them as hard as possible at 0 miles and others to follow the break in procedure. The ones beat on dynoed more power and had more apparent cross-hatching left in the bores. No loss in longevity was ever observed.

I've bounced the limiter a few times on accident (what is that, like 9000RPM?) to no ill effect. Honda was good in picking the max safe RPM. To keep up with Houston traffic, I'm almost always cruising between 3000-4000RPM. No windscreen sucks, but otherwise no issues. My fuel economy is great, oil great, and power is fantastic.

Man, the CB has "reintroduced" me to how much the Houston traffic really sucks. Every car out there is texting, or playing with their radio, or looking somewhere else - scary place to be riding - for me anyway.

Man, the CB has "reintroduced" me to how much the Houston traffic really sucks. Every car out there is texting, or playing with their radio, or looking somewhere else - scary place to be riding - for me anyway.
I agree!!!!!!!!!! I didn't want to post about it, but I got ran off the road by an angry driver a few weeks ago and have since been avoiding riding during the week. I singled a lane change when traffic was REAL slow moving and this woman was livid I got in front of her. She wasn't cut off, I didn't move fast, I stayed at the corner of her Jeep where I knew she could see me and I knew I could fit without issues. She honks twice, chances lanes, tells me I'm stupid, then merges in to me, running me in to the shoulder. It got me seeing red, so I decided to take a break from week-day riding...

 

[Inhouse Bob]

[/QUOTE]
It got me seeing red, so I decided to take a break from week-day riding...
[/QUOTE]

Sorry to hear the story. I grew up in Houston and learned to ride there, but that was 35 years ago and I'm sure things have changed, as they have everywhere. Ride when and where you feel safe, and don't let someone like that drag you into a confrontation. They aren't worth it.

 

[kDiqq_imp]

It's no sweat, but I agree with you 100%. I ride when I know the experience will be completely pleasantly. No traffic, no people, no rain. Nothing to ruin my ride.

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