I've had countless bikes over more than 50 years of riding and my two current bikes have quickshifters that operate both up and down. The difference when riding quickly along a winding mountain road is magic, but even in traffic or touring they are worth having. I liken them to a microwave oven. Nobody needed one in those early days but everyone appreciates it in their kitchen.
Quickshifter over clutchless any day of the week. The ignition cut it does is far more precise than what we're capable of. Less loss of crank momentum. Less slow down in intake and exhaust velocity. Throttle bodies are still open at the optimal position. That's why the power feels so strong when you kick it up a gear with a quickshifter.
I've done clutchless upshifts and downshift throughout my whole riding experience and it's takes a bit of practice at first or you could really mess up the gears especially when downshifting...I found that if you "slightly" keep the revs up when downshifting and towards the end of the blip just push down works every time. I found out how to do this many decades ago when I had a broken clutch cable and I had to get the bike home..
That's how every rider finds out how to clutchless shift,I had a leaking hydraulic clutch aaaaand yea,had to learn how to upshift and downshift without it
2 years late, but I just had a clutch lever fall off yesterday and had to get home as well, thank God, I was on a bike that had an up and down quick shifter.
@@snoopdeckin Definitely do not too that without a quickshifter. The reason clutchless upshifts can be smooth is because the drivetrain is unloaded by briefly letting off the throttle. Doing it with the throttle pinned and no quickshifter will absolutely damage the transmission and lessen chain and sprocket life.
I have ridden a bike with a quickshifter and agree it is pretty cool and even more so on track, but I mainly ride on the road and find it more enjoyable and engaging (pardon the pun) to use clutchless changes. To me clutchless changes require more skill and timing and some riders cannot manage it correctly. For those of you thinking come on move with the times you could be right! Slightly different subject, my car happens to have an automatic gearbox and I love it but I certainly wouldn't want that on my motorcycle as that too takes away some of the involvement! But would riders go for that too if it was trendy to have on a motorcycle!
I have never used a quickshifter and I don't shift without the clutch, but I've only been riding 4 years, and am not a racer. It sure made me smile when I got the hang of "blipping" on harder downshifts, though. I'm not sure I would get that sort of satisfaction out of a quickshifter, but I'm sure that will diminish in time as the novelty wears off and it becomes a more routine chore. I would be interested in eventually trying a quickshifter. Thanks for the vid.
I am of the same opinion as you Michael, I really enjoy blipping on the downshift. I have been riding bikes since 1984 so this has become ingrained in my technique. Like you I have always used clutch for shifting but in the last 20 years I have refined my technique. Rather than pull the clutch lever to the bar, I just pull the lever in until it half disengages, this takes off the pressure just enough to allow a smooth shift and reduces the amount of revs lost. Took me a little while to master but it does work. Having said that, I probably will try this technique for clutchless upshifting. JUst for the record, back in 1989 I rode my FZR1000T through 45 minutes of peak hour traffic with no clutch, getting moving was the hardest part. The hydraulic clutch leaked, my fault.
@@oskarkrogsgard3014 correct, I literally just paddled my feet to get the bike to walking pace and just banged the gear lever into first. Fortunately, the bike was an old style 1000cc with plenty of torque available from idle speed, it had the capability to go up a reasonable slope just on idle. Most bikes would probably stall under those conditions. The thing that I remember most is that it was entirely possible to blip on the downchange using the tiny amount of time available between gearchanges, made me see the possibility of clutchless gearchanges. I still use the clutch but rather than pulling it into the bar I just pull it until it briefly disengages, just enough to take pressure off the clutch plates, changes have become smoother and quicker, less rev dropoff. Takes a little bit to master but is worth it. BTW I use the same clutch technique in my car although slower.
He explained well, maybe your gearbox passed its limit and broke after 50k miles shifting without clutch lol, clutchless shifting is not very good for reliability, the clutch is there to be used 😂
I've always ridden the older style bikes with no electronics, no tcs, wheelie control, abs or quickshifter and got accustomed to upshifting with no clutch and blipping while downshifting and never really gave it much thought about a quickshifter until I only recently tried one out on a friend's bike. It makes riding a whole lot easier and 1 less thing for you to thing to think about so you can focus on riding. Ever since i tried a quickshifter out im sold on them
On those smaller straights were you need that extra gear to get that extra 5-10 km/h before trail braking into the corner , a quick shifter helps massively. So instead of focusing on upshifting and then quickly downshifting , you only focus on downshifting. Yes it has an effect on lap times and consistency of those lap times and is definitely a big advantage.
I tried a quickshifter on my friend's R6 at Jerez. Really great, and easy to use. However, I can't help feeling its a bit brutal for the gearbox. If a clutch cable broke I would be more than happy to do clutchless changes at modest speeds, but I just like to look after my bikes a bit. At the level I ride at, (nearly 50 years on the road, but only 5 days on track, all at Jerez) I am happy to use the clutch. Thanks for all your tips. Can't wait to get back on the track!
It's not hard on anything in the engine. It's a bit tougher on the chain. I was watching video of how the chain reacts with a QS and it has a little "whip" happening. This can be lessened if you tension your chain slightly. Be careful how much you tension your chain. That slack in the chain is very important.
I like the clutch. It's fun and makes you feel like you are really operating the machine through knowledge and skill, although I can see quickshifters being better for competitive racing.
Yeah on the track they are a nice improvement because it’s a fraction of a second faster and when you figure how many times they did that adds up. Even on the street they’re fun and helpful as well. When I’m hustling along through the twisties concentrating on everything else it’s one less thing I need to be mindful of trying to get the timing just right for a nice clutchless upshift. Plus like he said when you’re pushing yourself and concentrating on lean, body position, braking, the apex and everything else it’s kinda common to mess up the upshift. With a quick shifter there’s NO messing up the shift.
I've been riding for 40 years track and road I love it more than my family?? I have a Tuono v4r the quick shifter is the best thing that has ever been added to a motorcycle. Pity it hasn't got a blipper
Well I bought a new bike without one in 2022 just because it is a great bike, and zero rider aids. I've personally never rode a motorcycle with one. I'm sure they are nice and convenient on the road and a necessity for racing where 10th or hundreds of a second determine winner and 2nd, but since I'm not a professional racer I view it as one additional thing that could fail or break. GSXR 750Z is a great all around street and track bike. I love it!!
Auto blippers work only on modern bikes with ride by wire throttles where a solenoid operates the intake butterflies, the blippers sends a signal to the solenoid when you down shift and the blippers module is already set to blip the rpm as needed
Thats not what blippers do. They fool ECU by changing signal coming from Accelerator Position Sensor or Throttle, maing it think that You blip throttle while you don't.
I love the quick shifter. I ride a cruiser, XV950R Yamaha, I don’t need one, some people I mention this to can’t understand why I have one. Well added to the easy breath air filter and race type exhaust can, also a fuel management system, it actually feels moor responsive than when it was all standard. So it’s not faster, it doesn’t handle any better, but is the ride more enjoyable, yes! And that’s what’s worth all this fuss!
Just added a quick shifter to my R6. I found being a 600 I have to use gears a lot more and it can destabilise the bike using the clutch, and clutch less up shifting on corners is not ideal either - so the quick shifter makes light work of it all
Wow a great balanced view. I have mixed feelings about them especially an autoblipper. It just seems like another skill you are handing over and you are heading further towards a twist and go. I know people who love their slipper clutches bit admit their down shifting skills suffered as a result of having one.
a quick shifter cuts ignition ~15 milisecs ? this time is required to go from a gear to another AND throttle pinned offers instant engine return on power. Opposed to manual closing/opening throttle (requires time more than 300milisecs to do it FASTEST) plus intake flow disturbances and injectors restarts that contribute substantially at adding dead time. In a drag race, this translate to at least one bike per gear advantage. On a top speed challange, at higher speeds, difference is bigger.
I never rode a bike with any electronic assists until I got the 18 R1M new, and I must say the quick shift up and down is my favorite. I believe with quickshifter it is a lot easier on the trans due to the cut ignition. Hell it's got a cruising mode for the ups, but for downs, you definitely want to be higher in rpms
no it cant, Rj proved he is faster cltuchless than quickshifter but yeah u r right, it cant , he is kinda god or sth, it cant.... dude think before u say sth
Yeah, sure it's faster but how much faster? Is it that much faster to be worth it? What makes you feel better about yourself, making perfect clutchless upshifts every time or doing half the work?
Race pattern (1st is up from neutral 2nd to 6th all down). Many bikes can easily be converted to this race pattern by rotating the gearbox selector shift arm on the engine through 180 degrees. Acceleration force can be high at the track and tends work against the rider lifting foot forwards and up to do the clutchless shift. This is why most race bikes are set up to use this race pattern for shifting.
One thing you didn't mention, as with any device there is a possibility of failure or malfunction. A famous TT racer had a really bad cash and suffered serious injury's and if I'm not mistaking it was a problem or malfunction of the quick shifter that he claimed played a part or caused the accident. I'm not sure how easy it is to make a unintentional gear change, but I thought it was worth mentioning.
Thank you for you video. Are you the type of bloke who reads comments? What I was hoping you might comment on, is if you aren't on the track but in stop start traffic, you will always be using the clutch presumably in first gear to start off, but also perhaps to find neutral and go from neutral to first, with a quick shifter is this correct?
Excellent video , like many comments on here i have been riding clutchless for years and looking forward too a quickshift fitted bike. Not very often i comment but feel you should have mentioned upshifting in corners with lean angle does not mean you can keep throttle pinned throughout the corner while shifting .that comment more aimed at newbies as experienced rider will know .
Agreed. It's kinda like what's the point Clutchless upshifting is so easy To do. I find a quick shifter a waste of money All the ride by wire, traction control, quickshifters, Abs, anti wheelie stuff is not my thing. Only ABS for safety
@@Decrepit_biker 06 CBR 1000rr. No Tech/ Full Analog Experience. Clutchless Shifting all-day on this bike with close to 30k Miles on the bike still runs like brand new. and Dynos at 156hp at wheel ! Only tech is a Piggyback Power commander That makes Fueling as efficient as possible for altitude I'm riding.
Had a cruiser and never heard the word "quickshifter". Bought an R1 on 9/11 and this word came up. Installing it as we speak, NOT for speed/racing but for comfort riding. I even can use the clutch if I like. It's quite cheap and I hope it's worth it. And yes, it's not a DIY. Needs an expert to install it. Thanks for the video
I love my quick shifter on my 05 zx10 but its set high at 8000+rpm. I think its important to retain clutch skill/control for many reasons like... If the tension switch fails, riding a bike without one (friends or test ride), backing it in etc.
it surely does much more benefits on the slow street ride. no more wrist soar or unnecessary jolt when doing it on lower rpm range👍 especially when it have the auto-bliper
Blipper without slipper clutch isn't advisable. Works most of the time, but in some situations you need to release the clutch with care. I actually would buy a slipper clutch first, if your bike does not have one, and *then* an upshifter.
I love the quick shifter on my tuono just for the crack it makes between shifts. Used clutchless shift on my old bikes. From my POV the down blipper has been the most useful as I found downshift without the clutch hard under heavy breaking. It was ok when coasting.
My 1-2 still ends up being 1-N more often than not when I'm ripping up a slip road and tucked in. I think my legs end up bent a bit more forwards and I don't quite pull up high enough or quickly enough. I suspect a QS in that situation would force me to be aggressive enough, but then where's the fun in that? 🤣
Easier on long journeys or round town. On the road it lessens the number of clutch operations making it easier on your hand. I bought one and it’s been great. I would have bought one sooner if it was cheeper though.
I bought my first Techtronics QS in 1999 for a new Fireblade. Ever since then I've come up against the patronising 'Why do you need one of those?' brigade. Without exception these have been riders who've never tried one. I don't need a QS, like I don't need 180bhp. But guess what? Both are fun. We are allowed to have fun, right? 😉
Just fitted a hm plus to my l7 gixer thou ... works fine I like it but then noticed translogic are doing the autoblip kit which is a fair bit more expensive but looks great .
Currently own an RSV mille and regularly do clutchless upshifts on the road... but after riding a 959 panigale and more recently a V4s panigale I now can't wait to get my next bike and it will have a QS.... I would love the auto blipper off the V4s now aswell 😂
I tried a Triumph Daytona 675R with a quickshifter once and I think it's "okay", but I felt my clutchless upshift was much smoother than the upshift with quickshifter. It is a little easier, but not enough to make me want one.
@bob cu Apparently, it's controversial. I've read forums that say so, but I've seen videos (and my mechanic supports it) that say it won't damage the clutch if you do it correctly. A hint my mechanic gave me is "the higher the revs, the easier it gets". I really notice it's easier to clutchless upshift from 4.000rpm on than in lower revs (I'm generally around 3.000rpm). So far, all is well with my transmission.
i did clutchless too both up & down shift some say it will break down my transmission gear in few month but i've been doing it fo 65k+ km and nothing really matter those thing still workin smooth. and about clutch in my experience somehow i could expand a bit longer lifetime than usual
i did clutchless too both up & down shift some say it will break down my transmission gear in few month but i've been doing it fo 65k+ km and nothing really matter those thing still workin smooth. and about clutch in my experience somehow i could expand a bit longer lifetime than usual
But; Does either wear on the gears or any other parts? My dad had a quickshifter on his track bike, and he claims it wore down the gears. He says the clutchless upshifts do the same damage. He has been a motorcycle fanatic for 42 years, so he knows a Lot about bikes.
No. Bike transmissions are sequential. They don't require a clutch to shift - only when taking off. Video or read about sequentials and it'll make better sense than someone or I trying to paragraph it out.
That "he has been a motorcycle fanatic for 42 years so he knows a lot about bikes" was so wrong in so many levels... Doing something for a long time doesn't mean shit if you've been doing it wrong all along... It doesn't hurt your transmission. If it did, it wouldn't be standard equipment in every sport bike today. But yeah, an amateur with 42 years of experience knows better than professional engineers, sure.
I don't work on street bikes , I build mx engines , average of about 40 to 50 engines a year. I can state without a dought riders the use clutchless shift wear the engagement dogs more than a rider that uses the clutch. The actual gear teeth are not what wears , its the engagement dogs that take the beating.
@@legalpitbull3623 Yeah, it sounds logical to me that clutchless shifting would produce more friction then when you disengage the gears from the motor with the clutch.
I have a ninja 400. Because of the type of throttle these bikes have, you can get a quickshifter for upshifts, but you cannot have an auto bleeper so no quick downshifts. I am quite good with clutchless shifting, I can even downshift bleeping myself, but I tend to mess them up more, clutchless downshifts are considerably harder, so I only do them in situations where I know my success rate is better. If the bike had an electronic throttle, I would absolutely consider getting a quickshifter... But since I'm good at upshifts, and I wouldn't get the quick downshifts from it... I think I'll pass!
@@ayowser01 meh I mean I see the reason why you'd want one... But I'm an old man. I like manual cars haha. I honestly prefer doing it the old fashioned way. I totally see the performance gains, and also potential wear reduction and blah blah blah. But doing a perfect clutchless upshift makes me smile :) I'm glad you enjoy yours though!! Ride safe brother!
I dont know how many people have come up to me after a short race and asked what quick shift system i use when i ride (636rb1, gsxr750, tl1000r). Ive always looked at them and asked what a quick shift system is lol
Your bike will become a little faster with a quickshifter. I ride a 08 GSXR 1000 and I raced a 2005 Hayabusa we were literally neck-and-neck in the race every time he shifting gears he would fall backwards some. My quickshifter gave me the edge in the race going throughout the gears.
Based on what you have said what you need and many other people need is an automatic transmission or a dual clutch transmission. Because you guys all want that quicker shifting and DCT is the fastest way to shift. Or maybe what the world needs is an electric bike with no gearing but faster than any ICE powered motorcycle. =)
Well, most of us aren't gonna get any superbike, nor any bike in lower segments will get the quickshifter. It's better to work on our hands and feet to make the shifts faster. That's gonna be beneficial in 100% of riding cases. That's what I do so I wrote this.
Quickshifters are finding their way into cheaper bikes already. I have a Triumph Tiger with everything for touring, it has one. And I have a much cheaper Husqvarna Svartpilen 401 for a city bike, and it has one. Both of them operate up and down. We still need to have clutch control as the QS is only used once the bike is moving.
so basically it convets a manual motorcycle into a semi automatic? kinda like those motorcycles that changes gears but without a clutch or clutch less.
I heard puts to much pressure on gear box clutchles upshifting? I use to go up and down on 01 kx125 when riding stipid fast when riding normal if use cluch, then i started only shifting up when going stupid fast but clutch down. Then when teaching sons on kx85 i fitted lighter clutch pull boxsystem that gave cluch light feel so can use cluch well, then when i got cr250 it didn't seem to work well as not fully disengaging , but alway using cluch to lever as worried ill mess gear box up wear out dogs and stain on gear box or metal bits end up in oil. Now im thinking trying without the light connecter box on cr250 but it will make stiffer clutch feel but may work better with new clutch installed unless its toast now, then after that was going try hydraulic seft adjusting clutch see if better before making up mind what to do as my sons ride it now, not using at min as need service work this also my road bike 1st, but hear with battery i can get Dep quickshifter on my 2000 cr250 also my 01 fazer1000 so I can hold on then shift with throttle wide open, reason I have quickdhifted before is need hold on for dear life lol, 2 fingers arthritis so now abit lossed what to do , so guess I need test these ideas out but cheaper the better i guess but want my internals to last long time especially gear box, few people told me gear boxes go on fazer1000 25k bikes on 21k but quick shift often, now cr250 parts harder to get so gets me worried as want keep that to. Any ideas, there's so many mixed reviews I'd rather be safe than sorry
Why not just use the clutch? In the manual for my old 2 stroke bike it says "the transmission is not designed to shift gears without using the clutch, and doing so will damage the transmission"
Because that's much slower. No idea how that 2 stroke bike is built, but as far as I know, clutchless upshifts don't harm or cause wear (except maybe a bit more wear on the chain) when done right. If you simply force the gear to go in, then you'll hear that nice rattle sound which is uh....the gears grinding in each other and definitely not having a good time.
I’m going to add a button on my handlebars that I can press to momentarily kill the engine so I can quick shift while keeping the throttle pinned. Hopefully it works out.
Correct. The quickshifter needs electronic fueling so it can interrupt it for a millisecond to unload the gearbox. The QS replaces the rod between gear lever and gearbox with one that has a sensor inside and wiring that goes to the computer.
@@Kim_Miller well, i was talking about the autoblipper. Upshift quickshifters work on all EFI bikes but the downshift blipper can't work on cable throttle bikes since the openning of the throttle bodies is mechanical and the ECU doesn't control that...
0:22 try touring on your bike, no matter how light your clutch is, if you ride whole day couple days straight, your left hand will be begging for that quickshifter
My first motorcycle has a quickshifter. But when I accelerate hard and go from first to second gear my TC light goes on and the shift is much less smooth than the shift from second to third and upwards. Is this typical for all motorcycles or is this a Duke 790 issue? How to handle this issue best?
@@LifeatLean your manual clutchless up shift is much better done with the kill button than throttle especially on a carb'd engine... a technique from the 80s here in nz
Don't get me wrong, but I do like to have some of the control and therefore merit for what the bike is actually doing. I'm not the best at it, but I can easily do clutchless shifting both up and down, so I can't imagine riders that actually know what they're doing, having any problem doing this... Just feel like bikes these days do A LOT for the rider, and this is not necessarily a great thing. Yes it makes bikes a lot safer at the same time as they're more quicker, but it gives the false feeling that "you're a bloody great rider"... My bikes have no quickshifter, and I won't be installing one.
That's not an uncommon sentiment John. It's an argument that will be waged for many years I'm sure. That is, until there are few riders left that remember 'manual' bikes.
My experience with quickshifters is quite limited , having only had a couple of road bikes with the system fitted , and ridden a couple of track bikes with them fitted . In my opinion they are great on the track , or if you are a fast road rider , but I believe they are a waste of time for road bikes if you are just pootling around . I would go so far to say that they can even damage your gearbox if you are being lazy with shifts . Some on here might be more learned about QS's but I think the interruption speeds aren't designed for low rpm shifts and you can end up with grinding gears . This may be why Triumph have been having problems with gearboxes on their QS fitted bikes , Speed Triple for one
On road I still use clutchshifting but on track I do clutchless upshifts. But how about clutchless downshifting? I sometimes do it on the track aswell.
It's definitely possible (as you've found) but I personally don't think it's worth it given the choice. You get very little benefit and it just means you have to be even more precise in more a delicate area.
Knowing how to clutchless upshift will help when you eventually come to ride a bike without a quickshifter. I guess the question is more a case of... will you ever need the manual technique?