General RPM range riding and red line - power band?

[Methos1979]

I've had my '16 RT for just under a year now and I continue to love it more with every ride. I'm now intimately comfortable with all aspects of this bike. I ride and shift gears by 'feel' and find that I upshift usually just before 4k and downshift around 2.5k. I love the pro shift assist and when going by feel I find that I generally get the smoothest little clicks going up from 3rd into 4th and beyond. Going down I get a nice little blip and click all they down into 2nd.


I find I generally cruise around 3.5k. Red line is WAY up around 9k. This makes me wonder: There's a whole lot of RPM bandwidth between the 4k I shift at and the red line. Where is the power band on our bikes? For giggles I accelerated rapidly in 4th yesterday up to around 6k and it was pulling wicked strong but I was already at 80 and so I had to back off!


I'm just wondering what you folk generally ride/shift at for RPM's, and how often you get up into those higher RPM's.

[Topphoto1]

I do tend to cruise, but due to being 2up most of the time and recently get a speeding ticket! I tend not to blast it, but it is there omg is it lol, I feel no real need to rev the nuts out of it lol it a lot different to my Ninja 9r, or I am just getting old or a think about the missus on the back too much lol! So the only answer to your question is not often at the high revs.

[Methos1979]

I do tend to cruise, but due to being 2up most of the time and recently get a speeding ticket! I tend not to blast it, but it is there omg is it lol, I feel no real need to rev the nuts out of it lol it a lot different to my Ninja 9r, or I am just getting old or a think about the missus on the back too much lol! So the only answer to your question is not often at the high revs.

Same here, mostly two-up these days. The only time I really like to get on it is when some tool on a 'souped up' Harley (still running 30 HP below stock RT!) tries to leave me in the dust. No ticket yet, but a couple of close calls an will get one eventually. I often find myself up at 80 (or more!) on the highway without even really noticing.

[steve.sharkey]

I have competed in hillclimbs for a few years in a car and found that my "natural" shift point on the road is where the torque curve flattens. The addition of a shift light on my car allowed me to appreciate the entirety of what my engine had to offer. Worth experiencing but depends on what mood you're in.


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[Cleverbee]

Crank it up and it's bloody awesome, going through Wales last year without trying, got the front end up without a thought.
But please, only do so on roads and environment that are suitable, you can still get into trouble and no body wants that... :clap:

[Littlebriar]

I have a '16 RT. I tend to cruise at a little higher rpm. 4-4.5k. I like the responsiveness I get if I need to accelerate quickly. So I'm probably running 1 gear lower than you. My dealer told me not to be bashful as the bike likes the higher rpm. So do I!