Read-only archiveOriginal forum posts · 2005–2020

"Normal" cruising RPM range

7 posts · Started by jmann · 18 Mar 2015

Archived topic · Replies closedJump to last post ↓
I've had my SD1290 for a couple weeks now and I'm still getting used to the characteristics of this engine. I want to know which gear people ride in for the following typical scenarios:

urban riding (60km/h or 38 mph)
back roads (80km/h or 50mph)
highways (100 km/h or 62 mph)

Coming from a Harley, which I realise is a completely different bike, I am used to lower revs. When I change up in gears, the bike tends to feel too snatchy and the revs drop back too suddenly. I think this is because I haven't got the revs up high enough to begin with.

I would appreciate some comments on how other SD owners ride.
Post missing

This post could not be recovered from the original forum.

Post missing

This post could not be recovered from the original forum.

Thanks for the feedback guys. I am still debating on whether or not to do the front sprocket mod.
“Normal” and “Cruising” riding a 1290 let me think about that . . . . no don’t get it . . . . are you sure it’s 1290?
Post missing

This post could not be recovered from the original forum.

I have to disagree with you guys.

My typical riding gear is as follows :

urban riding (60km/h or 38 mph) : 2rd
back roads (90km/h or 55mph) : 3th
highways (130 km/h or 80 mph) : 5th

as an example, i can't ride at 100km/h in 5th gear because the bike has some vibrations which become more intence when you are accelerating.
in general, i try to keep the RPMs above 4-4.5k especially in high gears (4-5-6) where the bike feels a lot smoother.
End of archived topic · Posting is closedBack to top ↑
← Back to Technical - Dr F's Words of Wisdom