[Wait]

Is there much of a difference between a 5 speed and a 6 speed bike. For example the Bandit has only 5 speeds but revs up with 1157cc and the SV1000S has 6 speeds but only 996cc.

Would the bike with less cc's but more gears accelerate faster than a bike with more cc's but fewer gears?

-Joe

 

[TL chris]

Some bikes with more hp and torque don't need 6 gears. Those are mostly made for cruising, not racing. 6 speed bikes need them mainly cuz their built on race platforms, not all, but most. It gives the rider more control having another gear in the gearbox to choose from when piloting around a track. 5 speeds are more or less made for "lazy" cruising and not racing. So it doesn't need that extra gear. Hp doesn't necessarily mean less gears, just in how the power is used is what you should look at.

 

[inspiron]

My bike has a 6-speed gearbox ... basically, the 6th gear is an "overdrive" for the highway. Whether one or the other accelerates better is really not important, unless you are on the racetrack. I don't think you'll ever notice the difference on the street.

No matter which gearbox you have, a bike will always accellerate faster than a cage ... simply because of the thrust-to-weight ratio. My bike has 106 hp, and weighs about 750lbs with me on it. I don't care if the guy next to me is sitting in a Ferrari F50 - I can still accelerate faster if I want to. He'll have the higher topspeed, but will still never have as much fun as I am having at that moment 8)

 

[007]

Bandits are weird bikes - they are heavy, and they have a cruising seat - yet, they have a lot of torque and power, and they come with a 6 speed gear box. Go figure! :wink:

 

[Drake]

Find the spec for your bike and you can understand the gears a bit better too. For example, my 1982 Kat has these gear ratios for each gear:

1st 2.666:1
2nd 1.777:1
3rd 1.380:1
4th 1.173:1
5th 1.045:1
6th 0.956:1

So, based on ratios, you can see that 1-4 are my prime power accelerating gears. 5th is where I'd be leveling out for highway cruising etc. but still have some responsive acceleration. 6th is meant to drop it into a more fuel economy oriented cruising gear.

 

[Wait]

Bandits are weird bikes - they are heavy, and they have a cruising seat - yet, they have a lot of torque and power, and they come with a 6 speed gear box. Go figure! :wink:

The specs on Suzuki's site says that the Bandit 1200s has only 5 gears. Do the older Bandits come with 6?

Specs
Engine: 1157cc, four-stroke, 4-cylinder, DOHC 16 valve, air/oil cooled with TSCC
Bore Stroke: 79.0 x 59.0 mm
Compression Ratio: 9.5:1
Fuel System: Mikuni BSR36
Lubrication: Wet sump
Ignition: Digital/Transistorized
Transmission: 5-speed
Final Drive: #530 chain
Overall Length: 2070 mm (81.5 in.)
Overall Width: 765 mm (30.1 in.)
Overall Height: 1220 mm (48.0 in.)
Seat Height: 790 mm (31.1 in.)
Ground Clearance: 130 mm (5.1 in.)
Wheelbase: 1430 mm (56.3 in.)
Dry Weight: 220 kg (485 lbs.)
Suspension Front: Telescopic, oil damped, preload adjustable
Suspension Rear: Link-type suspension, 7-way adjustable preload, 4-way adjustable rebound
Brakes Front: Dual hydraulic disc
Brakes Rear: Single hydraulic disc
Tires Front: 120/70 ZR17
Tires Rear: 180/55 ZR17
Fuel Tank Capacity: 20.0 liter (5.3 gal.) 19.0 liter (5.0 gal) CA model
Color: Gray, Blue

 

[007]

Yeah, mine is a 2001 Bandit, and it came with 6 speeds. I guess they changed the new ones. :wink:

 

[Clint]

yet, they have a lot of torque and power, and they come with a 6 speed gear box. Go figure! Wink

You don't know what torque is, my friend.

And 485 lbs. isn't exactly heavy when compared to other steel-frame bikes. Many cruisers push 700 lbs.

Wait specifically listed the specs on a 1200. 600s have always had 6 gears, 1200s have always had 5.

 

[007]

Thanks for clearing up the gear story with the Bandits.

About the weight: I thought we were talking about 'sport/sporty' bikes such as SV1000S etc. In this category the Bandit is quite a heavy bike - we were not talking about cruisers/tourers. Please keep things in context.

I know what torque is - thank you very much! ...(but I'm not here to argue with you or anyone else.) That's why Bandits have been one of the favorite bikes of stunt people (in spite of their weight).

And last but not least, try not to talk down on people even if you have the most biking experience in the world.

 

[Clint]

Please keep things in context.

Well, excuuuuse me!

The torque reference was directed at the fact that you ride a Bandit 600. Have you ever ridden a big bore bike? Quite a difference, as you may know.

Untie your panties, already.

 

[007]

Go grab a beer man! Chill out!....As for me, I'm going for a ride 8)

 

[007]

LUV this bike!

 

[TL chris]

Sheesh whats gotten into everybody lately. 007 and Rowdy, and myself and Novaz are gettin on each others nerves. Chill out and have a beer and clean some guns.

 

[007]

PEACE!

 

[Clint]

I'm on my own nerves.

 

[TL chris]

I'm on my own nerves.

Mine too.

 

[87gsxrnut]

Bandit 600 is basically a de-tuned '87 GSX-R 750 motor. Bandit 1200 is a de-tuned early 90s GSX-R 1100 motor. Both can be built for stupid power for relatively cheap.

As for 5 vs. 6, after riding and racing six-speed gear boxes for the past sixteen years, racing an '86 1100 was extremely frustrating . . . at first. I had a tendency to want to shift all of the time, and I would run out of gears, but still not have the top-end speed like I should.

I had to learn to short-shift a bit, and use the torque of the big-bore motor to muscle me around the track. After re-gearing the bike a bit, I found that I could shift less, but still have TONS of power everywhere I needed it. I am finding that it is a lot less work to run that 1100 fast than the 750, due to the huge powerband and wads of torque.

Conversely, the old 750s (and Bandit 600/Kat 600/Kat 750s) have their powerband at the top of the rev range. When set up correctly for roadracing, you have to constatly keep the revs between 8 and 10K. That is where these motors make all of their power. It takes a lot of attention to keep it there. If you overbrake or miss a shift, you then lose your revs and need to run the piss out of it to get it up to speed again.

- Nut