Getting used to right hand shift

hewhoistoolazytologin said:

Matt.....are you sure that is why?

Couldn't it rather be traced back to the days of riding horses......when you urge a horse to take off, you lean forward(down) and push the reins forward. When slowing him down, you lean back(up) and pull the reins........down is forward, up is back. This fact is also reflected in the gas pedal of an auto...right foot down for go, up for slow.
The body makes these moves without even thinking about it, a truely instinctive way of shifting.

Then again.......maybe I've spent too many days in the saddle. :lol:

Click to expand...

Yeeha!

Might be inclined to pull a leg once in a while.....although...sounded logical once I put it on paper. A bike is really, actually, another form of horse...even motorcycle clubs can be equated with knights and horses. No joke! The Higgins Armory did a seminar a couple of years ago to point out the correlations between clubs and knights. My idea, might be closer to the truth, than you think!!!

http://www.higgins.org/

Take care on those roads! Something that I always do is to FRONT BRAKE in most situations, as to not be confused in panic braking and stab the gear lever into higher cog! No matter what bike I ride the rear brake is an added extra and used if really nessary if some nutter pulls out in front of me in which all brakes are applied. The thing is in an emergency stop situation, reactions take over and if you are on an unfamillar bike the rear brake may just be the gearshift lever. I have full trust in the front brake and it has saved me in many panic situations then I have been able to apply a little rear brake pressure, once the old brain has connected to the foot! something like STOP STOP STOP phew that was close!!

A lot of problems can be prevented indeed by braking first with the front brake, and we are all used to where that is...as it is on all bikes, except a few oddballs, in the same place. My trick for avoiding the problems the other drivers make, is never to trust them....plain and simple. Eye contact is a must...never assume they will see you...because they won't. But Feliz will get the trick of right shifting...that is a skill that we can all learn....for sure, for sure.

Thanks to all for their comments. After a few rides the shifting is starting to come to me, slowly though.

I've been spending most of my time sorting out the carbs which seem to be OK now, now it's the brakes.

The front brakes on these bikes, at least mine, are downright pathetic. I'm going to take the front wheel off today and take a look at what's up. Are there tricks to adjusting and setting these brakes up? I have old japanese bikes with single leading shoe front and rear brakes that are a LOT better than the Norton's.

Then I have a centerstand with a mind of its own. Sometimes it will take the rear wheel off the ground about an inch which seems right and other times it wont get the wheel up. I can't for the life of me figure out why.

I'm quickly learning the joys of Norton ownership!!!

my center stand had a lot of reasons it might do this...there were two welded on lugs on the stand itself, that stoped it from going too far forward when you put the bike on the stand, and they used to dig notches into the trans cradle that they come the rest against, and when the notches were deep enough, it didn't allow the wheel to clear the ground. Weld up and file flat, the notches, and same with the lugs.
Bolts and the holes wear out...lots of fixes...someone will give you a hint with this. General checkout of all parts will most likely find what the reason is and you will get it fixed....I like my rear wheel to be up pretty high so I welded U shaped (cut in half pipe sections) pieces onto the bottom of the stands' feet...but it makes the bike rather a musclular trick to get it on the stand...only recommend if you are not prone to back problems, like I am....