Ok well last week I bought my very first bike. 06 F4i. I've done a lot of research and read the opinions of many of this board in reguards to this being a good 1st Bike and I've made the decision that as long as I stay out of the 6-7k rpm range for a while until I get use to the bike and drive like a civil person Ill be ok. So here is my question, I'm still waiting on the title from honda Finance (the guy I bought it from had it financed through them) so I dont have tags for it yet but today I decided to take it for quick spin down the road I live on and I noticed that in any gear , once you let off the gas the bike backs down quickly (I equate it to an engine brake), This happens instantly when I let off the throttle. As I go through the gears I let off the gas, clutch in and change gears, however Im finding myself having to be more aggressive on the throttle through the gear changes because it feels like a hesitation (I know its not but thats how I describe it). The throttle is fluent but the bike really wants to slow down quickly once you let off the gas. Is this natural? Should I be doing something different when I change gears?

 

Sounds right to me. Light weight with lots of power means just what you are experiencing.

 

if you say that you want to stay out of the 6-7K range, the engine will brake dramatically...if youre staying away from that part of the tach, im assuming youre shifting any where from 3-5.25K...take it with a grain of salt and do not attempt if youre not comfortable, but normal shifting on any 600cc is usually 6.5-8K...anything under and the engine will sloooooooow down (e.g. modulating in first gear)...bikes gearing and powerbands are just totally different from what youre used to in manual cars...

anyone feel free to chime in if im giving this new rider wrong advice...

 

Apply slight upward pressure to the shifter in preparation to shift. Then clutch, upshift and roll off the throttle all at the same time and smoothly.Just practice, you will get it.

 

Depending what gear you are in will determine how fast you will slow down also. If you are in 3rd or higher, and let off the throttle the bike will not slow down as fast.

 

like kneepuck said, below the power range, the engine braking will be pretty dramatic.

Personally, I give the throttle a quick little twist before clutching when I shift at lower rpms (4k or so) to keep things accelerating smoothly.