| Author | Message | ||
     Moe03xb |
If someone out there is good at riding wheelies, I could use some help. I have been practicing getting "up on one" in a desolate parking lot near my house and I am running into some problems. I have no difficulty lifting the wheel at certain times i.e. 4000 in first on the throttle, clutching at ~2000 in first, or shifting to 2nd at 6000. My problem is that I can't get the bike to shift while on the back wheel. occasionally I will get neutral, but never second. Also, is there a way to be smoother, I seem to ride with an up and down motion. I am not really interested in stunting, but I would like to be able to ride a wheelie longer than 20 feet. Thanks Don | ||
| Johnk3 |
I rode with a guy from the board who could do it easily in first on his lightening, I think his name was don. I wanted to see if he could teach me, but we ended up just tearing it up on some nice twisty roads... | ||
| Tatsu |
Okay I am no wheelie expert but I have been talking to the guys that I ride with. What they do is in first gear get it up and then do a clutchless shift to second. You gotta do this kinda of hard to second cause on the Buell it seems to take some effort. The second method is 2nd gear, get the revs up and bounce the front wheel at the same time dropping the RPM, then on the rebound hit it hard and pull up. I've haven't figured out the clutch method yet. Hope this helps | ||
| Moe03xb |
Yeah, that was me. I was hoping that someone could explain to me how to keep it up once I run out of revs in first. I don't have much trouble keeping it up through first though. Usually I get going in 1st to about 4k-4.5k and shut the throttle. Then just whack it back open and up she comes. Or, you can start out slow, around idle speed up to 2k, and pull the clutch in. In the time it takes you to pull it in and release it, rev it up and pop the clutch. This will give you longer, slower wheelies but it is easier to lift it too high. I have noticed that doing it this way will sometimes cause the rear to spin a little, which can make lift off unpredictable. Unfortunatley, I will be underway until thanksgiving, but I will be riding all winter so I'm sure we can get together and mess around at some point. Don | ||
| Moe03xb |
Tatsu Is there some adjustment I can make to ease the clutchless shifting. The only way my bike will do it is if I roll off the throttle for a second, which causes the bike to come crashing down. (As does neutral, and that I can shift into with no problem) | ||
| M1combat |
I personall don't recomend the clutchless shift to second with the front already in the air. Seems to me it would flip itself over just about imediately if a person did that... | ||
| Moe03xb |
Maybe, the one time that I did do it, I said a prayer and closed the gas for a second. But if it isn't advisable to grab second with it already up, how could I get a good, long wheelie going? | ||
| Schnitzel |
a good wheelie has a balance point , you should not need revs once you are wheelieng. i once was very good at wheelies, started on an xr 75. the problem is there is a very fine line between a wonderful wheelie and a ride to the e- room and a very expensive repair bill. when you see someone who wheelies farther than 50 feet , they have found the delicate balance between catastrophe and a big smile. | ||
| Schnitzel |
if you really want to learn to wheelie go buy a small junk 4 stroke dirt bike and learn the fundamentals of a balance point and using your back brake .when you shift gears in a wheelie you should be at the balance point, if you are not it wil be nearly impossible to keep the bike up. you use the back brake to keep from flipping over. as said before be very careful flipping a motorcycle is a brutal experience, mine was in the dirt , the street is far less forgiving. | ||
| Moe03xb |
Thanks guys. I have briefly found the balance point, but I usually get scared and put the bike down. I guess practice is the only thing that helps. BTW, I was able to ride through all three gears on a Honda Z50 last weekend. | ||
| Signguyxb12 |
power shifting..... well kinda power shifting on the buell is not good .. but since moexb's dad adjusted my clutch i do a sortof power shift that is nice...maybe it will help with wheelies from 1st apply upward pressure on shifter.. no clutch pull clutch (a 1/8 pull, if the clutch adjustment is right on the money that's all you need) release clutch... BANG.. i get second and a good wheelie hope it helps...good for drag racing to  | ||
| Signguyxb12 |
hey maybe Dora can teach us how to do wheelies }  | ||
| Volkswagenfreaky |
I have a friend that has a xr400 enduro and he rides wheelies like a crazy man. One day we were out riding and I let him ride my xb9sx. And he started popping it up right off the bat. Made it look like a piece of cake. I was pissed, Why cant I do that, I asked. But he very stearnly warned me that he has been doing it for years on the dirt and sand and crashed many times before finally finding that perfect balance point. So I would take the advice above and go by a cheap dirt bike and practice like hell ! Thats what I'm gonna do . | ||
| Stealthxb |
http://www.ononewheel.com/ | ||
| Dropnstyle |
i have a 9r completly stock and you can do them in second gear fairly easy. i start mine at about 30 or 35 use the clutch and a good amount of gas, lean back and off you go..second gear is not as touchy as first so throttle imput isnt so abrubt. can crank em as long as you want that way. doing them this way i find balance point by about 45 mph...so technically you can do em without speeding, and yes balance point is pretty high on the buells | ||
| Lpd22 |
I have a 9r that is completely stock. I have been told by a friend the same thing that Dropnstyle mentioned about clutching second gear. the only difference is he rides a 929 with shorter gears and a different sprocket. But I have tried this many a times(clutching second gear) and it hasn't worked for me. First gear I have no problem bringing it up and riding until the revs are gone. But I want those wheelies where you going faster than 10 mph. I'm going to keep trying the method Dropnstyle explained but for some reason my bike just doesn't go up but i'm sure the problem is me. | ||
| New12r |
Clutch in second gear, I cant shift but I can ride second all the way to the rev limiter now. It took a lot of practice but here it goes, ride first to about 30mph, pull the clutch, rev to about 4500 or 5000 and let out of the clutch, feather it if you can and let her ride, once you are up you will notice it is easy to change your pitch with the throttle unless you dont get it up high enough. hope that helps, good luck and ride safe. | ||
| Tatsu |
Endos? Anyone doing thoses? | ||
| Gowindward |
Balance Grasshopper....the key is balance. Go get the old BMX bicycle out and start practicing. | ||
| Bigsherm9r |
HERE IS THE ANSWER TO THE ORIGINAL QUESTION... Shifting clutchless is the only way for ME to get it into 2nd and continue on wheelieing. Here's how... Start out by riding one all the way through 1st. Once you can do that, start practicing your no-clutch shifts after the rev-limiter is hit and the front wheel is on it's way back down safely. Just chop the throttle while stomping on the shifter(mine shifts inverted) and re-open the throttle immediately. Doing this while the wheel is on the way back down will set the wheel down gently while you gain confidence and feel in what the shift is like. YOU GOTTA BE FORCEFUL WITH YOUR FOOT!!! Yes, I know this is hard on the bike, but the fun is worth the eventual repair bill, and the better you get at it, the easier it is on your bike when you do it right. Then you can work your way up to doing it while just short of the balance point, and the torque of 2nd gear will bring it back up. Keep your right foot in contact with the rear brake pedal, saying "rear brake, rear brake, rear brake..." to yourself for when you start to go too far. For me, a good balance point wheelie involves me looking around the side of the instruments and front wheel to see where I'm going. Hope this helps. Sherm image{like this!} | ||
| Bigsherm9r |
 | ||
| Schnitzel |
there is a book that i bought when i was yioung called wheelying with the king, it's about doug domokos the "wheelie king' IT IS REALLY PRETTY GOOD AT EXPLAINING WHEELYING, i don't know if you can get it still, but it had some great hints. by the way the reason i am a little weary about balance point wheelies is that the throttle stuck wide open on my kx 250 in the middle of a wheelie, frayed cable. i could barely walk for 3 months, my ••• and back were black and blue . that was in the dirt, i still loft the front of the xb, but i am much more cautious. good luck | ||
| Reepicheep |
This is probably a good time to remind XB owners that you have to split the cases to rebuild the tranny... If the bike survives that long  | ||
| Darthane |
That's rich, considering doing a wheelie on public roads in the first place is breaking the law. I don't think the cop's too worried about how fast you were going at that point.  (Message edited by darthane on November 16, 2004) | ||
| Kowpow225 |
I've always found that riding wheelies is alot like hard cornering. It's all about weight distribution on the bike. More importantly, where the weight's at. Move to a comfortable position on the bike nearer to the rear of your usual seating position. This helps later once you have it on one wheel. Next step is to have rpms in the power range of the bike. As you give it a fistfull of gas, gently, or since this buell isn't so light, not so gently, pull up on the bars until your feel the front wheel raise. When you're really good, you do both of these at the same time. To find this mystifying balance point and stay near it, you'll have to become familiar with your rear brake like sherm said. Best of luck. | ||
| Dropnstyle |
darth i was making a joke about that. Have i ridden them on public roads? yes. Do i still? very rarely and its usually about 1 am or so when we go. Before our group got serious with sponsors and things we had no place to practice. Now we have practice spots and shows to do all our stunts. This goes for anybody learing, be careful and practice in non public area. as far as endos go. very easy with anything but the stock 207's. MAKE SURE YOUR TIRES ARE WARM. 35 or 40 is a good speed to start at... to learn squeeze your front brake and lean forward while locking your knees into the frame (keeps you steady). do this a few times squeezing harder each time. same thing to do a rolling endo but you squeeze quickly to get the back end up right away.at about 35 or 40 you can get a good 20 or 30 feet...want more...go faster. a not on rear brakes...many stunters are now using a thumb rear brake on their bars. | ||
| Darthane |
Noted, and I figured as much...I should have put a little winky in there to let you know *I* was joking as well. Better late than never... | ||
| New12r |
I got popped for "Riding a wheelie" and got a reckless driving ticket, worst part was I had only power shifted to second with no wheelie intentions and the front tire never lofted more than 10 inches. I guess I could have gotten out of it if I would not have told the cop "Dont you think if I was going to ride a wheelie I would have busted one out down the street?" Oh well live and learn. | ||
| Burner |
i generaly start out in 1st, run up to 5500rpm and grabb 2nd.the front end will lift when you hit 2nd and stay in throttle,slightly roll off the throtle to adjust for height.with enough practice you will be able to grab 3rd.it is important that you slid as far back on seat ,if not it will throw to much weight on front end and be harder to lift. trying to wheelie in 1st is to dangerous,it just to torkie and rpms come up to fast.practice your 1st to 2nd shifts on back of your seat and after a while you will feel the front end floating before no time. | ||
| Shred |
In all of that 1rst gear wheelies are more dangerous. Doing a creeper wheelie without lowering your tire psi. shows a person really knows the balance point on the bike and himself. Once learning balance you can ride it out without throttling to keep the wheelie up.Ride it forever. Going from 1rst and speed shifting into 2nd around 4500 to 5000 is fun and if you go to high just let of the throttle and remember also will going down not to bottom out your forks it can do damage. Have fun but be safe!! Was anyone at Tilly's at the running of the ridge? I walked a great 2nd gear wheelie down the side road leaving Tilly's. My favorite thing is to hit the switchbacks and drag a knee into a sharp hairy corner and then throttle out! WOW!! Look up Suches G.A at Hwy 60 and Hwy 180. So many other curves so little time. Ride safe and think twice and save your own life! | ||
| Glitch |
 Shred up on one | ||
| Dj_rider |
Okay I am no wheelie expert but I have been talking to the guys that I ride with. What they do is in first gear get it up and then do a clutchless shift to second. You gotta do this kinda of hard to second cause on the Buell it seems to take some effort. The second method is 2nd gear, get the revs up and bounce the front wheel at the same time dropping the RPM, then on the rebound hit it hard and pull up. I've haven't figured out the clutch method yet. Hope this helps.... FYI DO NOT DO A CLUTCHLESS SHIFT FROM FIRST TO SECOND, YOU WILL MOST DEFINITLY FLIP OVER THE REAR END AND WATCH YOUR BIKE DO CARTWHEELS DOWN THE ROAD (this is for a 12r) i dont know ish about the 9r... | ||
| Goldenboy9r |
 | ||
| Fbolt |
Is this a Viagra thread? | ||
| Tripper |
Or you could go aound in circles at walking speed. I can't, but he can.  | ||
| 2k4xb12 |
   | ||
| Evil_twin |
HOW DID I KNOW THE 420 PIC WAS GOING TO MAKE IT TO THIS THREAD?! You guys are relentless. Will the madness ever end??? Rich  |
