How To Work Pit Bike Gear, Transmission And Clutch ?

A pit bike will usually come with four to six gears. The least number of gears that a pit bike will have is four, whereas six will be the highest. A typical dirt bike or pit bike will have around five gears.

The gear of any vehicle helps to control the rotation of the wheel to control the speed in different situations. Almost 90% of vehicles with an engine tend to come with gears. Kids' pit bikes and dirt bikes may not come with gears. They may use an automatic transmission system to control the speed. If you are reading this article, you probably are not a kid to ride a pit bike with automatic transmission. Let us learn about the transmission system of any pit bike-

How does a pit bike transmission work?

• The torque and rpm level of any pit bike needs to control by a manually shifting gear lever. You need to control the lever by shifting it up and down with the left foot.
  

• A pit bike gearbox will have multiple gear steps that we need to switch according to the situation and demand.
• A pit bike transmission works as a constant mesh and it also ensures sequential transmission. That means if you are on the first gear and want to go to the fourth, you need to change the gear in order from one to fourth. You cannot directly go to the fourth gear without passing the second or third gear.
• When you press the lever upwards or downwards, the claw arm rotates the drum of the gearbox. The stoppers of the claw do not allow the drum to rotate more than sixty degrees. As a result, it changes one gear at a time.
• The shift fork rotates along with the drum, allowing the gears to change sequentially.

How the clutch of a pit bike works?

The clutch and the gears are interconnected with one another. One cannot run without another. Let us find out how the clutch helps to control the gears-

• One needs to operate the clutch by pulling a clutch lever with the left hand.  The power of the engine is converted to rotary motion by the crankshaft. This power was then transferred to the clutch house. The clutch house then transfers the power to the input shaft of the gearbox. That means if the clutch does not work, the input shaft of the gearbox will not get any power. It eventually will cause the wheels to get zero power.
• When you pull or release the clutch lever, a hydraulic system rotates an actuator arm. This rod pushes against the pushrod towards the clutch.
• This rod is connected to a shaft on the input shaft. It pushes the pressure plate. As a result, the pressure on the clutch pack is released. When you release the clutch lever, the spring starts producing pressure on the clutch pack again.
• By giving and releasing pressure, the clutch disconnects the engine from its transmission. As a result, the engine can cope up with the shifting gears.

How to use a pit bike clutch?

• When you are pulling the clutch, the best thing that you can do is let the clutch out very slowly. One of the common problems with most new pit bike riders is that they hardly know when the bike is going to take off, allowing them to remain in a panic mode for a couple of seconds.
  
• You should never use more than two fingers while using the clutch. The more fingers you use on the clutch, the less grip you tend to get. You may also use one finger if you feel comfortable with it. But using two fingers is always optimum.
• You need to ensure a little bit of throttle while letting the bike go. If you give a lot of throttles, the sound will be overwhelming, ensuring an uncomfortable start. If you release the clutch too fast, the bike will stop.

Learning to maneuver the clutch requires decent practicing. Keep practicing until you become good at this.

How to shift pit bike gears?

• Before you start shifting the gear of your pit bike, you need to be really comfortable with the clutch.
• A common question that many people ask while learning about shifting gear is whether they should use the clutch or not while shifting the gear. The answer is both yes and no.
• When you are shifting your bike, make sure you are using the clutch to release the stress of the bike. When you are going down with the bike, it is okay to shift the gears without using the clutch.
• Now comes the process of shifting gears. You should never smack the lever too hard. This will help to keep the transmission process of the bike to stay in a good shape.
• You need to let the throttle off and pull the clutch in while shifting the gear. After you changec the gear you need to let the clutch back out and start to apply the throttle again.
• Using the clutch and throttle simultaneously helps the bike not miss a gear.

You need to continually work on this as you ride. This is not going to be quick and easy at the very beginning. But as you will continue practicing, it will turn out to be your second nature.

Gears and strokes

If the dirt bike has gear, it will be from four to six. Five will be the typical number in that case. It does not matter whether your dirt bike has a two-stroke engine or a four-stroke engine. The gear does not change with the stroke capacity.

Final words

Honing the skill of shifting gear and clutch is the most intimidating task for any beginner. It demands you to perform enough practice and show perseverance to hone the skill as second nature. The whole transmission is far complex than it seems. Multiple things are there that work dexterously to keep the system running. Whether you are driving a dirt bike or pit bike, learning to manage the gears properly is the first step of expertise.