Shifting the AE

For AE owners:

After a few thousand miles I have settled into a shifting routine that works well for me especially while commuting.

I have been upshifting with the paddle and downshifting with the traditional foot shifter and I feel that there are a few advantages over shifting exclusively with the paddle as it seems most AE owners prefer.

Personally, I have small, fat hands with big palms and small fingers, especialy my short, stubby thumbs. Accordingly, I have a little extra room at the end of my thumbs on even the best fitting gloves. This makes downshifting with the paddle, slightly less concise especialy when occasionaly jockeying between the lights, shield and horn...which brings me to my next point. I feel safer covering the horn at all times, especially in traffic. Although, I rarely use it, I like to be prepared to especially when splitting/sharing lanes here in California (where it is legal).

Besides the added benefit of not scuffing the top of your shoe, it is also nice to be able to always just leave your foot above the shifter.

I have been shifting this way for about the last 1500 miles (mostly commuting) and don't anticipate making any changes as it has become very natural for me. I ecourage AE owners out there to try it for a while.

Let me know what think once you do.

Malve said:

For AE owners:I have been upshifting with the paddle and downshifting with the traditional foot shifter and I feel that there are a few advantages over shifting exclusively with the paddle as it seems most AE owners prefer.

Let me know what think once you do.

Click to expand...

I also don't use the thumb, but I don't use my foot, just my forefinger. I simply flick the back of the finger lever forward to change down. This would also probably work even with your "fat hands with big palms and small fingers".

If I'm doing a lot uf up/down changes, I leave my hand "fixed", just move the finger under the lever to change from up to down and vice versa.

This removes any possibility of getting horny instead of changing down with the thumb (just as your "foot down" method does), and I can ignore my foot completely.

It also guarantees no accidental clutchless changes if I ride a "manual".

The reality is "whatever works for you", as in so much of motorcycling.

I'm still hitting the horn... 95 miles...

99% paddles and loving it! Horn every so often (I need to get this routine down before the Stebel upgrade)

My big flippers in the SIDI boots are a pain for crisp foot shifts.

Malve said:

For AE owners:
After a few thousand miles I have settled into a shifting routine that works well for me especially while commuting.

I have been upshifting with the paddle and downshifting with the traditional foot shifter and I feel that there are a few advantages over shifting exclusively with the paddle as it seems most AE owners prefer.

Personally, I have small, fat hands with big palms and small fingers, especialy my short, stubby thumbs. Accordingly, I have a little extra room at the end of my thumbs on even the best fitting gloves. This makes downshifting with the paddle, slightly less concise especialy when occasionaly jockeying between the lights, shield and horn...which brings me to my next point. I feel safer covering the horn at all times, especially in traffic. Although, I rarely use it, I like to be prepared to especially when splitting/sharing lanes here in California (where it is legal).

Besides the added benefit of not scuffing the top of your shoe, it is also nice to be able to always just leave your foot above the shifter.

I have been shifting this way for about the last 1500 miles (mostly commuting) and don't anticipate making any changes as it has become very natural for me. I ecourage AE owners out there to try it for a while.

Let me know what think once you do.

Click to expand...

10k miles on my AE "Flicker" and I randomly used both the paddle and the footshifter. With winter weight gloves I find the paddle somewhat cumbersome. All in all I like having the option of either way.

I sure like using the finger shifter, but hardly ever do. In fact, I have thought about doing the opposite: disconnect the switch AND remove the finger shifter. Haven't done it, probably never will. More likely to farkle some kind of extension onto the finger shifter so that it's easier for me to get to the paddles.

Never really thought about it. Why do they have an on/off for the finger shifter anyway? You would think that leaving it on full time would be a good thing, if not an expected thing. Would be nice to be able to remove the big assed button housing and have room for other farkles on the bars. Whaddya think? :unknw:

mostly im a flickin' upshifter, and a kickin' downshifter.

but i do toss up flickin' and kickin' and can do either.

I do alot of kickin' and cussin' when i forget to enable the finger shifter! (let me know when someone successfully finds an easy way to make the trigger/finger shifter enabled on start-up)

anyway -- i think it's best to master both, and as TDave shows -- sometimes it's just more convenient for some reason to shift with what your less used to...

I guess those bastages on the slower blue bikes wouldn't know -- as they have no choice!!! they are forced to kick!... :lol: :lol:

Used the foot shifter once when it was new. 9000 miles later, wouldn't really consider bothering w/ the pedal. Horn seldom is accidently honked but w/ Stebel's, it's always a little funny. Which reminds me, going down the expressway w/ no traffic early last Sunday morning, there was this electric wire that was going above/across the freeway loaded down w/ black birds side by side. Now, just to hit the horn at the right time. They all lifted their tails up at the same time and then back down in perfect sync but didn't fly off. I guess I'm easily amused but I laughed so hard tears were coming out.

With 3.000 miles already and counting, I do also prefer upshifting with the paddle and downshifting with the traditional foot shifter. Like that I fell a more sporty riding, as mentioned in my website new AE section:

https://pierre.inazores.com/fjr_as_e.htm

Each day I feel better with my great new bike ! :yahoo: