XJ550 Gear Up or Down!???

anybody have experience gearing their 550 up or down?? I don't do much highway riding but here and there I have to hop on for a little so not so worried about losing a little top speed. Would really like to be able to shoot off the ramps or have a little more torque on the backroads so am thinking about adding a few teeth in back. Anyone get any noticeable results from a bigger rear sprocket? I need a little more get-up and I'm not getting a bigger bike so thanks

 

Pods.
He, he..

 

Before talking about sprockets, I must ask; at what engine speeds are you shifting?

 

Agreed to what K-Moe is asking, especially since there is a V-Rod in the background you will have very different engine characteristics (beyond the obvious differences in horsepower) and will be shifting at higher RPMs than your friend.

Also, and I'm sorry but I have to ask, why do you have highway pegs AND clubman bars? Otherwise, that looks like a nicely setup 550.

 

Yep on these bikes you need to shift at fairly high RPMs, I usually shift up at right about 4.5 - 5K, If I'm really hauling I'll shift more like 6 - 7.5K. Very nice looking bike!

 

Twist that throttle a bit harder, hauling I'll use 9k as a change point, I'll change up at 6-7k if Im dicking about, they're built to rev

 

XJ PARTS CATALOG, SECTION H: CLUTCH, TRANNY, DRIVETRAIN

section H
front sprocket
Additionally, 15- and 17-tooth gears are also available. A 17-tooth front gear will give you slightly less acceleration (about 5% less), but will, in theory, allow for an increase in your top speed, and also decrease your engine rpm's at any given cruising speed. However, if most of your riding is on the highway, or if top-speed is a great concern of yours, then changing your drive sprocket to a 17-tooth version may be a worthy upgrade for you. Conversely, a 15-tooth front gear is a great way to increase the kick of your engine, although it will turn your ride into a buzz-box at freeway speeds! Please also see the longer discussion of gear ratios under the "rear sprocket" section further below.

rear sprocket
A rear gear with a higher tooth count than stock will give will give quicker acceleration (but may limit top speed), while a rear gear with a lower tooth count than stock results in lower engine rpm's for any given speed, and may allow a higher top speed (if the engine is powerful enough to actually achieve it at max rpm's), but will reduce acceleration.

For a quick performance comparison, here is a chart of the various combinations of drive ratios available using any combination of either a 15-, 16-, or 17-tooth front sprocket along with either a 44-, 45-, or 46-tooth rear sprocket on XJ550 and FJ600 models:

15 front and 46 rear = 3.0667-to-1 ratio (fastest acceleration)
15 front and 45 rear = 3.0000-to-1 ratio
15 front and 44 rear = 2.9333-to-1 ratio
16 front and 46 rear = 2.8750-to-1 ratio (stock 1981 XJ550 Seca)
16 front and 45 rear = 2.8125-to-1 ratio (stock 1982-3 XJ550 Seca and all XJ550 Maxims)
16 front and 44 rear = 2.7500-to-1 ratio
17 front and 46 rear = 2.7059-to-1 ratio
17 front and 45 rear = 2.6471-to-1 ratio
17 front and 44 rear = 2.5822-to-1 ratio (highest top speed)

 

Ha I thought I was pushing it a little too hard with the 7K gear changes when I really wasn't pushing it hard enough, gotta love these bikes with practically a sport bike engine in a cruiser. It actually seemed like my bike has been running pretty hot, maybe I've actually been making the engine work too hard by not revving it high enough instead of the other way around

 

Why do you think that it's running hot?
If it really is running hot, then there's something wrong.
Is this the first air-cooled motorcycle you've owned?

 

Yes it is, actually the first motorcycle I have owned. I am probably thinking too much about it and it's putting out a normal amount of heat for a large air cooled engine, my only real reference is little tiny 50cc motors

 

Those tiny 50cc motors get just as hot, though the volume of heat they put off is less.
There are days where I miss my scooter....but then I never could get it to go faster than 68 MPH (it was a 125, not a 50).