Page 1 of 2

Close ratio vs. Wide ratio

Posted: April 20th, 2010, 11:46 pm
by sugarshane
Just curious if anyone here knows the difference between top end between the two. Obviously I know I know there are a ton of factors from sprockets to pipes and a bunch of other things. I have a 91 close ratio with 14/49(right now) sprockets, fmf gnarly and turbine II, and 41 PWK and ride Gordon's Well Dunes and the desert around Phoenix. Any preferences on either ratio form ppl who have ridden both and why? How much does the wide ratio help with wheel spin and does it reduce acceleration? Any input would be greatly appreciated

Posted: April 21st, 2010, 5:45 am
by Rosco-Peeko
If you're a duner, a wide-ratio would be better, 4th and 5th will give you more speed. While 1-3 is about the same (low gear tractoring). It all depends on what suits your riding style.

Posted: April 21st, 2010, 7:02 am
by Roostius_Maximus
Image

Posted: April 21st, 2010, 8:28 am
by hoofarted
I hated my close ratio in my 92...I was in 5th all the time. I bought 4th/5th gears from a member here or on the other site - cannot recall but its much better now!

Posted: April 21st, 2010, 8:36 am
by dannygraves
you got the gears from casey (clyde/100hp)

I prefer the wide ratio hands down, especially for duning since you get that tall 5th for those big bowls. The close ratio seems like a waste for a 500, 4th is pretty much useless and 5th winds out way too fast.

Posted: April 21st, 2010, 2:37 pm
by ISBB
i actually enjoyed the close ratio in my bike in the dunes. 15/47 and i had no problem keeping up.. still had plenty of power left in the big bowls if i needed it as well. Worked good for hill shooting too since the gears are close there is no wait for it to build power again its pretty much right there when you want it :D

Posted: April 21st, 2010, 4:51 pm
by 100hp honda
ISBB wrote:Worked good for hill shooting too since the gears are close there is no wait for it to build power again its pretty much right there when you want it :D
well said

Posted: April 22nd, 2010, 8:09 pm
by sugarshane
all things considered equal between the two, what kind of top end differences are we talking about?

Posted: April 23rd, 2010, 8:36 am
by dannygraves
a lot, I did the math a long time ago and forgot the numbers, but easily 10mph on top speed

Posted: April 23rd, 2010, 9:18 am
by britincali
It might only be 10 but it feels like 30, short ratio trannys SUCK balls, end of story.

Posted: April 23rd, 2010, 8:06 pm
by nmdesertrider
We run both here and nobody really cares.

Posted: April 23rd, 2010, 10:25 pm
by asteroid500
Brit,
you got a spare tranny :roll: ...i could go a good suck on the balls. :lol:

Posted: April 25th, 2010, 10:23 am
by ISBB
dannygraves wrote:a lot, I did the math a long time ago and forgot the numbers, but easily 10mph on top speed
Geared right you can make up that diffrence and still have plenty of power with consistant shifts... to each thier own.. I loved the short ratio in mine and you got the wide gears you were after :P

Posted: April 25th, 2010, 5:37 pm
by 100hp honda
6mph difference according to sprocket specialties calculator with 14/49 at 6500rpm

Posted: April 26th, 2010, 1:48 pm
by ISBB
so go 15/49 er 15/47 and it will be perfect and your not loosing any MPH and actually gaining some :D

Posted: April 26th, 2010, 3:15 pm
by hoofarted
ISBB wrote:so go 15/49 er 15/47 and it will be perfect and your not loosing any MPH and actually gaining some :D
Ya try doing ST with those gears!

Posted: April 27th, 2010, 7:02 am
by dannygraves
hoofarted wrote:
ISBB wrote:so go 15/49 er 15/47 and it will be perfect and your not loosing any MPH and actually gaining some :D
Ya try doing ST with those gears!
the exact reason I run a wide ratio, I might ride some really tight ST one weekend, then mobb some dunes the next, hell, thats even happened on the same day many times, its nice to gave the good crawling gears while still having a decent top speed.

Posted: April 27th, 2010, 7:09 am
by AlisoBob
dannygraves wrote:... its nice to gave the good crawling gears while still having a decent top speed.
Ask Ron129

Posted: May 20th, 2010, 5:56 pm
by jeffatc250r
My 94 cr is setup as a road bike. Finding that I wish it had a 6th gear.

I also have a 1985 cr-500 stuffed into a atc250r chassis,...my question is this, can I swap 4th and fifth from the 85 and plop it onto the 94 shafts? If not will the whole entire gear sets interchange? If it will, sounds like a good winter project to gain a few mph up top.

Posted: May 21st, 2010, 7:38 am
by dannygraves
94 is wide ratio, infact, the same ratios a the '85. '88-'92 were close ratio, everything else was wide.
and no, the '85 gears won't swap.

Posted: May 21st, 2010, 7:54 am
by hoofarted
How many teeth on the sprockets?

Posted: May 21st, 2010, 7:55 am
by dannygraves
ya, like Hoofarted is getting at, I would gear up a street bike, maybe like 15/45

Posted: May 21st, 2010, 9:29 am
by jeffatc250r
Ahhh, now i feel like a tard,....always thought the 94 was one of the years of the close ratio. Im running 14-45. I really dont want to bump it up anymore as its a pain in the ass as it is in the real slow stuff going light to light. Thanks for the input guys, Ill scratch that idea!

Posted: May 24th, 2010, 7:07 pm
by bigpower
hoofarted wrote:
ISBB wrote:so go 15/49 er 15/47 and it will be perfect and your not loosing any MPH and actually gaining some :D
Ya try doing ST with those gears!
All I ride is the single track, and 15/48 is the hot ticket. My stock 01 has no problem haulin my fat ass up any hill, and we got some big ones up here. Quite a bit more MPH up top, and not really any sacrifice on the low end, and it does tame the power delivery a bit. Add a Keihin 38mm AirStriker PWK from a '97 KX250 and you got yourself the ultimate single track weapon. Least I consider it to be.

Posted: May 25th, 2010, 8:48 am
by dannygraves
WOw, I don't know how you ride, but 15/48 sucks ass for me in ST, I loop out more with taller gearing.