[Guest]

What are the differences between the 6 speed 620 and the 5 speed, mine being 5 speed and obvious answers aside, would I have been smarter to pay more for the 6 speed or will 5 work like I thought, Just fine????

 

[atatinen]

If it should be a point blank answer.. you should have paid the extra for 6 speed. But then considering this to be your first bike.. you will be just fine on this one for a "while" .

 

[Gernick]

Is it really necessary for a 60 hp bike to have a 6 speed?

How many actually get a chance to get out of fourth?

 

[ScottRNelson]

The reason you want more gears is to make it easier to keep the engine in the powerband. Those with wider powerbands, like the M900, probably could get by easier with 5 gears, while the 600, 620, and 750 might be able to use 6.

When I first got my M900 back in 1997, 6th gear often felt too high for cruising at 50-60 mph, and 1st gear was a bit high pulling away from a stop. Switching from a 39 to a 41-tooth rear fixed both. I later went from 15/41 to 14/39 when the chain was replaced and I thought that gearing was perfect.

The Monster is now gone and I've been riding an ST2 since November. The gearing was a bit high pulling away from a stop and I finally decided that 6th gear was also too high. Yesterday I installed a 14-tooth front (now 14/42) and it really fixed the gearing for me. I'll have to ride a few hundred miles of twisties on the bike, but I'm hoping that it will fix the awkward gearing that the bike seemed to have everywhere.

What were we talking about? ???

Oh yeah, five-speed transmissions. You get more overall range of gearing with a six-speed, so that when you finally drop the gearing on the sprockets you have a low enough first gear for easy starts, high enough top gear for highway use, and not too big of a jump in between any of the gears.

 

[Norm]

I have 5 and 6 speed bikes & while you get used to each one, if I had my way, they'd all be 7 or 8 speeds. I don't understand when people say they rarely use 6th gear on their 900s, I use every gear on every bike, every time I go out.

 

[PEDS DOC]

I have a a 2002 5 speed 620 and when I am on the interstate I am always begging for a 6th gear not for power but for crusing overdrive if you will. I love my monster but I would spring for a 6th gear if it we feasible.

 

[dbriannelson]

My experience with a 5-speed 620 is that even cruising at 90mph (about as fast as it's comfortable to ride) the engine is relaxed. I guess if I went to lower sprocket gearing a higher top gear might be nice, but I don't plan to do that.

Five speeds cover the range nicely with the bike's nice broad torque band. If the engine were peaky it would be a different story.

-Don

 

[kidofsand]

Ducati does offer a 6 speed upgrade kit for the cycles with 5 speed transmissions. I think it would probably be really expensive though.

 

[Jasons03Corse]

I agree with Dr Hibbert.