Panjandrum Posted January 31, 2011 #1 Posted January 31, 2011 I have had my 08 Venture since May last year. It is the first bike I have had with a heel shift. The only advantage I see to the heel shift is that it saves wear and tear to the top of your left boot. I do not need to move my foot from its rest position to shift up if I use my toe, whereas I must move my leg back and lift it to get the heel on top of the shifter. So, my question(s): How many use the heel shifter? What advantages do you see to using it? Is it worth the effort to retrain myself to use this feature? Thanks for any thoughts.
etcswjoe Posted January 31, 2011 #2 Posted January 31, 2011 I swore for years I would never use a heel to toe shifter, however after 6 months using one I would not go back. I rode a friends bike the other day and felt lost with out the heel to toe.
etcswjoe Posted January 31, 2011 #3 Posted January 31, 2011 (edited) Not sure why but my last post showed up twice. Edited January 31, 2011 by etcswjoe Duplicate post for some reason
LilBeaver Posted January 31, 2011 #4 Posted January 31, 2011 (edited) This is my 2nd bike with a heel-toe shifter and I still think it gets in the way. up until about 2 weeks ago I had only used it sparingly (typically to find N or to try to force myself to use it to see if I liked it). Well, ever since 2 weeks ago I have been using it almost exclusively - not because I suddenly like it but because 2 weeks ago I dropped a 600lb magnet on my left big toe rendering it darn near useless without LOTS of pain. My opinion is give yourself an honest try at giving the heel shifter a try - if you still don't like it then get rid of it (or ignore it) . This is going to be one of those discussions that someone will swear it is the greatest thing since sliced bread and others will say that if you use it you will die a fiery death (like using a car tire). I am exaggerating some here (just in case you aren't familiar with my sense of humor) but I think it made my point. Happy trails! .... So, my question(s): How many use the heel shifter? I have been since I have injured my toe What advantages do you see to using it? - Save your big toe from experiencing excruciating agony - Possibly easier for a 'firm' upshift by pushing 'down' instead of pulling 'up' - Something different :confused24: Is it worth the effort to retrain myself to use this feature? That is entirely up to you, my friend. It is your bike and your feet. I had every intension of cutting my 'heel shifter' off not long after I got my bike... Quite frankly, I just never took time to do it. Edited January 31, 2011 by LilBeaver My browser freaked out and started behaving irratically
ahoutzer Posted January 31, 2011 #5 Posted January 31, 2011 I've been using the heel shifter for over ten years. I never upshift with the toe any more. I can shift faster with the heel shifter than I ever did with the toe -- even when quickly upshifting two gears at a time. That would probably be different on a bike where the rider sits with his legs curled up under him and the shifter is positioned in contact with the toe, but the RSV is set up for a relaxed feet-in-front posture. It's just a matter of training yourself to use it.
Guest oldroadstar Posted January 31, 2011 #6 Posted January 31, 2011 Mine was always in the way and I never used it so i cut it off!!!
Dave77459 Posted January 31, 2011 #7 Posted January 31, 2011 I started using the heel shifter because the toe shifter was so close to my boot (I wear steel toed boots) that my foot felt trapped. I like using it now, and feel more authoritative with my shifting. Dave
dynodon Posted January 31, 2011 #8 Posted January 31, 2011 I had not used one till my wife's '98 Shadow Ace Tour came with it. I love riding her bike, but the advantage is slight for me, and not worth the money to change out my '86 VR if I could find one, or to add the floorboards and shifter etc to my '05 GoldWing. I rented an Ultra Harley last January, and loved the floorboards and heel/toe shifter. Try it and see if you like it. Should only take a few rides of forcing yourself to use it to get totally used to it. You can always ignore it or cut off the back section if a toe shifter replacement isn't available. Give it a try, variety is sometimes good!
SilvrT Posted January 31, 2011 #9 Posted January 31, 2011 I have had my 08 Venture since May last year. It is the first bike I have had with a heel shift. The only advantage I see to the heel shift is that it saves wear and tear to the top of your left boot. I do not need to move my foot from its rest position to shift up if I use my toe, whereas I must move my leg back and lift it to get the heel on top of the shifter. So, my question(s): How many use the heel shifter? What advantages do you see to using it? Is it worth the effort to retrain myself to use this feature? Thanks for any thoughts. Until I got my RSMV 2 years ago, I never rode a bike with heel-toe shifter other than a Harley during demo days. At first, I used only the toe shift while at the same time, "played" with using the heel shift. At first I didn't like it and seemed to have a hard time "finding" the heel shift. After about a month tho, I found I was getting onto it pretty good and before long, I could find it without even thinking. As for the advantage, firstly I find I can up-shift quicker and more positively using the heel. Secondly, due to how my highway pegs are mounted, I have less room to get the toe of my boot under the forward shifter. Is it worth the effort???... I think that's a matter of personal choice. My advice is try it for a while until you get used to it... then try going back and see how that feels. As a "side note", this is also the first bike I've ridden with floor boards and that plus the heel-toe shift was all a bit "strange" at first. Took me a while to stop from catching the edge of the floorboard with my heel when I went to plant my foot on the ground....almost caused me to dump the bike a couple times.
V7Goose Posted January 31, 2011 #10 Posted January 31, 2011 First of all, I personally will not accept a touring bike without floorboards, and that is key to my response. A toe-only shifter is fine (and probably preferable) on a bike with pegs. When your foot is on a peg, it tends to angle down in the front, and pulling up with the toe is simply a matter of pivoting the ankle on the peg - this requires no leg motion at all. But floorboards change the entire geometry. Instead of your toes pointing down, they are flat, and unless you are a midget with legs spread way forward to sit on the floorboards, it is much more difficult to just raise the toes without lifting the entire leg. This is especially true for me since I have old injuries that affect my leg and ankle joints. So up-shifting with the toes from a flat position on a floorboard is awkward, slow, and very unnatural for me. On the other hand, there is absolutely no effort for me to simply raise my heel off the floor when I am sitting down - this doesn't even require the noticeable use of my leg muscles. So upshifting with floorboards is simple and quick by just slightly raising my heel and sliding my toes back about 1" on the floorboard. In fact, upshifting with my heel is considerably more easy than downshifting with my toes (which requires me to pick up my entire foot and rest my heel on the shifter pivot point to make the downward twist of the ankle easy). Goose
Guest Posted January 31, 2011 #11 Posted January 31, 2011 This is going to be one of those discussions that someone will swear it is the greatest thing since sliced bread and others will say that if you use it you will die a fiery death (like using a car tire). I am exaggerating some here (just in case you aren't familiar with my sense of humor) but I think it made my point. Man, that sounds sooo familiar. As far as the Heel/Toe shifter, im ambidextrious....I like it both ways.
bj66 Posted January 31, 2011 #12 Posted January 31, 2011 I started using the heel this summer. I like it alot. I grew up on dirt bikes etc. So this took a little getting used to. Now that I am used to it, I love it. I am the kind of person who gets restless sitting in one position for very long, so the movement of the shift doesnt bother me at all, in fact I like it. I'm always moving around in the saddle anyway, so I dont even think about it.
BOO Posted January 31, 2011 #13 Posted January 31, 2011 First big bike I owned was a HD so that's what I really learned on so it just comes pretty natural to use the heel. I've had several toe only shifters and that works fine also and like Goose said it just comes kind of natural on pegs. Now my BSA is another animal. Right foot shift, left foot brake. When I first get on the bike I tend to try and shift the brake and in a panic situation I just jam them both. A guy I ride with occasionally went from a Wing to a TD, first thing he had the dealer do was cut the heel part of the shifter off. Bottom line is I really like the Venture with the heel toe shift. BOO
SilvrT Posted January 31, 2011 #14 Posted January 31, 2011 I started using the heel this summer. I like it alot. I grew up on dirt bikes etc. So this took a little getting used to. Now that I am used to it, I love it. I am the kind of person who gets restless sitting in one position for very long, so the movement of the shift doesnt bother me at all, in fact I like it. I'm always moving around in the saddle anyway, so I dont even think about it. heh ... so which is it ... you LIKE it or LOVE it??
bj66 Posted January 31, 2011 #15 Posted January 31, 2011 heh ... so which is it ... you LIKE it or LOVE it?? hehehe, ya got me.....i was referring to the 2nd "like" as being able to move around a bit. So now I guess its a like/love thing. Not a like/love/like thing..........
Condor Posted January 31, 2011 #16 Posted January 31, 2011 I have had my 08 Venture since May last year. It is the first bike I have had with a heel shift. The only advantage I see to the heel shift is that it saves wear and tear to the top of your left boot. I do not need to move my foot from its rest position to shift up if I use my toe, whereas I must move my leg back and lift it to get the heel on top of the shifter. So, my question(s): How many use the heel shifter? What advantages do you see to using it? Is it worth the effort to retrain myself to use this feature? Thanks for any thoughts. Same thing here.... Picked up a toe/toe off Ebay. I did get used to the H/T, but it was the lifting and moving the foot back that was a PITA....
SilvrT Posted January 31, 2011 #17 Posted January 31, 2011 Same thing here.... Picked up a toe/toe off Ebay. I did get used to the H/T, but it was the lifting and moving the foot back that was a PITA.... whine - whine - whine .... waddy tryin to get in tune with yer clutch whine or are ya jus b!tchin ?? :rasberry: :rotf:
slick97spirit Posted January 31, 2011 #18 Posted January 31, 2011 This is my first bike with the heel shifter. Love it. Hope I never have anything else. Took a little getting used to tho.
Condor Posted January 31, 2011 #19 Posted January 31, 2011 whine - whine - whine .... waddy tryin to get in tune with yer clutch whine or are ya jus b!tchin ?? :rasberry: :rotf: Just went out and asked Miss Piggy... "Are you whining?" Miss Piggy.... "No Love, I don't whine" Me... "Just wondering, some Dude named 'Cam-bell' sez you do" Miss Piggy "Nah I b!tch and moan a bit, but I never whine....Muahh!" I think she loves me....
SilvrT Posted January 31, 2011 #20 Posted January 31, 2011 Just went out and asked Miss Piggy... "Are you whining?" Miss Piggy.... "No Love, I don't whine" Me... "Just wondering, some Dude named 'Cam-bell' sez you do" Miss Piggy "Nah I b!tch and moan a bit, but I never whine....Muahh!" I think she loves me.... :sign20:
Chinto Posted January 31, 2011 #21 Posted January 31, 2011 Floorboards and heel toe shifters were made for each other. While I do not power shift with the heel shifter I do like to use it with casual cruising.
Aimhigh Posted January 31, 2011 #22 Posted January 31, 2011 I never had the heel shifter until I got the Venture...hated it! Got used to it and actually liked it. Traded for the new bike which does not have a heel shifter...hated it and swore I would replace it with one! Had the bike for a few months and now I am comfortable once again without it. Change can be a bit difficult to deal with.
Brake Pad Posted January 31, 2011 #23 Posted January 31, 2011 I will not go back to a bike, without a heel toe shifter. makes for a more comfortable shift
Kirby Posted January 31, 2011 #24 Posted January 31, 2011 Ok there have been a lot of pros and cons on this topic so here is my worth. Right after I got the RSV, I also got a bad case of gout in my left big toe. For those of you that have ever had this you know how painful it can be. Here I was with a new bike and couldn't bear lifting the shift lever with my toe, so I trained myself to use the heel shifter. I had thought about cutting it off before, but now it's there if I ever have another bad bout with MR. Gout!! If I can possibly ride, I'm a gona!!! Speaking of which.., c'ya!
friesman Posted January 31, 2011 #25 Posted January 31, 2011 I had thought about cutting it off before, but now it's there if I ever have another bad bout with MR. Gout!! If I can possibly ride, I'm a gona!!! Speaking of which.., c'ya! So when you had the gout was it the toe you were thinking about cutting off? that there gout is painful stuff!!!!! Brian
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now