• 4 Stroke Husqvarna Motorcycles Made In Italy - About 1989 to 2014
     TE = 4st Enduro & TC = 4st Cross

  • Hi everyone,

    As you all know, Coffee (Dean) passed away a couple of years ago. I am Dean's ex-wife's husband and happen to have spent my career in tech. Over the years, I occasionally helped Dean with various tech issues.

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close gear ratio

H

henson802

Husqvarna
AA Class
From my understanding - there are multiple models within the Husqvarna dirt bike lineup. They have the TXC , the TC, and the TE - are all Close Gear Ratio??

The TXC and TC - from best of my knowledge - are dirt only and not sold with a plate option. Where as the TE does - but is still Close Gear Ratio which kinda kills the plate option imo..

Are all TE models close gear ratio (I've only ridden my 2010 TE 250)? And do they plan to go wide gear ratio at all for TE models now/future?
 
I've not kept up with Honda, but as far as I know, based on 2007 research:
Honda 450x = TE = TXC = top to bottom ratio is about 2.5
Honda 450r = TC = top to bottom ratio is about 2

Top to bottom ratio: If going a certain rpm in 1st gear and doing 10mph, then at the same rpm in top gear it is doing 25 mph - then the top to bottom ratio would be 2.5

I do not know what the future holds.
 
The lack of a WR transmission has been a point of discussion for quite some time. What is in the future is hard to tell due to the SP/KTM buyout of Husqvarna. The WR 250 had a WR 6speed till 98, WR 5speed till 02 (I think) and the WR 360 had a WR 6 speed till 02. They were great transmissions and were definitely missed.
My personal feeling is there will be WR transmissions in the future, but what do I know?
As a side note:
Zip Ty Racing is testing a WR transmission for the 449/511 by substituting BMW gears.
 
I'm not sure what those specs mean..

I'm not saying Husqvarna is bad for doing close gear ratio cause for off road only - it's great. But TE is sold with a plate so versatility is important. I would buy another Husky TE if it had Wide Gear Ratio in an instant because I ride like 60 dirt 40 road. I also have a yamaha wr450 2004 and has wide gear ratio - it's very versatile with a big rear and 14 counter sprocket and has made me wonder why Husky went the Close Gear Ratio route for the TE models... Do Pro Enduro riders prefer close gear? I would think wide gear would be more beneficial for most enduro races but I guess that's why I'm no pro!
 
henson802 said:
I'm not sure what those specs mean..
..yamaha wr450 2004 and has wide gear ratio
Click to expand...
I'm reasonably sure the ratio on that Yamaha is about 3.

Go a certain rpm in first gear, then go the same rpm in top gear, you should be going about 3x faster in the top gear than you were in 1st gear.
 
Doesn't have an RPM thingy hehe

I guess I see benefits to close gear ratio to enduro riders through the gnarley stuff. But then again, I rarely see a Pro Enduro rider going slow - so for that reason, would think a wide ratio gear ratio would be good on certain races.

Hopefully by the time I'm ready to buy another bike, Husqvarna comes out with a model with wide gear ratio and is plateable. I can dream right..
 
That has been my only gripe ever since I got my 511 is the rediculous close ratio tranny. All they would have to do is stretch out 5th and 6th
a little and I'd be happy. I recently put a 48t on the rear and it did do a little but it's still not freeway worthy, imo. I'm not concerned about being
able to ride on the freeway but it would be cool to be able to comfortably ride on a mountain hwy at 65 without worrying about blowing it up. Still love
my 511, though.
 
jerbear610 said:
That has been my only gripe ever since I got my 511 is the rediculous close ratio tranny. All they would have to do is stretch out 5th and 6th
a little and I'd be happy. I recently put a 48t on the rear and it did do a little but it's still not freeway worthy, imo. I'm not concerned about being
able to ride on the freeway but it would be cool to be able to comfortably ride on a mountain hwy at 65 without worrying about blowing it up. Still love
my 511, though.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I hear ya.

I love my TE250 but first is nearly non existent unless you are lugging incredibly slow, I generally stop and hold clutch in 2nd then take off but even then I'm switching quickly to 3rd and 4th. If I'm on an easier trail, and stopped and want to rip off.. I'm flipping through the gears so fast and not really accelerating as quick as I feel like I could be.

It has it's benefits for sure. But would be interesting to see a 310 or 449 on a wide gear ratio transmission - like the older Husky WR's according to Xcuvator. We'll see what the future brings
 
On my TE250 - those numbers don't feel justified.. granted I have a 50 rear on it, but I'm in 4th gear at 30 mph.. and 6th at 40-45 mph :eek: I wonder what it would be like with a different tranny ratio.

My dream bike - Husky TE 390 with wide gear ratio :cheers:
 
Tinken said:
Your next bike might be just that but I believe they are calling them FE 390's
Click to expand...

I wish Husabergs were common around these parts. Unfortunately, I have never seen one in person - but heard they are pretty ballsy.. I think for 2013 they are making FE350 instead of FE390. Too bad cause the 390 seems to be perfect for off road and on road (no highway obviously).. patience
 
General statement about the Transmission ratios.

On one end of the scale are the mx bikes, which are typically about 2.
The other end of the scale are bikes like the klr250 & crf230 we had, and the TE610 (3.4) - and the xt225 had an even larger number: 3.9
The TR650 is a convenient number to remember: 3.14

Other bikes seem to be in between WR250f (2.9), drz400 (2.65), kdx200 (3.1), 2007 525EXC (3), SV650 (2.9), TE250/450/511 (2.5)

The above numbers are approximate, and could be different depending on model year.

Just trying to put what the numbers mean into perspective.
 
It's interesting the WR250f is 2.9 where as DRZ400 is 2.65.

I'll admit, I'm a little bit of a newbie when it comes to Tranny ratios, but there's some good info here. Lets say the TE is outfitted with a wide-gear ratio tranny , would that decrease HP and Torque - one or the other?
 
henson802 said:
...Lets say the TE is outfitted with a wide-gear ratio tranny , would that decrease HP and Torque - one or the other?
Click to expand...
While I am sure there might be some slight side effects, the good vs bad for wide vs close:
Wide: rpms are down when you want to fast. Downside is 'what gear' you have selected is more critical.
Narrow: rpms are up when you want to go fast. Upside is 'what gear' you have selected is less critical i.e. 2nd or 3rd could work, and sometimes while riding off road un-expected things could happen where you might need able to ride on in a slightly wrong gear.
 
Henson, have you thought about switching to a 45T rear sprocket ? You say you do not use 1st gear, you are a perfect match for gearing up. You would get a 1st gear you could use and a higher top speed as well and lower cruising rpm at the same speeds. The 45T is just a guess you might try a different size but you problem could be improved with a rear sprocket change.
 
Thanks Coffee - I try to compare but difficult cause my 450 is wide gear ratio and my 250 is close gear... and I think part of my judgement comes from the overall engine displacement difference. But it seems like the 450 can rev forever and has more 'usable' power in my opinion. When it's in first and I'm going slow - the rpms are low but at the same time - I can rev and rev forever it seems before I needed to go into the next gear. Where as my TE250 - I rarely use 1st - and if I do, it's not past like 5mph before I can switch to second and rev it for a little longer and slamming through the gears real quick.

Rancher1 - yeah I thought about going to 45 for long time, but ended up getting a 450 and putting my money towards chain/sprockets on that :) I'll probably try a 45 rear on the 250 soon enough. Was just curious if Husqvarna or whoever buys had any plans to switch to wide gear ratio - since the transmission on the TE is basically a TC/TXC transmission with an added 6th from what I gather.

Appreciate the info
 
I like the close ratio, always a perfect gear for any trail (with 50 t sprocket). I had an xt225 before my TE250, would much rather be too close than too wide. There is always a compromise, but I would rather give up top speed than have "gaps". It would be cool if there was an extra gear or two on top in addition to the six, don't know if this would even be possible, but I'm sure it would add weight and take up space.
 
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