Advice from anyone who struggled with double clutching

as far as timing... think of the theme song to the Adams Family (the original, not the modern remakes).... remember the finger snaps? That's the timing, 1-2.

 

That's too fast. Be good for floating though.

 

Downshifting it'll slide into gear when you hit the right rpms
Don't forget to switch from low to high BEFORE shifting an vice versa. Same with the splitter. It all has a sort of rythem to it.

 

Just keep doing it every day and one day it will just happen automatically and you will wonder why you struggled with it in the first place. Once you memorize which gears to use for certain ranges just give it enough RPMs and shift it in and get it every time.

 

Then school is over and you have to struggle to UNlearn it! lol

 

My instructors kept stressing speed vs. gear selection. That wasn't working for me, so I had to simplify it. For down shifting, I used the tach only. All I worried about was what gear I was currently in, and whether or not I was planning to come to a complete stop. If I was just slowing for a reduced speed limit and needed to drop one gear, I would slow in gear until the tach showed 1000, then clutch to neutral, raise rpm to 1400, then clutch to next lower gear. If I was slowing to a stop, I would slow in gear until the tach showed 600, clutch to neutral, raise rpm to 1400, then clutch and drop 2 gears, rinse and repeat.

Now I mostly don't have to think about what gear is the correct one, but sometimes the truck and I disagree and it reminds me that I have to do what it tells me.

 

There is one truck at my school that I only drove twice - once on the first day, and again on the last day. When I drove it the 2nd time, I couldn't understand why I had such a hard time shifting it on the first day...

 

My advice is to not get too worried about bumping up your RPMs to 1500 (or whatever specific RPM your school recommends to bump up to when in neutral). Just hit that throttle so it goes to at least the recommended RPM or MORE, while gently putting your shifter on the gear you're trying to shift to (not in - just lightly try to put it there), and it should slide right in when the gears open up.

Of course though, if you use this method, once you get used to shifting better, try to not over-rev past that recommended RPM in the truck you'll be earning money in, so you get better fuel mileage.

Good luck, and regardless of what tips you use, practice will make perfect. You WILL get it eventually.

 

Not to worry,you'll master it.It just takes time.Then before you know it,you'll be floating the gears and smoooth shifting.