shifter and/or clutch problem

[massey130]

I went for a ride this past Saturday after getting my rear tire back on the 04 RSV. when i tried to go into 3rd gear, it would not. with clutch in, down to 1st, back to 2nd and nearly pound the heel to go to third. got to the stop sign by this time and after stopping, fiddled with the shifter to get back to 1st.

 

I managed to get a decent 30 mile ride in (mostly state highway), but i went through the above routine when needing to shift.

 

when i got home, parked with the engine off, i could easily go through all the gears using one hand on the clutch and the other hand operating the gear shift. i was using my hands as i was squatting next to the bike so I could watch for anything wrong.

 

I can't see anything out of place.

clutch fluid good and properly filled. no fluid on the floor or leaking from anywhere.

no problem at all before changing the rear tire.

 

Is there something about removing the rear tire that is related to the clutch?

I torqued the axle nut to 110 and while it won't free spin, i can turn the wheel with little effort.

 

Any (helpful) comments would be appreciated.

[Eck]

I would first look at the shifter attach bolt. Check to see how much "PLAY" you have at the attach bolt. It is a known fact that if this pivot shaft is not lubricated as it should be then much wear will occur causing excessive play of the shifter on the shaft.

 

I had to make a very small "spacer" out of shim material and wrapped it around the shifter shaft of my 05 RSV, which worked fantastic for about 2 years. After I wrapped the shim spacer around the shaft, I applied molly lube and reinstalled the shifter lever and attach screw. Make sure you use blue Loc-tight on the screw threads.

 

Now, under neath the left floor board follow your shifting linkage and you will see another pivot point just aft of the radiator near the front of the left floor board. This pivot point must also be lubricated since it gets all the rain water and road muck splashed on it.

 

I used the flat end of a fairly large screw driver and applied some oil on the screw driver tip and then placed the tip of the screw driver on the pivot point so the oil could slip off onto the pivot point.. hope that makes sense to you.

 

Anyway, make darn sure you have checked and lubricated ever pivot point in your shifter linkage.

 

If that doesn't do it then I would drain out and bleed the hydraulic clutch reservoir and the entire clutch system and and replace with fresh fluid.

 

Clutch bleed screw is located just aft of the left rear cylinder at the lower rear corner under neath a little rubber piece that has a Phillip head screw holding it on.

 

 

One other thing which MAY be an issue and then again it MAY not be. This was just an after thought..

Check the "type of engine oil" you used at your last oil change to ensure it is made for "wet clutch" systems.......

 

[massey130]

Eck, i will check that stuff out this weekend. it gets a bit cold in the shop after dark and i don't get home from work till after 6PM.

 

I will post results.

[midnightventure]

When you were working the shifter back and forth and not moving there was a good chance that it wasn't actually shifting through all the gears. I have found that it shifts smoother if you have a little pressure on the shifter before you clutch and shift.

[massey130]

would it harm the bike to raise it, crank it and go through the gears with the rear tire in the air?

[Kregerdoodle]

Only if you drop it!!!!

 

 

 

would it harm the bike to raise it, crank it and go through the gears with the rear tire in the air?

[massey130]

[Squidley]

Dale,

You can run the bike on a stand, Carbon Ones with the legs works great for that. I wouldn't go crazy with the speed, but I have spun the drivetrain on a stand. I think I would be looking at pivot points on the linkage like was mentioned. Check the oil level too as I know when my bikes were getting close to their oil changes they liked to start shifting harder

[massey130]

Dale,

 

You can run the bike on a stand, Carbon Ones with the legs works great for that. I wouldn't go crazy with the speed, but I have spun the drivetrain on a stand. I think I would be looking at pivot points on the linkage like was mentioned. Check the oil level too as I know when my bikes were getting close to their oil changes they liked to start shifting harder

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I will put that on my check list. just seems strange to me that the bike ran like it should before wheel swap and then does this afterwards. jus makes me scratch my head and wonder what the heck!

 

I have the imitation carbon adapter with my ATV lift, but nothing out of the ordinary while in use.