Clutch/neutral problems


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5TAZNA

New Member
Hello boys and girls i'm in need of a little assistance with my bike regarding the neutral gear.

When i'm in first and try to shift into neutral the pedal will either skip past neutral and jump into second or on rare occasions be clicked into neutral on the first try, i usually have to click it into second and push down into neutral but many times it will click down into first and i'll play the game of up down up down till it pops into neutral. I've had this problem for awhile and have roamed the forums far and wide but found no solution.

I have the service manual and have done everything they said in the "adjusting clutch free play" but that has no affect on it.

Bike is 2010 model and has 40,000 kms on it, oil changes don't really affect it much as after a oil change the shifting is smooth for a few kilometers then it goes back to giving me problems. I don't think the clutch plates have been changed in the 40,000kms, but id like to figure out if it is something else before slapping on new clutch plates. No sprocket mods.

In adjust the clutch free play at the engine side on occasions the shifting is quite smooth in shifting into neutral but then it hits a point where i shift into first then try to shift into neutral where it hits a very hard spot and it takes a lot of pressure to kick the pedal up, in which it will jump into second skipping neutral.

Please don't say i'm kicking the shifter pedal up to hard as this is my 4th bike and i have never had any problems with my ninja250, ttr250 and vtr250 with gear shifting they have always been smooth.

Not sure if this helps but most of the time if i rev the bike up while trying to shift into neutral it goes in more smoother, sometimes on the first go or second go.

Has anyone encountered this before? If so please give me a hand or any insight you have.
 
lark

lark

New Member
I can tell you on my 2013 bikeght in november which has less than 700 miles, I have trouble getting into neutral a lot. I thought it was the shoes I wear (they are Speed and Strength Wicked Garden) being bigger and bulkier than what I am used to and me being clumsy with them. I have noticed sometimes when I am kicking down from 2nd it will pop in neutral even if I'm not trying to go neutral, then it won't go down into first. This is not while I'm moving fast mind you, rolling to a stop at a light or in the driveway. Then it takes several kicks down to get it to stay in first. I just have my first service and shop gave me the thumbs up after inspection. I didn't think to mention it to them though. Or, I'll do the up down up down up down trying to get neutral. I have not tried giving it gas while trying, but I think it might just be the set up on our clutches. I have noticed I'll get neutral instead of 2nd sometimes and it's like COME ON I can't get neutral when I'm trying and get neutral when I am not. maybe I'm just a n00b. But that's my experience.
 
xorbe

xorbe

Member
If stuck in neutral at a light, let the clutch out just a bit while shifting. Practice makes perfect, don't launch out into the intersection ...
 
5

5TAZNA

New Member
With shifting down into first from neutral I have no problems, if i want to shift down into first from second i can do that about 100% of the time and if i'm trying to get into neutral from second i can do that about 70% of the time. About 90% of the time i ride with my Alpinestars SMX-2 boots, i thought it was the shoes as well but when i was playing around with the clutch free play i used my bike boots to calibrate, and the same issues occurred.

In regards to getting stuck in neutral i never get that, the bike comes out of neutral easy.

I know the pedal is lined up correctly as i took it off recently and lined up the dots, but i'm going to see if the bit where you push with ur foot to select gears is at the correct height.
I had a slow low side with the bike awhile back where it bent the shifter about 120 degrees from its correct position. I doubt this was the thing that started this shifting problem but i'll check the shifter height and see what happens.
 
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High Park

New Member
It's not you. It's the bike. Happened on mine regularly. Can shift to neutral easily enough with a quick rev in first or second. Started on my bike after a few thousand km, improved after 20 thousand km or so, but was still there. Posted a thread on it a few years back ("Neutral Shifting Issue"). Bike is at 26,000 km (just sold) and still needs the rev fairly often to pop it into neutral.
 
5

5TAZNA

New Member
Ive adjusted the clutch cable so that the flick from first to neutral is alot better but not perfect and also if i wanted to go from second into neutral i can do that 90% of the time now without dropping straight into first.

I'm going to try adjust a few more things and hope that fixes it.

Comparing to my friend who bought an xj6nl which is that same bike as the FZ6R just with less fairings, his shifting is like perfect when i ride it. So maybe i killed the shifter when i laid her down.

Problem is sourcing parts for the FZ6R is a nightmare as its so expensive to get a replacement shifter.
 
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brownwa

New Member
I pulled an accidental upshift into neutral instead of second while passing a car on Sunday. There was a dirt bike tailgating me to overtake as well. Made a loud and embarrassing revving noise that probably made the car driver crap his pants. You are not alone with your neutral woes.
 
F

FastFreddy

New Member
I was having this problem, the mechanic adjusted the cable when I had my tyre changed and it was better for awhile. I"m suspecting a slightly frayed cable and will replace the clutch cable so it's smooth and easy again. You are supposed to spray lithium grease or something now and then from my memory of reading the service manual.
 
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Brent27

New Member
Every once in a while I'll accidentally up shift into neutral and rev it and look like an idiot... every so often I notice something off when downshifting for a stop. As I shift down, sometimes when I'm going from second to first I'll get a bad rattling noise, and I can feel it on the shifter with my foot. It almost feels like I'm grinding gears. What I don't get is I have the clutch lever pulled past the friction zone and almost all the way in.

Am I doing something wrong or am I having similar problems as the rest of you guys?
 
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FastFreddy

New Member
Brent27 said:
Every once in a while I'll accidentally up shift into neutral and rev it and look like an idiot... every so often I notice something off when downshifting for a stop. As I shift down, sometimes when I'm going from second to first I'll get a bad rattling noise, and I can feel it on the shifter with my foot. It almost feels like I'm grinding gears. What I don't get is I have the clutch lever pulled past the friction zone and almost all the way in.

Am I doing something wrong or am I having similar problems as the rest of you guys?
Click to expand...
You need a firmer touch with the gear shift. If you push/pull up to lightly, you'll get the rattles when the gears are trying to lock in sideways to each other.

Even with the clutch pulled in, the multiple clutch plate friction is still enough to turn one of the gearbox shafts ( when in neutral, so when you go to first, you get that "bang" noise due to the slightly turning shaft and the side dogs going into the gear that is locked onto the shaft gear.
 

Attachments

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Brent27

New Member
Thank you for the direction. Really helps. I'll use firmer taps on the shifts going forward. I do know that downshifting to a stop my taps are a bit light.
 
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FastFreddy

New Member
Brent27 said:
Thank you for the direction. Really helps. I'll use firmer taps on the shifts going forward. I do know that downshifting to a stop my taps are a bit light.
Click to expand...
I probably should have worded it as "the lightest touch that still allows it to change cleanly" a bit like playing guitar you have to fret the notes sufficiently to eliminate buzz, not too hard, not lighter than that.
 
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Brent27

New Member
FastFreddy said:
I probably should have worded it as "the lightest touch that still allows it to change cleanly" a bit like playing guitar you have to fret the notes sufficiently to eliminate buzz, not too hard, not lighter than that.
Click to expand...
Freddy, I play the guitar so this analogy works perfectly. Thanks!
 
X

XJ6Nick

New Member
Doing a slight grave dig here. :zombie:

Bought my bike almost new; 2000 on the clock ex test rider. If the bikes cold i will ALWAYS get neutral instead of second riding up the road. Neighbors must hate me haha. Also happens every 50 or so times riding off the line. Hope this helps!
 

R

Runragged2

New Member
Every bike has its charactor

Hi
Whilst there are always some quirks with any bike, you soon learn.
i suppose riding every day, for two yearrs on this bike, I have learned how to manage these.
Now I simply don't notice any issue.
However, I do tend to ride with a lot of anticipatiom and try to get to work without any foot downs, so I rarely have to select first.
Btw, the bike is quite happy to pull off in second, or even higher gear.
If you didn't put your foot down, you shouldn't be in first, or neutral.
If you are just slightly rolling forwards, second is the gear to use.

Remember keep the shiny side up:)

David
 
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