First off - great forum - thanks!!

Just bought a 2004 Wide Glide with 12 k miles. I came off a 2000 Fatboy.

When shifting, primarily downshifting, the lever is hard to push down, into gear. Definitely harder than my Fatboy was. And it can be a little challenging to get it into neutral at a stoplight. When shifting, it doesnt really clunk into gear, just seems harder than normal to actually work the pedal/lever. Before I do a clutch adjust, I wanted to get any feedback possible....is this just the nature of the beast, should I try changing fluids, use synthetic. etc? Is the clutch not fully engaging enough to allow for an easier effort on shifting? Thanks for any help!!

 

I certainly would check the adjustment first. Many feel that a good synthetic will also smooth out the shifting. When I did my 1K service on my 07 fxdl I put Amsoil 75w90 severe gear in my tranny and it really seemed to make a difference. Of course it was also just getting broke in and that might have had something to do with it as well.

 

These symptoms usually indicate a slightly dragging clutch. Adjustment should be the first step. If you shut down is the shifter still stiff(may need to rock it back and forth in gear while shifting, you are just testing the linkage for stiffness with this). If the linkage is stiff you need to look for binding at the pivots. Good luck!

 

check pivots in shifter rod mine was doing the samething before it broke going down a steep hill