An estate settlement so obviously the seller has no info on the bike. Just picked up a 2002 Softail with 18K miles for little money. Reason being is that it will not shift into second. Can easily shift from neutral to first, back to neutral with no problem. NO resistance at all. Try to shift into second and the shift is hitting a "wall". Shift pedal will not move at ALL. Shift linkage is not the issue. Have disconnected the linkage at the transmission and have the same issue manually. Would like to fix this myself .... any help/ideas is appreciated!!

 

When attempting to shift a stationary bike, you must rock the rear wheel back and forth to allow the shift dogs to engage.

If you have already done that, it is time to remove the top cover from the transmission and have a look at the shifter mechanism.

The cover is easy to remove, but the oil tank above it, which must be removed first, is less than fun.

 

If the linkage is not returning when the shift lever is depressed/released (1st gear) it could be the shift lever centering spring.