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First gear whine

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Old Jul 26, 2014 | 07:08 PM
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Default First gear whine
Anyone else have a first gear whine on downshift,,,,2014 Ultra FLHTCU
 
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Old Jul 26, 2014 | 07:18 PM
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First gear whine all the time.No answer why
 
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Old Jul 26, 2014 | 07:28 PM
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same here. figured it was normal, never thought to ask about it
 
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Old Jul 26, 2014 | 07:54 PM
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Yup - same here

After a while I am now using it to ensure I am in first when down shifting thru to a stop

AFAIK this is normal
 
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Old Jul 26, 2014 | 09:32 PM
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Yep, odd huh
 
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Old Jul 26, 2014 | 09:45 PM
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its the helical cut gears that are your 1st gear. That's why they whine
 
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Old Jul 26, 2014 | 09:46 PM
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Same here. It's not as bad as some others I've had, so it doesn't bother me.
 
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Old Jul 26, 2014 | 09:48 PM
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Yep. My FLHXS also has the first gear whine. Dealer says its normal. The dealer also said it was normal to have problems shifting into first. (Just let the clutch out a little).
 
Last edited by OCD; Jul 26, 2014 at 09:52 PM.
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Old Jul 26, 2014 | 10:41 PM
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I love the sound of it, completely normal and yes its the way the gear is cut
 
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Old Jul 27, 2014 | 06:22 AM
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Originally Posted by Smittyjf
its the helical cut gears that are your 1st gear. That's why they whine
It's the opposite. First gear is straight cut (spur), the rest are helical*. Helical gears are quieter than straight cut but impart side loading (lateral thrust) on the shafts. Spur gears are capable of greater loads like moving a heavy motorcycle from a dead stop.

*Some years of HD transmissions have a spur gear for 5th. HD changed that when customers complained about the noise.
 
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