First Gear went Bye-Bye
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Grand HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 4,584
Likes: 918
From: coast to coast
First Gear went Bye-Bye
Ridding home on my '92 FXR and heard a loud clunk while downshifting. First gear won't engage. Shifter goes down, but it's not finding anything. Second and up seems to be where they used to be...
Not sure what it is. I limped it home a few blocks. Any guesses what I'll find? How bad and how much $$? I'm not knowledgable about transmissions, but it's only got 27,000 miles so I'm scratching my head. Assuming it's a stupid risk to try to ride it to the dealer?
Not sure what it is. I limped it home a few blocks. Any guesses what I'll find? How bad and how much $$? I'm not knowledgable about transmissions, but it's only got 27,000 miles so I'm scratching my head. Assuming it's a stupid risk to try to ride it to the dealer?
Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 3,039
Likes: 11
From: Northern Ontario
Could be something as bad as a broken tooth on a gear or even the spring on shifter arm inside the tranny could be broke. Either way not the end of the world. It's really not that expensive of a job if you do it to yourself.
Thread Starter
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Grand HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 4,584
Likes: 918
From: coast to coast
Thanks for the Support Ape.
Ride, shift arm spring is my first guess as that arm seems loose now. It was converted from mid to forward controls by the previous owner so non-factory mod is going to be the likeliest culprit. Any reason why it would only effect first gear if that is the case? Never touched a trans before...not sure I'm brave enough yet. On the other hand it doesn't sound likely catastrophic enough to justify a Baker 6 speed in the family budget... Good news/bad news....
Ride, shift arm spring is my first guess as that arm seems loose now. It was converted from mid to forward controls by the previous owner so non-factory mod is going to be the likeliest culprit. Any reason why it would only effect first gear if that is the case? Never touched a trans before...not sure I'm brave enough yet. On the other hand it doesn't sound likely catastrophic enough to justify a Baker 6 speed in the family budget... Good news/bad news....
Club Member
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 45,429
Likes: 2,897
From: Bedford UK
I've had that lever return spring break. As I recall the symptom is that having selected a gear the lever stays where you pressed it. You should be able to lift (or press) the lever to find the normal position it rests in, then when changing to the next gear repeat. I actually rode mine for many months before fixing it, double-shuffling with my twinkle toes for every shift! The spring itself costs a few bucks, but costs a few hundred in labour to install!
If on the other hand you cannot find first gear by any means that doesn't sound so good.
If on the other hand you cannot find first gear by any means that doesn't sound so good.
Dirt don't hurt
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 21,062
Likes: 4,547
From: Haslet Texas
Thanks for the Support Ape.
Ride, shift arm spring is my first guess as that arm seems loose now. It was converted from mid to forward controls by the previous owner so non-factory mod is going to be the likeliest culprit. Any reason why it would only effect first gear if that is the case? Never touched a trans before...not sure I'm brave enough yet. On the other hand it doesn't sound likely catastrophic enough to justify a Baker 6 speed in the family budget... Good news/bad news....
Ride, shift arm spring is my first guess as that arm seems loose now. It was converted from mid to forward controls by the previous owner so non-factory mod is going to be the likeliest culprit. Any reason why it would only effect first gear if that is the case? Never touched a trans before...not sure I'm brave enough yet. On the other hand it doesn't sound likely catastrophic enough to justify a Baker 6 speed in the family budget... Good news/bad news....
You'll just need some special tools.
If you really don't want to do it yourself I suggest you pull the tranny and take it to the shop to save yourself some money.
At least take the top cover off and have a look.
If you need an excuse then tell your wife that I said the tranny was lunched and you need a new gearset....Then get the baker!!!
Thread Starter
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Grand HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 4,584
Likes: 918
From: coast to coast
Thanks guys. It's nice to have a starting point to get my head into it.
That's a good doctor's note Texas! HA! Thanks.
That's a good doctor's note Texas! HA! Thanks.
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Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 21,026
Likes: 12,549
From: South Carolina
Don`t pull the transmission out of the bike.
Take a look at the easy simple stuff first, the linkage.
Make sure the shifter arm at the transmission is tight on the shaft, no looseness or wobble (this is a common problem, inspect closely).
To check the shifter drum and shift forks you will need to remove the top cover from the transmission, then unbolt the shift drum blocks and lift out the shift drum.
You will be able to see the shift forks at this point, look for any obvious damage or issues.
To remove the shift forks, first remove the chrome side cover on the transmission (the cover with the dipstick), then you can slide the shift fork rod out and the forks will be loose.
This is all easy straight forward stuff requiring no special tools.
Remember to cover the opening on the transmission once you have the top cover removed whenever you are not actually working inside that transmission, because if you drop a bolt on the other side of the garage, you know where it will go....
Take a look at the easy simple stuff first, the linkage.
Make sure the shifter arm at the transmission is tight on the shaft, no looseness or wobble (this is a common problem, inspect closely).
To check the shifter drum and shift forks you will need to remove the top cover from the transmission, then unbolt the shift drum blocks and lift out the shift drum.
You will be able to see the shift forks at this point, look for any obvious damage or issues.
To remove the shift forks, first remove the chrome side cover on the transmission (the cover with the dipstick), then you can slide the shift fork rod out and the forks will be loose.
This is all easy straight forward stuff requiring no special tools.
Remember to cover the opening on the transmission once you have the top cover removed whenever you are not actually working inside that transmission, because if you drop a bolt on the other side of the garage, you know where it will go....
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Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 2,825
Likes: 2,140
From: Hope Mills NC, bye CA!!
Sounds like the shifter pawl spring. When mine broke on the way back from Street Vibes the shifter would just stay hanging down. I made it home by shifting up with the back of my heel pulling it up. Lots of little parts got ground up but luckily no gear damage.
