Pumping the shifter?

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Apr 17, 2011 | 07:00 PM

Drk_Rider

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Pumping the shifter?

I recently purchase an 07 Night Train and I am having trouble with the shifter. It does not do it all the time, but often I have to pump the shifter to get it to change gears. For instance I will be shifting down from 5th to 4th and I will completely depress the shifter once, and have to do it again before it will clank into 4th. So I will have to actually pump the pedal eight times to get from 5th gear to 1st. Sometimes it does it while trying to shift up too. Is this normal, or is there something I can adjust?

Thanks,

Tim

Apr 17, 2011 | 07:07 PM

anubisss

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From: Los Angeles, CA

Try adjusting your clutch. Adjust on the cable first, and if that does not help do it inside the derby cover. Also, overfilling the primary can cause hard shifting so check the level and maybe change the primary oil.

Drew

Apr 17, 2011 | 07:09 PM

Other Sheep

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From: Escondido, CA

It's not normal. How old and what king of oil is in it? Might try Mobil 1 75/140 and make sure your clutch is adjusted correctly. Next step is going into the tranny. Do the easy stuff first.

Apr 17, 2011 | 07:13 PM

Other Sheep

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Stupid question I just thought of. Are you releasing (taking your foot off) the lever after each shift? If you don't release it it won't allow the shift.

Another thought is the lever is hanging up from dirt/grease or something is causing it to bind.

Apr 17, 2011 | 07:41 PM

Rakthi

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From: Belgium

Quote:

Originally Posted by Other Sheep

Another thought is the lever is hanging up from dirt/grease or something is causing it to bind.

+1, I would check the adjustment/cleanliness of the shift linkage before mucking about with the clutch. I had a similar problem on my FXR years ago which was fixed by adjusting the shift linkage a bit.

Apr 17, 2011 | 07:46 PM

chiefe

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From: Northern Ontario, Canada

Just something to add to what Other Sheep said. I receintlly changed my shifter linkage and shift lever, when removing the old lever I noticed the lever shaft seemed really tight in the bushing. I removed the lever and cleaned both the shaft and bushing with some emery cloth greased it up, cleaned and greased the o-rings and now she shifts like a dream.

Apr 17, 2011 | 08:18 PM

Drk_Rider

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Thanks for all the replies guys. Drew, yes I am releasing the lever all the way between each shift. It seems like the lever is moving all the way up anyway. I may need to check if it is sticking a little.

The bike has about 21,000 miles on it. I bought it from the dealer and they said that it had just been serviced, I failed to ask exactly what this entailed. I guess it would not hurt to change the fluid anyway.

The clutch feels pretty good, if fully disengages with about a half inch of travel left. I guess tomorrow I will do some inspecting of the shift lever to see if it is sticking any.

What is strange is that it does not do it all the time. Sometimes it shifts great, although clunky.

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Apr 17, 2011 | 09:39 PM

JY Kelly

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From: Hoboken, NJ

I changed my linkage out and ever since, the shifter is in what my foot tells me is a different postition. Not sure how this is, but your issue could be shift-linkage-related.

Apr 17, 2011 | 10:54 PM

#10

Drk_Rider

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Quote:

Originally Posted by jlasoftail

A little clunky is normal if it's not really bad, and +1 on checking the linkage

Quote:

Originally Posted by JY Kelly

I changed my linkage out and ever since, the shifter is in what my foot tells me is a different postition. Not sure how this is, but your issue could be shift-linkage-related.

Okay, sounds like the linkage may be the culprit, I will check that out first thing in the morning. I really need to purchase the service manual on this bike. I have mostly driven sport bikes and this is my first Harley, I guess these are a little harsher than I am used to. Sometimes when I crank it up darn thing sounds like its gonna spit gears out the side of the crank case cover! I usually get some odd stares at the gas pump as people peek around their pumps and stop mid-step coming out the door. I then clank it into gear and smoothly roll out.