Tank shift for amputee
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Stage I
Joined: Feb 2026
Posts: 1
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From: Esperance
Tank shift for amputee
I have just been informed that I may need a below the knee amputation on my left leg...
My current rides are a 2013 CVO ultra glide Ultra classic and 2018 Road King
I don't want and I will not stop riding, so my question is has anyone been in a similar situation?
Is there a way I can modify the bikes to accept a foot clutch to account for a prosthetic leg and a tank shift or a push button or twist gear change on the left side?
as you can imagine the black dog (depression) to eating my mind but a solution to this will give me some light at the end of the tunnel
My current rides are a 2013 CVO ultra glide Ultra classic and 2018 Road King
I don't want and I will not stop riding, so my question is has anyone been in a similar situation?
Is there a way I can modify the bikes to accept a foot clutch to account for a prosthetic leg and a tank shift or a push button or twist gear change on the left side?
as you can imagine the black dog (depression) to eating my mind but a solution to this will give me some light at the end of the tunnel
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Joined: Apr 2013
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From: Utah
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 11,224
Likes: 3,049
From: St.Louis Mo.
I am a threw the knee amp. No knee, which makes it much harder to shift. If you are below the knee i think a longer shift peg on the shifter may work ok for you.
What i did was to rotate the rear shifter arm straight up and weld a rod onto it with a shift ball. I just reach over and shift with my right hand. And yes, i have to take my hand off of the throttle to do it. It's slow ,but i am still riding .
I do ride a trike now. If below the knee amp riding a 2 wheeler is still possible.
Many different ways to shift the bike . I didn't care for the electric shifters, i wanted to shift it myself. Let us know what you decide on. Good Luck !
I thought about using the Widow maker shifter and bending it up straighter and leaving my clutch on the handlebar. Don't care for the clutch on the shifter.
What i did was to rotate the rear shifter arm straight up and weld a rod onto it with a shift ball. I just reach over and shift with my right hand. And yes, i have to take my hand off of the throttle to do it. It's slow ,but i am still riding .
I do ride a trike now. If below the knee amp riding a 2 wheeler is still possible.
Many different ways to shift the bike . I didn't care for the electric shifters, i wanted to shift it myself. Let us know what you decide on. Good Luck !
I thought about using the Widow maker shifter and bending it up straighter and leaving my clutch on the handlebar. Don't care for the clutch on the shifter.
Last edited by hardheaded; Feb 23, 2026 at 07:54 AM.
Cruiser
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 100
Likes: 77
another option - I knew several paraplegics with sidecars that used electrics. A double pole double throw momentary contact switch on the bar with an automotive door lock solenoid on the shift rod - up, down - easy peasy. Neutral, not so much, but they always parked in gear anyway.
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Joined: Aug 2014
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From: Eastern Ohio
OP, you could use a Rekluse clutch with a pingel shifter.
Last edited by Highway Handler; Feb 26, 2026 at 05:50 PM. Reason: Removed derogatory comment
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Not trying at all to be an *******, we`ve had multiple posts from overseas from "new members" that were lifted from previous posts
Last edited by Highway Handler; Feb 26, 2026 at 05:51 PM.
Tourer
Joined: Oct 2025
Posts: 408
Likes: 288
From: Wiesbaden /Germany
Hi kYBRABOSS,
there are many European websites on these topics, but this one keeps popping up: https://www.theactiveamputee.org
From our circle of acquaintances, I remember a local Suzuki dealer who had his leg amputated above the thigh after a motorcycle accident.
The man walked around his motorcycle shop on crutches for a long time, and a few years later he was riding the biggest "Big Bikes" of his brand that were available.
The man is pictured on one of the early "Suzuki Hayabusa" models, which he frequently drove as a dealer for the brand.
There have always been such "speed freaks"; my Honda dealer near Bremen at the time was one of those men.
When I wanted to trade in my Norton 850 for a Honda 750 F1 there in the early 1970s, the old dealer immediately jumped on my Norton and disappeared for 30 minutes...
An elderly gentleman with one leg amputated, one of the "old school", as they used to say.
That was very impressive for us youngsters, these older bikers who had grown up with the fast English bikes of the post-war years.
A typical saying was: "They'll only stop riding when they're carrying their head under their arm!"
Good luck for your search!
Mike
there are many European websites on these topics, but this one keeps popping up: https://www.theactiveamputee.org
From our circle of acquaintances, I remember a local Suzuki dealer who had his leg amputated above the thigh after a motorcycle accident.
The man walked around his motorcycle shop on crutches for a long time, and a few years later he was riding the biggest "Big Bikes" of his brand that were available.
The man is pictured on one of the early "Suzuki Hayabusa" models, which he frequently drove as a dealer for the brand.
There have always been such "speed freaks"; my Honda dealer near Bremen at the time was one of those men.
When I wanted to trade in my Norton 850 for a Honda 750 F1 there in the early 1970s, the old dealer immediately jumped on my Norton and disappeared for 30 minutes...
An elderly gentleman with one leg amputated, one of the "old school", as they used to say.
That was very impressive for us youngsters, these older bikers who had grown up with the fast English bikes of the post-war years.
A typical saying was: "They'll only stop riding when they're carrying their head under their arm!"
Good luck for your search!
Mike