Gear change 600N very clunky 1st into 2nd

[huggyg71]

Hi there. I have only had my bike, a 33bhp 600N for a few weeks now and I am really enjoying it as my first big bike

I have been having a few problems with smooth gear changes though going up from 1st into 2nd gear. Is it normal to have 2nd gear engage with a loud clunk? I am thinking its just my poor riding style and it should come to me with more practice, at least I hope so lol.

What I have noticed is that if I change up from 1st to 2nd gear at a very low speed, say under 10 mph at just over tick over then its nice and quiet and smooth and there is no clunk going into 2nd gear. If I rev it much harder to around 8k+ revs ;D its also very smooth and 2nd engages without the clunk. It is only when riding normally around the 3 - 4k rev range I am finding it difficult to make that change smoothly although all the other gears engage nice and quiet and I can be smooth changing up or down between them.

The clutch lever feels fine to me if a wee bit heavy compared to my last bike (125 Varadero). I have had the clutch cable off and oiled and adjusted free play and it hasnt helped. I am thinking the gear change lever needs adjusted down a bit maybe as I have stretch my foot up a wee bit to change up and I have had neutral instead of 2nd on a few occaisions I am going to try this tomorrow evening after work and see if things improve. Any ideas would be great please.

Thanks.

[bobh]

Good idea to adjust the pedal so you can change up without taking your foot off the rest.

You'll probably find that the gearchange gets smoother as you get used to the different characteristics of the four-cylinder engine. For the moment, just don't try to hurry it, and roll the throttle off rather than shutting it quickly.

Hope that helps - Bob

[amorti]

The sprocket carrier bearing is a weak point on these. Grab the sprocket at 6 and 12, and wobble it. It shouldn't have any play at all. Happily it's very easy to change, assuming you can take the rear wheel out on your own.

Also pop the gear lever off its pivot and clean and regrease, check the operation of the rose joints is free while you are there.

Main other cause for dodgy gear changes is a loose or tight chain. Have a check of that, too.

[huggyg71]

Thanks for your help folks. I have checked the rear wheel and the rear sprocket for movement as you suggested and it seems ok to me.

I did think that the chain was a bit slack but I got a friend to sit on the bike last week and there was a half inch of up down play and hes much lighter than me. I am afraid of having it too tight and damaging the front sprocket spindle wotsit lol.

I clean my chain with parafin and slather it in sdoc100 white lube once a week when washing the bike or every 150 - 200 miles and there is pretty much the full amount of adjustment still to use if going by the notches on the swing arm. There doesnt seem to be any stiff links etc.

I took the gear linkage off and removed the sprocket cover and the front sprocket looks in good order and is nice and tight and has no play when pulled in and out. I scraped out all the crud and cleaned the entire area and as suggested above, greased the linkage and adjusted the lever down a bit. It feels a lot better now when changing up. Will see how it goes, guess its just my noobness then and I need to try harder ;D


Cheers

[CD]

Having the chain slightly loose is better than slightly tight. Turn the wheel so the chain is at its most tight point, sit on the bike and check the slack is adequate.

I found upchanges on the Divvie, above 1st to 2nd, are better without the clutch. Preload the lever with your foot and dip the throttle. When the gears unload the next one just slots in. For downchanges, I nip the clutch so the revs blip drop it down and release the clutch. All very quick but I never managed a smooth clutchless downchange.

Its worth checking the clutch release mechanism in the engine case is working OK. It runs on needle rollers which get dry and seize up.

[huggyg71]

Its worth checking the clutch release mechanism in the engine case is working OK. It runs on needle rollers which get dry and seize up

Im lost now LOL! I will have a look at my haynes manual tomorrow ;D

[CD]

A picture =... etc :-)

If the mechansim is failing the clutch might not release properly and the lever can be stiff.

[amorti]

Don't overtension the chain!

I wish I could know where the misconception comes from that a chain is adjusted to a rider?! It's rubbish. You leave slack in a chain to account for the fact the front sprocket and swingarm pivot are apart from one another. As the swingarm moves, it makes the distance from front to rear sprocket change. The longest point is with the sprocket, spindle and swingarm pivot in a straight line. At that point you still want a little slack, and remember to adjust the chain at its tightest piont - they usually don't wear out evenly. If the chain is too tight, every time the swingarm reaches that point in its arc, the chain will stretch, and it will also overload the output and carrier bearings. The suspension will reach this point whether you weigh 10 stone or 23.

The best way is to adjust to about 40mm free play at the chain's tightest point, while the bike is on the centre stand.

It really does baffle me "setting a chain up for my weight".

[CD]

Ever since I got caught out with an over tight chain and no tools, I sit on the bike because its the easiest way to compress the suspension and make sure the chain isnt running too tight - nothing to do with matching to the rider's weight.

[huggyg71]

The chain tension as it turns out is ok. I got a friend to take it for a spin and give me his thoughts. Says its fine, just me.

I had the biting point set a bit to far from the bar and after re adjusting a bit closer its made a bit of a difference overall but going from first into second is still clunky.

At least I know its just my bad technique ;D

Thanks again.

[pilgrim]

Some days mine is really 'clunky' and others it's not. It's like starting the bike after a couple of weeks, a big jolt or no jolt at all!

They all do that..............?

[CD]

It's clutch plates sticking from lack of use. I use the starter in gear to free them off though its probably not too good for it.

[bobh]

It's better to put it in 2nd and rock the bike back and forth with the clutch in to free the plates before pushing the starter button.

Of course, when I were a lad, we used to do the same thing using the kickstarter blah, blah.....

[peterkain]

I've got a 33bhp restricted 600s, and I have exactly the same problem, I put it down to the fact that mine's done 54,000 miles and is probably worn. No matter what I try, I find I can't get the gear change lever low enough for me. Getting neutral instead of 2nd is really annoying and happens regularly on mine unless I change to 2nd at very low revs (1500rpm)

[pilgrim]

Jun 28, 2010 15:30:58 GMT peterkain said:

I've got a 33bhp restricted 600s, and I have exactly the same problem, I put it down to the fact that mine's done 54,000 miles and is probably worn. No matter what I try, I find I can't get the gear change lever low enough for me. Getting neutral instead of 2nd is really annoying and happens regularly on mine unless I change to 2nd at very low revs (1500rpm)

No cure for the gear change offered BUT re-align the gear change lever! If you've difficulty it may be because your foot position isn't in tune with the necessary lever movement.......

If you've a 'Haynes then follow the settings suggested and change them by one spline either way to see if it's any better. Maybe.......

[CD]

It could also be the clutch release mechanism in the gearbox casing. The seal leaks and the needle rollers go square.