slipping from second into neutral...?

clintalmighty · March 20th, 2011, 05:58 PM

So my bike kinda slips from 2nd gear back into neutral occasionally. It happened three times today riding with a passenger, and they were like "wtf" and i looked like a bad rider. It doesn't happen that often when riding solo but when trying to shift super smooth and easy for the passenger, it didn't seem to catch as well. I know part of it was probably me not kicking up hard enough, but i still feel like it shouldn't happen like that. Any tips on what i should do?

kkim · March 20th, 2011, 06:00 PM

sounds like you need to readjust your shift lever.

clintalmighty · March 20th, 2011, 06:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kkim

sounds like you need to readjust your shift lever.

do we have a DIY thread for that?

gfloyd2002 · March 20th, 2011, 06:27 PM

May not be mechanical issue. I've had that happen when I've shifted too lightly and not really gotten it into second. If you are trying to be smooth because of the passenger, you may not be getting it all the way into gear.

Smooth is with the clutch, not your foot. Shift with purpose, put your foot into it and don't be gentle from 1st to 2nd.

kkim · March 20th, 2011, 06:44 PM

easy enough... take a look at the shift lever. there's a rod that runs from the rod to the engine. on that rod you'll see 2 lock nuts. loosen them. the one towards the engine is backward threaded so you need to loosen it in the opposite direction that you normally would loosen a nut. when loose, turn the shift rod and you see the shift lever either go up or down. adjust rod to where you want then relock the lock nuts.

from what you describe, it sounds like when you are carrying a passenger, you're sitting up farther forward than you normally are and most likely unable to shift the lever high enough to get it into second gear all the way, which leads to it slipping back out if second. adjust the lever so that when you are forward on the seat, you're able to shift the lever into second all the way/cleanly. wear the same boots/riding shoes you normally wear when making the adjustment.

some pics in this thread that may help...
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showt...ight=extenders

ungluck · March 21st, 2011, 12:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gfloyd2002

May not be mechanical issue. I've had that happen when I've shifted too lightly and not really gotten it into second. If you are trying to be smooth because of the passenger, you may not be getting it all the way into gear.

Smooth is with the clutch, not your foot. Shift with purpose, put your foot into it and don't be gentle from 1st to 2nd.

i do this and always go **** cos i always think it's the bike but really it's just me being lazy.

i would still check the lever and make sure it's in spec and adjustng if needed.

kkim · March 21st, 2011, 12:33 AM

the reason to check the lever is to make sure it is adjusted properly for your foot size including the boots you wear. When I first got my bike, it shifted perfectly, every time. Once I bought some boots, I started to miss second gear on occasion. The extra "bulk" of the boot made the position of the lever too "small" to get under the shift lever to lift it properly into gear. A quick readjustment of the shift lever and I've never missed a shift since.

That's why they make the controls on a bike adjustable. Take the time to set them up properly to fit you.

Vip3rV333 · March 21st, 2011, 08:29 AM

Its pretty much what everyone said. When I first got the bike I would just try to "click it up or down" and it would sometimes just drop into neutral. I was so worried that the transmission was bad or something but after a little research I figured it was me and not the bike. Like Floyd said, "Shift with purpose". I then gave a conscious effort to shift harder and now its just second nature. Hasn't happened sense.

I suppose I/you could try and adjust it so you need less foot moment distance to shift.

CC Cowboy · March 21st, 2011, 08:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by clintalmighty

So my bike kinda slips from 2nd gear back into neutral occasionally. It happened three times today riding with a passenger, and they were like "wtf" and i looked like a bad rider. It doesn't happen that often when riding solo but when trying to shift super smooth and easy for the passenger, it didn't seem to catch as well. I know part of it was probably me not kicking up hard enough, but i still feel like it shouldn't happen like that. Any tips on what i should do?

Stop riding fat chicks (your bike doesn't like it).

P.S. I mean on your bike!

March 20th, 2011, 05:58 PM	#1
clintalmighty ninjette.org member Name: Clint Location: Texas Join Date: Dec 2010 Motorcycle(s): 2008 Ninja 250r 2009 Honda CBR600RR Posts: 178	slipping from second into neutral...? So my bike kinda slips from 2nd gear back into neutral occasionally. It happened three times today riding with a passenger, and they were like "wtf" and i looked like a bad rider. It doesn't happen that often when riding solo but when trying to shift super smooth and easy for the passenger, it didn't seem to catch as well. I know part of it was probably me not kicking up hard enough, but i still feel like it shouldn't happen like that. Any tips on what i should do?

March 20th, 2011, 06:27 PM	#4
gfloyd2002 User Title Free Since '12 Name: Floyd Location: Barbados Join Date: Dec 2010 Motorcycle(s): '10 Ninja 250R Special Edition Green Posts: A lot. Blog Entries: 13 MOTM - Feb '12	May not be mechanical issue. I've had that happen when I've shifted too lightly and not really gotten it into second. If you are trying to be smooth because of the passenger, you may not be getting it all the way into gear. Smooth is with the clutch, not your foot. Shift with purpose, put your foot into it and don't be gentle from 1st to 2nd. __________________________________________________ "Improvement makes straight roads, but the crooked roads without improvement, are roads of genius." — William Blake

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March 20th, 2011, 06:00 PM	#2
kkim Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: Too much.	sounds like you need to readjust your shift lever.

March 20th, 2011, 06:44 PM	#5
kkim Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: Too much.	easy enough... take a look at the shift lever. there's a rod that runs from the rod to the engine. on that rod you'll see 2 lock nuts. loosen them. the one towards the engine is backward threaded so you need to loosen it in the opposite direction that you normally would loosen a nut. when loose, turn the shift rod and you see the shift lever either go up or down. adjust rod to where you want then relock the lock nuts. from what you describe, it sounds like when you are carrying a passenger, you're sitting up farther forward than you normally are and most likely unable to shift the lever high enough to get it into second gear all the way, which leads to it slipping back out if second. adjust the lever so that when you are forward on the seat, you're able to shift the lever into second all the way/cleanly. wear the same boots/riding shoes you normally wear when making the adjustment. some pics in this thread that may help... http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showt...ight=extenders

March 21st, 2011, 12:33 AM	#7
kkim Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: Too much.	the reason to check the lever is to make sure it is adjusted properly for your foot size including the boots you wear. When I first got my bike, it shifted perfectly, every time. Once I bought some boots, I started to miss second gear on occasion. The extra "bulk" of the boot made the position of the lever too "small" to get under the shift lever to lift it properly into gear. A quick readjustment of the shift lever and I've never missed a shift since. That's why they make the controls on a bike adjustable. Take the time to set them up properly to fit you.

March 21st, 2011, 08:29 AM	#8
Vip3rV333 ninjette.org member Name: 01010010 01101111 01101101 01100001 01101110 Location: Spartanburg, SC Join Date: Nov 2010 Motorcycle(s): 08 Ninja 250r Posts: 38	Its pretty much what everyone said. When I first got the bike I would just try to "click it up or down" and it would sometimes just drop into neutral. I was so worried that the transmission was bad or something but after a little research I figured it was me and not the bike. Like Floyd said, "Shift with purpose". I then gave a conscious effort to shift harder and now its just second nature. Hasn't happened sense. I suppose I/you could try and adjust it so you need less foot moment distance to shift.