Shift Lever Looseness

[Guest]

My shifter lever seems loose at it's pivot point. I've checked the fiche and I didn't see any bushings or anything that would be there for replacement.

Shifting is fine but I can imagine it would be smoother if I didn't have all this play in the sifter.

Please see this video to see what I mean by the play. Anyone else have this issue? Suggestions/solutions? Thanks!

[koolaid_kid]

Well, there are a couple of things it might be. First, there are washers on the remote shifter itself which act as sort of shims. That would be part 38 on the fiche, Shifter linkageThat might help tighten it up.
Also, there are pivot points, called helm joints, which do wear and might have excessive play in them. They are the ball and socket on the bottom of the shifter (36) and the part on the shaft going into the engine case (31). You might also try tightening up the connecting rod just a touch (33) to take up a bit of slack.

[MAJikMARCer]

Here is how the play is on the post that the shift lever attaches to. My concern is this kind of play is going to wear the post and this problem is only going to get worse. Adjusting the linkages will reduce some of the play, but not really solve the issue.

Feels like the post needs some kind of hard nylon sleeve or something.


The red is indicating the gap between the post and the lever. I'm exaggerating the amount for clarity.

[koolaid_kid]

I understand. Have you pulled the shift lever off to look at the shaft it is mounted to? Look for wear on the shaft itself. A new shift lever might lessen the effect, but is actually part 36 and is apparently no longer available. A bushing would be best, but there are a couple of things to consider.
First, the shaft is "usually" a steel part welded to another part. The fiche is not clear in the frame, but on my current ride the shaft is welded to the frame. I don't remember how the 1100 was, but I am certain it is similar.
Second, in order to make a bushing, a machine shop would be needed, probably an excessive expense.

[Nessism]

My first 1000S had wear on the pivot shaft and inside the shift lever bore. I doubt the previous owners had ever lubricated the bearings surfaces. To fix the bike I cut off the frame pivot stud and drilled and tapped the frame for use of a hardened shoulder bolt. The shift lever was reamed out to match the shoulder bolt. I strongly advocate lubricating the pivot point with grease at each oil change. If the heim joints are worn, or if the heim joint studs are loose onto the knuckles I'd replace them too.

[MAJikMARCer]

Well before I give up on this I'll take off the lever and check measurements and see if I can find a pre-existing bushing that I can work with and see how that goes. I'm not looking to do factory perfect and removing/replacing the existing post seems a bit drastic.

[Nessism]

I studied the best repair methodology carefully before choosing the hardened shoulder bolt and reamed shift lever boss. The shift lever could be bored, a bushing pressed in place, but that won't solve the problem entirely if the frame pivot stud is worn. To fix that you would have to replace the stud, or somehow machine it undersize so a bushing could be pressed in place over the top. Good luck with that.

If anyone wants to see photos of the fix please go to my photobucket account and look in the 1000S album. I'd post up the photos but don't have access right now.

[MAJikMARCer]

I studied the best repair methodology carefully before choosing the hardened shoulder bolt and reamed shift lever boss.

I checked out your album and that IS a nice solution. My concern is I don't have the machining skills or tools. I'd say your solution is probably the best solution but it may not be a solution I can do...yet. I don't plan to tear down to the frame this winter, maybe the next. If I do that then I'll will give this solution a go.

So when you fabricated this solution you were able to use a rounded hex bolt to hold the lever on? Mine currently has the stock retaining ring. Obviously going that route would require additional machining to give the post a groove for the retaining ring.

Any problems with using a bolt vs the retaining ring method? Clearance would be the only thing I could think of, but it doesn't appear to be a problem with the 1000S

Images from Nessism Album:

[chuck hahn]

Take out the bolt..all the way.. and use a flat tip to spread open the pinch slot. Then use some .010 or .015 shim stock to kinda wrap around the shaft and retighten the bolt. See if that helps take the slop out. You could probably also spread the pinch slot and use some small tack nails ( brad nails as they are called ) and slip a few around in the splines and get the same effect as shim stock.

[chuck hahn]

Is it the right shifter for that shaft diameter..OEM to the bike???

[MAJikMARCer]

Is it the right shifter for that shaft diameter..OEM to the bike???

This is my shifter. I'm pretty sure it's OEM. No way to know that for 100% certainty but it looks right. I do plan to clean up the rust eventually too... mechanical first though.

[koolaid_kid]

OMG! RUST! Sorry, but we cannot help you until that is cleaned up.
Seriously though, it does appear to be stock. As Ed stated earlier, that shift lever post is a part that seldom receives attention.
Chuck, that is a remote shift lever, which simply rotates on a round shaft. The part you are discussing resides on the engine shifter shaft. If the shifter were mounted directly on the engine shifter shaft, I would agree, and have done that in years gone by. The remote location shift lever added a whole new bag of worms to the mix.
The first one I saw was on the very first Honda 350s, and they were a POS right from the start.

[Frank Z.]

Embarrassing to admit... but, uh... i jury-rigged mine with a bit of film negative stock couple weeks ago. Only thing i had handy and doubt the fix bears any longevity, but works in a pinch. Use ample grease, too.

I'll have to look into proper shim stock for sure... but i do like Ed's fix.

[MAC10]

Please forgive me if i don't understand this fully-my bike is older and different.

The shift lever bolts to a splined shaft. The lever gets stretched from tightening and wear, which over time lets the split ring sides meet. At this point, no more tightening is possible. The fix: spread the split ring sides, and file an eighth of an inch off one or both sides. Bolt it back on- there will now be a gap , a restored slot in the split ring, and room to tighten the lever onto the shaft. There should be a visible gap when the bolt is tightened, to allow it to bite the shaft hard.

The lever is soft metal, the shifter shaft is hardened-shifters are replaceable, and adaptable from other bikes.

I have done this 3 times, and still have a usable shifter, although I carry a spare, having lost one once.

[koolaid_kid]

Yup, you have the type Chuck was talking about. The shifter is bolted directly to the shifter shaft. All you have to do is what you are currently doing. The remote mounted shifter is a totally different animal and must be dealt with as such.