Finding neutral and 1st gear clunck

[cuyahoga]

Had Amsoil 20/50 in all three holes and drivetrain operation was acceptable but I kept asking questions and reading. Installed Amsoil Severe Gear 75/90 in the trans and Amsoil V-TWIN synthetic in the primary. Night and day difference. Everything is quieter and smoother. Finding neutral is almost effortless and the clutch just feels better and more precise. It is almost like it inhales itself into the next gear. Hope this helps anyone trying to iron out any drivetrain quirks. BTW, I have no affiliation with Amsoil whatsoever.

 

[EzGlider]

I have a new 15 SGS with 75 miles. I'm having issue at times finding neutral? Anyone else?

 

[velopod]

It is a Harley, not a Japanese or German machine. Finding N always an experience ;-) It will get a little better after about 1,000 miles or so.

As the OP noted, use a heavier gear oil rather then a thin synthetic for the tranny at your first service. I also use Amsoil 20/50 for the engine, but Mobil 1 75 for the tranny (primary doesn't really matter). Big difference.

 

[BluesBelly]

It is a Harley, not a Japanese or German machine. Finding N always an experience ;-) It will get a little better after about 1,000 miles or so.

As the OP noted, use a heavier gear oil rather then a thin synthetic for the tranny at your first service. I also use Amsoil 20/50 for the engine, but Mobil 1 75 for the tranny (primary doesn't really matter). Big difference.

If you use Mobil 1 gear oil in the tranny be sure to buy Mobil 1 75-90 EL synthetic. EL = Extended Life. Will take a bit of the clunk out and makes finding Neutral easier.
Everything will smooth out by 5k, at least that's the case with Every Harley I've had.

 

[Cornbread]

Good info on the oil.
On my bike, I took the shift levers off and leveled them out flat so that they are real close to the floor board and it seemed to make it a piece of cake to hit neutral as I can control how much I move the shifter as the edge of my foot is on the board if that makes sense to anybody. I was having trouble getting neutral before I moved them cause it was hard to hold my leg steady enough to put just enough pressure on it to hit the "middle" of the shift. Now it's like it falls in place effortlessly. I put them close to the floor board as I never put my toe under the front shifter. Maybe someone else has done this and it helped them?


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[Rhsra]

At my 1000k service the tech readjusted both shifters much higher than I had them. I went from factory break in oil to HD syn. 3. Finding Neutral was simple with break in oil... Damn near impossible with syn3.
I have since came to realize the problem is more the position of the shifters.. Both toe and heel are to high for me to effortlessly tap to neutral..
I left them the way they set them up believing the techs knew something I do not... Now I'm not so sure.. I do think the bike runs happier with synthetic and as I near 3k I have noticed the tranny shifts with less effort and smoother. I'm sure I'll need a clutch sooner than usual.( I think I was overly hard on it at the beginning.. )


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[Cornbread]

At my 1000k service the tech readjusted both shifters much higher than I had them. I went from factory break in oil to HD syn. 3. Finding Neutral was simple with break in oil... Damn near impossible with syn3.
I have since came to realize the problem is more the position of the shifters.. Both toe and heel are to high for me to effortlessly tap to neutral..
I left them the way they set them up believing the techs knew something I do not... Now I'm not so sure.. I do think the bike runs happier with synthetic and as I near 3k I have noticed the tranny shifts with less effort and smoother. I'm sure I'll need a clutch sooner than usual.( I think I was overly hard on it at the beginning.. )


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Yes, I personally believe the shifters set low and close to the floor board makes it MUCH easier to hit N. At least it works well for me anyways. I run the syn3 also and mine shifts really nice and smooth at any RPM or speed.


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[Aviator5456]

If you use Mobil 1 gear oil in the tranny be sure to buy Mobil 1 75-90 EL synthetic. EL = Extended Life. Will take a bit of the clunk out and makes finding Neutral easier.
Everything will smooth out by 5k, at least that's the case with Every Harley I've had.

I run with Mobil 1 gear oil 75-90 synthetic and it works good when its cold but after it gets hot, it takes a lot of patience to find neutral....

 

[slingshot383]

I've got a bad left foot and ankle, no heel/ toe shifter for me. I use a long shifter peg and just toe shift, and I've notice that service techs don't put the shifter back in the same spot, no big deal, just readjust it at home.

 

[Clay]

I use Red Line in transmission and primary. What a difference.

 

[Hession]

If you use Mobil 1 gear oil in the tranny be sure to buy Mobil 1 75-90 EL synthetic. EL = Extended Life. Will take a bit of the clunk out and makes finding Neutral easier.
Everything will smooth out by 5k, at least that's the case with Every Harley I've had.

I noticed as well, I am at 750miles and it seems it gets a little easier to find neutral as the miles add up.

 

[Rhsra]

I noticed as well, I am at 750miles and it seems it gets a little easier to find neutral as the miles add up.

It does... Mine is a bitch after warmup only because of where Harley moved them to after 1000k.. Will correct that this weekend


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[doc_63]

You guys are telling me, the dealer re-adjusted your shifter position when you had it serviced? Isn't that sort of odd? Why would they move something that is made to position to the comfort of the individual rider? I'm perplexed.


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[TomA]

With them moving the position they may have replaced some part of the shift linkage that was worn or about to fail.