Jump to content

Clunky gearchange GSX1100et


Hilko

Recommended Posts

Hello again. I don’t make any comments on here (don’t know enough to really give a useful opinion on most issues) but I do read all the topics and feedback. I did write a post a while back regarding the fuelling on the old girl (1979 GSX1100et in standard trim) and got the reply I needed to help me sort the problem out. I am hoping the same will happen with this issue which has been there for a while but appears to slowly be getting worse.

Gearchanges on the bike are great when rolling but when at a standstill it is really clunky and extremely difficult to get into neutral. I tend to change into neutral before coming to a complete stop as it is often near impossible to get neutral at traffic lights etc.

Has anyone else come across this issue and if so what, if anything, fixed it?

Cheers.

Link to comment
7 minutes ago, Hilko said:

The wheel does spin quite quickly when on the main stand in neutral. Is this another symptom of clutch drag?

If cold, its likely oil drag but it shouldn't be silly rpm's, if hot, then yes draggy clutch! If its adjusted correctly then its probably clutch plate / basket wear. These old monsters are a little clunky on gear selection / location of neutral - most get used to it after a while!

Link to comment

I do only see the bike on the stand when it is cold as I am warming it up so perhaps that is oil drag as you say. I’ll check the adjustment at the casing end first and then adjust at the bars (as I think it is supposed to be done) and see how it goes.

The bike only does a few hundred miles a year and hasn’t had a long trip since I brought her from N Ireland to Poland about 15 years ago when she ran like a dream.  Perhaps she’s just feeling neglected!

Its also not common to find 10w40 oil here so I use anything from 15w40 to 15w50. Are they very sensitive to the higher viscosity oils. I only use the bike on good weather days.

Link to comment

I always use mineral oil. Is the change to semi-synthetic just a matter of draining and replacing including the filter. I was led to believe that any residue from one type can cause emulsifying if the two come into contact or is this just an ‘old wives tale’?

Link to comment

Over the years I have used 10W40, 15W40, 20W50, 10W50 and probably some others too. Mineral, semi-synthetic and full synthetic. Bike oil, car oil and even some "tractor oil". All work ok. However, there have been some slight differences in clutch operation between different oils but I haven't noticed any clear connection to viscosity or oil type. Seems to be just random.

Making the clutch drag free, or even close, can be quite delicate job on these engines. The first thing is to make sure that you get full travel from the lever to the clutch pack. Second common problem is grooves on the clutch hub and basket which prevents the plates moving smoothly. Then the plates can be bent/warped which will cause dragging too. Also sometimes there seems to be a good amount of black magic involved too...

  • Like 1
Link to comment
  • 1 year later...

Changed to 10w40 mineral oil, adjusted clutch as per the manual and now clunkier and worse than ever to get into gear. Had no problems changing whilst in motion before but now it’s dreadful. Looks like I’ll just have to keep fiddling. Maybe my bike likes the higher viscosity oil?

Link to comment

I put new clutch plates, steels and small aluminum spacers behind the spring and it made things better. My basket does not have grooves and there is still some drag and it can be hard to find neutral. 

I had it nicely adjusted, but I had to take the motor out to split the cases again and fix a problem and Im having a hard time getting it perfectly adjusted again, so maybe the black magic mumbo jumbo does apply.

A high idle speed does make it much more difficult to find neutral while standing still

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...