You may be onto something azglocker- I've never had a shifter problem with 1 RK and two SGS's. However I DID add the billet shift rod to the RK and just transfered it each time to the new bike. I ALWAYS remove the rear shifter as well.
Check your shift linkage now !
- Thread starter BillyBob
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You may be onto something azglocker- I've never had a shifter problem with 1 RK and two SGS's. However I DID add the billet shift rod to the RK and just transfered it each time to the new bike. I ALWAYS remove the rear shifter as well.
Inner shift lever. Fairly soft aluminum and fine splines are going to create issues. The lever gets a little loose and then every time you shift the splines wear against the harder shaft. There is a theory that part of the problem is the extra mechanical leverage of the heel shifter mixed with folks tending to be a bit heavy footed with it. The problem APPEARS to be less common with people who either don't use or have removed the heel shifter.
After looking at the lever that stripped on mine, it seems that the splines could be a bit more robust. You'd loose some fine adjustment in the lever, but they'd be less likely to strip. Or maybe a drilled shaft and pin arrangement to take some load off the splines. But I'm not an engineer, so I'm likely totally off base.
My solution? Tighten those pinch bolts to the high end of spec, use a bit of blue loctite on the threads, check them regularly, and keep a spare shifter shaft and lever on hand in case I need a replacement. It's only $40 or so in parts and if I have them, I'll probably never need them.
I know people who had this issue with under 1K , others like myself who have not. I use my heal shifter almost exclusively.
Its part of my regular checks to give all four clamping bolts a torque by feel check , and so far only once have I got a little slack out of any , that was the front inside lever , the same one that went on my friends new 15 RGS. He pointed it out to me and sure enough I got about 1/8 turn outa mine.
Mojo I really don't need excuses to buy parts , now I'm gona have to upgrade my relay rod Ha Ha Ha.
Its part of my regular checks to give all four clamping bolts a torque by feel check , and so far only once have I got a little slack out of any , that was the front inside lever , the same one that went on my friends new 15 RGS. He pointed it out to me and sure enough I got about 1/8 turn outa mine.
Mojo I really don't need excuses to buy parts , now I'm gona have to upgrade my relay rod Ha Ha Ha.
I'm finally a member of the club! My inner shifter lever and shaft stripped but it happened in second gear close to home (the day after a 1,300 mile trip!). This is my second Harley with a heel-toe shift and I've always kept the heel shift on the bike. I knew of this issue when I bought the bike so I did all the right things like upgrading my shift rod, using blue loctite on all pinch bolts, etc. I also regularly check the shift linkage. So you may be wondering how this could have happened when taking all precautions, right?
I think I know what I did wrong. A few weeks ago I planned a trip on the bike and decided that I wanted to perform an autotune on with my FP3 tuner. I had a map loaded that I was very happy with but I wanted to see if there was a noticeable difference with an autotune (there wasn't). I would take the bike out and run it up to about 6,000 RPM's and did a lot of stops to full throttle. So while I'm out having fun I noticed myself hitting the heel shifter hard just as I reach about 6K rpm. I am fairly certain that I caused the problem during my tuning session. I agree that it's a poor design and could be made more robust. Just wanted to share my observation and remind others to gently shift especially when using the heel shifter.
I think I know what I did wrong. A few weeks ago I planned a trip on the bike and decided that I wanted to perform an autotune on with my FP3 tuner. I had a map loaded that I was very happy with but I wanted to see if there was a noticeable difference with an autotune (there wasn't). I would take the bike out and run it up to about 6,000 RPM's and did a lot of stops to full throttle. So while I'm out having fun I noticed myself hitting the heel shifter hard just as I reach about 6K rpm. I am fairly certain that I caused the problem during my tuning session. I agree that it's a poor design and could be made more robust. Just wanted to share my observation and remind others to gently shift especially when using the heel shifter.
First post, sorry if I didn't check the proper places prior to this post. I just noticed that my shifter arm behind my primary cover is extremely loose. I am trying to find an exploded parts diagram so I can obtain the P/N for it. 2012 FLHX. Any help would be greatly appreciated. My SG only has 4500 miles and it is loose.
I bought my replacement shaft and shaft lever from Dennis Kirk. The brand is Drag Specialties. I don't have the P/N handy, but if you pull up the parts on DK's website, it will show what year bikes the parts fit. FYI, mine was loose behind the primary too and I just loosened the pinch bolt, slid the lever back onto the shaft and tightened the pinch bolt to fix it. I now carry the new spare shaft, shaft lever and pinch bolts onboard in case I ever need them. I probably won't though because I have them now.
I want to add something. Its nothing new but I did use the hex grade 8 bolt trick last weekend on my bro -in-laws RK. His was real loose. I honestly couldn't tell if the gap in the shaft was completely closed (I was gonna try to widen it as I read somewhere on the net) but after honkering down with a 6 point socket on a grade 8.8 hex bolt and a few drops of red Loctite wicked into the splines, I'm hear to tell you it is tight. Forget trying to do this with the stock allen bolt.
BTW, The red Loctite was used for a reason. Believe it or not it is a cure for the common problem with the Suzuki DRZ400 countershaft nut becoming loose (followed by the engine oil being pumped right at the rear wheel!). The nut was never turning. It was locked with a tab. It was revealed that the splines on the drive shaft and sprocket were getting pounded to death and a few drops of red Loctite wicked in between completely solved the problem!
I sold him the bike about a year ago. Everything was perfect. Nothing loose anywhere and he has hardly rode it. How did the shift lever come lose so quickly? Well, hes got a big ass foot and beats the heck out of the shift lever on downshifts (There is no heel shifter). I owned it for 5 years and never had a problem. Go figure.
BTW, The red Loctite was used for a reason. Believe it or not it is a cure for the common problem with the Suzuki DRZ400 countershaft nut becoming loose (followed by the engine oil being pumped right at the rear wheel!). The nut was never turning. It was locked with a tab. It was revealed that the splines on the drive shaft and sprocket were getting pounded to death and a few drops of red Loctite wicked in between completely solved the problem!
I sold him the bike about a year ago. Everything was perfect. Nothing loose anywhere and he has hardly rode it. How did the shift lever come lose so quickly? Well, hes got a big ass foot and beats the heck out of the shift lever on downshifts (There is no heel shifter). I owned it for 5 years and never had a problem. Go figure.
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Thanks for the heads up. I just looked at mine andlow and behold it was loose and ready to back out. used Loctite problem solved
I carried my 2013 StreetGlide back to Harley thinking the compensator nut might be loose because I kept hearing a rattling noise down in that area? Well, I guess I got lucky that my shifter didn't fall apart because it was that the inside bolt on on small shaft up front that runs from the shifter linkage to the foot shifter being loose! They fixed it and I haven't had anymore issues since! However, I am about to do a full service in a couple of days and I will be checking all this again after seeing this thread! Thanks all...
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Pardon The Interruption: ...but I was riding the interstate this weekend and had a tough time finding 6th gear (2013 FLHX). I down shifted then brought it back up to 6th gear and it finally engaged. It felt like my heel-toe was stuck midway and wouldn't let me fully drop it into 6th. Only happened once. Got home and all linkage & shifter items are tight. Primary - Trans fluids changed a few months ago (before winter storage). No clunks or funny noises. I'm thinking I may have released the clutch too early before fully engaging. As a sidebar , I did have my heel/toe come flying off while riding thru the city (35MPH). Took it to stealership and they loc-tited the little fella down real good (but that was 2 years ago). Anyway! Just wanted your thoughts. Thanks
I agree Mojo. I don’t use it, but found my boot actually getting a black mark on the heel from contacting it. Figured it must add pressure that shaft doesn’t need so I removed it too.
I did the shifter swap mod and use my heel shifter all the time. I'll be sure to check my splines with the regular maintenance since so many have had an issue with them.
Jumping in late on this thread. Pingle, yes, the manufactures of the fuel shut off valves has a stainless steel greaseable shift shaft for 2001 - 2016 Touring bikes.
http://www.pingelonline.com/harley-davidson-accessories/62142-greaseable-shifter-shaft.asp
http://www.pingelonline.com/harley-davidson-accessories/62142-greaseable-shifter-shaft.asp
