[kymron]

I am new to my Blade and I can not seem to get my gear changing correct. On my other bikes I do not have to think about changing gears and all is good, but on the Blade I seem to have to think about my gear changing or I get clunky gear changes. Is it me or is the nature of the beast? Problem seems to be worst at slow speeds.

As a foot note I seem to have a lot of back lash when on and off the gas. Again is this just me or do I have not have her set up properly?

 

[Mplpl]

check your sprockets for bad teeth or chain for kinks, make sure you have a straight chinline and correct tension -
I just changed out to a 520 chain and steel sprockets - smoothest tightest shifting ever on this bike -

Mike

 

[bladeracer]

I am new to my Blade and I can not seem to get my gear changing correct. On my other bikes I do not have to think about changing gears and all is good, but on the Blade I seem to have to think about my gear changing or I get clunky gear changes. Is it me or is the nature of the beast? Problem seems to be worst at slow speeds.

As a foot note I seem to have a lot of back lash when on and off the gas. Again is this just me or do I have not have her set up properly?

If you're used to riding non-Honda you'll find the lever throw is longer on the Honda so can take some getting used to.
The driveline lash is most likely a very slack chain or worn chain and sprockets.

 

[kymron]

I lost full movement in my left ankle years ago, that would explain the prob with the long throw (which I did not think of). I lowered the lever and there is a bit of improvement. I will keep going with that one.

As to the back lash. I have had a prob in the past with a Suzuki, a dropped primary shaft bearing. Possibly from too tight a chain, hence I tend to run as close to max slack as recommended. But on the Blade I noticed that the recommended slack is 30mm (1 1/4") which to me seems huge. I did bring it down a bit and I will also look at the chain, as I do not know how old the present one is.

 

[bladeracer]

I lost full movement in my left ankle years ago, that would explain the prob with the long throw (which I did not think of). I lowered the lever and there is a bit of improvement. I will keep going with that one.

As to the back lash. I have had a prob in the past with a Suzuki, a dropped primary shaft bearing. Possibly from too tight a chain, hence I tend to run as close to max slack as recommended. But on the Blade I noticed that the recommended slack is 30mm (1 1/4") which to me seems huge. I did bring it down a bit and I will also look at the chain, as I do not know how old the present one is.

I modified my shifter to reduce the throw to something more useful and fixed the problem completely.
Too loose is better than too tight but within spec is best. But you must set the chain slack after rotating the wheel to find the tightest part of the chain.

 

[bulldog12]

keep fairly fresh oil in it. i change oil when it get's clunky (about 1,000 miles w/ regular oil. i use Repsol Semi/Synth and it shifts like butter til around 2-3K miles) i also quit using clutch for upshifts when riding hard.

again, new oil = much better shifting.

 

[kymron]

Brand new oil, Penrite Semi/Syn. and filter.

Checked the chain with axle nut tightened and a few revs of the wheel. Yea I agree a little loose is good, better than loosing your bearings at high speed. Not a nice sound listening to the gear box rattling about.

Bladeracer, what mod did you do to the shifter.

 

[bladeracer]

Brand new oil, Penrite Semi/Syn. and filter.

Checked the chain with axle nut tightened and a few revs of the wheel. Yea I agree a little loose is good, better than loosing your bearings at high speed. Not a nice sound listening to the gear box rattling about.

Bladeracer, what mod did you do to the shifter.

Your suspension will be complaining long before you see transmission problems. If the chain is too tight the swingarm won't be able to travel upwards.
I drilled the rose joint off the lower lever and bolted a piece of 5mm aluminium plate on instead and then bolted the shift linkage rod to that to make the lever longer.

 

[CBRMarc12]

It may be technique but if you haven't had trouble on other bikes then you may want to check the clutch slack, clutch and transmission along with throttle adjustment. Obviously start with the easier stuff such as lever adjustments, oil, chain, etc...

 

[FTP_929]

i noticed when shifting from N to 1 it sounds like it "slams" into gear,like it feels like the motors going to fall out lmao

 

[Bolthole]

Hi!

I used to get this on my old '94 900 RR-R and I tried everything.

Then a friend told me to stop changing up so early... and that seemed to be it! I'd driven mostly cars for years and had got into the habit of changing gears as early as possible to save fuel... but this just doesn't suit the 'blade. Keep the revs higher generally.

It's still not perfect, but then Honda gearboxes just aren't... now, when I'm in town I seldom get out of second. It seems wierd at first, like you're deliberately running the engine too fast but it's made such a difference to the bike.

The other thing to check, is to see if the little metal bumps on the metal plates in your clutch have worn away. Apparently these are there for a reason, and if they aren't there, it's bad! I'm not sure exactly why or if this applies to the clutch on your bike, but it's something I once had explained to me by someone who knew.

The thing with revving higher generally made the big difference, but maybe someone on this thread can explain what the clutch thing is all about ...

 

[adrianinflorida]

Hi!

I used to get this on my old '94 900 RR-R and I tried everything.

Then a friend told me to stop changing up so early... and that seemed to be it! I'd driven mostly cars for years and had got into the habit of changing gears as early as possible to save fuel... but this just doesn't suit the 'blade. Keep the revs higher generally.

It's still not perfect, but then Honda gearboxes just aren't... now, when I'm in town I seldom get out of second. It seems wierd at first, like you're deliberately running the engine too fast but it's made such a difference to the bike.

The thing with revving higher generally made the big difference, but maybe someone on this thread can explain what the clutch thing is all about ...

I had the same 'problem' when I first got my CBR600 F3. I was used to my old Suzuki GZ250 and to cars where early shifting/short shifting was the norm. The CBR is alot more fun to ride now that I'm running her in the powerband, not well below it.

 

[kymron]

Yes I think you guys have the nail on the head. I have noticed if I stay in the revs a little longer or even keep the revs up between changes the changing seems a little smoother. I have come from a Suzuki 1200 Bandit and my other ride is a Yamaha SR500. (Both only 5 speeds). I find the Blade does not have the lower torque that I am used to and that be why I need a little adjustment in my style.

I will check the clutch though as I think it is not all my style. The Blade will not lift the front wheel like my Bandit did under power. She just bogs down. Not sure if it is a clutch or timing issue. She has a Power Commander on board, not sure if she is set correctly. Goes hard after 3000 revs though.