I can't shift smoothly anymore!

[Bonner]

The topic says it all really. I've had my 2004 FZ6 for about 3 months now, and all my up and downshifts are clunky as hell! I came from an old Kawasaki ER-5, and even with the rubbish Kawa gearbox, I could still shift through the gears like it was an automatic; no jumping, no clunking, no rev jerking, just smooth shifting up and down.

This on the other hand is annoying. My upshifts are jerky and clunky and my downshifts are a nightmare. I can't rev match on this bike and when I try I either overrev the hell out of it or don't give it enough. I suspect it's my inexperience with the bike itself, but I took to my old ER quicker than this!

Some things I've noticed.

The bike shifts up smoother with a gentle tap to the lever, rather than knocking it with force

The bike also shifts up smoother at higher RPMs, (around 6000 and it's lovely) However I don't like riding around town at 6000 as it's obnoxious.

The throttle doesn't seem responsive enough to accurately blip on downshifts. It's too on/off (I know that's the FI and I can't do much about it)

Pulling the clutch in less allows a smoother shift than if I pull it in completely.


Can anyone offer any insight? Something I may be missing?

 

[Grainbelt]

preloading the shifter helps with the smoothness of the mechanics, but won't help you rev-match.

Check your chain tension to be sure it isn't too loose
Adjust almost all the slack out of the throttle cable

 

[Bonner]

preloading the shifter helps with the smoothness of the mechanics, but won't help you rev-match.

Check your chain tension to be sure it isn't too loose
Adjust almost all the slack out of the throttle cable

You can pre-load the shifter? Well there's something I didn't know. How do you go about doing that then? I'll take a look at the throttle cable tomorrow, and the chain is alright as I checked that a few days ago.

Cheers man.

 

[JimStl]

I did a bunch of reading before I got my 2007 about 2 months ago. I got the impression then that clunky shifting was part of story with these bikes. I've noticed it on mine and in the short time that I have had to practice on the bike I do notice that I'm getting better with smoothing out my shifting, but still I do find it a bit jumpy.

Enjoying the bike though.

 

[bluremi]

Not sure how much of a difference there is between model years, but my shifting took a little while to get good at on my 2008. Now it's very smooth between 2-6. Up and down from 1-2 is still a bit clunky but that's normal for most motorcycles.

These bikes are very comfortable around 6000RPM. I have noticed that shifting is smoother if you do the following:

- Shift when you're above 5000 RPM
- Don't cut the throttle when shifting (don't let the engine spin down, ESPECIALLY for 1st-2nd)
- Don't pull the clutch all the way in. The friction zone on the clutch is right at the very beginning of lever travel, you only have to squeeze it about an inch and you've disengaged the clutch.

If you keep this in mind you'll be doing smooth shifts after a little more practice.

 

[pookamatic]

Here's all you need to know: you will get better and one day, feel like a rockstar.

I know this because I was experiencing the same exact problems and they all just went away two days ago. I have put close to 2,000 miles my 2008 (my first owned, but not the first time I've ridden), and I've just begun to master it. I've driven manual cars my whole life (approaching 20 years). Last week was particularly choppy but Monday... whoa baby... I was a freaking ninja clutch warrior. From putting between lights to short bursts of ludicrous speed, I had it all.

Be patient, and you'll dial it in. I ordered a custom clutch slave lever from a member here, killernoodle, that will lengthen the friction zone and make it a bit easier to pull. Haven't tried it yet but if you're still having trouble after a while, give these items a try:

killernoodle's clutch slave lever
throttle body sync
throttle tamer

 

[pookamatic]

And bluremi touches on a good point, shifting at 4k, 7k, and 13k are COMPLETELY different beasts. So don't try to learn all three at once because frustration may make for a longer learning time.

 

[pookamatic]

I keep thinking of tips after I hit post:

Preloading the shifter means to pull up on shift lever before adjusting throttle or pulling in clutch. I do this on just about every single upshift... especially lower gears. The fraction of a second after you've clutched in and throttled off, it's already in gear and you can get back on it very quickly.

Looking back, one of the things that is so inhibiting during the learning process is that we take too much time trying to it right. Your brain says, "let's slow this down and get it right." What you really want to do is remove one major variable... time. Once it's all down to muscle memory, the only thing you think is, "damn, that was a pretty sweet shift... I bet that hot chick in the car next to me is impressed."

 

[Grainbelt]

Preloading the shifter means to pull up on shift lever before adjusting throttle or pulling in clutch. I do this on just about every single upshift... especially lower gears. The fraction of a second after you've clutched in and throttled off, it's already in gear and you can get back on it very quickly.

Yep. It seems to make a huge difference on the 1-2 upshift; less so, but noticeable for the others. Once you get the hang of it you'll find that for low-rpm, slow-acceleration shifts, you don't even need to use the clutch once you've hit second.

 

[Wearyeyed]

Once you get the hang of it you'll find that for low-rpm, slow-acceleration shifts, you don't even need to use the clutch once you've hit second.

And everyone knows clutchless shifting makes synthetic oil and 93 octane the best fluids for your bike. :BLAA:

 

[major tom]

I've been riding since 1956 and this is a bike that is difficult to shift smoothly so it's not due to a lack of experience. I very much like my '07 and '08, that's right I like FZ-6's so much I have two!
The problem is the clutch has a very narrow engagement point, there is very little flywheel effect, and the throttle is like a light switch it's all on or all off. I can relate to all of the issues you mentioned.
It is amusing reading of all the varied techniques to make clean non lurching shifts so you can all chuckle at my try. I try to think of my right wrist as turning something very sluggish or I make it so. Off, and on especially, very deliberate and still it takes timing.
But rest assured smooth shifts will eventually happen........usually!

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Make sure your clutch cable is WELL LUBED, it does make a difference. (Do your chain too and make sure its adjusted correctly to get rid of any excess drive train slop).

Yes the engagment zone is short but if you've been riding that long, I suspect you've adjusted to it. Actually, I've learned to like it as you can shift faster with less clutch movement. For a newbie, it doesn't help getting rolling...

When starting out on my 07, hold in the clutch for several seconds and allow the gear box to stop spinning, then shift into first, you'll find it clunks much less... I can let the clutch out at idle (level ground), not give ANY THROTTLE, and the bike will go (that's with the idle set at 1,000 RPM's)

I probably have the adjustment on the clutch set on the loose side and just barely pull the clutch when shifting, no pre-loading, nothing, shifts fine...

12,500 miles right now, 5100 motul, fixin to get Mobil one full synthetic at 13,000 miles...

 

[FinalImpact]

You might want to take a look at this. . . .
http://www.600riders.com/forum/fz6-...ead-rpm-gear-sprockets-tire-actual-speed.html

Specifically this area:
Percent of difference in RPM's from a gear ratio change:
1st > 2nd = -32%
2nd > 3rd = -20%
3rd > 4th = -14%
4th > 5th = -11%
5th > 6th = -9%

So in short the 1 -> 2 going up you need to nearly drop 32% of the rpm. On the down shift you need to increase RPM by about 32%.

Gears 3 - 6 is so minimal you can nearly leave the throttle fixed below 5k and its pretty smooth.

But in general a quick shift will solve most problems. Having the clutch IN TOO LONG allows the engine to run away out of range (if you blow the whole rev match thing) for a smooth shift. Reducing the time that the clutch is disengaged general leads to the least amount of "bang"!

 

[fmf]

I changed riding boots and suddenly have a tough time shifting as well. I've been riding in some comfy hiking boots while looking for new boots decided to just ride them for a while. Well I noticed that I kept having a problem downshifting where I'd shift into first and it'd pop into N. After trying to figure out why I thought that it was probably due to either the grip of the boots pulling the lever up enough after the downshift to engage N or the fact that they are just bigger/taller/wider across the top of the foot and maybe I wasn't getting the boot far enough from lever and bumping it. Tested that theory with some shoes, no problems.

Finally settled on some cortech latigos which feel GREAT, but I can't upshift after 2nd and up to save my life. 1 to 2, no problem. 2-3 I fight and fight and usually miss it, 3-4 same, etc. clutchless up shifting works. No problems with popping into neutral on downshifts, no problem downshifting period.

I thought surely this can't be due to my boots, no way, no how. Took a spin with my old hiking boots and clutched upshifts were a breeze.........first downshift into 1st popped me into N........

 

[greg]

i find the trick is to change gear as quickly as possible

blip -> clutch in -> shift -> clutch out

clutchless upshifts are also smooth, but you may risk damage to your gearbox, especially if you don't do it properly

 

[FinalImpact]

I changed riding boots and suddenly have a tough time shifting as well. I've been riding in some comfy hiking boots while looking for new boots decided to just ride them for a while. Well I noticed that I kept having a problem downshifting where I'd shift into first and it'd pop into N. After trying to figure out why I thought that it was probably due to either the grip of the boots pulling the lever up enough after the downshift to engage N or the fact that they are just bigger/taller/wider across the top of the foot and maybe I wasn't getting the boot far enough from lever and bumping it. Tested that theory with some shoes, no problems.

Finally settled on some cortech latigos which feel GREAT, but I can't upshift after 2nd and up to save my life. 1 to 2, no problem. 2-3 I fight and fight and usually miss it, 3-4 same, etc. clutchless up shifting works. No problems with popping into neutral on downshifts, no problem downshifting period.

I thought surely this can't be due to my boots, no way, no how. Took a spin with my old hiking boots and clutched upshifts were a breeze.........first downshift into 1st popped me into N........

You might consider adjusting your shifter upwards to center it around where your toes "NORMALLY RESIDE". As in, get into your riding position and look at toe position and figure that toe/foot needs to have equal access to shift up/down. Adjust the lever so its not so much work to shift and/or miss shifts. . .

Also I moved my brake lever down as I always had to lift my foot to activate it and I think it also made it easier to over-brake the rear.

 

[greg]

one useful thing i learnt from motovudu is that your foot doesn't need to be on the pedal to shift, you just need to move the lever.

doesn't really help with smoothness though

 

[FinalImpact]

one useful thing i learnt from motovudu is that your foot doesn't need to be on the pedal to shift, you just need to move the lever.

doesn't really help with smoothness though

Use "The Force" young Luke. . . . :bow: