Occasionally when I put my bike into 2nd from 1st it stays in there but then pops out into neutral. This happens even if I don't use the clutch. If I recall correctly it started to happen after I changed oil, I used Motul 1000 however the previous owner used some synthetic stuff (Motul 1000 is mineral) but I doubt that would make much of a difference. It hardly ever used to happen but now happens frequently and from what I've seen so far it's only when going up from 1st to 2nd and it's not a false neutral, the gear pops out by itself from 2nd to neutral. Any suggestions?
Don't underestimate the effect that oil selection has on a motorbikes gearbox! Oils may 'just' lubricate and engine and gearbox but the different properties and qualities of each oil mean you'll get a different feel from each one. If you want to use Motul then i'd highly recommend getting the 5100. If you just want anything decent (read as cheap but effective) then i'd point you in the direction of Penrite HPR10. Both of the aforementioned oils are semi-synths; the Motul is $50/4L and is arguably one of the better motorcycle oils on the market. The Penrite is $28/5L and is labelled and sold as car oil but has no friction modifiers and works surprisingly well in bikes. The other thing to make mention is that you may need to adjust your gear shift lever incase your not giving it a FULL shift movement. If your not full engaging the gear then this can be a common cause for it to fall out of gear. As long as your not getting false neutrals all over the place then it's probably nothing serious.
Make sure you maintain upward pressure on the change leaver for the entire time the clutch is out. If you don't then it can kick out of gear. I do this all the time now, and ocasionally I feel the bike try to kick out of gear when I'm releasing the clutch - but if you maintain upward pressure with your foot then it re-engages straight away with no problems.
The 1000 are know to have doggy 2nd gear shift dogs. I know because mine was doing the same thing each of you are describing. I remedied the situation by replacing it with a 6 speed box out of a YZF. Guess what... it's 2nd gear was bad too. Replaced the gear along with the shift detent arm and spring. Made a world of difference.
I adjusted the shift lever but it's doing the same **** and it's not just trying to pop out while shifting, instead it goes into 2nd fine but then during riding in 2nd it just pops out. It's fucken annoying because the bike starts going in 2nd but then a few seconds later it just pops out and I'm bouncing of the limiter in Neutral :S. I might need to do something about the gearbox, is it a big job to replace it? BTW: Mine is the 250.
Yep. That is exactly what mine was doing. Get on the throttle and "Bang" out it pops. The motor has to be disassembled (split the cases) to replace the worn gear, or undercut the gears, or replace the trans. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.
A few years ago, one of the son's dirt bike was doing the same thing. I dismantled the engine gearbox and found the dogs were slightly rounded. I had the dogs re-built with hard face welding rods. Reground the dogs square and it all worked well. HOWEVER it is much easier to pull apart a single cylinder air cooled two stroke.
