Clacks , Crunches, or cant get Neutral

Rocking a 5 figure bike backwards and forwards to engage gear, in 2013. Really?

That made me laugh too:D

I thought 'box on the WC was certainly not a move forwards, compared to the TwinCam bikes

Never ridden a newer K bike with a wet clutch, how do they compare?
 
I really don't know what you lot of girls are on about - I thought GS riders were supposed to be manly rufty tufty bikers - you sound like a lot of old women!

There may have been one or two genuine gearbox problems (just like there has been with every motorcycle ever made) but apart from the 'clunk' into 1st (many other makes of bikes have this characteristic too) there is nothing wrong with the LC gearbox if you actually know how to change gear properly!
 
Isn't there a mode for smooth gear changes?

Would you like a tin hat with that post Sir? :D

Prior to the LC all my other bikes have been Jap inline 4s and I find the gearbox to be no better or worse than any of those.
 
Would you like a tin hat with that post Sir? :D

Prior to the LC all my other bikes have been Jap inline 4s and I find the gearbox to be no better or worse than any of those.

First sensible post, other than mine of course :D
 
Honestly apart from the clonk into first (which I avoid by rolling to a stop while in gear) the box is little different to my other boxer :nenau

However Mr LongerLeg hope it gets fixed soon :thumby:

Stu
 
All these clutch/gearbox stories are quite something. IIRC BMW took a Jap gearbox etc and mange to ruin it! That deserves an award on its own.

Yep manufactured in Japan, have you seen where the alternator is located?
 
Got the bike back yesterday......

So far only a forty mile ride home and all seems well

So fingers crossed Cannons have sorted it.

While there Matt showed me clutch assembly that had been replaced, seems strange to swop entire clutch housing plates springs thustplate bearings etc etc.... but I ain't complaining.

Cannons ain't been nothing but helpfull through out the issue, lent me a nice bike n kept me informed of what was going on.

I've 7 days now till I head for ferry to Spain so hoping alisgoot.

NLL
 
I'm picking up my new LC from Cannon next week. I've been treated very well.

Good luck with your journey to Spain, I envy you since I'm Spanish hehe
 
So fingers crossed Cannons have sorted it. I've 7 days now till I head for ferry to Spain so hoping alisgoot.
NLL

I've also bought a new LC from Cannon and have been treated really well so far. The buying experience has been really good, part exchanging my honda was no problem and have had a courtesy bike for a month while the new one its been delivered.



I do hope you get the bike on time for your journey to Spain. I'm Spanish so Im very jealous hehe
 
I really don't know what you lot of girls are on about - I thought GS riders were supposed to be manly rufty tufty bikers - you sound like a lot of old women!

There may have been one or two genuine gearbox problems (just like there has been with every motorcycle ever made) but apart from the 'clunk' into 1st (many other makes of bikes have this characteristic too) there is nothing wrong with the LC gearbox if you actually know how to change gear properly!
Do you work for bmw,? You wont listen to anyone elses oppinion.And the gs seem to be the best bike in the world :aidan
 
Do you work for bmw,? You wont listen to anyone elses oppinion.And the gs seem to be the best bike in the world :aidan
I read what they say but don't have to agree - however I do agree with you that it is the best bike in the World :D
 
I think it has just dawned on me why it crunches into 1st and is not too great at 1st>2nd>3rd either. I had this same problem on a Laverda a few years back and experimented until eventually I had to decide on a compromise...easy clutch lever effort or crunches into 1st.
- The clue is in how light they have made the clutch lever operation.
- Let's assume that to drive the torque produced by the engine the clutch must have a certain level of clamping force between the clutch plates to avoid slip and the higher the torque the higher the clamping force, i.e. from the clutch springs. (Remember this engine has high(er) torque and the clutch plates are lubricated in oil).
- Therefore the higher the spring clamping force the higher the force must be to disengage the clutch i.e. compress the clutch springs.
- So, that will mean for any given operating system (i.e. clutch lever/master cylinder/slave cylinder), the higher the engine torque the greater effort is required to operate the clutch lever.
- Now, we know, and are happy that the clutch lever is very light but how is this achieved....by increasing the mechanical leverage advantage, in this case hydraulic advantage.
- This is done by reducing the volume of clutch fluid operated by the clutch lever during its stroke (i.e. the master cylinder at the lever) relative to the slave cylinder size moving the clutch springs.
- In this way there is less disengagement movement of the clutch plates than there would be if the mechanical advantage was less i.e. the clutch lever feels lighter.
- If they had less mechanical advantage the clutch lever would have been heavier.
- It's the old high school pulley lifting weights theory, the higher the mechanical advantage the less pull effort you need on the pulley ropes to lift the weight but it lifts less distance per pull.
- Recently Ducati, I think it is, on their wet clutches and I think others, use a design which has less clutch spring force than the full torque would normally require by incorporating a ramp system which increases the clamp force as the driving torque rises. This way the clutch lever is lighter than would normally be the case but importantly still releases the clutch properly. Don't get this confused with slipper clutches which many bikes have including this GS which slips during heavy reverse clutch loading when changing down rapidly.
So, how could BMW fix this problem the cheapest way?...by changing the master cylinder at the clutch lever to a larger diameter to stroke the master cylinder more for a given lever movement. This way the slave cylinder at the clutch moves further and releases the clutch further. But, the lever will feel heavier.
Sorry chaps. I can't see BMW fixing this any time soon but it is fixable.
 
I never use neutral so I start my bike in first gear with the clutch in and I can feel the bike pull forwards as the clutch plates unstick. Try it for yourself and you will see why there is a clack if you put it into first gear with the engine running.

I have lost count of the times I have said 'don't bother with neutral just leave it in 1st gear when you park' but riders seem to think that since they paid for neutral they are determined to use it. Forget about neutral and you will probably gain an extra month of you life back in time not wasted.
 
In days of old when knights were bold n toilets hadnt been invented

You'd free your clutch with a dab of the kick start with the the clutch lever in
To free the clutch before snicking it in first or head off down the road on the back wheel.

To suggest not to use neutral is unacceptable and dangerous, fingers slip off at a busy traffic light you jump forward in to on coming traffic n die! :blast
 
You'd free your clutch with a dab of the kick start with the the clutch lever in
To free the clutch before snicking it in first or head off down the road on the back wheel.

To suggest not to use neutral is unacceptable and dangerous, fingers slip off at a busy traffic light you jump forward in to on coming traffic n die! :blast

Not with your foot on the back brake :blast.
 


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