QuestionHi Jan, I know this will probably be bumped to the pool, as Mr Shively is no longer on board, but any help would be most appreciated. I've googled for weeks and checked every Honda forum out there and not gotten an answer that helps me fix the problem.
I have a 2003 Honda Shadow Spirit 750 (VT750DC) that I am having shifting issues with.
The bike downshifts fine, but on upshifts from 3-4 and 4-5 (and less often 2-3) the bike frequently will not shift unless I pump the shift peg up before I pull the clutch. No amount of pressure (that I can exert with my foot) will cause it to shift when it doesn't want to go. So I can't force it, or double-pump it or anything. The only two ways to make it shift when it does this is to prime the peg before I pull the clutch, or the double-shift (clutch and peg).
If I prime the peg by pumping it up as I'm driving between shifts, it will shift first attempt almost 100%.
There are no unusual noises or anything, the clutch "appears" to be working just fine and has lots of adjustment both directions.
I am the 2nd owner of the bike, and bought it in February and it had not been ridden since the previous fall. The previous owner had no issues with shifting. It was originally only giving the problems with 2-3 shifts, but now the 3-4 and 4-5 are more common.
The bike has 8k miles, and I changed the rotella oil for Amsoil at about 7700 miles.
The problem seems to be worse when cold, and it doesn't always happen, so I'm wondering if it is maybe either oil related, or return spring related? It does not appear to be load influenced, in other words it doesn't seem to matter how hard I'm riding, or how many rpm the engine is turning.
I was concerned I might be riding my boot under the peg, causing it to not return all the way, and even adjusted the peg up to make sure that wasn't happening.
I don't typically ride the bike hard, and if anything it seems to happen less often when I do. The previous owner was a woman, and I have no doubts from getting to know them that she did not abuse the bike. I also have no reason to believe it has ever been down.
I'm out of ideas... HELP?
AnswerHi,
In thinking about this problem, I can't think of any easy, cheap things to try since you have already tried them. The only thing that I can think of is a bent selector fork, which is unsusual but does happen, or a problem with the 'dogs' on the end of the sliding gears. Since it requires a complete engine stripdown, and inspection of the selector forks and gears, you may just want to persevere with this until the problem becomes so bad the bike is unuseable. Sorry I cannot think of anything else. Good luck, Jan
