Motorcycle Repair: Transmission, clutch hydraulics, hydraulic clutch

Question
I have a 1988 Honda Shadow. The problem I have is that it goes into first but then no other gear.

Answer
Manny, If it goes in and out of 1st to neutral and nothing on the upshifts, first check the shift linkage carefully. If the bike has crashed or tipped over, the shift lever or linkage can get bent out of adjustment and sometimes will hit a footpeg bracket or other parts before it can complete the shift action to the next gear. The shift arm on the shift shaft needs to be oriented so that it swings in a nice arc through a 90 degree angle to the shift lever/rod.

If that is not the case, then the next things to check are going to be internal. You will have to pull the clutch cover and check the shift drum and stoppers for anything worn or broken or loose. If there is no external fault to be found there, then a shift fork or something internal to the transmission is broken. If the problem just suddenly happened, then it could indicate a part failure, rather than parts slowly wearing out.

You didn't mention if it was a 600 or 800 Shadow, so you will have to refer to the www.bikebandit.com site for illustrations of the parts involved. If you have a 800 Shadow, it has a hydraulic clutch assy, kind of like the front brake system... master cylinder and slave cylinder. If your clutch hydraulics are worn out, then the clutch won't disengage sufficiently to allow the transmission to shift, unless you are really rolling along.

Bill Silver