HELP!!! Transmission Problems...

Hey, I really need some help 'brainstorming' what could be wrong with my transmission.....thats if it's even my transmission at all.
The situation is as follows:

I've got a '95 RVF400
When the bike is cold I have no problems with shifting gears.
As soon as the bike is warm shift from 1st to 2nd is stiff and leaver doesn't go down, shifting into 3rd is impossible.
This problem is during riding, when the bike is stationary it shifts through all the gears, although the gears are very stiff.

The bike has gotten new oil in the past two weeks.


Could anyone please help as to what I should look for......
Thanks

 

Thanks, Will definitely check the clutch....

I tried shifting high and low revs, with and without the clutch.

I unfortunately don't know the history of the bike, so for all I know it had been ridden through it's arse... It definitly was poorly maintained though

 

Hydraulic or cable clutch actuation ??

IF clutch is not releasing fully ( air in hydraulic line, leaky slave cylinder or freeplay too large on cable ) when you pull the lever it would cause the same symptoms you mention: a dragging clutch.

 

It's a cable clutch Mr Squirrel...

 

IN that case.......adjust freeplay at lever to a minimum ( about 1/2" at tip) with screw adjuster on lever.....or down below where cable is connected to a holder bracket.

 

Mr Squirrel my clutch is set, call it 1cm, off it's minimum...

Would it be worth checking selector fork or selector drum??? Would the motor need to be dropped out to check these properly?

 

"The bike has gotten new oil in the past two weeks."


What type of oil? All the Hondas I've had have had problems with shifting if I used an automotive oil. Hard notchy shifting, having to stomp the lever for 2nd gear or down shift to first. Stuff like that. Then I found out about motorcycle only oils like Spectro. Changed to a Spectro 10-40 and shifting became smooth. I had Spectro 20-50 in the bike last year.(screw up) and when the bike was cold it was hard shifting until it got hot. This year back to 10-40 and all is well whether cold or hot. I used an auto oil once, had no choice, it stayed about 500 miles then I got rid of it. Bike had a hard time shifting, plus noisy valve train.

Have you changed the type of oil your using? If not then never mind.

 

I have no I dea what oil was previously in the bike.
I put in Bel-Ray Thumper oil, it is a semi-synthetic 20W-50. I was recogmended the Thumper oil for the v4 motor because it is thicker and does not thin out under the temps we have here (even in winter my BF gixxer runs on an average of mid 90sC on a morning ride to work)... The bike was running great with it though, it actually even improved the feel of the shifting compared to the oil that had been in>> ofcourse this was before this problem arose.

What my stuff up is the bike runs fine when it's cold but not when it's hot... From what I've heard it should be the other way around.

I have checked the oil and there is no metal in the oil, which I guess is somewhat of a good sign.

 

GreyVF750F: Could I ask why you say having put the 20-50 oil in was a screw up...?


So far they guys working on my bike have stripped enough to see that the selector drum is fine, no burrs and not loose. The gears themselves apparently look great for the age of the bike.
Next check is going to be the clutch and the selector fork.

Only thing they notice that could be a cause for concern is that the chain that drives the oil pump is slightly stretched, not so much that the pump is not working at all though.

 

One thing you don't need 20-50. That's a thick oil for the street. Plus I wouldn't have believed it made my shifting in 1st & 2nd gear a problem. I was thinking WTF is going on here last year with cold shifting. Changed oil to Spectro Semi-Syn like yours but a 10-40 and cold shifting is not a problem anymore. 20-50 is more for racing where the motor is spinning high r's all the time and running hot. I'm not so sure that the pro's are not using a 10-40 or 10-30 for just less drag from the heavier oil. I've always know Honda for so-so shifting anyways. I do know from experience that the type of oil can make or break how my bikes have shifted.

What you should have the mechs do is put the 20-50 back in and see how it shifts. IF it's the way it was still hard to shift, then change the oil to 10-40 and see if that changes anything. That way you'll know what the cause was.

 

Awesome. Thanks for that advice.