2009 1st to 2nd gear change - clunk or ka-pow?

[andyvh1959]

Originally Posted by flightdoc

I have a 2005 Nomad. Mine made loud clunking since day one. I never had a "heel-toe" shifter before this bike and it took awhile to get used to it. I read an article about "pre-loading" prior to shifting and I started doing that and it made a huge difference in the noise. Pre-loading is when you apply pressure on the shifter just to the point of almost causing a shift . When I make the actual shift it smoothed things out a great deal.

Big V-twins shift better with preloading the shifter. I prefer the toe shift only, so I removed the heel shifter. Also, I feel using the heel shift is not as accurate as the toe shift. When I shift on my Vulcan, get the RPM up and preload the shifter, then very little clutch lever action and very little throttle chop, and click I get the next gear smooth and quick. Minimal clutch and throttle keeps the rpm which helps the shift. I you habit to let the engine revs drop too much between shifts, the upshift will feel sluggish.