Lost gear shifter (ooops!)

[dwvoss]

Lost Gearshift

I had a similar experience this summer, and the cause of the problem what that the bold had worn enough that it no longer caught in the valley between the splines. New bolt solved the problem.

[Rocketman]

I'm-a-bolt-shopping!

[Planecrazy]

In that case (and it makes sense) I'd ALSO do a little grinding of the contact point between the two sides of the lever, so that it grips the shaft more tightly. That ought to prevent the movement and wear of the new bolt threads.

Regards,

[Pharkmeh]

I had a similar experience this summer, and the cause of the problem what that the bold had worn enough that it no longer caught in the valley between the splines. New bolt solved the problem.

In that case (and it makes sense) I'd ALSO do a little grinding of the contact point between the two sides of the lever, so that it grips the shaft more tightly. That ought to prevent the movement and wear of the new bolt threads.

Regards,

gr8 tips thx

I'm-a-bolt-shopping!

me too....

[bgmart450]

That is indeed good news. I lost mine commuting to Houston one day. I was on the HOV lane about to merge into the worst part of traffic downtown jammed in 6th. I didn't lose anything but the bolt so I slapped it onto 2nd by hand until I could hit a hardware store.

I need the whole assembly anyways, mine is so worn out. I have the linkage setup because the 450E and S have rearset pegs.

[Guest]

I've told the story before in another GSR thread. I was riding my GT550 from Des Moines to Fort Worth, and lost the shifter someplace in the night in Kansas on US69. My tool kit always has Vise Grips in it, and I put them on the shaft. For the next several hours I only shifter between 2 - 3 - 4 to save wear on the shaft. In Oklahoma I found a Suzuki dealer that had a shift level in stock.

I agree with Planecrazy about the lever. And those splines should never wear unless there are serious problems with something else.