14 and newer RMZ450 shifting

brightlights
Rumor has it that in 14', in an effort to fix shifting issues, Suzuki went to a signifigantly stiffer spring on the shift drum follower. (Arm with wheel on it.) What I am looking for as a 16' Suzuki RMZ450 owner with less tham 4 hours on it is for it to stay in 3rd gear when I put it there. Exceed 5k rpm in 2nd and shift to 3rd, and it will stay in 3rd 4 out 6 times. Slips back to nuetral real quick then drops itself back into 2nd. More success if you shift it quickly before gettting to the high revs, but shifting that quick means your not really even fully out of the rut/square edges yet usually. The 2 out of 6 times it doesn't stay in 3rd are the reason the bike I bought for a return to agressive moto is best kept in the woods. Im trying to find a fix for this if anyone is in the know thanks in advance. Weight of bike, no big deal, air fork, well I'll work with it just like the harsh shock. Handles pretty good, but not sinking money into this suspension until I know it will stay in 3rd gear. There is a kit out there with a bearing on the drum follower wheel along with a different spring that is meant to help, but this same kit was meant for the pre-14' Zuks also. Not hearing of anyone who has A- had these problems, and B- gone through the process of resolving them. Anyone in the know?
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Bruce372
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Bruce372 2/4/2017 6:42am
2/4/2017 6:42am
THIS will fix it.

Plus, I've got the fix for the harsh shock also.






mattyhamz2
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mattyhamz2 2/4/2017 8:27am
2/4/2017 8:27am
My dads 15 RMZ450 had a hard time shifting to third and would hit a false neutral a lot straight from the showroom floor. We ended up having to split the cases with only 5 hours on the bike and replaced 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th gear and the shift forks. He wasn't too happy doing that to a brand new bike, but it took care of the problem. His 13 had a similar issue as well, but not nearly as bad. His 17 seems to be much better then both of his previous RMZ's.
mattyhamz2
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mattyhamz2 2/4/2017 8:28am
2/4/2017 8:28am
oh and as far as suspension goes, send it to Enzo! They worked their magic on my dad's 13, 15 and now his 17. They've got it dialed!
Bruce372
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Bruce372 2/4/2017 8:55am
2/4/2017 8:55am
The clunky shifting goes back to 2009, try a different shifter first

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Aceofspades 2/4/2017 5:52pm
2/4/2017 5:52pm Edited Date/Time 2/4/2017 5:54pm
New leftover 2014 owner here, and my bike shifts like butter and stays in gear fine even under hard acceleration. Bruce is right in that an oddly shaped shiter can sometimes not have enough leverage on it and doesnt put the bike into gear solidly enough. My 14 has a badly shaped shifter bit Im extra mindful when i shift to make sure it goes into gear.
brightlights 2/4/2017 8:03pm
2/4/2017 8:03pm
Thank you a ton guys. Good to hear from those of you with an eye on the issue and having experiences along the lines. I understand most of the zuks are shifting fine and then there are the oddballs. Think I may have one oddball and I will try one of my different shifters first for a test run, then the different spring and follower,l. Bruce372 if I am seeing a change with one or both of these measures, if youre selling that shifter, and still have it at that point I may as well see if you'll let it go.
Thanks again and Ill share my results here for others.
Bruce372
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Bruce372 2/4/2017 9:13pm
2/4/2017 9:13pm
brightlights wrote:
Thank you a ton guys. Good to hear from those of you with an eye on the issue and having experiences along the lines. I understand...
Thank you a ton guys. Good to hear from those of you with an eye on the issue and having experiences along the lines. I understand most of the zuks are shifting fine and then there are the oddballs. Think I may have one oddball and I will try one of my different shifters first for a test run, then the different spring and follower,l. Bruce372 if I am seeing a change with one or both of these measures, if youre selling that shifter, and still have it at that point I may as well see if you'll let it go.
Thanks again and Ill share my results here for others.
If you are in the us, text me 858 775 two two 31
adam8781
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adam8781 2/5/2017 10:20pm
2/5/2017 10:20pm
honestly the suzuki needs tumbled/polished transmission work, its the brands weak spot, send it to tom at moto lab for 150 he will polish it up.
Aceofspades 2/6/2017 4:24pm
2/6/2017 4:24pm
Aceofspades wrote:
New leftover 2014 owner here, and my bike shifts like butter and stays in gear fine even under hard acceleration. Bruce is right in that an...
New leftover 2014 owner here, and my bike shifts like butter and stays in gear fine even under hard acceleration. Bruce is right in that an oddly shaped shiter can sometimes not have enough leverage on it and doesnt put the bike into gear solidly enough. My 14 has a badly shaped shifter bit Im extra mindful when i shift to make sure it goes into gear.
Have to eat my words here: the shifter is a piece of shit. I rode again today (much harder ride) and noticed that I had to angle my boot a funny way to get it into 3rd thru 5th. I only was successful at finding fifth 2 times. It definitely needs a longer, better angled shift lever. Im on a 14 model by the way.
Bruce372
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Bruce372 2/6/2017 5:00pm
2/6/2017 5:00pm
Aceofspades wrote:
New leftover 2014 owner here, and my bike shifts like butter and stays in gear fine even under hard acceleration. Bruce is right in that an...
New leftover 2014 owner here, and my bike shifts like butter and stays in gear fine even under hard acceleration. Bruce is right in that an oddly shaped shiter can sometimes not have enough leverage on it and doesnt put the bike into gear solidly enough. My 14 has a badly shaped shifter bit Im extra mindful when i shift to make sure it goes into gear.
Aceofspades wrote:
Have to eat my words here: the shifter is a piece of shit. I rode again today (much harder ride) and noticed that I had to...
Have to eat my words here: the shifter is a piece of shit. I rode again today (much harder ride) and noticed that I had to angle my boot a funny way to get it into 3rd thru 5th. I only was successful at finding fifth 2 times. It definitely needs a longer, better angled shift lever. Im on a 14 model by the way.
LOL....its the same shifter from 2008 thru 2017.

The hammerhead +10MM makes the problem go away, or if you have a smaller foot, get a 2007 shifter- its a better shape, you just have to grind a small notch to clear one of the case bolts....i have a new one of these shifters for sale also.

Plus, ive got over sized pegs too Smile
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RussB 2/8/2017 12:23am
2/8/2017 12:23am
Interesting!
I've got a 2015 RMZ450, put 28 hours on it with the stock shifter and have never had 1 shifting related issue. I've always found it to be super reliable and I have every confidence in shifting before a jump face etc.

Sheriff245 2/8/2017 5:36am
2/8/2017 5:36am
I haven't ridden the newer RMZ's, but struggled with shifting on my 08.5. The trick back then was to use an 07 RMZ450 shifter.

Bruce, is that a PC shock piston?
Bruce372
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Bruce372 2/8/2017 8:23am
2/8/2017 8:23am
Sheriff245 wrote:
I haven't ridden the newer RMZ's, but struggled with shifting on my 08.5. The trick back then was to use an 07 RMZ450 shifter. Bruce, is...
I haven't ridden the newer RMZ's, but struggled with shifting on my 08.5. The trick back then was to use an 07 RMZ450 shifter.

Bruce, is that a PC shock piston?
It's a show a piston
Aceofspades 2/10/2017 5:49pm
2/10/2017 5:49pm Edited Date/Time 2/10/2017 5:49pm
I now know one thing for certain: in tennis shoes, I never miss a shift and the bike shifts perfectly and stays in gear. Only in my riding boots do I have trouble, so a longer shift lever is needed.
Bruce372
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Bruce372 2/10/2017 7:37pm
2/10/2017 7:37pm
Improved shifter and a whole bunch of rmz450 parts ready to ship this weekend if someone wants to buy them Smile
brightlights 3/27/2017 10:36pm
3/27/2017 10:36pm Edited Date/Time 3/27/2017 10:46pm
Following up here on how this has turned out. I tried a longer shifter while waiting on a kit from Factory Pro. The longer shifter did help make a more solid engagement, and therefore did reduce the number of times it was popping back out and into nuetral on my second to third gear shift under hard acceleration. The shifter I tried wasnt the right spline size, and I altered it pretty good just to get it on so I could try it, but couldnt run it long term. I didnt have $ for a new shifter at that time, and on a whim and some peer pressure/support decided to go to a race. (First race back in 12 years, but thats another story lol) I had to nervously run the stock shifter for the race. The Factory Pro kit showed up the day before I left for the race. I needed some improvement from my nuetral finding experiences I had been having from second to third. I slapped in the Factory Pro kit and headed to the race. If it didnt help I figured I might have to pull off mid moto or just not ride hard or something because the number of nuetrals I had been getting was enough to remove any confidence while jumping in 3rd gear if you had to shift from second leading up to a jump. It worked!! I'll tell ya I had one nuetral all day, and oddly enough it was on the start of moto 1 going second to third, but no mis-shifts otherwise in two practices and 4 motos. The Factory Pro kit consists of a ceramic ball bearing stift star follower with a slightly different size wheel, along with a stronger spring. It feels like a moderately smoother action on the shifter, and a moderately more solid click. I should mention I also switched oils before the race so this experiment wasnt 100% scientific. I went from the OEM non synthetic oil (break in oil) to Rotella t6. Ive never run Rotella, but figured Id give it a shot. I have since changed to a 10mm longer Hammerhead shifter as well and definitely like the imorovement it brings to the feel as well. With the kit and the hammerhead, i have about 2 hours on the bike. In those 2 hours I have had 3 mis shifts from 2 to 3rd. I think they were all due to not lifting the shifter hard enough. I have found that I do have to be a bit more aware of my up shifts from 2nd to 3rd on the 16 rmz 450 although it is much improved now. It doesn't shift quite like my old yamies and hondies, but its gonna be good. Bike rips, handles good after revalve, and I go right at the same speed on it as I do my buddies ktm, so all is good. Thanks!

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