Slipping into neutral.

[Devikah]

So I shift into 2nd gear and 10 seconds later it slips into neutral.  This happens occasionally, not consistently.

If it happened just as I shift into 2nd gear, I'd be looking at how fully I engage the clutch or not.

But the slippage occurs a few seconds after I'm already in 2nd gear.

Any pointers as to how I can troubleshoot this?

Thanks in advance.

[Iarn]

I was having this problem intermittently as well, at one point. Adjust your clutch cable rough adjustment on the casing. It's probably still a bit too tight. Loosen it an 1/8 to a 1/4 turn at a time until everything feels nice or it stops jumping to neutral. It is a bit time consuming, but it worked for me.

[Janx101]

More left foot pressure upwards! .. clunk it in there!

[Suzuki Stevo]

Maybe pull the bolt out of the shift lever, slide the shifter off the shaft and then rotate the shifter CW one spline 

(more up theory)

[Devikah]

Thank you for your replies.

I will try the recommendations and let you know.

Thanks again.

P.S.  My dad does tell me to be more aggressive with my gear shifting foot, from time to time.  "Shift like you mean it", he likes to say. 

[Atesz792]

Thank you for your replies.

I will try the recommendations and let you know.

Thanks again.

P.S.  My dad does tell me to be more aggressive with my gear shifting foot, from time to time.  "Shift like you mean it", he likes to say. 

Yup, definitely something you want to do on a GS.

[Janx101]

What footwear you have while on bike?  .. soft joggers and such can make it a little uncomfortable on the area that contacts the lever.
Riding boots/shoes usually have more rugged construction and apart from more protection for the shifter area I'm pretty sure they have a stiffer sole also!?

[Devikah]

My dad is an ATGATT kinda guy.  So I wear boots because... he's an ATGATT kinda guy. 

[Suzuki Stevo]

I have a wanked out foot from a previous MC accident, it's sensitive to pressure so I put a piece of 7/8 heater hose over the shifter on all my bikes to increase the contact area. This lets me put more pressure on the shifter giving me more positive/less painful shifts. My friends have tried it and claim better shifting even though they don't have any problems with their shifting foot. 

[Janx101]

Good info Stevo! 

And excellent info that you full atgatt Devi !!

Just be more positive with your change up to 2nd! .. it is a newer rider thing. .  I been riding (legally licensed on roads) only about 3-4 years and still do it sometimes!

Not at you in particular,  just general ... but it is more likely to be rider error on this bike rather than mechanical problems!

[floatingLomas]

I've had this happen occasionally too - and every time, it's because I didn't kick it into second.  If I'm firm with the upshift, it never happens.

[The Buddha]

Other than those nice precise and authoritative clunk's into gear and keeping on the bpedal till it makes that good clink into gear ... if its happening even if you are nicely slamming it into gear - sadly, the transmission is going ... Very very rare on a GS ... but it has happened before, and usually due to poor shifting practices by riders ...

Old Katana's, GSXR's GS *50's, yamaha XJ *50's etc etc, yes very common.
In fact any Yamaha XJ *50 IMHO isn;t even worth buying unless you can take it for a nice long - like 20-30 mile ride to test every gear in the tranny both hot and cold. Too many crooks pass off those as "non runners" with tranny issues, for $1000 or $700 ... which for a bike with carb issues alone is worth it ... but a dying tranny is about $500 more than market $$$.

Cool.
buddha.

[J_Walker]

I'm gonna try this..