Sloppy up-shifting when hot?
 

2004 1200. Replaced my clutch in 2016 with the extra plate Barnett kit.

For the last couple seasons Ive noticed my upshifting is becoming more labored and I'm missing shifts more often in mid-high rpm range. Downshifting there's no problem. With forwards and mid controls. It feels the gears feel sloppy and theres no real feeling of definite engagement when upshifting. I thought it might be just rider error but it's definitely not that. I'm seemingly having to focus more on my upshifting to get cleaner shifts. Again it happens more when the bike gets hot and Ive been riding for 15-20 mins. Im not getting any strange noises when shifting.

I've re-adjusted the primary chain, inner clutch, hand lever and fluid level by the book too many times at this point. Theres something wrong.

Could it just be my barnett clutch burning out? Hoping it's not a tranny issue.

Thanks for all replies.

If you've been shifting hard & fast, it might just be the springs...

Here's the Sportsterpedia section on the 2004-later 5-spd trans, including the shifter:
http://sportsterpedia.com/doku.php/t...o:transfinal04

The shifter is accessible outside the cases (behind the primary cover).

IXL _______ >>>> My Motorcycle Chronicles Are Here <<<<
For Sportster Tech Info:
Ride The Sportsterpedia - A Toll-Free XLForum Information Highway!

I ride pretty sensibly in general, ride it hard on occasion. I dont do burnouts or wheelies.

Back off the primary chain adjustment a tad {1/8 turn} even if its "by the book".

correct...
and change primary oil with a good gear oil...
a bit more often
i do this each time I change the motor oil...

now my upshift in 3 rd is much better

that is one of the advantages...
for ride a well known bike...
a model changed only a little over the years...

Have you checked the throwout bearing?

I'll have that checked out. To add, it just feels like the clutch isnt disengaging enough causing rough sloppy more labored upshifts.

That's why I asked about the throwout bearing. Since you already have an extra plate kit we can rule out the spring plate, but whenever a clutch with good history of working starts to get "grabby" there is a MECHANICAL problem.

Normal clutch wear causes slip, and that is curable with an adjustment.

Grab is never more than temporarily adjustable, because; you are adjusting to compensate for bad parts and as the parts continue to fail the fresh adjustment goes away with it. In your case the most likely culprit is the throwout bearing. As it wears, the race gouges out on the load side, and the balls get smaller which allows the adjusting screw to have more slop, that means when you pull the clutch lever you need to pull out the added slop, plus the adjusted amount of slop before the plates can start to separate.

I felt a throwout bearing going away on a long day of riding through street level riding. I kept adjusting the cable as I rode and kept my fingers crossed. I finally made it back to the shop, and I had a new bearing on the shelf, so I got it just in time, it was destroying itself faster and faster as the wear progressed.

The spring plate causes the same issue but it does it by depositing debris between the plates so they make contact sooner, and that makes the slop in the adjustment greater as the plates stop moving together sooner. You cured that but I put it here for reference.

A shredding cable can do this too, because that increases slop as the strands break and the cable stretches.

I repeat this a lot, because it's important to know that slop will not naturally increase. Plate wear decreases slop so the plates separate sooner as y pull the handle. If you are aware of this you can feel when problems start and fix them before they fix you.

Once you end up with no slop as the plates wear, then as they wear further, the plates will slip as you try to engage the clutch. I saw one so bad once that it was described to me as having 5 neutrals. Those clutch plates continued to slip and wear until all they could do was slip. And that is and was easily adjusted out by giving it the correct amount of play. No damage other than having the platers heat up like that from slipping as it was ridden.

will it shift without using the clutch?

You should be the one to check it out. The throwout bearing is easily accessible and WHEN you find that it is falling apart it can be replaced in a half hour with basic tools and a snap ring pliar. (If you don't own two snap ring pliars you need to buy them. One for pushing the ends out and another for pulling the ends in). For this job you need the one that pulls in. You will also need a couple of the correct size sockets to use with a bolt and nut/washers to press the bearing out and back in to the holder. Oh, you need the outie snap ring pliars to get the adjusting bolt out of the center of the bearing and back into the new one. The new style tapered bearings are what most people are using now. Regardless, buy two and after replacing this one you will have a spare for the day that you feel this starting all over again.

I use my clutch at lights rather than sit in neutral. That causes them to wear out faster.