Ironhead 1969 XLCH Shifter Issues

[Ferrous Head]

Everything humans manufacture goes through an evolutionary process. We don't arrive at the optimal design with the first version.
Especially with commercial endeavors like motorcycles. In a competitive market there is always a rush to get the product off the drawing board and into the customers hands so you can get paid.

And some problems do not surface until customers have used it long enough for problems to develop. If we waited for manufacturers to finish product development to produce things like cars and motorcycles we would still be using horses.

The more competitive the market, the worse this gets.

It's why you still find your computer not completely working perfectly after 80 years of development work.

Pick any product you like, say, a vaccine.

Never buy version 1.000 of software. Do not apply any patches or "upgrades" on the first day of release. Wait until others have tested it.

[gibsonsmu]

Originally Posted by Ferrous Head

Everything humans manufacture goes through an evolutionary process. We don't arrive at the optimal design with the first version.
Especially with commercial endeavors like motorcycles. In a competitive market there is always a rush to get the product off the drawing board and into the customers hands so you can get paid.

And some problems do not surface until customers have used it long enough for problems to develop. If we waited for manufacturers to finish product development to produce things like cars and motorcycles we would still be using horses.

The more competitive the market, the worse this gets.

It's why you still find your computer not completely working perfectly after 80 years of development work.

Pick any product you like, say, a vaccine.

Never buy version 1.000 of software. Do not apply any patches or "upgrades" on the first day of release. Wait until others have tested it.

I ended up pulling the transmission this weekend and it was in fact a stuck shift pawl as you guys had guessed. I cleaned it up and am going to put in the new Andrews gears and bolt it back up next free weekend. I really appreciate all the help. Thank you so much

[doodah man]

I'm glad you got it worked out! Transmission doesn't seem so bad now, does it!? You got all 23 roller bearings back in, right? And the hardened washer between the snap ring and the rollers, right? Very important, it will eat the rollers in short order if there's not a washer between them.

[gibsonsmu]

Originally Posted by doodah man

I'm glad you got it worked out! Transmission doesn't seem so bad now, does it!? You got all 23 roller beari vs back in, right? And the hardened washer between the snap ring and the rollers, right? Very important, it will eat the rollers in short order if there's not a washer between them.

Thank you very much! I haven't put it back together yet but it certainly wasn't too bad to get apart with help from this site for homework and the shop manual. And the right tools! I wallet whipped it a little bit to get some of the special tools and that made it much easier. I guess the question is would you go with the 72> carrier assembly or just clean it up and put it back?

[72HOGXLCH]

Based on personal experience - I agree with Iron Mike!!

[Ferrous Head]

Stuck plungers are a common enough problem that HD changed the part.

Not just "tweaked" it. Totally different system. I always change them out now. Being stuck in 4th gear in the middle of a large city and 50 miles to get home cures you of some things.

[gibsonsmu]

Originally Posted by Ferrous Head

Stuck plungers are a common enough problem that HD changed the part.

Not just "tweaked" it. Totally different system. I always change them out now. Being stuck in 4th gear in the middle of a large city and 50 miles to get home cures you of some things.

Makes sense. Which parts would I need to change out?

[Chuckthebeatertruck]

This is not an epidemic. The part changed for many reasons.

Many of us regularly ride these bikes and have zero issues.

[Ferrous Head]

Yeah Chuck, probably I get paranoid about things. If it happens to me once I think it's going to happen again.

The root of the problem though won't go away. It only takes a tiny particle to lodge in the plunger bore and ......

There are still plenty of 900 engines out there without a case reinforcement too.

Most of these bikes do very little miles anymore and these days "Road Side Assist" will get you home.

Most of my engines wind up in race bikes and we can't afford any problems. When you spend thousands and thousands and drive for days just to get to a meeting you really hope and pray the bike will run non stop for the weekend.

[Chuckthebeatertruck]

that's the rub Ferrous - YOU are NOT riding dry clutch 900s on the street.

I -- and many others ARE running 900s on the street to the tune of several thousand miles a year. Just cause we don't show up here to tell you about it doesn't mean it isn't happening. We're too busy riding.

As such, we have relevant, modern experience with 900s in modern traffic.

YOU do not.

Stuck plungers are simply not common these days on a dry clutch bikes that stays dry -- doubly so if you run a flat sided primary chain.

However, if you decide you like wet plates and leaving the cover off . . . or you really want to run a figure 8 chain that tears up the nylon shoe, then yeah, you can expect an issue to reoccur.

The OPs bike is a highly original 900 with a clutch that was dry as a bone on disassembly. It's made it over 20K miles in 61 years. It's a lovely bike. I know because I saw pictures of it coming apart on another forum. The only part he should consider changing is his primary chain from a figure 8 to a flat side.


And before I go over and out -- one thing you said really stuck in my craw.

You seem to think spending a lot of $ and time on racing means you make better decisions than others.

You really need to slow your roll on that type of logic.


Several of us have as much or more invested in 900 strokers as you do in race bikes.


We do not compromise on those bikes -- at all.


Your weekend hobby is our daily commute.