shift linkage

Rode down to San Diego yesterday with two of my buddies, we met up with Daniel from DHS Racing and he installed his new shift linkage on our bikes. The benifits for my buddy with big feet is he gets a full range of adjustment. For me and my other buddy we got it mainly for the shorter and crisper shift, we are all happy with the results. A quality made product. Oh yea we got to meet Rocky and between the both of them they had many stories and tips to tell. Thank You both for a great and productive day.

Link,prices,pic's.....

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Originally Posted by Steve 0080

Link,prices,pic's.....

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"...
Honda GL-1800 Shifter Lever Upgrade (Instructions)

Have you ever wanted to adjust the height of your shifter. Do you want to shorten the shift action to achieve a more positive shift. This kit will do both. Our Rod Ends are tighter than Honda's stock economy ends (see video). With stock shifter you can raise or lower in approx 1" increments. With our kit you can raise or lower in approx 3/16" increments. With our kit you have the option to use the existing hole and maintain the stock shifter throw or you can drill an additional hole and shorten the throw by 30%. If you send me your shifter I will install the kit and turn it around to you in 1 day or you can buy the kit and install it yourself (Instructions are included)

P/N DHS-11252-kit only Price $35.00 (shipping included)

P/N DHS-11252-complete Price $55.00 (shipping included) (requires you send me your shifter. E-mail me for details)
..."

http://www.dhsracing.com/GL-1800.htm

http://www.dhsracing.com/Pictures/dh...(fullsize).jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrjCbdRtY0I

Looks similar to aftermarket linkages offered for the BMW LT's. They removed some of the slop and had much larger ball end bolts, that failed pretty regular. I had one break on me on a 200 mile ride. Luckily I was at the end and only had to ride about 2 miles, stuck in second gear.

Price looks to be very reasonable.

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Originally Posted by ths61

"...
Honda GL-1800 Shifter Lever Upgrade (Instructions)

Have you ever wanted to adjust the height of your shifter. Do you want to shorten the shift action to achieve a more positive shift. This kit will do both. Our Rod Ends are tighter than Honda's stock economy ends (see video). With stock shifter you can raise or lower in approx 1" increments. With our kit you can raise or lower in approx 3/16" increments. With our kit you have the option to use the existing hole and maintain the stock shifter throw or you can drill an additional hole and shorten the throw by 30%. If you send me your shifter I will install the kit and turn it around to you in 1 day or you can buy the kit and install it yourself (Instructions are included)

P/N DHS-11252-kit only Price $35.00 (shipping included)

P/N DHS-11252-complete Price $55.00 (shipping included) (requires you send me your shifter. E-mail me for details)
..."

http://www.dhsracing.com/GL-1800.htm

http://www.dhsracing.com/Pictures/dh...(fullsize).jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrjCbdRtY0I

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Thanks Tim

To the members who have installed this, does it help with the clunky shifting, particularly from 1st to 2nd?

I thought about installing that linkage but my common sense side and mechanical skills tell me that if the original issue is just 1st to 2nd gear then it has to be originating in the gear box. If it was a slop issue it would be in all gears....JMO.

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Originally Posted by Stevvvo

I thought about installing that linkage but my common sense side and mechanical skills tell me that if the original issue is just 1st to 2nd gear then it has to be originating in the gear box. If it was a slop issue it would be in all gears....JMO.

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Makes sense. :yes:

All I know since I don't have a problem with the shift from 1st to second is the shift is crisper and shorter, gives it a less sloppy feel. Maybe they fixed the tranny in 2015

I installed it to raise the lever and give myself more toe room. This itself improved the shifting.

Mine should be here Monday. I also ordered it to adjust the shifter.

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Originally Posted by DavidNC

I installed it to raise the lever and give myself more toe room. This itself improved the shifting.

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Any chance on a few pictures of the new shifter? :039:

my buddy is on his fourth one,, the bal-end joints keep seezing,,
he put-back-on a new Honda Org. set-up.
Just curious,,
KennyU,,
FYI,,I had one on my 02, for the last two years I had-it,loved-it.

Not going to put one on the F6B.

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Originally Posted by kenny urban

my buddy is on his fourth one,, the bal-end joints keep seezing,,
he put-back-on a new Honda Org. set-up.
Just curious,,
KennyU,,
FYI,,I had one on my 02, for the last two years I had-it,loved-it.

Not going to put one on the F6B.

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Was this on an F6B or a Wing????

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Originally Posted by Old Ryder

Was this on an F6B or a Wing????

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Don't know what he is talking about but mine is on my F6B

Yea, got mine Monday and trying to find time to install it. Would also be nice if the garage heated up. Winter suddenly decided to show up yesterday.

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Originally Posted by TailGunner

Don't know what he is talking about but mine is on my F6B

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I was wondering if this was on a B/Wing or a sportbike. Heat/dirt/grime may have a part in failure and may be related to the position to the exhaust or the style of the rider. B/Wing riders seem to be a different style rider than those whose ride CBRs and GSXRs. Just sayin...........

Heat will be a huge factor in the early death of those joints, if they are just Teflon lined it will melt under the heat.

What an experience!!!! I would rather install another set of Helibars. This took longer. Taking off the tupperware is always a pain for me. Grinding off the tops os the rivets wasn't a big deal. Drilling out the middle also was not, but beating them out took some time as I was careful not to break off any arms that was going to cost a fortune to replace. The biggest problem was the constant adjusting. You had to take it on and off probably about 7 or 8 times to get it whate I wanted. It is very tight working spaces. All together was about 4-5 hours from start to finish, but I was not really working on a quick time as the main goal.

Thing I have learned from all of this.

1-Like most things, I could do the next one a lot quicker---not that I expect to do that.

2-Torque loopz look less intimidating to do after getting all of the other covers off. I see where everything is and how to take those things off. Hummmm -- Something to think about.

3-I am not suggesting or questioning anybody or their install process ---but ---I can see where an improper install could shorten the life of these. I am a bit anal, but if everything is not adjusted properly, premature wear will happen in my opinion. I spent over an hour making sure the ball joints were all as close to 90 degrees in every direction as possible (see the pictures in the first few posts). As you tighten things down there is a tendency to twist the ball inserts to the far limits and if it is used in this position, I see where everything is under stress. Weather or not this makes a difference, only time and miles will tell.

4-This thing certainly does tighten everything up a lot and I was able to adjust the shifter where I have no problem getting my boot under the lever.

5-The OEM connection did not have as much slop as I expected, but this is a lot tighter. The OEM had rubber boot covers over the balls and I wish this did also. The engineers figured they were needed for a reason and again, I wish they were on these. I would feel much better if they did.

6-If I had it to do all over, I am not sure if I would. I do love the feel, though.

Just my humble opinion, as always.

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Originally Posted by Old Ryder

What an experience!!!! I would rather install another set of Helibars. This took longer. Taking off the tupperware is always a pain for me. Grinding off the tops os the rivets wasn't a big deal. Drilling out the middle also was not, but beating them out took some time as I was careful not to break off any arms that was going to cost a fortune to replace. The biggest problem was the constant adjusting. You had to take it on and off probably about 7 or 8 times to get it whate I wanted. It is very tight working spaces. All together was about 4-5 hours from start to finish, but I was not really working on a quick time as the main goal.

Thing I have learned from all of this.

1-Like most things, I could do the next one a lot quicker---not that I expect to do that.

2-Torque loopz look less intimidating to do after getting all of the other covers off. I see where everything is and how to take those things off. Hummmm -- Something to think about.

3-I am not suggesting or questioning anybody or their install process ---but ---I can see where an improper install could shorten the life of these. I am a bit anal, but if everything is not adjusted properly, premature wear will happen in my opinion. I spent over an hour making sure the ball joints were all as close to 90 degrees in every direction as possible (see the pictures in the first few posts). As you tighten things down there is a tendency to twist the ball inserts to the far limits and if it is used in this position, I see where everything is under stress. Weather or not this makes a difference, only time and miles will tell.

4-This thing certainly does tighten everything up a lot and I was able to adjust the shifter where I have no problem getting my boot under the lever.

5-The OEM connection did not have as much slop as I expected, but this is a lot tighter. The OEM had rubber boot covers over the balls and I wish this did also. The engineers figured they were needed for a reason and again, I wish they were on these. I would feel much better if they did.

6-If I had it to do all over, I am not sure if I would. I do love the feel, though.

Just my humble opinion, as always.

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Great write up, Thanks!

Any updates on this? How has it lasted since install and such...

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Originally Posted by 3Chief

Any updates on this? How has it lasted since install and such...

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Still working great and shifting is still smooth. Again the main reason I did it was so I could shift gears with my boots on.

I was having problems with the tranny sticking in gear in severe heat. I called and found out there were some defective units. I was sent a new one at N/C and it has worked great ever since until I traded the bike.

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Originally Posted by Old Ryder

I was having problems with the tranny sticking in gear in severe heat. I called and found out there were some defective units. I was sent a new one at N/C and it has worked great ever since until I traded the bike.

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So they sent you a new linkage?

Yes they did! I called and explained the problem to Don and he had me a new one in 2 days.

http://hondaf6b.com/showthread.php?9...y-transmission

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Originally Posted by Old Ryder

Yes they did! I called and explained the problem to Don and he had me a new one in 2 days.

http://hondaf6b.com/showthread.php?9...y-transmission

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So could you tell what was different with the linkage?

Don told me that a production run pressed the bushings to tight. When I took the old one off, it was easy to see that the replacement was much looser and swiveled freely compared to the defective one.

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Originally Posted by Old Ryder

Don told me that a production run pressed the bushings to tight. When I took the old one off, it was easy to see that the replacement was much looser and swiveled freely compared to the defective one.

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Thanks for the info