neutral to first gear hits hard & jerks forward?

[fox8701]

on any given day, on initial start-up and after letting the bike warm up for a good five minutes, i jump on the bike; pull the clutch in and when i put it in first gear, the bike jerks a little bit forward or I geuss you could say hits hard?

Any ideas how/if i can adjust the clutch to get rid of that clutch problem?

[theoctopus]

It just takes time for the oil lubricating the clutch to warm up. It's common to any wet clutch system.

It was much worse on my old KLR650 than on the Buell. Sometimes the bike would jump so hard it would stall. I always found that pulling the clutch in, and gently rolling forward and backward for a bit loosened things up, and made it jump forward less.

[Midnight82]

You should also check your clutch adjustment and make sure you have the right amount of lube in the primary

[Stevenc150]

There are 2 clutch adjustments that you can adjust and try. It can't hurt. If you don't have a service manual, grab one through the link @ the top of this page - it has the instructions and pics.

[racepro716]

I read Keith Cameron in Cycle World a while back that most big bore twins do this. It's a result of a heavy flywheel and a heavy first gear. If the first gear was lighter and spun up easier it couldn't handle the shock from the heavy crank when engaging. I pull and release my clutch a few times when it's cold, helps a bit but it's sorta the nature of the beast. Wayne

[RT Performance]

you need to adjust the clutch.
the directions are in the pdf above under service manual.
"I had this issue with mine when i bought it the previous owner had a hard time finding neutral so he held the clutch in allot.
did the adjustment no grinding or jerking.
Don't just do the cable you need to do the through the inspection cover

[bajabomber87]

Yep thats the clutch, reminds me I need to adjust mine again.

And make sure to keep checking its adjustment throughout the year as your clutch wears.

[fox8701]

alright thanks guys, at least i know something on my bike isn't worn or broke. It seems to be a common thing amongst us. I'll try the clutch adjustment through the inspection cover and see if that loosens things up a bit.