GT750 - the Long and Short of gear changes

[tz375]

I should preface this by saying that when I strip a motor, unless it's a client's, I don't carefully store all the parts together. I typically acquire a couple of motors, strip and examine them and pile all the parts into containers of like parts. Then I select the best parts for the build - as long as they match. So gear sets are sorted by matching gears etc.

So much for the preamble, time to get to the story.

I have a few GT750 gear change shafts and noticed some differences between them. Some differences were minor, but the big difference is that some are about an inch longer than the others.

I assumed it was that the long ones are from per M models where the pipes were not tucked in as neatly and that the short ones are from later bikes, but that's just a hypothesis.

What I did see was that the long one puts the gear shift lever too far out to be really comfortable with L/M/A type pegs.

The long shaft also leaves about an inch exposed outside the sprocket cover. With the short shaft, the lever is right up against the cover, like normal bikes.

Anyone know for sure what the different shaft length is about?

And why on earth did they have that ridiculous extension on the right side of the shaft instead of a simple circlip on the left that everyone else uses? (rhetorical question)

[rngdng]

The 74 and earlier ones were shorter and had a bigger bend in the shifter to clear the engine. In 75 they went to the longer shaft with a straighter lever. WHY? Who knows?! On BlueBoy, I have the longer shaft with the early (wider) pedal, which gives me more clearance on the Jemcos.

Both my 74 engines have the short shaft, and both 75s have the long one.


Lane

[tz375]

Thanks Lane.

Now I realize that I used a good early lever on the A I sold. Ah well. Too late to worry about that now.