First off I have an 05 636

When shifting into every gear the bike just seems to clunk and its loud. This is mostly every shift but sounds the worse from 1st to 2nd. Its a loud obvious clunk into gear at any rpm however it is smoother when at lower rpms. Also, it happens shifting both up and down.

While riding with my friend with an 06 GSXR 600 he says he can even hear it clunking while he rides next to me and he has an exhaust also, so it is loud. Also, I rode around on his bike and it shift insanely smoothly compared to mine.

Could this be from having a somewhat dirty chain? Im doubting it but I suppose its possible.
Or should I try adjusting my clutch in some way. There is no pay in the clutch lever, and it engages towards the middle or top of letting out the clutch. Or maybe the shift linkage?

Any help would be appreciated.

 

Have you checked the slack in your chain? When is the last time you cleaned and lubed your chain? What kind of oil do you run and the last time it was changed?

 

Slack in the chain is good, its a little dirty but not crazy. I run Kawasaki Synthetic 10-40 the green stuff. I changed it 850 miles ago.

 

Normally, as mentioned, it is a chain issue and/or the oil used in the engine. As an example: I get more noise when running the castrol synthetic over the amsoil oil.

 

Kawi's are notorious for their clunky tranny's. Chain slack and the need for an oil change
can help it. It will clear up say after 60k miles. The tranny on my '01 ZRX is silky smooth. It has 72k on it. My '05 has 11k and it is still clunky.

 

Alright ill start with that. Thanks for the help.

 

Poor chain condition and tension or poor riding technique. The transmission is clunky compared to some bikes, but should still shift smoothly.

A dragging clutch can cause clunky downshifts, but a properly executed upshift doesn't need the clutch.

If there's no play in your clutch lever the clutch is likely to fail prematurely. There should be about 1-2 mm cable free play at the lever.

Rob