I just recently put a 16 tooth counter sprocket on so I could get more top speed with lower rpm's since most of my riding is commuting to work. I kept the original 42 rear sprocket and everything was fine for a week or so accept 6th gear being a little sluggish if there was any head wind at all.
Problem: I was riding it yesterday with a strong head wind and needed to pass a car so I kicked it down to 5th gear and tried to power past but when I reached around 7500rpm it slipped out of gear and I had to pull to the side of the road to check everything out on the bike. Everything appeared to be okay so I started it back up and continued down the road with no problems. Then about 30 minutes later I'm going up a rather steep incline so I kept it in 5th gear (since 6th would have been too sluggish with the new gearing) and it slipped out of gear again but this time I just kicked it down to 4th and it caught again and there were no problems once I reached my destination.

Could the 16-42 gearing be putting to much stress on the internal gears or does this sound like it could be a clutch problem? I am not all that mechanically inclined so I'm not sure what the problem could be.
I'm going to put the stock 14tooth cs back on until I figure out a way to keep this from happening

 

The sprockets can not make it jump out of gear.

David

 

Were you "tucked in" or hunching forward while passing this car? In other words was you're body position a bit different which might have resulted in your foot/shoe making contact with the shifter? Is your shifter placed on the splined shaft in an angle that can allow too much contact with your shoe? I'm betting that you just bumped the shifter in some way. Unless the tranny continues jumping out of 5th on its own, I'm thinking that's what happened. If your shifter is too short for your foot size, get the MSR version for the XR650L which is longer. A lot of us have gone to this shift lever because the stocker is way too short for many.

 

I don't think I was in contact with the shifter but it is a possibility. I'm hoping it is not internal. It just seemed to happen both times when the engine was at an extreme load(powering uphill at high rpm's, and passing a car in strong headwinds). I'll try not to worry too much unless it keeps happening. Thanks for the input

 

You can find these false neutrals by failing to fully engage the gear. Be sure to shift all the way into fifth. Make an effort to fully lift or lower the shifter. I have found this kawi to be particulary sensitive to my failures to fully shift.

 

I seem to remember something similar happening to me on an early '80's Kaw 750 street bike. I found when that happened my shifts were weak and not totally into gear. Make sure its all the way in, and keep the toes off the shifter.

 

Could your clutch be slipping as you will notice it in the upper gears first.

 

I think I'm with TNC...you could be putting pressure on the shifter. In my experience, the way the shifter bends out around the ignition cover is a pain. I've on multiple occasions inadvertently downshifted, not from pushing down on the tip of the shift lever, but from stepping on the top of the shift lever arm where it runs along the ignition cover. The paint in that area is all worn off from foot contact.

If you're barely putting enough pressure on it to disengage, that could put you into a false neutral rather than downshifting to the next gear.

Also, a question for you: how well does the 16 tooth sprocket fit? Can you use the stock chain deflector and sprocket cover.

 

Try changing your oil too if it's been a while. I've noticed on most bikes, the shifting is always smoother after oil changes, and the shifting starts to feel notchy and will be more trouble finding neutral when the oil is dirty.

 

Thats what I was worried about. I have 8,000 miles on the bike. What other signs should I look for if it might be the clutch?