The sprocket was a little big, had to grind a little off the outside of the bolt hole where the guard attaches. The guard still fit though. Right now it just doesn't have enough *** in 6th gear though so I think I might try the 15 tooth until I get the 351

 

The bike will act like it is neutral in the upper gears usually starting with top gear and getting worse as once it slips it won't be long and the bike will soon refuse to move. You should get more than 8K from a clutch but if it was driven by a novice that is a good chance what the problem is.

 

Check adjustment on the clutch cable. You should have some slack when the clutch is fully released.

I can't imagine any way that you could mistake a slipping clutch for a bike falling out of gear. A bike that falls out of gear will idle down and provide zero power where a slipping clutch will only rev up, it's still under partial load. It is not as though a slipping clutch completely releases and then suddenly works again in lower gears.

I would think that you could pretty quickly rule out a slipping clutch.

 

I just got the bike about 2 months ago and do not know the experience of its previous owner. Right now it is riding fine throughout the gears but I haven't been putting much stress on it like I was the day it slipped. Do you think the new gearing is putting more stress on the clutch? or would it do this even with the stock gears if the clutch has been abused in the past?

 

That kind of what I was thinking would happen too but wasn't sure because I've never worn a clutch out before(usually get a new bike before that happens) That does make sense though and I'm starting to think it was just me either not fully shifting or I tapped the lever not realizing it. It does stick out in an awkward way. Thanks for the advice, I feel much better now! Time to get back into the fun rpm range

 

Absolutely. But as has been said it would be a gradual loss of power if it's slipping and more apparent in higher gears, not sudden high revs and total loss of power as if it popped out of gear.

If you want to rule out the clutch, put it in 6th, stand on the rear brake and holding 4-5k rpms as best you can let out the clutch as you would normally when starting out in 1st. It should kill it easily no matter how much throttle you give it. If it keeps running, there's your problem.

 

The bike pasted the test... must have just been my big feet

 

I really tend to think that inadvertently bumping the shifter was the problem. The stock shifter is ridiculously small/short IMO, and I don't like the angle. I only have size 10 feet, and the stock shifter sucked with regular shoes. I could hardly ride it with dirt boots no matter where I put the shifter. People are different, however, and how people place their feet while riding makes a big difference. That MSR XR650L shifter solved all my issues.

 

Yeah I'm thinking the new shifter will be the next purchase on my list