Right hand to left hand shift change time frame

My registered as 1976 , as in the ownership card , actually has 8 th month 1975 stamped into the headstock plate . This suggests registration as entering my country ( Canada ) was not a physical production time frame but an entry to Canada date in the paperwork .
 
cliffa said:
Maybe I’m getting my dates wrong, but I was sure I remember reading that NVT found it increasingly difficult to keep competitive pricing due to the high import duties imposed. I remember the U.S. imposed a quota system at some time as well.
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list here for 75 was 3k
 
Interestingly, early Italian bikes were right hand gear change:



Over the years I've stumbled across many pictures of Japanese clones of European bikes from around 1930-50 and these too were RH - Velocette, BSA. I think there was also a BMW?
 
The big 4 Japanes makers drove the change from rh to lh shifting as that was standard on all their bikes. Harley Sportsters had rh shift until 1976. They also had to cobble together a work around and they also weren't in the best of financial straits at that time. Two explanation are given for why Harley used the rh on the Sportsters and not the big twin. One is that they saw Brit bikes as competition for the Sportster and were imitating them. The other one is that the rh worked better in flat track where the bike is always leaned to the left.
 
cliffa said:
It was the beginning of "Nanny state". For example handlebar switches also had to be labelled with their individual function, which is why the MkIII has different switches. They had to have a neutral light, etc, etc...

I suspect Harley Davidson had a lot to do with it, as at the time they were successfully lobbying the US government to impose high import taxes and any other way to make it as difficult as humanly possible for motorcycle importers in order to protect their home market. It wasn't only the Japanese that killed the British Bike industry.
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I suspect this was not caused by Harley. Harley had to redesign their switches as well. My 74 Superglide uses a turn signal button on both the left and right switch cluster. Push the left button to flash for a left turn and right button to flash a right turn. I believe the Harley induced tariffs started in 81 or 82 and caused at least Honda to reduce the displacement of several models to 700 cc. It was about this time the US DOT mandated the speedometers display a maximum speed of 85MPH. Obviously if the speedo does show the ton you will never ride that fast. This was so unpopular it only lasted a year or two and created a brisk business in replacement speedos from overseas to replace the 86mph ones.
 
htown16 said:
The big 4 Japanes makers drove the change from rh to lh shifting as that was standard on all their bikes. Harley Sportsters had rh shift until 1976. They also had to cobble together a work around and they also weren't in the best of financial straits at that time. Two explanation are given for why Harley used the rh on the Sportsters and not the big twin. One is that they saw Brit bikes as competition for the Sportster and were imitating them. The other one is that the rh worked better in flat track where the bike is always leaned to the left.
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And what about shift patterns? Explaination for 1up3down i keep hearing, it was better for racing not having foot under shifter accelerating out of right handers. If so, why did that also need to change?
 
Tornado said:
And what about shift patterns? Explaination for 1up3down i keep hearing, it was better for racing not having foot under shifter accelerating out of right handers. If so, why did that also need to change?
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The us dot wanted to standardize motorcycle controls even though they never did it for cars. As to the up or down shift question, the dot, when given two choices would not probably pick the choice preferred by racers. Also, why did Triumphs shift up for up when the Norton, Vincent, Matchless, Velocette pattern is clearly better? But then again, during the was years I understand that Velo switched to the Triumph pattern under pressure from the MOD.
 
Afaik almost all Japanese bikes had the one down rest up pattern. Bridgestone may have been an exception. Because the Japanese brands were becoming far and away the biggest sellers in the US in the mid seventies they drove the change to standardize on what they already supplied.
 
In Australia, we have standardisation committees which affect automotive design rules. People do not need to be Einsteins to participate. Some Japanese motorcycles had gearchange shafts which protruded out both sides of the gear - not rocket science. When you ride a motorcycle, you pull back to slow down, and push forward to speed up - any sensible race bike has a one-up and five-down gear change. The rear brake does not usually get used.
Norton obviously did to want to borrow. They used what they had - not the best way to succeed. Just cannot tax itself to prosperity, it cannot succeed by austerity. Real men are as brave as John Wayne.
 
I would be willing to bet - the only standardisation committee in which Motorcycling Australia has ever participated was the one which developed 'The Guide on Managing Risk in Motor Sport'.
Motorcyclists cannot complain about lack of democratic input, when they do not bother to participate.
 
I am always switching between Japanese 1 down, 4 or 5 up, then the 1 up, 4 down Norton. Whichever I ride a bit more, the other makes me think a bit. Lately it seems odd to lift for a higher gear. Down means faster sort of registers in my brain better, I suppose. And that's after a long time riding left side shifting bikes, like 98% of my time/bikes except the 3 Brit bikes I have owned. Yet I seem to have more trouble going back to left side recently, Maybe that's because I think more about the Norton shifting. Either way it's good, haven't run into any problems except the occasional over-rev brain fart. To me it's sort of a non-issue as I may be riding 2, 3 (Honda ATC, all 4 down) or 4 wheels (standard or manual, 3 on the tree, different floor shift patterns etc.). Heck my grandmother taught me how to drive on a 4 speed tractor. Just get in and start rowing them gears!
 
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I want to believe my old grey matter still works when the bikes I ride vary between left foot, one down five up, (Triumph T bird), and five up or left hand paddle shift (Yamaha FJR AE), and right foot one up three down ( Matchless and Commando).
Just to make life more interesting, can still switch to right hand drive cars with left hand stick shift when needs be.
My old man used to call me cack handed when although being right handed, when eating, I hold the fork in my right hand!

I’d give my right arm to be ambidextrous.
 
Stevo said:
I want to believe my old grey matter still works when the bikes I ride vary between left foot, one down five up, (Triumph T bird), and five up or left hand paddle shift (Yamaha FJR AE), and right foot one up three down ( Matchless and Commando).
Just to make life more interesting, can still switch to right hand drive cars with left hand stick shift when needs be.
My old man used to call me cack handed when although being right handed, when eating, I hold the fork in my right hand!

I’d give my right arm to be ambidextrous.
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I'm the same
I hold a fork in my right hand
I can weld either left or right handed
I have left and right shift bikes with no issues
But I can only write with my right!
 
acotrel said:
I would be willing to bet - the only standardisation committee in which Motorcycling Australia has ever participated was the one which developed 'The Guide on Managing Risk in Motor Sport'.
Motorcyclists cannot complain about lack of democratic input, when they do not bother to participate.
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Over 90% of motorcycling in Australia does not happening motorsports - so, yes, they can complain!
Al - you have a problem - if it didn't happen on a track, it didn't happen. Get over it!
...oh, that and drum brakes. :rolleyes: :rolleyes:
 
It does not matter if the gear lever is on the LHS or the RHS, it needs to be one-up and the rest down. When you change bikes your brain has to adjust. To have it any other way is stupidity, either on public roads or on the race track. When you are slowing down for a corner one foot is pushing down on the brake, and if the gear change works in the wrong direction, you select a higher gear when you need a lower gear.
Drum brakes are dangerous because it often takes a lot of work to make them reliable. One of my mates was riding a 250cc Suzuki through Melbourne. Because he was use to riding a push bike, he was afraid of using the front brake, because it was a bit sudden. He approached a pedestrian crossing full of people and went through them with both feet dragging on the ground. That might have been better than using the brake lever. One thing which should never happen is letting young guys start riding with drum brakes. Disc brakes are much more reliable and cheaper. When I was a kid, the helmets were real shit. These days, it might not matter too much if you bounce on your head. I have written-off two crash helmets. The last crash I had really went close to killing me - it does not make feel good about motorcycles, and one day I might give the guy who caused it a kick in the nuts. He is a piece of shit. When it started to happen, there was nothing I could do to avoid it but use that savage brake. His bike had discs, and he got inside my braking distance.
I rode on public roads until I was 29 years old, then went racing. Drum brakes are rubbish unless you can afford an Oldani.
 
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