What is a shift detent lever for ATC125M?

[unclejemima]

My 1984 ATC125M finds false neutrals (slips out of gear into false neutral) no matter what gear or range (high/low) I'm in.

I've been told I should replace the "detent lever" to solve this problem.

The trike has very low hours and has been well maintained, so I'm hoping this will solve my problem.

Any advice would be appreciated,

[Frankencelery]

You need to get a manual to see what they're talking about. This is under the clutch cover, on the right side. On the outside of the shift drum is a star-shaped plate that provides the detents so the shift drum stops at the correct points. The lever has a wheel on the end of it that rolls into the detents. Often this lever can come loose, or it cracks and doesn't provide any tension on the shift plate, so the drum floats around rather than stopping in the correct place.

See if this link to a diagram at Bike Bandit works:

http://www.bikebandit.com/houseofmotorcycles/1985-honda-atc125m/o/m1875#sch12118

[unclejemima]

Thanks for the reply.
Would it be fair to say it is #7 is the detent plate and #11 is the detent lever in the photo?

[ciray01]

#7 is the plate. It could be loose, check to see if the bolt that holds it on the drum is tight. I had this happen to 2 atc 110's, both were loose. They did the exact thing you describe. Also check to see if the shift drum stopper is not broken (#8) and the spring (#9) is good. Its there to make sure the shift drum snaps into place when shifting by putting pressure on the plate (#7). Just be prepared to remove the clutch and primary gear to access these parts if they're the problem