[Ryan 916]

Tried searching, found a thread from 2014 that recommended a Desmotimes product which I'm not seeing on their website.

I'm looking to switch my St4 to GP shifting like I had on my last two bikes (GSXR track bike and R6 street bike). I've come to love the GP shift pattern and it feels much more natural to me, to the point I have to remind myself to lift up when merging onto the highway...


Anyway, anyone else here have experience with products such as these or see a reason to avoid it?

Ducati CNC Billet Adjustable GP Style Resever Shifter - MC Motoparts Online Store

 

[Monster4Lee]

They can't spell.

 

[tonered]

I am also a fan of reverse / GP shifting.

Here is the DT shifter:
Desmo Times Product 222 - Reverse Shifter

Note that the peg is on the wrong side in his pic there.

Below is a pic of it installed. For me, it was a bit of a struggle since I have Cycle Cat rearsets that are a bit further back than the stock pegs. You can see the peg is toward the front of my boot. It really isn't a problem unless I am wearing thin tennis shoes.

Also, even with blue thread lock, the pinch bolt on the shift shaft will loosen over time. To fix this, I installed a longer bolt and a lock nut.

Have a good one.

 

[DucJB]

I am also a fan of GP shift. I have it on the ST4S and the CBX.

--jb

 

[Ryan 916]

I am also a fan of reverse / GP shifting.

Here is the DT shifter:
Desmo Times Product 222 - Reverse Shifter

Note that the peg is on the wrong side in his pic there.

Below is a pic of it installed. For me, it was a bit of a struggle since I have Cycle Cat rearsets that are a bit further back than the stock pegs. You can see the peg is toward the front of my boot. It really isn't a problem unless I am wearing thin tennis shoes.

Also, even with blue thread lock, the pinch bolt on the shift shaft will loosen over time. To fix this, I installed a longer bolt and a lock nut.

Have a good one.

You had the last comment on the thread I was referring to in 2014

Not sure how I missed that, I feel like I spent 20 minutes looking on my phone lol


I just went on another spirited ride through the country side, definitely going to be making the switch! Just need to decide on whether or not I want to try and save $70 and buy the cheaper CNC one vs the DT option. That $70 would likely go towards a vented clutch cover..

 

[Punch]

They can't spell.

Does the DesmoTimes kit mean that I might only now have 5 gears?

I.e. one up and four down as per ad? >

 

[SS904]

Not sure if the ST is somehow different with clearance in this area, but you can just flip the shift arm (the part bolted to the engine) up on some bikes. I know it was something 916 series guys did early on. I have personally never tried it, been riding too long with the standard pattern to confuse myself with something new, but I know many have.

With inexpensive billet levers flooding the market, flipping the shift arm has become something no one mentions any more.

Maybe there's an issue with the ST rear set location compared to the older SBK creating a clearance problem, but it's free to try.

 

[Ryan 916]

Does the DesmoTimes kit mean that I might only now have 5 gears?

I.e. one up and four down as per ad? >

Shoot, I would hate to lose that 6th gear for cruising :crying:

Not sure if the ST is somehow different with clearance in this area, but you can just flip the shift arm (the part bolted to the engine) up on some bikes. I know it was something 916 series guys did early on. I have personally never tried it, been riding too long with the standard pattern to confuse myself with something new, but I know many have.

With inexpensive billet levers flooding the market, flipping the shift arm has become something no one mentions any more.

Maybe there's an issue with the ST rear set location compared to the older SBK creating a clearance problem, but it's free to try.

I had read elsewhere that it won't work on these bikes.. I flipped the arm around on my GSXR to run GP shift. Best bang-for-buck mod I've ever done on a bike

 

[tonered]

You had the last comment on the thread I was referring to in 2014

Not sure how I missed that, I feel like I spent 20 minutes looking on my phone lol


I just went on another spirited ride through the country side, definitely going to be making the switch! Just need to decide on whether or not I want to try and save $70 and buy the cheaper CNC one vs the DT option. That $70 would likely go towards a vented clutch cover..

It's hard to say. It might help knowing the dimensions? The DT one is probably the shortest that I'd recommend even with stock rearsets. I can measure mine, if it helps?

I can save you money on the clutch cover. Just ditch it all together. The fairing is wide enough to protect it in a drop. That used to be a black anodized Paulimoto PP from DT. Over the years it has faded from black to brown to copper to whatever that current color is. Just makes me laugh. The beauty is that I can bump my legs on it when in neutral going to 1st to kill the big clunk going into gear.

Have a good one.

 

[Ryan 916]

It's hard to say. It might help knowing the dimensions? The DT one is probably the shortest that I'd recommend even with stock rearsets. I can measure mine, if it helps?

I can save you money on the clutch cover. Just ditch it all together. The fairing is wide enough to protect it in a drop. That used to be a black anodized Paulimoto PP from DT. Over the years it has faded from black to brown to copper to whatever that current color is. Just makes me laugh. The beauty is that I can bump my legs on it when in neutral going to 1st to kill the big clunk going into gear.

Have a good one.

I ordered the cheaper one, I'll mount it up and see how it feels!

I think what I'm going to do is borrow a dremel tool and modify the carbon fiber one I have on there now (came with bike when purchased). A small vent on the front and back, mostly I just want a little more noise

 

[tonered]

I'm not a fan of the clutch rattle. It's an engineering error in my mind, so I have the quiet clutch mod. I like hearing the other engine noises, like the belts whirring. With the QC mod, I do enjoy hearing the plates jangle during shifts. Much more pleasing than hearing the clutch beat itself up. That's just me though.

Along with that, I have a basket and pack that has close to 40k on it and still looks new.

 

[Stick]

Hey Tony,

I think you need to start a new thread, and remind us of how many miles are on UR mule...

A recent thread was in here and they're slamming the ST2 for reliability. I know URs is a ST4, so tell them!

 

[tonered]

Hey Tony,

I think you need to start a new thread, and remind us of how many miles are on UR mule...

A recent thread was in here and they're slamming the ST2 for reliability. I know URs is a ST4, so tell them!

Hey, Stick.

It is almost at 108,000mi. I quit posting in the mileage thread since the engine swap though. I only have about 33k on the replacement motor.

I keep thinking that it was the belt snap that did in the con rod bearing 4k later. It sort of caused the initial flaw.

For a commuter bike, slogging it out about 10mi at time, it is reliable to me.

Have a good one.

 

[Ryan 916]

Quick update, bought the eBay shifter and installed it today. I bought some longer bolts and and some locking nuts, plus a little blue loctite. Adjustable shifter knob sits a *little* further forward than stock, which feels perfectly fine to me.

Once the loctite sets I'll probably go bring it out tomorrow morning as it's my day off

 

[Ryan 916]

Update:

Bike shifts perfectly fine, lever feels like it's in a natural position, no odd side-to-side movement, very happy with the purchase

 

[Stick]

Ryan, thx for the update, AND the great photos!

 

[Ryan 916]

Ryan, thx for the update, AND the great photos!

No problem!

Since that last photo was taken, I moved the lever away from closer to the end of the splines where it clamps on. I no longer have to angle my foot as much to catch my toe on the shifter while up/down shifting

 

[BacqueDraught]

Nice looking unit. I did the DT conversion 'cause it would match the shift pattern of my Norton, just the opposite side. Back in the '70's it was referred a drag racing shift pattern because you would rarely miss a shift by pushing down for an upshift. Duc;s have more resistance than Nortons lifting up, so a gain there too. Only need to do that now to downshift. I also went for the DT peg lowering brackets to ease knee stiffness on long rides. That required the same amount of adjustment of the lever & peg eccentric to make that comfortable, but at least there is a range of adjustment vs the stock linkage.

 

[BobM]

I tried the black Ebay GP lever but it just didn't feel right to me so I ended up reversing the stock linkage and wish I had done this first. Feels fine after tweaking the lever height.
Just had to add 2 washers behind the swivel ball and use a longer bolt.

 

[ducvet]

Nothing wrong with flipping the shift arm but you should move it a spline and adjust the pedal with the rod. The shift arm and mount off the shift pedal should be as parallel as you can get them. do this by aligning them up and then lengthening the adjustment rod between the heim joints. If your rod is too short to have the minimum safe thread engagement you need a longer rod.

A good Gp shifter should be better as it will not have any slop or movement in the system , it also needs to be a proper length to fit the rider. Some riders will make anything work and just ride around poor setups it is all what works for you.