I'm having a little problem down shifting from second to first when at a stop, the lever moves but it just goes down and doesn't click to change into first. The clutch is all the way in and sometimes I go back up to third and then down again and it works but sometimes it just takes a few pushes before it goes in. It was a problem today as I was at a junction and there was a mardy white-van-man behind me!
Does it seem like I could be doing something wrong? If not it's due for it's first service in another 100km so I'll mention it then.
This sounds a little like what's called "clutch drag", which means that when you squeeze the clutch lever all the way back to the handlebars the clutch doesn't disengage completely and there's still a little more force than there should be trying to turn output shaft of the gearbox (and hence the back wheel). That means that there are larger forces pressing the gears in the box together than there should be and that makes sliding the gears along their shafts and meshing/unmeshing them more difficult than it should be. There are several other possible explanations, so I would test the change with the engine stopped. If you have the same or a very similar problem when the engine is not running then it isn't clutch drag and it would start to sound like a selector mechanism issue. If the bike isn't due it's first service until later this week then it obviously hasn't done a lot of miles. Things will bed in quite a lot during the first few hundred to few thousand miles, and you can expect a few adjustments will be needed on the first service. Bikes often don't have the same oil for the first few hundred miles as they do for the rest of their lives, that's about getting a good bedding-in process in the running in period. Unfortunately the oil used in the first few hundred miles can make the clutch and gearbox actions a little tight. The issue might well go away after the service but do make sure to mention it. A good dealer will routinely note on the service invoice anything that's been brought to their attention, so don't be embarrassed to make sure they do that. If it comes to an argument about a warranty claim later on you'll have written evidence of the issue. Don't let them fob you off with "oh they're all like that" because (a) some dealers are a bit prone to trying on that kind of thing, especially if they think they're dealing with an inexperienced (and/or female!) customer, and (b) it doesn't matter whether they're all like that or not, what you describe is not acceptable.
As for you doing something wrong, well you have very little experience of the machine as yet and you can expect to find lots of little tricks that help smooth the riding experience for that particular example of that particular model. Every bike is different, sometimes the differences between different examples of the same model are startling. It is common, though, to have a little more difficulty getting in and out of gears when a bike is stationary with the engine running than when it's moving. You always have to overcome some friction in the gearbox to change gear, and static friction is greater than dynamic friction. It can help if you roll the bike forwards and/or backwards a few inches while holding the clutch lever fully in and pressing gently on the gear lever. You shouldn't need to apply a very large force to the gear lever, you'd just break something.
Planning comes into so many things while riding. If you're riding a bike which has developed a relatively minor fault which won't necessarily terminate the journey it might make the ride anywhere from a little tricky to extremely difficult. Planning can make the difference between almost impossible and a bit awkward. Last year when the hydraulic clutch on my Hayabusa failed in the south of France, I drove it to England without using the clutch at all. Petrol stops and getting on the ferry were a bit awkward.
This is more likely to happen to older machines which are less well maintained, but it can happen to any machine at any time so either you need the skills to cope or you need roadside assistance and perhaps a bigger limit on your credit card. For example if you think there might be an issue getting into first while stationary at a junction, you may have several options: get into first while approaching the junction instead; or if it's safe and legal try to plan the approach to the junction so that you won't have to stop (I normally do that anyway, it saves fuel and makes the ride smoother and quicker) -- this may mean approaching the junction a little slower than you otherwise would, so that you can watch the situation unfold and maybe wait for that gap in the traffic; or experiment with pulling away in second if you can find a safe place to do it; or even choose a different route.
Whatever you do, don't forget that all this extra thinking is likely to distract you from the most important thing of all, which is safe riding. You need to develop your skills until locomotion on the bike is as familiar as locomotion by walking. You don't think about putting one foot in front of the other any more, and eventually you won't need to think about the mechanics of using the bike's controls. The bike will become an extension of your body and you'll start to think about things like positioning, information, hazards and how far it is to the next sandwich. That's called advanced riding.
Also, what are your thoughts on posture when riding? I tend to ride hunched over but my posture when standing is bad enough, if I try to straighten my back out though I act as a wind break! I tried sitting further back and leaning over but it made me look a bit silly!
Well don't worry about looking silly as long as you aren't being silly! It can make the ride more tiring if you're working against the wind blast all the time, and a tired rider will tend to be more dangerous than one who is fresh, so you always need to keep an eye on yourself. If I can I try to balance my body against the wind, a bit like windsurfing. That way I'm neither lying on the tank nor clinging on for grim death, and I can use the controls with much more delicacy. Sometimes it isn't possible and you just have to cling on or duck down, but try to make that the exception rather than the rule. For most people it's important to change position frequently to avoid stiffness and other symptoms of the fact that the body really wasn't designed for this sort of activity. You'll probably find after a while that your muscles become conditioned to the sorts of stresses that you're putting on them while riding. I used to think that a hundred miles was a long journey. Afterwards, I'd be very tired. Nowadays for me that's a nice little jaunt, and I can easily do a journey of five or six hundred miles in a day and it will be very enjoyable. It's as much about mental fatigue as it is about the physical. When most of the mechanics of your riding is done by your subconscious it's much less tiring than when you're new to it and everything demands so much more thought. That's one of the reasons you need to work up to riding the more powerful machines. You're training yourself all the time.
Too right! My bike sounds amazing with ear plugs in, almost like those go faster tuned exhaust systems that make a chainsaw sound like a Harley with a sore throat.
