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Moto Guzzi V1000 Convert Shiftless Modification

I have removed the shift mechanism and bolted the silver metal plate you see in the picture in its place.  It's just a thick joist hanger from Home Depot with a couple of holes drilled in it.  I made sure it wasn't putting any pressure on the shifter, so that it holds it in its natural position when in high gear, but doesn't let it jump down into low. 

I did this because if I accelerated too hard in top gear, the transmission would jump out of gear, make a grinding sound, then jump into low.  This happened on the freeway at 80 MPH, and I almost got rear ended. 

Since doing this over 1,000 miles ago, it has never jumped into a grinding false neutral, and has never jumped into first gear.  It just stays in high gear and everything feels fine.  I changed the transmission fluid after 1,000 miles to look for scary chunks of metal, but it was completely clean. 

It's kind of neat to have no shift lever on the bike.  People ask how I shift gears, and I tell them "I don't".

Here's a picture of the Moto-Guzzi V1000 Convert in the Santa Monica mountains above the Rock Store.

Moto Guzzi V1000 Convert in the mountains