From:Steve Marks
E-Mail:<steve@microdesign.ltd.uk>
Subject:RE: Right Hand Shift and left hand clutch!
Response to:1120
Date:Thu Jan 26 05:29:53 2006
I might be missing something here - why would you need a
left hand throttle? Close the throttle, move your hand to
the lever and change gear, then back to the throttle and
away. If the engine has a good tickover, I don't see a
problem with the right hand throttle. What interests me is -
does the bike have a (left)hand clutch conversion to go with
the right hand shift? That makes more sense - you would
definitely need both hands in action at the same time then.
Don't know about the KJ but some Deluxes were fitted with a
hand clutch using the left hand twistgrip - mag control was
moved to the side of the tank. Similar to that used on the X
I'm told. Good pictures of this setup on:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ite
=4600254814
This item has ended but, I've just checked, it can still be
viewed if you load the above link into your browser.
This mod looks appealing and I'm tempted to do it myself.
Anyone got any photos or info detailing the linkage
arrangements at the handlebar and in the headstock area?
Thanks in advance guys....Steve  

----- ORIGINAL MESSAGE FOLLOWS -----
Hello K.J.ers, especially my friend Steve Ciccalone.

John Flores in Missouri asked me to send this question out
for him.  

HIS K.J. HAS A RIGHT HAND SHIFT SET UP!!!  

He swears it has to be a factory conversion because of how
cleanly it appears to have been done.  

For instance, the boss on the right, identical to the usual
boss on the left, was brazed on, when the frame was
upsidedown, and looks identical to the other one.

A shaft run through the two.  It's nickel plated.  The shift
ever is brazed to the shaft at the normal pivot location
but the lower "tail" that the clevis pins to shows up on the
eft side, taper fit and keyed to the shaft.

This set up, of course, requires a left hand throttle which
bothers John.  For now he plans to preserve this peculiar
feature but for ease of riding he'd like to find a regular
shift lever that he could use on the left leaving the right
hand shift features alone...for posterity.  Email me if you
know of an available hand shift lever.

Do you suppose he's right, that this could be a factory
conversion, perhaps for a police department?  His K.J. is
from the 1931 model year, a year of tumult for the factory
no doubt.