[doctorfrank]

Got a 2008 st1050 and noticed there is a lot of backlash in gearbox,thought it was slack drive chain but after removing rear wheel for cleaning session put it in 1st gear to undo wheel nut noticed it then,.
Anyone else noticed this or heard owt or is this normal ?,

 

[Shovelstrokeed]

Depends on how much slack you observed. I would go ahead and say it is normal. Remember, the slack will be magnified by the gear ratio so to really test it, put the bike in 6th. A few degrees of rotation at the rear wheel is entirely normal. You have to go through, depending on the gear you are in, 3 pairs of gears to get to the crankshaft.

 

[oldndumb]

Putting the bike in gear as an aid in removing the axle nut puts a lot of unnecessary stress on the xmission. Consider the amount of torque being applied and multiply that by the gear ratio.

It is a lot easier on the bike to use the rear brake.