The 7th gear unit is a re - geared bevel drive unit for the 1986 - 2006 C-10 concours. The bevel drive unit is NOT the part by the rear wheel, it's the unit that has the oil fill and sight glass in it on the left side of the engine. The 7th gear unit is not an actual 7th gear. I named it the "7th gear unit " because with this unit you won't be trying to upshift for another gear when you're already in 6th anymore; this gearing seems perfect for the Concours, as many can attest.
The 7th gear unit has 12% higher gearing than a stock concours bevel drive. This means you will run with 12% less rpm per gear per road speed. For instance in 6th gear, rather than 5000rpm = 80mph, you will now only turn 4400 rpm for 80mph.
The 7th gear unit has many benefits over the stock gearing. Less rpms mean less heat, less noise, less VIBES, and most report approx 3mpg fuel economy improvement, though some have reported up to 6 mpg increase. If you can imagine a C-10 feeling "refined" in it's performance, this is about as close at you'll get to it. I consider the 7th gear a "sneaky" mod; ride it for 10 miles and you'll wonder what all the hullabaloo is about. The bike will pull away in 1st as good as ever, and in fact get you going faster for less shifting than the stock gearing. It's not all that noticeable. Now go ride it 50 - 100 - 500 miles. the more you ride it, the more you'll like it. The new gearing makes the transmission gearing seem more appropriate to the power delivery. I've ridden from the interstates in FL to the twisties in NC and never felt I was giving away any performance with the 7th gear unit. EVERYONE who has gotten it has reported back to me "this is how it should have been".
There is no internal engine work required to install the unit. The bevel drive bolts on the outside of the main engine case, so the installation takes app 4 hours. It will require removal of the rear wheel, swingarm, driveshaft, water pump, shift linkage and clutch slave cylinder. I provide the unit with a new bevel drive gasket, and it's a plug and play swap. no internal work required, just bolt it on.
The 7th gear unit is built on a custom order basis. You must contact me prior to sending in a payment so we can work out details. I can build your unit if you ship it to me or provide an exchange unit to you with a refundable core charge.
The cost of the 7th gear unit is USD $525.00 (as of 6/2008) shipped to the lower 48. This does represent a price increase, but it's because getting the gears has become quite a bit more expensive lately. Canada is slightly higher due to shipping. I charge a 150.00 refundable core charge if you choose to have me build one of my cores and ship it to you. Most folks go this way, it's easier for you to jst do the swap in one afternoon, but it's your choice.
To order, email me to Ssef59@tampabay.rr.com and we'll work out the details from there.
Thanks for all the support, Steve
