. . . when shifting it can be a clunker . . .
Although some of you may find this hard to '
swallow' here's a couple of things that can help shifting:
1) Proper shift lever adjustment so your foot can move the lever through its full stroke
2) Preloading the lever with a bit of force before disengaging the clutch
The Concours shifts as well as or better than any of the other motorcycles I've had.
Frugal confession: my bike has never seen anything but conventional oil, and I've never noticed any shifting difference between well-used (i.e. 5000 km) and freshly changed, or between grades (20W40, 20W50, 10W40) either.