Forgive the long post but it's a long story bro... You can just skip to the end for the nitty gritty and look at the pretty pictures along the way if you don't have time for my B.S. no worries. Big loveāš¤£š
The standard shifter is probably fine for you if your shoe size is under 11u.s and you don't wear MX boots or equivalent large snake boots, work boots or whatever... The shifter does work good with jungle boots (but mine fell apartš¤£š) , tennis shoes also fit the shifter well in size 11us. Aside from that you bigfoots are probably going to need to shift with the side of your boot unless you change either the foot peg height by lowering them or the shifter length. This is well known I am not trying to act like I discovered this fact .
To begin my need for a new shifter,
I wanted more protection from this fat pig. I needed something besides my crash protection. Better ankle protection! And shins too to start.
![Image]()
Enter my super hero bootsāš
Daave had posted in one of the threads that he loved his O'Neil element mx boots ( in black). & (@ $140 RMATV) I took his opinion as a fellow KLR rider as a sound endorsement. Not waterproof but very good value IMO. Waterproof socks are a thing if you're concerned š¤£ Having worn them for a month now and probably a thousand miles they are great boots. But you CANT shift the stock shifter with them very easily at all... I Also glued my jungle boot soles that fell apart to the bottom for awesome traction and a little height to further rip off Daave's idea. Hey, the soles were brand new the glue just let go one day.
So I tried to cut and extend mine so my boots would work...
![Image]()
Cut a piece of 3/16" lawnmower blade, Welded and ground down and painted it after after.
![Image]()
well I ground too much off of the welds that my cheap harbor freight wire welder tried to give me. Man I need a new welder š¤£ needless to say and you've probably guessed it broke off first ride and tumbled off into the weeds never to be seen again! I just laughed š
In comes Happy Trails... So I ordered a new one for $57.94. it looked heavy duty. It said in stock on the website so I figured I'd have it in a week... This was my first experience with Happy Trails. Nothing else I saw of theirs appeals to me but the shifter looks overbuilt in all the right places.
4 days later... I received an email stating that they are "behind schedule and it should ship by June 17th but they'll try to get it to me faster" or something like that. Remember that the website said nothing like this it said in stock... I tried to be understanding considering the times we are in. Fast forward almost a month later and no shifter and no email saying why and the ship date has passed. I tried to call happy trails and that's not a possibility. No one answers the phone. Just voice mail or email. What a disappointment. Now I'm feeling almost scammed š¤£ I find out from another member on here ( KLR- MULE) about email being the only way he could cancel his order because they were stalling him too... What kind of business model is this anyway? So I send an email that says basically " you guys said it was in stock last month what's the deal. I can have a competitors here by Thursday. If you can't get me a shifter by Thursday cancel my order, refund my money and you'll never hear from me again." Imagine having to shift with an electrical connector clamped on the end of your shifter for a month waiting on an in stock one that you already paid for... I know I'm a dumbass for modifying the only one I had with a shitty welder in the first place but don't rub it in... I paid for it hurry up already. So the next day I hadn't heard anything and got impatient & ordered an IMS extended shifter from eBay for a gen2 for $38.
As soon as the confirmation comes thru I also get an email from happy trails saying my shifter had shipped sorry for delay their coating company is behind schedule super busy small company blah blah blah.
When it rains it pours! Now I have 2 shifters. That both arrived this week! the IMS only took 4 days to arrive after order was placed. The Happy Trails took a month and a complaining customer lš
I'm not sending back either one. I'm doing a head to head with these shifters and offering up the one that doesn't fit me right on the KLR forum at a nice discount for someone else who wants one that is very lightly used (2days no scratches and including brand new bolt) and isn't sure if it will fit them or maybe tight on money? Whatever. Oh yeah And no shipping delayāšš
Side by side comparison
![Image]()
Happy trails extended shifter on gen 3 KLR:
![Image]()
![Image]()
The Happy Trails shifter is literally built like a tank! It is heavy duty and even has a plate to distribute the forces to prevent a puncture to your engine case and it sits further out to give extra clearance. Pretty cool for crazy off-road activities when you'll bend one. For someone with a large foot not using mx boots or even someone with a medium foot with mx boots that won't fit the OEM shifter, the Happy Trails would probably be a good choice for you. Expect to wait at least a month for shipping is the only downside unless you want this oneš¤£š to me it seems way overbuilt and a few ounces heavier than the IMS. Also my foot kept trying to shift that circular plate on the case side to prevent puncture. Really hard to find it everytime with MX Boots on IMO I'm not a professional MX guy either so take that for what it's worth. Now to Happy Trails credit they overnight FedEx'd that thing to me immediately after my email. I literally had it in my hand Very shortly after their reply & confirmation ALL on the same day. Good job!šŖšš I still had to complain to be considered important though.
IMS extended shifter:
![Image]()
![Image]()
Notice how far the tape measure is away from the shifter. It's placed in the same spot on the foot peg at the same angle. The Happy Trails sticks out further.
I would consider the IMS standard duty. Although saying that shouldn't be misleading.. It is made very well. The quality is good. And it's plenty strong enough IMO. If it bends, maybe I can bend it back & drive with a bent shifter I've done it a few times... If it breaks Pick a gear .. drive slowš¤£ but once home I can easily have another to my door in 5 days or less. What appeals to me about it the most is the angle of the arm coming off of the spline shaft. It sweeps Up which clears an MX boot very well without having to raise the shifter on the splines risking hitting your front sprocket cover. And no extra dingleberries hanging off the bottom to confuse the top of your MX boot which hasn't much feeling to it. This shifter would also be appropriate for ANYONE with a large foot wearing ANY TYPE of shoe apparel on their feet IMO all the while offering a much more adjustable shifter out of the gate. It's a perfect fit for me.
This is the IMS EXTENDED SHIFTER 313117 that I used on my 2022 KLR 650. IT FITS ALL MODELS OF KLR 650 for $38
![Image]()
![Image]()
SO... Anybody want to buy a HAPPY TRAILS EXTENDED SHIFTER for $25 shipping included in the lower 48 beyond that we'll have to talk .šŖšš
www.klrforum.com
The standard shifter is probably fine for you if your shoe size is under 11u.s and you don't wear MX boots or equivalent large snake boots, work boots or whatever... The shifter does work good with jungle boots (but mine fell apartš¤£š) , tennis shoes also fit the shifter well in size 11us. Aside from that you bigfoots are probably going to need to shift with the side of your boot unless you change either the foot peg height by lowering them or the shifter length. This is well known I am not trying to act like I discovered this fact .
To begin my need for a new shifter,
I wanted more protection from this fat pig. I needed something besides my crash protection. Better ankle protection! And shins too to start.
Enter my super hero bootsāš
Daave had posted in one of the threads that he loved his O'Neil element mx boots ( in black). & (@ $140 RMATV) I took his opinion as a fellow KLR rider as a sound endorsement. Not waterproof but very good value IMO. Waterproof socks are a thing if you're concerned š¤£ Having worn them for a month now and probably a thousand miles they are great boots. But you CANT shift the stock shifter with them very easily at all... I Also glued my jungle boot soles that fell apart to the bottom for awesome traction and a little height to further rip off Daave's idea. Hey, the soles were brand new the glue just let go one day.
So I tried to cut and extend mine so my boots would work...
Cut a piece of 3/16" lawnmower blade, Welded and ground down and painted it after after.
well I ground too much off of the welds that my cheap harbor freight wire welder tried to give me. Man I need a new welder š¤£ needless to say and you've probably guessed it broke off first ride and tumbled off into the weeds never to be seen again! I just laughed š
In comes Happy Trails... So I ordered a new one for $57.94. it looked heavy duty. It said in stock on the website so I figured I'd have it in a week... This was my first experience with Happy Trails. Nothing else I saw of theirs appeals to me but the shifter looks overbuilt in all the right places.
4 days later... I received an email stating that they are "behind schedule and it should ship by June 17th but they'll try to get it to me faster" or something like that. Remember that the website said nothing like this it said in stock... I tried to be understanding considering the times we are in. Fast forward almost a month later and no shifter and no email saying why and the ship date has passed. I tried to call happy trails and that's not a possibility. No one answers the phone. Just voice mail or email. What a disappointment. Now I'm feeling almost scammed š¤£ I find out from another member on here ( KLR- MULE) about email being the only way he could cancel his order because they were stalling him too... What kind of business model is this anyway? So I send an email that says basically " you guys said it was in stock last month what's the deal. I can have a competitors here by Thursday. If you can't get me a shifter by Thursday cancel my order, refund my money and you'll never hear from me again." Imagine having to shift with an electrical connector clamped on the end of your shifter for a month waiting on an in stock one that you already paid for... I know I'm a dumbass for modifying the only one I had with a shitty welder in the first place but don't rub it in... I paid for it hurry up already. So the next day I hadn't heard anything and got impatient & ordered an IMS extended shifter from eBay for a gen2 for $38.
As soon as the confirmation comes thru I also get an email from happy trails saying my shifter had shipped sorry for delay their coating company is behind schedule super busy small company blah blah blah.
When it rains it pours! Now I have 2 shifters. That both arrived this week! the IMS only took 4 days to arrive after order was placed. The Happy Trails took a month and a complaining customer lš
I'm not sending back either one. I'm doing a head to head with these shifters and offering up the one that doesn't fit me right on the KLR forum at a nice discount for someone else who wants one that is very lightly used (2days no scratches and including brand new bolt) and isn't sure if it will fit them or maybe tight on money? Whatever. Oh yeah And no shipping delayāšš
Side by side comparison
Happy trails extended shifter on gen 3 KLR:
The Happy Trails shifter is literally built like a tank! It is heavy duty and even has a plate to distribute the forces to prevent a puncture to your engine case and it sits further out to give extra clearance. Pretty cool for crazy off-road activities when you'll bend one. For someone with a large foot not using mx boots or even someone with a medium foot with mx boots that won't fit the OEM shifter, the Happy Trails would probably be a good choice for you. Expect to wait at least a month for shipping is the only downside unless you want this oneš¤£š to me it seems way overbuilt and a few ounces heavier than the IMS. Also my foot kept trying to shift that circular plate on the case side to prevent puncture. Really hard to find it everytime with MX Boots on IMO I'm not a professional MX guy either so take that for what it's worth. Now to Happy Trails credit they overnight FedEx'd that thing to me immediately after my email. I literally had it in my hand Very shortly after their reply & confirmation ALL on the same day. Good job!šŖšš I still had to complain to be considered important though.
IMS extended shifter:
Notice how far the tape measure is away from the shifter. It's placed in the same spot on the foot peg at the same angle. The Happy Trails sticks out further.
I would consider the IMS standard duty. Although saying that shouldn't be misleading.. It is made very well. The quality is good. And it's plenty strong enough IMO. If it bends, maybe I can bend it back & drive with a bent shifter I've done it a few times... If it breaks Pick a gear .. drive slowš¤£ but once home I can easily have another to my door in 5 days or less. What appeals to me about it the most is the angle of the arm coming off of the spline shaft. It sweeps Up which clears an MX boot very well without having to raise the shifter on the splines risking hitting your front sprocket cover. And no extra dingleberries hanging off the bottom to confuse the top of your MX boot which hasn't much feeling to it. This shifter would also be appropriate for ANYONE with a large foot wearing ANY TYPE of shoe apparel on their feet IMO all the while offering a much more adjustable shifter out of the gate. It's a perfect fit for me.
This is the IMS EXTENDED SHIFTER 313117 that I used on my 2022 KLR 650. IT FITS ALL MODELS OF KLR 650 for $38
SO... Anybody want to buy a HAPPY TRAILS EXTENDED SHIFTER for $25 shipping included in the lower 48 beyond that we'll have to talk .šŖšš
Happy Trails extended shifter
SOLD 2days old lighty used no scratches on it it's like brand new with a brand new bolt included. It takes a month for happy trails to ship right now so I got impatient and ordered the IMS fits me better with MX Boots on. Free shipping to the lower 48 beyond that we'll have to talk. I used it...
www.klrforum.com
