Agreed. Test compression and also transmission for slop in the shifter. If there is too much slop then it will be allowed to jump out of gear and this can get a bit expensive. When motor is at rest on a stand or on the ground turn throttle in a position to allow you to manually pull the bottom of the shift detent arm all the way towards yourself then see how far the shift arm can go past the forward, (upper), notch on the detent arm. If that distance puts it 1/4"past the end of the detent arm notch then you will likely find transmission problems. And you can do the same in reverse too. But it is normally the forward gear that gets damaged. With a new shift dog and a little careful dressing to the forward gear engagement ears....then correct the slop in the linkage.... This motor will last decades more.
