clutch help

[painter.724]

Duane, Thanks for your replys. I think I was relying on a little blind faith that someone on here would point me to an easy fix. Oh well, time to get dirty

[Duane Ausherman]

I really like easy fixes, but I don't think that you are going to find one on this issue. Maybe the next one will have a simple cheap fix.

Expect to find other things that need attention once you remove the cover. How many miles on the bike so far?

[painter.724]

The bike only has 49,000 miles with 30,000 of it coming in the last 2 1/2 years

[Duane Ausherman]

Depending upon how it was stored, it could easily have some rusty parts in the trans. Rusty gears are OK, it is the bearings that matter.

[Chuey]

Painter.724, have you checked at the clutch actuation lever that the cable acts on? On mine, when the bike is cold, the clutch lever is smooth to depress and the lever at the back of the transmission is smooth when I push it forward with a stick levered between the frame and the lever. When it is hot, it gets all graunchy. That is, it is not smooth and engages kind of all of a suddenly.

Chuey

[painter.724]

Well, call me what you may, and you will probably be correct.
Last night I started pulling the clutch handle in very slowly and releasing it very slowly and felt it bind about a 1/2" before full release.I pulled the handle back and put a drop or so of oil in there, and after pulling and releasing a few times the bind was gone. The clutch does not grab the way it did before, but I am pretty sure this was just one part of a problem. How soon should the clutch engage when releasing the handle. Mine grabs around a 1/2" before fully released.

[Duane Ausherman]

It is typical for the clutch to fully engage in a very short amount of travel that is past 1/2 way out, often at about 3/4 out.

Where did you put the oil?

[painter.724]

I put a drop on were the handle slides in and out of the fixed outer sleeve. I think that is a bad description, but I do not know the correct terminology of those parts. I believe a Clymer manual is in my near future. Should I put a drop on the cable? Thanks

[dougie]

Off topic and a wild guess...
Are you a painter? And is 724 a union local?

[Deleted User 62]

I put a drop on were the handle slides in and out of the fixed outer sleeve. I think that is a bad description, but I do not know the correct terminology of those parts. I believe a Clymer manual is in my near future. Should I put a drop on the cable? Thanks

Just a thought, if you haven't already, it would be a good idea to lubricate all the moving parts. Fully oil the clutch cable, one drop isn't enough, and then grease; the pivot pin where it attaches to the handlebar lever, the barrel at the end where it attaches to the clutch lever, the clutch lever pivot grease fitting and the throwout bearing (requires removing the clutch lever). Failing to do this as part of regular maintenance can lead to premature cable failure and/or the cable binding.