air head hydraulic clutch?

[twist]

It's been a while since posting here. I've been buried in work and family, but have been reading posts. I have a long standing idea of modifying BMW parts to make a hydraulic clutch. I was looking through ebay and noticed a R1100RS 1100RS 1994-94 Rear Brake Master Cylinder and it brought me back to my idea. Would it be possible to use a rear brake system for a clutch? Lets say use a handlebar mounted reservoir and a rear brake master cylinder to move the clutch arm?

[Duane Ausherman]

I have to ask why in the world would anyone want to dump a simple and very reliable system for one that costs a lot more and is complicated? It would also be far more susceptible to damage from a crash.

[twist]

I would like to find a way to make the stiff clutch easier to pull, also it is a "can this be done and how" exercise. I like to think about using parts from other models meant for one thing do other tasks. And it's fun.

[Unclviny]

I looked at Vech's "EZ-CLUTCH" for my /5 but I decided it was more trouble than it's worth. I can relate to Engineering exercise being fun, my Norton is wearing parts from the Boat-store!

Vince

[Chuey]

I have hoped that my left arm would get Popeye like from the old style clutch on my R90S. It hasn't, but it makes me appreciate the bikes with the newer style. Around town, sometimes I wonder if people see me grimacing. Maybe they think I'm doing an Incredible Hulk thing.

That said, the 1999 R1100S has a hydraulic clutch. Probably most other models from that era and newer do as well. That would probably be an easier retrofit than a brake set-up.

Chuey

[Major Softie]

The slave clutch cylinders don't move nearly far enough to operate the stock arm, so, along with working out how to mount the cylinder, you'd need to work out and fabricate the linkage to provide the proper leverage and travel. It could be done, but would be quite a project, and would require strong fabrication skills.

Edit: Doing a search, I found this German site, and I believe this photo shows a hydraulic clutch modification on an Airhead (but, the photo isn't very informative). Right-click and choose "View Image" to view whole (large) photo.



http://omega-oldtimer.de/ukprojektefremd.html

[KauaiSlash5]

http://www.benchmarkworks.com/articles/ ... lutch.html

I did this coversion last Summer and my only regret is not doing it years ago! It's simple, super easy to install, and really inexpensive. Having just installed an "easy clutch" kit on a friends '72 Norton Commando last summer, then getting into a bad motorcycle accident shortly after, I decided to see if anyone was offering an "easy clutch" kit for Airheads. My clutch was in perfect working order and very managable before, but after the accident I found the clutch very painful to operate due to trauma. I purchased the kit thinking if it worked as well as my friends Norton kit (which was much more expensive) I'd be happy. Well to my surpise it actually ended up working twice as well! Definitely one of the best investments/uprgrades I've made to my /5!

[chasbmw]

Unless they have changed it, the benchmarks setup would not fit my 82, to fit it you need to cut off the end of the clutch cable, the end of which is secured to the chain by grub screws. If you have an aftermarket clutch cable with a greater diameter than the BMW one, it won't fit.

[Ken in Oklahoma]

Unless they have changed it, the benchmarks setup would not fit my 82, to fit it you need to cut off the end of the clutch cable, the end of which is secured to the chain by grub screws. If you have an aftermarket clutch cable with a greater diameter than the BMW one, it won't fit.

I'm a bit puzzled about the need for an easier clutch on a '82 bike. It has the later style clutch which is a lot easier to pull than a /5, /6, or /7 series bike. Though I don't have a problem with the earlier clutches I can imagine that a lot of people would.


Ken

[twist]

it would be nice to operate the clutch with just 2 fingers, but then it is an older BMW and I do love all the things that make this such a fun bike. I will still keep an eye out for a good retro fit.