i changed my chain and sprockets yesterday, went to get on it this morning to ride to work and found my clutch is strange. when pulled all the way in its at the end of the friction zone. i thought i put everything back together right .
I'd say something didn't get put back right, take the counter shaft sprocket cover back off and look at how the clutch slave lines up in how it pushes the rod. I'm thinking somethings a miss there. It's just my guess.
I had this issue with my CBR. Just let the engine warm-up and circulate the oil a little bit in Neutral then try it in first see if it corrects it. May or may not work but it's far easier than taking everything apart. What may have happened is no oil in clutch case from when you were working on it so the clutch isn't disengaging completely. Let us know what you find out.
it was well warmed up, i took it around the block just to make sure. it almost felt like there wasnt enough fluid. but i probably just f'ed up putting the cover back on. on a side note, cleaning out 16 years of chain grease and road debris makes the side stand work sooooo much smoother.
guys, i went and messed with it some more, with no luck. all fluids are fine. the little diaphram thing that pushed the rod seems to be working. my old bike had a cable clutch so i'm not certain though. its pushing in fine but doesn't seem to be releasing very easy. its ridable but the friction zone starts right when i let the lever out.
You didn't happen to push the clutch lever in when the slave cylinder was removed did you? There's a way to work on the bike(well...5th gen anyways) without having to take much apart to get to the front sprocket and not worry about messing with the slave cylinder or water pump at all. Did you pull the rod out at all? Lube it up and make sure it goes all the way in and seats properly...other than that...I'm a bit puzzled.
Most all motorcycle clutches operate the same. Hand lever pushes on the spool in the master reservoir. Spool travel, applies pressure to the hydraulic line to the secondary cylinder. (Secondary cylinder is to be maintaining pressure just below what is required to let the clutch plates be free.) The pressure from the secondary cylinder moves the clutch rod in ~ ¼ to ~3/8 of an inch. The clutch rod presses against the spring plate, and releases the clutch disk stack from the drive. Engine runs free. Following this system, you have a mechanical adjustment at your lever to give more or less travel in your cylinder. You have a pressure adjustment within your lines via the bleed off valve. So you can have system failure via the following; Lever mechanical adjustment is out of adjustment. Master cylinder is not holding pressure, I.e. the spool seals are damaged. Hole in the clutch hydraulic line. Air in the hydraulic system. Seal for the piston in the secondary cylinder is blown or damaged. Clutch rod is damaged, (short) Clutch plate springs are broken. (though, this would make your engine roll to neutral easier) And just a general note about removal of the clutch system…Remember the pressure of the clutch rod must be maintained at all times. Its not free, and then when you pull the clutch lever you apply pressure. There is actually supposed to be a small amount of pressure on the rod to keep it tight against the clutch plate and the secondary cylinder. If you remove the clutch system, (relieve the pressure from the clutch rod), without relieving the pressure from the master cylinder first!, then when you break the bolts of the secondary cylinder, the piston seal, will continue to hold pressure, and move forward enough to pass the cylinder wall. After that, its sheer hell to get it put back and ensure the seals are right. (**important part** you may not be aware of this, but since the rubber boot that holds the piston in, is just to keep it from just falling out. It is NOT a positive stop.)
thanks guys. its working now, but it catches earlier than before, friction zone starts about 1/4" away from the bar. i took it for a little ride and it seems fine, just not like it was before. soundmaster, did not mess with the lever when it was off, the slave has to com off with the cover, and i didnt mess with the rod. but i was just thinkin i did clean it up in there, so i coulda cleaned off the lube for the rod (ill try not to laugh)... squirrelman, im gona bleed it next.
well i was just gona flush out the oil fluid with some new stuff, it needs it anyway. but some stuff came up and i didnt have time to do it. so i just went out there and cracked open the bleed valve just for a second until some fluid came out, that did it, i didnt even see any bubbles. i really underestimated the power of air.
Sometimes it helps to remove cover, crack bleeder and push the slave back in from the inside forcing any air bubble out that way.
Cut a hole in your right pocket, and don't wear undies (technical term for this is "Free Balling".) That makes easy access work. I had the same problem. I cracked the bleed valve, and let a little air come through. But I found I still had the same problem as you. I had the Tom Titts so I pumped the lever in frustration and it came good
If you don't use a clamp to keep the slave cylinder from moving, the piston will slowly move out of the bore. Once out, you have to crack the bleeder valve to push it back in - or use a c-clamp to push it back in. I bet you left the slave cylinder un-clamped when you removed it. When you reinstalled it, the piston wouldn't allow you to tighten the mounting bolts all the way. Just a little goes a long way when the clutch is involved. Hook a hose to the slave cylinder and crack the bleeder. Loosen all the mounting bolts. Re-tighten equally. Close the bleeder. I bet this will fix your issue.
