Can someone please help

KTM 274

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I'm new to this site and hope someone can help me. I have a 72 XS-2 650 that I got from my dad who bought it new. Last season I put it back on the road and love ridng it. The problem is: When I went to back it into the garage I had it in 1st gear with the clutch pulled in (engine running) the bike would suddenly lock up! It wouldn't stall, but it wouldn't roll backwards at all. If its in neutral (engine running) it doesn't happen. No one seems to know why it does this, and I'm affraid of a lock up situation while riding down the road. I didn't notice this till after an oil change, any help would be great. Thank you.:confused:
 
Don't try to fix it. I will cost you too much effort and money to get it right. My suggestion, sell me the bike for 100$ or 200$ (this way you will have more space in your garage) and I will try to find the problem here or at least, I will have spare parts.

Just a joke :laugh::laugh::laugh:

Like inxs said, what oil did you put in the engine ?
 
I put in Kawasaki Premium 4 stroke 20-50. I've been using that for a while in all my bikes with no previous problems. Has proven to be a decent oil, (so far) and easier to buy one type of oil instead of four different ones. The clutch does slip and even thought about putting in a new one but then this problem came up. It's the stock clutch with 15,000 miles on it. Could it be the oil?
 
throwout bearing.

- do you have issues getting it back into neutral when the bike is running and you're stopped?
- do you have no issues getting it into neutral when the engine is not running and you're stopped?
- when on the center stand, with the clutch pulled in and the engine running, and in first, does the rear wheel spin and can't be stopped with light pressure from your hand?

If you answered "yes" to all those questions: 99% it's your throwout bearing. Do your clutch plates at the same time, since you have to remove them anyway.

There's no real "danger". It's a typical problem if you're still running the original throwout bearing which has few rollers, vs the replacement which has many.
 
Thanks everyone for the info. I'll take a closer look at the throw-out bearing Sunday. The bike shifts pretty well and finding neutral is never a problem. Is a lock up possible while riding it? I think it's the first time I backed it into the garage running in gear, so I don't know how long it's been like this. I wanted to ride it tomorrow night. Thanks again. I'm liking this site.
 
All bikes have a certain amount of clutch drag, even a brand spanker! Take any bike & push it in neutral & it will freely roll. Put it in gear, pull the clutch & push it & you will feel more resistance.
There's several reasons for this resistance to increase as a bike ages.

First the multi plate clutch system, when we pull the clutch lever to disengage the clutch, we are separating all the clutch plates from each other. So if clutch adjustment is anything less than perfect, you will get less separation of the plates.

The clutch basket can wear corrugations on the fingers that the clutch plate tabs slide on. This also causes poor clutch performance ie drag.

So if your not having any troubles except for pushing your bike backwards in gear with the engine running, I'd suggest quiting that practice & that should fix your problem! :cheers:
 
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