Clutch Pushrod 1 or 2 Piece?

Hey Guys, work commitments, means my rebuild has slowed down! just about to install the Clutch and have been thinking about the pushrod. Long before the internet i rebuilt an XS engine and I think it had a 1 piece job.
Problem with that bike (which seems to be common): When cold the clutch would not dissengage and if adjusted to correct that, the clutch would slip when the engine warmed up. If i'm right, this is due to the alluminum of the engine expanding more than the steel pushrod and the answer to this was the 2 piece (one Alloy one steel) pushrod.
So why does everyone seem to replace the 2 piece with the 1 piece? and what is the best option to go for?

Thanks
Barrie

BarrieC said:

So why does everyone seem to replace the 2 piece with the 1 piece? and what is the best option to go for?

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The theory is, that the two piece rod and accompanying ball bearings allows a small amount of flex and wiggle that causes premature wear of the pushrod seal. I had a ‘72 that came with a factory one piece rod and a ‘77 that came with a two piece rod. I bought a one piece on EBay ( they are out there ) to install on my ‘77. As far as clutch free play changing when the engine warms up, they all do it. Aluminum cases and steel rods and ball bearings expand at different rates.
The only real fix for this ,and I eventually did this to both of my bikes, was install a custom made aluminum alloy push rod which expands and contracts at the same rate as the engine cases. That cured my , having to adjust the clutch lever when the engine gets hot.
I‘m not sure anyone still makes these. The last forum member here that I know of was @GLJ . Also his custom shift shaft chain guards were the best!

Here is an article on the aluminum one piece push rods,

https://www.xs650.com/threads/magura-clutch-lever-and-aluminum-pushrod.56574/#post-651092

If you do decide to go with the long, one piece rod, search eBay for an original. Sometimes the aftermarket ones aren't hardened on the ends and wear badly, to the point of shedding metal bits .....

Mailman said:

Here is an article on the aluminum one piece push rods,

https://www.xs650.com/threads/magura-clutch-lever-and-aluminum-pushrod.56574/#post-651092

Click to expand...

Thanks Mailman,
I have ordered some bar to the same spec that GLJ used,
Thanks again

5twins said:

If you do decide to go with the long, one piece rod, search eBay for an original. Sometimes the aftermarket ones aren't hardened on the ends and wear badly, to the point of shedding metal bits .....

View attachment 229279

Click to expand...

Thanks 5twins,
for now i will use the onepiece, that looks to be an original to me - I have a feeling i have one good dismantled engine from an 82 and parts of an XS2 or TX, but a weird mix!

@BarrieC, if you feel like making a few to sell then you have a customer here . I'd love one.

To get around the issue of expansion due to heat, and the subsequent increased clutch lever freeplay (that can lead to clutch drag in extreme cases), I set my clutch adjustment quite tight (cold engine). Once the engine is running and heating up, freeplay starts to develop, so I'm not running too tight or very tight for long. This solves the problem of having to re-adjust the lever freeplay once the bike gets hot, then having to adjust it back once cold. So, on a cold motor, I start at the worm and turn the screw in until it stops, then back it off just a hair, maybe 1/8 of a turn at most. Then I go up to the hand lever and adjust out pretty much all the remaining freeplay.