To begin I want to say thanks to all members of this site for the amazing knowledge that has been shared over the years. Thanks to forums, I have had most if not all of my questions answered. For background, I am not motorcycle inept. I recently moved from Hawaii to Oregon and if your an older bike guy in Hawaii, you better know how to make stuff. Being on the mainland makes it a bit easier with lots of parts, people and much cheaper after market shipping.
Anyhow, this is my first full blown 650 cafe project and I'm in the home stretch and Iust about ready to fire the old girl up, but have hit a serious clutch snag. I've read literally every clutch thread and my problem hasn't been addressed anywhere that I can find.
To begin, the clutch in its entirety has been put back together in the correct sequence with the correct number of washers, new discs installed (oil soaked), new springs, new worm gear (clocked appropriately) and new cable. Push rod installed with ball bearings in correct position and pressure plate holes lined up. I've undone and redone everything several times to make sure things are in the correct sequence. I've gone from aftermarket lever back to stock lever, aftermarket cable to stock cable and now back to stock (wasted) clutch springs.
With all new parts, no matter how well adjusted, pulling the clutch lever will not budge the pressure plate to disengage the clutch. Initially thought it was a cable issue because the motion pro was a bit long. Shortened the cable about 1/2 inch and was able to get the pressure plate to move slightly, but only on the upper edge (read not disengaging concentrically). Eventually broke the cable and ironically at the lever end and not the shortened end that I soldered. I suppose that somewhat indicates that my soldering job was decent. With the non-concentric disengagement, it seemed like it was a push rod issue. Push rod halves pulled and checked for roundness with minimal run out indicating they were straight. I had already replaced the push rod bushing, so those tolerances are good to.
In the process of trouble shooting, I pulled the clutch springs again and with no springs, the pressure plate moves the way it should when the lever is pulled. Springs re-installed and nothing, no movement. Just for the hell of it, I re-installed the original springs which are rubbish and out of spec and the pressure plate moves concentrically, although not enough to fully disengage, but this could have been an adjustment issue. I'm at a loss here and am having a hard time believing that two new (different) sets of clutch springs are so strong that no matter what, they won't allow the clutch to disengage. The last set of springs were from Mikes and are Emgo branded. At this point I think I've narrowed it down to the springs, but like I said, I'm having a hard time believing it and was looking for any other suggestions or input here.
Again, thanks for taking the time to read this and believe me, all of your collective wisdom has been invaluable.
Anyhow, this is my first full blown 650 cafe project and I'm in the home stretch and Iust about ready to fire the old girl up, but have hit a serious clutch snag. I've read literally every clutch thread and my problem hasn't been addressed anywhere that I can find.
To begin, the clutch in its entirety has been put back together in the correct sequence with the correct number of washers, new discs installed (oil soaked), new springs, new worm gear (clocked appropriately) and new cable. Push rod installed with ball bearings in correct position and pressure plate holes lined up. I've undone and redone everything several times to make sure things are in the correct sequence. I've gone from aftermarket lever back to stock lever, aftermarket cable to stock cable and now back to stock (wasted) clutch springs.
With all new parts, no matter how well adjusted, pulling the clutch lever will not budge the pressure plate to disengage the clutch. Initially thought it was a cable issue because the motion pro was a bit long. Shortened the cable about 1/2 inch and was able to get the pressure plate to move slightly, but only on the upper edge (read not disengaging concentrically). Eventually broke the cable and ironically at the lever end and not the shortened end that I soldered. I suppose that somewhat indicates that my soldering job was decent. With the non-concentric disengagement, it seemed like it was a push rod issue. Push rod halves pulled and checked for roundness with minimal run out indicating they were straight. I had already replaced the push rod bushing, so those tolerances are good to.
In the process of trouble shooting, I pulled the clutch springs again and with no springs, the pressure plate moves the way it should when the lever is pulled. Springs re-installed and nothing, no movement. Just for the hell of it, I re-installed the original springs which are rubbish and out of spec and the pressure plate moves concentrically, although not enough to fully disengage, but this could have been an adjustment issue. I'm at a loss here and am having a hard time believing that two new (different) sets of clutch springs are so strong that no matter what, they won't allow the clutch to disengage. The last set of springs were from Mikes and are Emgo branded. At this point I think I've narrowed it down to the springs, but like I said, I'm having a hard time believing it and was looking for any other suggestions or input here.
Again, thanks for taking the time to read this and believe me, all of your collective wisdom has been invaluable.
