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How hard (or soft) is your... Clutch.

  • Thread starter Thread starter Bonehead
  • Start date Start date
B

Bonehead

Guest
Very recently I replaced my clutch cable on my bike because it was taking me my whole hand to pull in the clutch. After replacing it, the pull was still pretty hard even with maximum slack adjusted at the clutch lever.

Now I have a 1982 Gs650G, and usually the clutch is pretty soft on almost all GSes (or so i have read, correct me if I'm wrong). I am starting to believe clutch springs may have been replaced with non-OEM springs. Now, keep in mind I do NOT have it running down the road when pulling the clutch nor running at all.

Do you think the springs have been replaced? I think its a possibility seeing as though the carbs were modified as well as pods, 4-1, etc.

I will be looking at this when I can next open up the gears when I drain the oil.
 
Hi,

Methinks Mr. tkent02 may be exaggerating just a titch. It should take a little effort to pull the clutch, there are six springs. But you shouldn't need Popeye arms to do it. You are correct in that if the stock clutch springs have all been replaced by, say, aftermarket APE springs, they will be hard to pull. I've heard many folks use 3 of the APE springs and 3 of the old stock springs. Or six new stock springs should keep your clutch from slipping but provide an easy pull. Make sure the cable is lubricated too.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
 
Get a nice new OEM cable too and lube it too, I hear it makes a huge difference. I dunno what it's like being able to pull in the clutch with a pinky, on my bike I would have to have a kungfu grip.
 
BassCliff said:
Hi,

Methinks Mr. tkent02 may be exaggerating just a titch. It should take a little effort to pull the clutch, there are six springs. But you shouldn't need Popeye arms to do it. You are correct in that if the stock clutch springs have all been replaced by, say, aftermarket APE springs, they will be hard to pull. I've heard many folks use 3 of the APE springs and 3 of the old stock springs. Or six new stock springs should keep your clutch from slipping but provide an easy pull. Make sure the cable is lubricated too.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
Click to expand...

Well, I'm 20 by no means a weak child and takes all four fingers to pull it in with quite a bit of effort. With the cable lube, how/what do I use? I was looking at it an wondering how I would go about that.

Toasty said:
Get a nice new OEM cable too and lube it too, I hear it makes a huge difference. I dunno what it's like being able to pull in the clutch with a pinky, on my bike I would have to have a kungfu grip.
Click to expand...

Well, the biggest difference I noticed was how much smoother it was. There was some rust/oxidation on the cable itself and that is why I decided to replace it.

So, 2 questions still: Best lube/how to lube the cable, and how would I tell the difference in the springs? I'm assuming APE or other aftermarket springs would be would more and stiffer, while OEM springs would be spread out a bit more and softer.
 
Cliff, your a guitar player. If you can't pull it with a pinky there's something wrong with it.
 
You might check the routing of the cable, if it's not done properly or there is to tight a bend in it you will have a hard pull.
 
My GS1000 has a fairly light pull, think the springs are shot, but it doesn't slip a bit.
My GS1100 has a moderate smooth pull throughout it's range.
These two bikes fall in-line with others I've owned.

The hardest to pull in clutch I ever felt was on a Norton 850 Commando, I could barely pull it in with all I had, my friend the owner thought it was normal, but he had huge hands and lots of muscles.
scan0034.jpg
 
If your cables are worn internally, all the lube in the world won't help a whole lot. The steel cable will sometimes wear a groove inside the outer cable, at the inside of each bend. When you pull the clutch, the cable drops into this groove and binds up. Very hard to pull when it's trying to slide inside this groove. More wear, more binding, vicious circle.
You might be able to rotate the outer cable a half turn, so the old groove is to the outside of each bend, but at best it's a temporary thing, the cable will return to it's worn position.

This can happen long before the cable shows any visible signs of wear. Also worn perches, worn levers, and wear in whatever hardware is on the other end of the cable all add friction, it all adds up. Replace all of this stuff, grease the pivot bearing in the lever and the one on the end of the cable itself, keep all of that stuff clean and lubed.

No matter how strong your fingers are, a stiff clutch makes it very hard to ride smoothly.
 
Mine is really soft.
I'm sure I could use new springs but I don't notice all that much slipping.
Maybe if I try to lift the front up on a launch it slips a bit, but otherwise it's still good.
And when I say soft I mean one finger pull without much effort soft.
 
Steel Toed Tank said:
Mine is really soft.
I'm sure I could use new springs but I don't notice all that much slipping.
Maybe if I try to lift the front up on a launch it slips a bit, but otherwise it's still good.
And when I say soft I mean one finger pull without much effort soft.
Click to expand...

New stock springs will fix the slippage without increasing the pull effort.
 
When I first got it I could chirp the tires and lift the front a little on a hard launch, and always a little chirp going into second.
Towards the end of the season though it would launch hard still, but no more chirping.
I'm a heavy guy though so I'm hard on clutches regardless.

Springs, cables and plate/basket inspection is all part of the winter tear down though, I can't wait to see what she's like come spring.
 
This was the weather the day I went to get my GS, on May 27th 2012, about 5 hours drive straight south from where I live.

picture.php


So yeah, an honest 5 - 6 months left, lol.
 
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