1980 gs850 clutch cable

[Guest]

I got a new clutch cable for my 1980 GS850GL it has adjustment points at the lever , middle of cable and at the engine. Never had one of these what is the proper way to adjust it ?

[tom203]

Remove gas tank. Note how cable passes thru carb area.. take a pic
Hopefully you got a genuine suzuki cable as aftermarket ones ain't as good. Did your previous cable break? If no, lay your new cable alongside the old and get the lengths similar- this will get you in ballpark.
When old cable is disconnected, the clutch lever arm (part #29 in attached diagram) will swing out of position. You might have to reposition arm on its shaft to get correct "throw" from cable pull movement. You can feel clutch resistance with your hand - about 1/4 inch of lever arm travel here before you feel resistance. Set cable adjusters to give you this point.

http://www.partsoutlaw.com/oemparts/a/suz/50d4018bf8700230d8b4e509/clutch

[Dogma]

I've never heard what the middle adjuster is for, and it's come up a few times here in the forums. Mostly, we ignore it. Your 850 will need as little slop as possible to get the clutch to fully disengage. Adjust it so the cable is just a little slack when the lever is out. If it's tight, the clutch will slip. Too loose, and you won't be able to get neutral while running (maybe not anyway, depending on the clutch plates). A worn bushing in the clutch lever can actually make enough slop to cause a bit of drag. If you do have to adjust the lever at the engine, imagine the lever making a right angle with the cable. Adjust it so you get the same angle from perpendicular when the clutch is released as you do when the clutch is pulled all the way in.

Some people get confused by the lever at the engine being free to move while the cable is off. Just take turn it to be as close to the cable as it will go.