Stuck clutch

[Guest]

Hello all ! I put new clutch plates (driven fiber plates) in my gsx1100. I didn't replace steel plates as they looked good and were not warped. Now with a cold engine, when I pull in clutch and put it in gear, it stalls like I didn't pull in clutch. Restart it and it's fine ! Also, there's NO free play in clutch lever......clutch engages as soon as it moves off handlebar. It almost seems like the clutch push rod is too short !! And im sure the throw out bearing was installed. I tried bleeding the system many times but no help.....it stays disengaged fine with lever pulled ALL the way in. Any ideas ???

[Steve]

I tried bleeding the system many times but no help...

Please tell us more about this.

It would help to know what year your "GSX" is. I see that you claim PA as your location, but those from outside the USA know all the 16-valve engines as GSX. The ones that I know of, which would be the '80-'84 bikes, all had cable-operated clutches. Is it possible that you have a GSX1100G from the '90s?

This is one of the reasons we suggest you create a signature that mentions your bike, so you don't have to remember to mention it any time you ask a question about it.

.

[Cipher]

I cannot recall ever having free play in a hydraulic clutch. You certainly do not want it in breaks os this is a 93 gsx 1100 eh. Put that in a sig file leke steve says. As for being sure about parts assembly well you know what that means! It means redo using at least a parts diagram blowup as a reference.

[salty_monk]

What weight of oil are you using? That can have an effect, causing the plates to drag (if you're using a 20-50 or example) - I see you're PA so COLD probably really means COLD. Does it stall if you keep the revs up?

If it's hydraulic activated as in the diag above I would also look at the master/slave cylinder & the line. Collapsed line, air in the system, a minor leak etc could all cause these issues.

[Cipher]

I wonder if the bit of the slave that gets exposed to air on actuation of the clutch is corroded? If so might this cause it to be unable to seat back in its bore. Had this happen once on some old truck or something.

[rayban]

Sorry for lack of info..... It's a 1993 Gsx1100g.....and I wish it was a cable clutch.... hydraulic clutch just doesn't make sense.
Any way it's 10w40 oil , it was put back together correctly ( according to diagram), and the clutch starts engaging as soon as it moves off handlebar....every other bike I own has a couple hundred thousands before it starts engaging.....as it should !!! Like I said, it seems like if I could pull handle in more it would be ok. It worked fine before I changed clutch.,..other than slipping bad at upper rpms. Maybe time for cylinder rebuilds ???

[Cipher]

oem fibres? could it be the new fibres are too thick? Did you soak em in oil for the magically arrived at requisite duration?

[Steve]

How does it feel when you START to pull the lever?

Does it start pulling right away or is there quite a bit of free play before you feel resistance?

If there is a lot of free play, I think you still have an air bubble in the line.

.

[gsrick]

With a hydraulic clutch you should feel tension as soon as you pull the lever back, not all the way near the grip. I'm with Steve, you may still have air in the clutch that is compressing. Have to bled the banjo bolts? Some times air will get trapped there and the only way to release it is to squeeze the lever and crack open the banjo bolt at the master and retighten again it before you release the lever. It may take a couple of times, but you will notice immediately if it is getting better. Do this at both ends of the line. I also like to flick the lever a bunch of times. You might be surprised to see a bunch of very tiny bubbles come out in the reservoir. Tapping all the joints with a wrench, can shock the air loose also.

[Cipher]

well some interesting information on the diaphraghm springs on over to here:

https://userswww.pd.infn.it/~lacaprar/Moto/FAQ/FAQ.html

Makes you wonder if a previous owner was experimenting.

[TxGSrider]

I've got a ktm with a hydraulic clutch and you can bleed it 20 times and never get it right. But you can take a syringe full of fluid (my ktm uses mineral oil) and a piece of tubing and force the fluid in through the slave cylinder bleeder and it'll work perfectly the 1st time. I don't know if you can do that on the gsx or not, but it's the best way on the ktm.

[fixmybrokecomputer]

I've got a ktm with a hydraulic clutch and you can bleed it 20 times and never get it right. But you can take a syringe full of fluid (my ktm uses mineral oil) and a piece of tubing and force the fluid in through the slave cylinder bleeder and it'll work perfectly the 1st time. I don't know if you can do that on the gsx or not, but it's the best way on the ktm.

+1 on the reverse bleed method. Anytime I've had problems getting it bled well, reverse bleeding got it done quick, without all the frustration.

[rayban]

Thanks for all the replies. To answer someone's question, when cold, it stalls like clutch wasn't pulled at all. But restart it and its fine. Cipher I think you may have hit on somthing there...I don't 'soak' them I just sat them in an oil bath for maybe 10 minutes. Hmmmmm. Going to try back bleeding hopefully that helps.