GS 700/750 Clutch.....

[Guest]

So I have a 1984 Katana (pop up headlight, Japanese home market version) which is basically the same motorcycle as the popular and elusive GS 750/700 of 83-85 vintage. I've been looking at bikebandit's fiches and trying to decipher the clutch and how it works. The Katana's (GSX) had a hydraulic clutch while the regular GS's had a cable clutch. Apparently there is a pushrod running inside the center of the clutch. My guess is this: Apart from the cable, the hydraulic clutch works just like the regular GS. The "caliper" on the hydraulic clutch pushes that pushrod, compressing the springs, releasing the clutch.
On the cable version, there must be some mechanism that transfers cable motion into pushrod motion (perhaps a bellcrank or something), thereby moving the pushrod and releasing the clutch.

My question is this:
When I remove that transmission/sprocket cover, what will I see inside? Does anybody know if the "caliper", as it were, needs to be removed, then the cover, or if the caliper can come off at the same time as the sprocket cover. And then, will that pushrod be free for removal, or will I have to dig deeper? Not looking to disassemble it anytime, I just want a clearer understanding of how the whole shebang works.....Seems like a royal pain to have to go through all that for routine maintenance (sprocket and chain changing time).

Thanks so much for the help....

[kingofvenus]

On the '83 750's it is a bell-crank, when you pull the cover off you see just a pushrod sticking out.

[Smokinapankake]

Thank you King of Venus, I suspected as much. In looking at my Kat, I think I'll have to remove some clamps securing the clutch hose in order to move the cover enough to get access to anything underneath. Don't think any fluid or anything will spill out, though.

[Smokinapankake]

As an aside, what are the two fluid hoses (I'm assuming they're oil delivery hoses for the camshafts) coming off the top of the crankcase and terminating at the cylinder head? They tap in where the oil pressure switch is normally located on the bigger motors (my 1000SZ comes to mind). Thanks again, I look to this forum as much as any service manual for irrefutable advice....

[kingofvenus]

Yes, those are the oil supply lines, these are plain bearing motors so they are higher pressure than the older roller bearing style. The switch on these is under the ignition pick-ups on the right side.

[Smokinapankake]

Thanks King, I gotta find a gen-you-wine service manual for this thing. Don't think it's going to come from my local Suzuki dealer, though.
One last question that I don't know if you'll be able to answer:

Should, for some reason, the hydraulic clutch system become unbearable to live with, can I swap sprocket covers with that off a domestic GS, thereby converting to a cable clutch?