couple issues regarding clutch lever

[The Hopper Show]

i just replaced the factory clutch lever last night with an msr brand oem replacement lever. cheap fix for now to have a decent lever again. excuse my lack of knowing the correct terms, but i will describe this the best i can. on the old factory lever, the hole that you insert the barrel on the clutch cable into is right at the end of the lever (closer to perch). the hole on the msr lever sits farther inside the lever, not right at the edge of the lever. and by inside, i mean farther away from perch. resulting in a little more initial tension on the clutch cable. i hope that makes sense. i adjusted the cable so the lever is within factory spec for free play, and all feels normal with the "feel" of the lever now.

so, with the bike in gear, clutch in, the bike lurches forward just a smidge at first when you tap the e-start. then it is fine and wont learch anymore as long as you still have the clutch in. release the clutch, and pull it back in, tap the e-start, and same result. and again if you do not release clutch and tap e-start a second time, then the bike wont learch and you can e-start away. how do i remedy this? and if i did not explain it clearly enough please ask and i will try to do better. it is annoying me and i dont want to have premature wear on the clutch if it is not fully disengaging or something.

ok, second issue is regarding the plunger that pushes into the perch that wont let the e-start work when the bike is in gear unless the clutch lever is pulled in. the little plastic tab that holds that plunger into the perch was broken off long before i got the bike. thus, the plunger is free to slide out of the perch, allowing the e-start to work when the bike is in gear without having to pull the clutch lever in. the result, obviously, is the e-start will propell the bike forward since it is in gear. Not the hugest deal as i am well aware of the issue. i am more worried if i let someone else ride the bike or if the button accidentily gets pushed in the garage by a kid or someone else not aware that it will do that. easy way to fix this? can i replace the plastic plunger piece? or just say screw it not that big of an issue? the bike is a '05 if that matters at all.

thanks for the help. ?

-hop

[wanawakeboard]

As far as the lurching are you sure you have the clutch adjusted correctly? Id imagine it may have done this before you changed levers but your now hyper aware since you recently changed the lever. Most of the time its adjustment, but other times an oil change may be in order. I assume this is a new thing (since the new lever was put on) so Id tend to think its an adjustment issue, but if there is a chance it happened before the change then try changing your oil, and or type of oil your using,

your second issue is up to you to decide upon, it probably wouldnt be much to repair the clutch safety switch, I would ask myself whos gonna be riding my bike anyways besides me? To me its instinct to pull that clutch in gear or not, as far as fixing it a pic would be far more helpful...

[The Hopper Show]

before i get to far let me answer the question that this IS a new thing. This was not happening at all before i switched out the clutch lever.

ok, so i just gave it a quick test in the garage tonight when i got home from work. with the bike dead cold, i put it in gear, and could not even push the bike forward or back with the clutch lever pulled in. it never did this before. perhaps i am not adjusting my cable correctly? i let it idle a bit and get some heat in it. then with the bike off, i repeated trying to push with clutch lever in and it was definately easier, but still had drag.

what did i do wrong/screw up? and i was planned on a ride on sunday. is this going to hurt the bike to run it for a couple hours like this?

?:thumbsup:

[dgcars]

There is an adjuster on the perch. Pull the lever in until you feel the clutch resistance. The end of the lever (closest your pinky!!) should only move about 1/2" before you feel the resistance. This is your 'free play'.

[The Hopper Show]

ok, i played with it a bit. i have slightly less than the 1/2" of free play. i would say between a quarter and a half inch. i got the bike nice and warmed up. almost operating temperatures. bike in gear, clutch in, tap e start and there is just the ever so slightest barely noticeable lurch when you hit the button. that is as close as i could get it to having no lurch at all. and remember, this is with the bike fully warm. now, bike off and in gear, clutch in, and pushing it forwards and back, and it rolls. definitely not as freely as it does when you do the same thing with the trans in neutral, but it does move. noticeable resistance though. not sure if that is normal? or what amount of resistance is considered to be normal when doing that?

i will report back when the bike is fully cold again and see if it rolls in gear with the clutch in, and how bad the lurch is when it is cold. if it is anything like it was when i started playing with it tonight, that will bring the suck. the bike would not hardly move with the clutch in. pushing it forward would just drag the rear tire on the concrete rather than roll. is that normal? i dont remember my last bike being that hard to push cold in gear with clutch pulled.

?

[The Hopper Show]

oh, and regarding the clutch safety switch...i put a zip tie around the bar and wire very near where the switch pushes into the perch and tightened it down as much as possible. i know it is a temp fix, but it seems to be doing a very good job so far of keeping that switch seated in the perch.?

[dgcars]

Clutch....No dragging the tyre (tire) is not normal. Could be that the clutch drum is worn. When you pull the lever, you are compressing the clutch springs, allowing the friction and drive plates to seperate. What happens over a period of time, is the friction plates wear grooves in the drum and even though you have pulled the lever, the plates don't move apart, causing the problem you describe. A temporary fix is to file the grooves smooth, but eventually a new drum will have to be fitted.

Hope this helps,

DG

[miweber929]

before i get to far let me answer the question that this IS a new thing. This was not happening at all before i switched out the clutch lever.

ok, so i just gave it a quick test in the garage tonight when i got home from work. with the bike dead cold, i put it in gear, and could not even push the bike forward or back with the clutch lever pulled in. it never did this before. perhaps i am not adjusting my cable correctly? i let it idle a bit and get some heat in it. then with the bike off, i repeated trying to push with clutch lever in and it was definately easier, but still had drag.

what did i do wrong/screw up? and i was planned on a ride on sunday. is this going to hurt the bike to run it for a couple hours like this?

?:thumbsup:

Then you're best bet to be sure is to put the old lever back on, re- adjust and try again to be sure it's a lever thing. Or take it to someone who knows how to adjust a clutch cable correctly.

Are you positive you have the right lever? I am sure I have MSR ones on mine (as that's what the local parts shop usually sells) with no trouble and everything is exactly the same as factory. If you went in and got a YZ lever, they are NOT the same. Close, and should mount up but not the same lever which may explain a few things.

Also, an adjustment of the cable should not cause this as you can start the bike without a cable or with the lever fully pulled in and all should be fine, no lurching, though with a worn clutch basket you may feel a slight jump with the clutch pulled in. Thinking you did something or got something else going on there. What have you changed or adjusted since the last ride? Did you crash last time and that's why you're replacing levers?

Something else other than a cable adjustment if you can't start it without jumping with the lever out.

[L. Euler]

Does the new perch have the same cable pull distance as the old one? It appears that it does not and you may have to take out all of the free play.

[The Hopper Show]

Does the new perch have the same cable pull distance as the old one? It appears that it does not and you may have to take out all of the free play.

did not change the perch

[The Hopper Show]

so i took old and new lever into the yami dealer today where i got the msr. service guy deduced that the lever was the issue. so i spent the extra money and ordered factory genuine levers so i know they will be exact to form and function. went home and put the old bent lever back on the bike, readjusted the clutch cable back to fit that lever, and the pull was noticably easier than with the msr lever. but i have something screwed up because when the bike is dead cold it still is a bit harder to push in gear with clutch in, and still has a slight lurch to it. so, service guy told me when i get the new levers, bring the bike by and they will adjust it correctly for $20 bucks. so, i may just have to do that since i obviously can't seem to do it correctly on my own...?

[mikewrf18]

so, service guy told me when i get the new levers, bring the bike by and they will adjust it correctly for $20 bucks. so, i may just have to do that since i obviously can't seem to do it correctly on my own...?

IMHO, $20 for the service guy to adjust your lever is rediculous! You just spent money at they're shop instead of just buying it online. I would think a good service manager would just take a FEW MINUTES and do it for free if you stopped by. But maybe I've just been spoiled with good service in the past. Anyways, good luck, and I hope the new lever solves your problem. ?

[dgcars]

Say it takes 3 minutes tops....that a rate of $400 an hour

[MANIAC998]

I'm thinking your clutch basket is slightly notched, causing the lurch. I'd pull the clutch cover and just take a look. Maniac

[miweber929]

so i took old and new lever into the yami dealer today where i got the msr. service guy deduced that the lever was the issue. so i spent the extra money and ordered factory genuine levers so i know they will be exact to form and function. went home and put the old bent lever back on the bike, readjusted the clutch cable back to fit that lever, and the pull was noticably easier than with the msr lever. but i have something screwed up because when the bike is dead cold it still is a bit harder to push in gear with clutch in, and still has a slight lurch to it. so, service guy told me when i get the new levers, bring the bike by and they will adjust it correctly for $20 bucks. so, i may just have to do that since i obviously can't seem to do it correctly on my own...?

Cold especially, but cold or warm any bike is hard to push around in gear with the clutch pulled in. Not even sure why you'd do that or use that as a test gor anything.

I'll +1 the grooved clutch basket. My CR250R did that jumping thing until I replaced the grooved basket. You can fairly easily pull the cover and check and filing will temporarily fix it. but you will need to replace it in the end if that is the problem. Does it jump with the clutch lever out in neutral? If yes you may have another issue, if not I'd think basket.

$20 to adjust a clutch cable? Seriously? You need a new dealer or to find some friends that can help you out.

Mike

[SXP]

Frankly, I think this is normal, especially if you have some notching in the clutch basket! The plates will stick together when cold due to the surface tension of the oil in between them. That's the reason why 9/10 time when you shift the bike into first gear it clunks into gear rather than smoothly/noiselessly click into gear. Pulling the lever in doesn't separate the plates until there is some force on them such as the motor trying to drive the transmission, so when you try to shift into first the motor and transmission are still connected even with the clutch lever pulled in, until the turning force separates the plates. Stop killing yourself over this and enjoy the bike. Mine does the same thing. In fact you are lucky yours starts in gear. Mine likes to be in neutral for the most part when using the estart.