HELP HELP Broke down in Branson

[RedRider]

In addition to what Jeff said, you will need a small torque wrench that can go down to 6 lb/ft. 6 lb/ft is really not much and you do NOT want to break off or strip one of those little screws. If there is one nearby the Harbor freight 1/4 in. drive torque wrench will work.

 

As to whether you need everything or not. If the steels are blued they need to be replaced, If the steels are blued most likely the friction plates will be shot also. It all depends on just how long and how bad you abused it when it started to slip.

The wear limit for the friction plates is 2.8mm (.110 inch). 3mm (.118 inch) is new. Unless the whole clutch is totally fried, I would just change the spring and oil to get you home. If all you can get on short notice is a stock spring then just use the both the new stock spring and the old stock spring stacked together. If you can not get a new gasket just reuse the old one with some non hardening gasket sealer to get you home.

 

Of course once you get home then you can make permanent and proper repairs.

 

Jeff,

 

Thanks for adding the information on the torque wrench. Forgot about that. To reiterate because of importance - Torque spec is 5.8ftlb. If you are using the old fish scale torque wrench, that is 12 lbs at 6 inches. Not much. DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN. These bolts will shear off easily and/or strip the soft aluminum clutch housing bolt hole.

 

RR

[RandyR]

V7Goose is going to call Terry.

 

Terry bled the clutch twice, that hasn't fixed it. he had the oil changed by a Yamaha dealer so presume it has the correct oil.

[Trader]

if you don't have a torque wrench SKYDOC taught me a trick.

 

He said if you "palm" your 3/8 drive and just use your wrist...not your arm...JUST YOUR WRIST...and snug it up real good...but don't put any "oomph" into it...you should be pretty close.

[hig4s]

Being triked perhaps you should upgrade to the Barnett spring conversion.

 

http://www.barnettclutches.com/products/spring_conversions.aspx?cat_id=6&prod_id=36

[wes0778]

Jeff,

 

Thanks for adding the information on the torque wrench. Forgot about that. To reiterate because of importance - Torque spec is 5.8ftlb. If you are using the old fish scale torque wrench, that is 12 lbs at 6 inches. Not much. DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN. These bolts will shear off easily and/or strip the soft aluminum clutch housing bolt hole.

 

RR

The 5.8lb/ft = 70 lb/in

For what it's worth H/F has a 1/4" drive lb/in torque wrench on sale for about $15.00US

Just put the Skydoc upgrade in my '99 and love it!!!

[V7Goose]

I spoke with Terry and described the whole (incredibly easy) process for him. He is going to see if he can get the spring upgrade and new friction plates overnighted from either PCW Racing or Skydoc. If for some reason he cannot get the new parts quickly, I will ride up there on Wednesday and take care of it for him.

 

Although it sat for two years before he got it, he has less than 5,000 total miles on the bike, so it seems REALLY strange that the clutch would have gone completely out so quickly. Ordinarily I do not recommend replacing all the friction plates, even with 50,000 miles on them, but in this case, I suggested that was the wisest move. We have no real understanding of why they are slipping so bad so soon, but since the clutch cannot even engage enough to move the bike in the parking lot, and he still has hundreds of miles to get home, spending the extra money on new friction plates now is probably good insurance.

Goose

[RandyR]

Thanks Goose.

 

Ventureriders comes thru again.

[bkuhr]

Might suggest replace engine oil same time, may have wrong oil started all this problem, hate to ruin new clutch.

[darthandy]

Might suggest replace engine oil same time, may have wrong oil started all this problem, hate to ruin new clutch.

 

Especially since he'll have to drain the old oil anyway...trike, remember?

 

Andy

[V7Goose]

Yes, he is going to change the oil - it is about due anyway, and I, too, wonder if his current oil caused the problem.

 

But even with a trike, it is not a necessity to drain it. Very simple to position the bike sideways on a hill to imitate leaning on the sidestand (or simply jack up the right rear wheel).

Goose

[Trader]

But he said the dealer did the last oil change..((Post #7)...not likely to use the wrong type.

[V7Goose]

But he said the dealer did the last oil change..((Post #7)...not likely to use the wrong type.

He told me on the phone that that is what he had been told. May or may not be accurate. But as far as I am concerned, it makes no difference. Not only is the oil change interval due, but since we have no valid ideas why an essentially new clutch will not engage at all, the smart thing to do is remove as many of the typical causes as we can.

Goose

[darthandy]

 

(or simply jack up the right rear wheel).

Goose

 

 

Ahhhh!! A portable hill!

 

Andy

[steamer]

Maybe the problem is the slave cylinder. What Yamaha calls the push lever.The bike has been sitting for 2 years.maybe the cylinder is full of crud and is holding the clutch in the disengaged possition. The same way a brake cylinder can hang up because of old fluid and poor maintenence. after all most everyone here agree's that it seems strange that the clutch would be burned up with only 5000 miles on it. I have a trike and I had 33000 miles on it when I had to change out the clutch. Mine also did a lot of sitting over the past couple years. The clutch felt like it had molassas in it. Had to change all the fluids.

Just a thought.

[V7Goose]

Maybe the problem is the slave cylinder. What Yamaha calls the push lever.The bike has been sitting for 2 years.maybe the cylinder is full of crud and is holding the clutch in the disengaged possition. The same way a brake cylinder can hang up because of old fluid and poor maintenence. after all most everyone here agree's that it seems strange that the clutch would be burned up with only 5000 miles on it. I have a trike and I had 33000 miles on it when I had to change out the clutch. Mine also did a lot of sitting over the past couple years. The clutch felt like it had molassas in it. Had to change all the fluids.

Just a thought.

That is an excellent point - the key to what caused this mess certainly would seem to be tied in some way to the bike sitting for so long. I hadn't even been thinking along the lines of a plugged slave since he had ridden the last 4,000 miles or so without problem, but I better have him check the motion of the pressure plate before he pulls off the original spring. Thanx!

Goose

[Cowboy]

Pull the side cover off and look at clutch. You should be able to tell a lot once you have it off.

1. If clutch friction pads are shot the oil will stink and smell like it is burnt.

2. If the clutch pads are not shot check the movement or lack of movement in the slave cylinder.

3. Before you go crazy and worry yourself over this just take the side cover off.

 

 

Just my opinion! My experence in a parking lot across town bunrt the clutch slap up. As soon as I pulled the side cover I found that without a doubt I needed a new clutch.

 

Hope you dont let this ruin your vacation, new clutch is not hard even for the novice! Especially with all the help you get here.

[Freebird]

One thing that has bothered me about this entire issue is an earlier post where he stated that the clutch fluid looks clear and clean. I think if the clutch was burned to the point of not even moving the bike, the fluid would be pretty dark looking.

[V7Goose]

One thing that has bothered me about this entire issue is an earlier post where he stated that the clutch fluid looks clear and clean. I think if the clutch was burned to the point of not even moving the bike, the fluid would be pretty dark looking.

Clutch fluid is completely isolated from the clutch plates. You could burn up the plates to bare metal and the fluid would not be affected at all.

 

The only thing that makes brake/clutch fluid dark is absorbing moisture.

Goose

[Freebird]

Ah...you are right of course. Please excuse the brain fart. What I was really thinking about is the engine oil. If the clutch is burned that badly, it should be very dark. Of course if it is time for an oil change, it might be hard to tell.

[steamer]

Any word on how tbbrider is doing?

[V7Goose]

I talked to him this afternoon- parts were being sent overnight, but he had not received them yet. He should have them by now and is planning on doing the instal tomorrow - if he runs into any problems I will ride up there and help him out.

Goose

[Guest tx2sturgis]

Is there any way for him to check that rear aftermarket driveline and u-joint assembly...just for grins?

 

I know its a long shot, but a driveline problem COULD act like its not engaging the clutch.

 

You let the clutch lever out, nothing happens.

 

Just incase the clutch is OK...this might be the problem.

 

 

Update:

 

The following statement by RandyR, makes me think its NOT the driveline...but I thought I'd throw the idea out there.

 

 

 

he does say that the clutch is a little better after it sits a while, but still not driveable.

Edited September 28, 2011 by tx2sturgis

[RandyR]

anyone know what the situation is now?

[TheKid]

What is the update and verdict?

[V7Goose]

Terry put the new clutch disks and upgrade spring in yesterday and the bike rode perfectly. Unfortunately, he thinks he forgot to remove the thin steel backing plate for the bottom wave washer, so he is planning on opening it up again today and pulling that out.

 

Although he was a little concerned with trying to do this work in a parking lot, even after I walked him through the whole thing, he found it so extraordinarily simple that he has no concerns at all about taking it back apart.

 

Just for the curious, when he got in there, he found the first couple of friction plates looked normal, but the ones near the bottom of the stack were completely destroyed - virtually no friction material left on them at all. The steel plates were somewhat discolored, but he did sand them lightly.

Goose