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I replaced the steel and friction plates along with the springs (after market) - believe they were the "Gecko" brand, in any event.
Since then, my clutch is now shipping. I was methodical with the removal of the plates and put the new ones back in the same order. New oil (Penrite MC4ST 15W50 motorcycle oil - fully synthetic).
I bled the clutch with dot4 as well using the old fridge pump trick.
Any thoughts why the clutch is slipping? Could it be that the oil is fully synthetic - I was thinking of swapping the oil back over to semi-synthetic. Only seems to be happening when I climb to the higher revs.
I replaced the steel and friction plates along with the springs (after market) - believe they were the "Gecko" brand, in any event.
Since then, my clutch is now shipping. I was methodical with the removal of the plates and put the new ones back in the same order. New oil (Penrite MC4ST 15W50 motorcycle oil - fully synthetic).
I bled the clutch with dot4 as well using the old fridge pump trick.
Any thoughts why the clutch is slipping? Could it be that the oil is fully synthetic - I was thinking of swapping the oil back over to semi-synthetic. Only seems to be happening when I climb to the higher revs.
Any help will be appreciated.
Ta
I've been using full synthetic (M1 4t) in my Hawk for 11 years. It does not make the clutch slip.
Has the hydraulic clutch system ever been rebuilt on this bike (master and slave)?
No they have never been rebuilt - the only reason why I question that being the cause is because before I replaced the plates, there was no real drama. I replaced the clutch components because when cold, the clutch would slip badly, so I figured, new plates and a clutch bleed wasnt hard - so thats why I did it?
I only took the left cover off, replaced all the plates and springs, then put it all back together again. Bled the clutch from the slave cylinder with a pump from a fridge.
There is no signs of leaking from either the master or slave cylinder
I am totally unfamiliar with the brand you used. Do they have any break in recommendations for oil?
Are you 100% sure you have all the plates in the correct position?
I am totally unfamiliar with the brand you used. Do they have any break in recommendations for oil?
Are you 100% sure you have all the plates in the correct position?
ARGH yes, they said to "soak" the plates in oil before installation, but I didnt see that (complete oversight).
What would the process be for me now? Take it all apart, soak the plates and then re-install? Or having the oil in the engine be enough for them to "soak" - but I guess, that would only ever be a portion of the plate, not the whole thing?
Seems to me you may have something amiss. If it were mine, I'd have to pull and soak BUTT, that shouldn't cause slippage IMO. Are your judder spring and seat in correctly?
Yep I took note of that last plate going into the alternate slots...
Yea they seemed very much seated correctly. I guess, the only thing left to do will be to drop the oil and water again and re-check everything. Sigh...
Thanks for the tips. If you think of anything else please let me know,
I think (but am not 100% sure) that the only reason to soak the plates in oil is to ensure they are lubricated for the first use so the frictions and steels can slide past each other when the clutch is pulled in. Obviously in use they get re-lubed by all the oil splashing around in the engine. I doubt that soaking or not has anything to do with your slip unless the extra initial friction caused some glazing of the frictions?
If the clutch is slipping you either have insufficient spring pressure or the hydraulics are not releasing fully in the master. There is a tiny bleed port in the master that allows pressure to release from the line when you let go of the lever, if that gets a clog then you can build pressure and end up with a partially disengaged clutch, normally gets worse with use/heat. So my suggestions would be give the master a really good clean, and flush fluid down from the master and out of the slave to blow any crud right out of the system.
A wiser man than me also pointed out for similar reasons that it is a bad idea to push brake pistons back and push fluid up to the master, as debris will settle by gravity to the caliper, and you can flow this back into the master which has a lot less tolerance for debris.
In an effort to keep your issue in one thread, Ill reply here. Brake fluid is hygroscopic. It absorbes moisture. If you have 20 year old fluid in there, Chance are it's looks like this.
Refresh the system first thing. Try to trace the clutch line and feel it for softness or extreme hardness, cracking etc.
Does the slip happen right away, when the engine is still cold? Reason I ask, a highly moisture saturated system could build pressure with heat, essentially pushing in the clutch.
In an effort to keep your issue in one thread, Ill reply here. Brake fluid is hygroscopic. It absorbes moisture. If you have 20 year old fluid in there, Chance are it's looks like this.
Refresh the system first thing. Try to trace the clutch line and feel it for softness or extreme hardness, cracking etc.
Does the slip happen right away, when the engine is still cold? Reason I ask, a highly moisture saturated system could build pressure with heat, essentially pushing in the clutch.
No it is gradual - but the fact that I have MINIMAL play before the clutch is engaged. As in, if i release the clutch ever so slightly it engages. Then as I ride, it will start slipping at higher revs ~4k and above.
As is common the answer to soaking clutch plate is yes, no, sometimes
Some need to be soaked in oil before use some do not but since none of them will be hurt by soaking in oil I think the best choice is just to do it and avoid the possible issue
Be sure you torqued the springs down correctly. Also, I forget if you changed the springs or not. If not, I would do so, measure spring height for an obvious difference. As for oil, without soaking them they may wear faster but not grab less. In fact, you wold likely have a grabbier clutch at first until they soak in. If you take it apart again, check the steels for warping or discoloration. I doubt engine oil is your issue, it is possible/likely that the old fluid is no bueno, but I think that would give poor engagement rather than poor dis-engagment. I think you'll find that either the springs are worn or the steels are warped leaving a gap, thus causing sli[[age.
10-29-2018, 06:15 PM
