Hi all - this is going to take some explaining so please bear with me.
A mate's clutch cable snapped on his FZ6 a couple of weeks ago and he asked me to help replace it as he doesn't have the tools or know-how/confidence to strip the bike down to route a new cable. Went over to his, took the airbox off, replaced the cable and it didn't work - there was very little 'pull' on the clutch lever and it wouldn't return. At first I thought the cable was too long but I then started playing with the pull lever on top of the pull lever shaft. I was able to move the pull lever by hand which I though was odd as you're pulling against the compression springs so should be almost impossible to move by hand - I've since tried on a few bikes and can't move the pull lever. I figured the tension in the pull lever was only from the pull lever spring and not the compression springs. Putting the bike in gear and rotating the pull lever didn't disengage the drive so I figured that something had broken in the clutch - possibly sheared pull rod or broken teeth on the pull lever shaft.
Stripping the clutch everything looks ok. The pull rod and pull lever shaft look fine and the teeth on both don't look worn or chipped. The only thing I found odd (compared with other bikes I've worked on) is that the pull rod has a lot of free play within the bearing and pressure plate although nothing seems broken and I think this is how it's supposed to be. The pull rod can move around (like a spoon in a cup) but also can move from being tight against the pressure plate or move back 'into' the clutch by about 1/2 cm, maybe a bit more. So, when I put everything back together I can't get the pull rod to stay tight against the compression plate so while it engages with the pull lever shaft the pull rod won't actually move far enough to decompress the pressure plate - I seem to push the pull rod back into the clutch as I site the clutch cover. I can see the pull rod moving as I operate the pull lever (by hand) by looking through the oil filler hole but suspect that the movement is mostly just 'free play'. As a result the clutch doesn't operate.
I'm back over my mate's in a couple of days time armed with a Haynes manual and the knowledge to align the punch marks on the pull lever and clutch cover and hope to make some progress but I have a couple of questions:
- Could the cable snap have caused the pull rod to position itself in such a way that it wouldn't activate the clutch?
- Should the pull rod sit tight against the inside of the pressure plate? Or tight inside the bearing?
- If yes how do I stop it moving back into the clutch as I try to feed the pull rod into the clutch cover and engage with the splines on the pull lever shaft? (I have to use coathanger to hook the pull rod so that it locates in the recess of the clutch cover)
Any pointers/advice greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Vjtaff
