Clutch not disengaging

[othebe]

I've run into this situation where my clutch doesn't disengage while my lever is pulled. I found a few mentions of the clutch nut holding the basket backing off - I ran out of time today and need to get a tool to hold the hub, but based on this picture would you say this is the culprit (still seems sort of threaded in?) If it had backed off, would I be able to notice it by being able to slide the basket back and front?



How would the nut backing off affect the plunger rod in the middle from being able to pull the clutch plates away?

I also noticed that I was able to activate the little lever that operates the clutch (the one with the spring above the clutch case cover, not the handlebar one) with my fingers and only seemed to feel spring tension. Could it be that the mechanism isn't connecting to the plunger at all? (The black rod thing inside the cover that attaches to the plunger) I would have expected more force required in order to pull the plates apart.

I'd appreciate any help and thoughts on this, thanks!

 

[ReidMcT]

... I also noticed that I was able to activate the little lever that operates the clutch (the one with the spring above the clutch case cover, not the handlebar one) with my fingers and only seemed to feel spring tension. Could it be that the mechanism isn't connecting to the plunger at all?

I think you have found the problem area. Maybe it is simply mis-installed, or the plunger could be damaged. The lever and its shaft pull out of the cover very easily. When you reinstall the clutch cover, pull that shaft out first, then install the cover, then insert the shaft; you have to orient it correctly in order for its end to slip onto the plunger, but you'll know when you have it right.

 

[othebe]

Thanks Reid, it does seem something with the shaft not attaching to the pull-rod. I removed the shaft, put the cover back on and then the shaft. It felt like it had attached to the plunger, but then I couldn't get the clutch cable bracket (Part 12/13 in image) attached because it seemed I'd need to pull the lever back to get the holes aligned.



Does this seem right? Would I need to pull the lever back (i.e against the clutch springs) to set it up? Are there any tricks to getting the pull-rod attached to the shaft?

 

[ReidMcT]

You must disconnect the clutch cable from the handlebar lever or you'll have a very difficult time. That said, you may need to adjust the cable; and oyu also must make sure that the lever and rod are installed correctly. It should not be super-difficult.

 

[othebe]

You must disconnect the clutch cable from the handlebar lever or you'll have a very difficult time.

Ah! I'll give this a shot. Thanks!

 

[The 4th Horseman]

Ever get a solution to this? Running into a similar issue

I recently opened my clutch and accidently broke the tip off the pull rod. I'm an idiot and forgot to position the shaft that connects to the pull rod, so I snapped it while tightening the bolts. I bought a new pull rod, pulled off the stopper plate and pressure plate, removed the rest of the old pull rod, put in the new one, reinstalled everything....clutch lever has no resistance besides the return spring on the cover.

Hoping this is just improper mating of the shaft and pull rod and not because I jacked something else up while breaking the pull rod. Although I don't see anything else that could have been damaged. The nut that the pull rod seats against looks fine, and everything in the load path is pretty beefy from there on.

Should the pull rod be somewhat lose under the pressure plate? I noticed that it can shift forward and back a bit, between the nut that holds the basket on and the pressure plate. I don't recall if this was the case initially, as I didn't mess with it, but there's not a lot of parts here, so not much to go wrong. I'm 99% I didn't lose a spacer. That would have been hard to miss.

Hopefully I just didn't get the pull rod engaged. I'll try removing the shaft for the cover install (as recommended above) tomorrow. The repair manual just recommends rotating it out of the way, but that didn't seem to work. Any other advice would be appreciated. I didn't do anything with the clutch plates or basket, so a cable adjustment shouldn't be necessary.

 

[oroone]

Ever get a solution to this? Running into a similar issue

I recently opened my clutch and accidently broke the tip off the pull rod. I'm an idiot and forgot to position the shaft that connects to the pull rod, so I snapped it while tightening the bolts. I bought a new pull rod, pulled off the stopper plate and pressure plate, removed the rest of the old pull rod, put in the new one, reinstalled everything....clutch lever has no resistance besides the return spring on the cover.

Hoping this is just improper mating of the shaft and pull rod and not because I jacked something else up while breaking the pull rod. Although I don't see anything else that could have been damaged. The nut that the pull rod seats against looks fine, and everything in the load path is pretty beefy from there on.

Should the pull rod be somewhat lose under the pressure plate? I noticed that it can shift forward and back a bit, between the nut that holds the basket on and the pressure plate. I don't recall if this was the case initially, as I didn't mess with it, but there's not a lot of parts here, so not much to go wrong. I'm 99% I didn't lose a spacer. That would have been hard to miss.

Hopefully I just didn't get the pull rod engaged. I'll try removing the shaft for the cover install (as recommended above) tomorrow. The repair manual just recommends rotating it out of the way, but that didn't seem to work. Any other advice would be appreciated. I didn't do anything with the clutch plates or basket, so a cable adjustment shouldn't be necessary.

Did you ever get this fixed?