GStwin.com GS500 Message Forum

doesn't seem like too many seem to have problems.... I believe mine started to slip today...


I had (I THINK) castrol gtx 10w40... I really don't remember... might have been the el cheaphoe walmart stuff...  anywho I switched to rotella T sae30 (as per recommendation from.. somewhere... I don't remember...) and might try 'mobil 1 synthetic motorcycle oil" at a crazy 6.99 a quart...



how hard is the clutch to change?  I just adjusted it... it was adjusted too 'tight'... as in, there was about 7mm or so of freeplay... now it's down to 4

Changing clutches is easy as pie. If/when you do it just ask and I'm sure everyone will scrable on with instructions.

Quote from: se7enty7I just adjusted it... it was adjusted too 'tight'... as in, there was about 7mm or so of freeplay... now it's down to 4

That would mean that now it's even "tight"er.

See this Haynes page for their suggested amount of freeplay, and this photo for the measurement method they use.

Quote from: Kerry

Quote from: se7enty7I just adjusted it... it was adjusted too 'tight'... as in, there was about 7mm or so of freeplay... now it's down to 4

That would mean that now it's even "tight"er.

See this Haynes page for their suggested amount of freeplay, and this photo for the measurement method they use.

hmmm... clymer's measures it near the pivot point... kind of hard to explain.. but where the lever starts to move away from the 'clutch bracket'...

mine had LOTS of freeplay, now it has less

That didn't make any difference to the slipping did it ... at 7mm free play you slipped that means you're screwed ... usually if you adjust it to no free play and it slips you can put in some free play and it wont slip ... but that's the opposite of your case ...
Cool.
Srinath.

Quote from: seshadri_srinathThat didn't make any difference to the slipping did it ... at 7mm free play you slipped that means you're screwed ... usually if you adjust it to no free play and it slips you can put in some free play and it wont slip ... but that's the opposite of your case ...
Cool.
Srinath.

I haven't ridden it yet with less freeplay.

I know with my car, too much play in the pedal will make it slip... so I dunno

OK well these should logically slip less with more play ... You might not be disengaging when pulled in if it has too much play, making for it wearing more.
Cool.
Srinath.

Quote from: seshadri_srinathOK well these should logically slip less with more play ... You might not be disengaging when pulled in if it has too much play, making for it wearing more.
Cool.
Srinath.

I dunno... didn't happen until jetting.. so might be the little bit extra power



i bet clutch baskets are $$$$

You need the plates only ... baskets are pricey ... but dont think they break ... They also have some tricks to increase the preload on the clutch making it less likely to slip ...
Cool.
Srinath.

You could try just cleaning the plates first.  If they've been contaminated by dodgy oil you may be able to resurrect them.

You can insult me and my family but don't you dare say a bad thing about Castrol GTX.  I'll hunt you down like a dog.  :guns:  :lol:

I got new clutch friction plates and new stronger clutch springs... Together they made a wordl of difference! :)

D.

Quote from: MichaelYou could try just cleaning the plates first.  If they've been contaminated by dodgy oil you may be able to resurrect them.

You could try just cleaning the plates first. If they've been contaminated by dodgy oil you may be able to resurrect them.


clean with what?


Also, danci, where did you buy the springs/plates?

BY cleaning I think he means soak them in fresh oil.

hmm.. after changing to rotella T and adjusting the clutch freeplay.. seems to have gone away... I didn't really push it to try and find out so I dunno

Quote from: se7enty7Also, danci, where did you buy the springs/plates?

The plates came from Hein-Gericke (http://www.hein-gericke.de/) - I had to buy 7 friction plates separately (10.7 EUR each).

The spings came from Louis (http://www.louis.de/) - they were in a set (13.95 EUR).

Regards, D.

PS: Both sites are in german...

okay.. next question..

I've heard of people using sv650 friction discs as well as barnett...


what do you guys recommend?

edit:

I'm not really sure what all I need... do I need just the friction discs, or the friction plates as well?

here is info I painfully dug up using the search feature.. this is across many posts...  almost all by bob broussard

------------------------------------------------------------------------

When I say the first friction plate, I mean the first one you install when you start putting the plates in the basket.

The smooth surface of the inner hub is normal. I just scuffed mine up to see if it would grip better.
The plates can be flipped over and used in any order.
The first plate to go on is a friction plate. Then a metal plate.
Alternate the plates (friction/metal/friction/metal)
The last plate is friction.
I would use the best friction plates first and last.

There are 2 hubs on the clutch.
The outer basket and the inner hub.
The outer basket is connected to the crank with a big gear, so it spins any time the motor is running. The inner hub fits on the transmission shaft and spins independent from the outer hub.
The friction plates have tabs on the edge that fit into slots on the outer hub. The metal plates have notches on the inside that fit in grooves on the inner hub.
When the springs compress the plates together the whole thing spins as one piece. When you pull the clutch lever, it releases spring tension on the plates. This allows the inner hub to stop moving when the outer hub is still spinning.
From my experience, it seems to be the first friction plate that gets glazed. This plate contacts the inner hub and seems to slip more than the others.
Of course I've never had a clutch get so bad it wouldn't move the bike. Usually it will start out and when I apply power it slips.
I've shuffled the plates and it worked for awhile. Last time I sanded the base of the inner hub and it seemed to do the trick.
You can sand the metal plates a little too. You shold be able to get some more use out of the clutch.
It'll be good practice for the time when you replace it.  

You need to remove the clutch side case and shuffle the plates.
Firt step is to lean the bike against something. That way you won't need to drain the oil.
Pull the ignition rotor and ignition pickup plate. There are 2 bolts uder the plate you need to remove. Take all the case bolts out. Pull the case off carefully, trying not to damage the gasket.
Remove the clutch spring bolts.
Pull the plates out.
Take the last plate (friction) and put it in the middle of the stack.
Take a different friction plate and put it in first. Before you start putting plates back in. Take some sandpaper and rough up the surface of the inner hub. This is where the first friction plate makes contact.
Then start putting plates back in starting with a different friction plate. Then metal, friction, metal friction until there all in.
Put everything back together and your clutch should be good to go.
If that doesn't work, you'll need to buy new plates.
Make sure the adjustment on the cable has some slack. So the lever has some freeplay before it starts to actuate the clutch.

did you switch to a 10W-30??? :?

That's what I use...Mobil1 10w-30 full synth for cars...no probs yet but I only have 1000 miles on it.  Slow to warm up in the mornings so I turn the idle up then after I get off the freeway the idle sits at 2000 so I have to turn it back down....happens like that pretty much every morning.  :mrgreen:

after all the oil discussions.....10W-30 :roll: