So I bought a new set of black levers for my 07 F, (the stock ones were bent).  THe brake lever was an easy replacement of course, but I'm having trouble with the clutch lever.

I can't seem to get the old clutch lever off. I have the adjuster and lock nuts lined up so the cable can run out of it, but I can't seem to unhook the end of the clutch cable (cylinder shaped thing) out of the little well thats in the lever itself. 

I searched around, and the most helpful, though ultimately unsuccessful thread was this one  http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=48751.0.  There's supposed to be a "switch" I have to remove after the cable is out. This just confused me.  I'm not sure where or what the switch looks like and the wire doesnt seem able to just pop out the lined up slots as-is.

Note that I did not adjust the clutch cable at the non-lever end (not exactly sure where it is around the engine and if i have to remove the fairings.)

And a last side note, I think I broke the rubber thing thats around the end of the clutch cable in the lever, I suppose its necessary and I should buy a new one?

THanks for any help !

just replaced both of mine today. (Got the ebay specials carbon look.) Anyway, on my 96, there is a little switch on the bottom and the cover is held by 2 screws. Unscrew the cap and there is a small piece inside that fits in a slot of the lever. Slide that out, then your lever should come right off. Careful with the little switch contact that you took out, it looks fragile. Then replace the lever, the switch piece and the cover. Keep in mind the 2 points on the cover I believe are a switch that allows the engine to turn over when you pull the lever in. Make sure the 2 little contact points are in the right direction when you put the cover back on. I am sure some one else can clarify that as this is my first GS.

Also, you may have to add slack in the cable at the clutch end to get the cable / barrel out.

on mine, I thread the adjuster screw all the way in, lining up the slots.  then I pull the clutch all the way in, and slowly release it as I pull back on the cable sheath, sliding the cable out of the slot.  reinstallation is reverse of removal

I just ordered the same levers. How do they look?

Quote from: cboling on June 20, 2009, 06:33:20 PM
just replaced both of mine today. (Got the ebay specials carbon look.) Anyway, on my 96, there is a little switch on the bottom and the cover is held by 2 screws. Unscrew the cap and there is a small piece inside that fits in a slot of the lever. Slide that out, then your lever should come right off. Careful with the little switch contact that you took out, it looks fragile. Then replace the lever, the switch piece and the cover. Keep in mind the 2 points on the cover I believe are a switch that allows the engine to turn over when you pull the lever in. Make sure the 2 little contact points are in the right direction when you put the cover back on. I am sure some one else can clarify that as this is my first GS.

Also, you may have to add slack in the cable at the clutch end to get the cable / barrel out.

QuoteI just ordered the same levers. How do they look? icon_question

I'm not sure what the process is called that they use to paint the levers but I think they look really good. Especially since the ones I had were absolutely trashed.

I did a field repair (BIKE DOWN!!!!) two days ago.

two 10mm wrenches, one of them a deep socket, works well.

a small (#0?) phillips to remove the clutch switch for starter interlock.


pull the switch. On earlier bikes, there are not little right angle flag 'fast-on' connectors. they are soldered. Bummer.

remove the bolt.

push the clutch lever forward, wiggling it past the choke lever.

I used a small set of needlenose pliers to grip the clutch cable while I rotated the clutch lever forward to pull the barrel and plastic sleeve out of the lever. Gripping the cable in the same spot and pulling on the clutch cable (don't use the cutting edge of the needlenose pliers!!!) gave me enough slack to wiggle the barrel and sleeve into a new clutch lever. Then I rotated the clutch lever back towards a stock posittion, refit the bolt and inserted the switch while wiggling the clutch lever to make sure the switch tang got in the cavity in the clutch lever. Make sure you don't get the switch lever in backwards. Not sure this is possible, but I checked before buttoning up.


HTH!

Quote from: efushi on June 20, 2009, 03:26:08 PM
So I bought a new set of black levers for my 07 F, (the stock ones were bent).  THe brake lever was an easy replacement of course, but I'm having trouble with the clutch lever.

I can't seem to get the old clutch lever off. I have the adjuster and lock nuts lined up so the cable can run out of it, but I can't seem to unhook the end of the clutch cable (cylinder shaped thing) out of the little well thats in the lever itself. 

I searched around, and the most helpful, though ultimately unsuccessful thread was this one  http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=48751.0.  There's supposed to be a "switch" I have to remove after the cable is out. This just confused me.  I'm not sure where or what the switch looks like and the wire doesnt seem able to just pop out the lined up slots as-is.

Note that I did not adjust the clutch cable at the non-lever end (not exactly sure where it is around the engine and if i have to remove the fairings.)

And a last side note, I think I broke the rubber thing thats around the end of the clutch cable in the lever, I suppose its necessary and I should buy a new one?

THanks for any help !

Hey man, I'm the guy from the other thread.  

For loosening the clutch cable from the other end, look on the left side of the bike directly above the kickstand.  There's probably a black rubber covering over it, as you can see, I slid it up along the cable to reveal the adjuster.



Here's a close-up view.

First loosen Nut 2, then use Nut 1 to loosen or tighten the clutch cable.  When you're done, don't forget to retighten Nut 2.


About that switch, I snapped a quick picture of mine.  

You just unscrew the two screws with a phillips head screwdriver and there's a piece that goes up from it into the assembly to indicate whether the clutch lever is in or not, preventing starts when necessary.


Happy re-clutchlevering!