Clutch lever freeplay

[tomato]

Just how important is this?

I had maintenance done on my bike last week and it seems like they tightened everything which is good. Except now, I am having trouble working the clutch. With my winter gloves it seems I can barely grab the lever and once today I let it out too fast and my bike cut off. I haven't done that since I first got it!

I gave it a little more freeplay according to my manual but how strict do we have to be with this? I bet others with small hands like me have to do something. How do y'all handle this situation or is it a non issue for you?

[Claybuster]

There should be some amount of free play in the clutch cable, but not much. Use the guidelines in your manual (as it sounds like you have already done). If the clutch is difficult to operate when adjusted properly, do not loosen the cable adjustment to make it easier. This can result in incomplete disengaging when you pull in the lever which means the clutch will be dragging or slipping anytime you hold in the lever and can wear out your clutch plates quickly.

Check the aftermarket catalogs for clutch assist devices. These are mechanical doo-dads that use leverage to make the clutch lever easier to manipulate. Dennis Kirk has a pretty good selection of metric parts, and J&P Cycles has a metric catalog as well.
-L-

[fafcpa]

Could your winter gloves be part of the problem? They might be thicker making the reach a tad longer. This happened to me when I started using Gerbings.

Fred

[drogers127]

Donna, as has already been stated, you need those few mm of free end play to ensure that your clutch is fully engaged. You don't want the clutch slightly slipping because the clutch cable is tight when the lever is fully out. How much extra free play one can allow is really dependent upon where in the lever travel does the clutching action take place. If the clutch starts working about half way out, a lot more slop in this adjustment could be tolerated, but it won't fix the basic problem, small hands. My wife is 5' 1" tall and has small hands. She never complained about the clutch and brake levers being a problem but I could see that it really was a safety issue. Both of these controls have to be easy to reach and use. I did a little Internet research and realized we needed "dogleg" levers, but could not find any to fit our Viragos. I took the bike down to our local welding shop to see if they could straighten the OEM cast aluminum levers. The owner thought he could "tweak" them a bit but didn't want to disable the bike in case he broke one. I got a new set from the Yamaha dealer for about $15 (I think). The OEM levers (are) were curved out from the grips. I wanted them straightened out. The floor tool the welding shop used to straighten them out was a flat and round stock bender. This is the same tool used to bend oriental wrought iron. If you can find a welding shop that can fabricate wrought iron, they will have the tool to rebend your levers (assuming you can't find dogleg levers for your bike). The bend points were the fat parts of the lever that go between the fingers. Each spot got a tiny bend. They came back flat except for the very end. Cost was $20. A year later I saw a bike with the same modification. The owner said he straightened them in a vise at home. Dean Rogers

[tomato]

Fred, yes the winter gloves are a big part of the problem. I am going to look for a different solution for next winter.

Thanks for the tip Dean! I'm going to show this to my husband. I believe that will work.

I checked with a Honda dealer today and they said they didn't know of any trigger levers for us.

[drogers127]

Donna, trigger levers???? Do you have ADD or some other learning disability that we should know about? What's the model number of your '05 Honda Shadow Aero? I'll do an Internet search for you, searching for DOGLEG LEVERS. Dean Rogers

[tomato]

Donna, trigger levers???? Do you have ADD or some other learning disability that we should know about? What's the model number of your '05 Honda Shadow Aero? I'll do an Internet search for you, searching for DOGLEG LEVERS. Dean Rogers

Uh, no, I think I'm a pretty normal 49 yr old female with maybe the beginnings of a little arthritis in my small hands. :( After the shop tightened up the clutch cable, I was unable to get all my fingers on the lever to pull it in and it was harder to work with a only a few fingers on it. I am sure small hands, winter gloves, and lack of practice due to cold weather is creating this problem I didn't have before.

On another women's forum, several mentioned the trigger levers or pistol ? type levers and how much they helped but I can only find them for Harleys. I don't have my model # handy - VT750- Honda Shadow Aero 05; I think I've looked for dog legs but if you find some, great!

In a few months, when I get a lot more riding time, I'll probably get used to the clutch and this won't even be an issue.

Unrelated, I am going to try and replace this stupid dancing tomato. It's getting on my nerves. :!:

[drogers127]

Donna, my apologies for the ADD and learning disabilty remark. It seemed clever on two beers last night, but in the light of day it was an ugly thing to say. It's a real problem for many and I am sorry and ashamed to have posted it. Dean Rogers

[tomato]

It seemed clever on two beers last night, but in the light of day it was an ugly thing to say.

Been there, done that. :mrgreen: I learned when you post on an open forum for help, you never know what might posted back, so I try not to be overly sensitive.

Hopefully, anyone offended by the remark will accept your apology, knowing most of us put our foot in our mouth on occasion. :)

[x_cuesme]

Donna-

I don't have the problem you are describing on my Aero- I can work the controls without any problems but I don't wear thick gloves, either. I did have that problem on the Virago 535 and my husband straigthened out the grips some which helped, but the Aero's are different.

Why do you call yours a 'dancing tomato?' What type of problem are you referring to?

Stay safe-

x_cuesme

[tomato]

x_cuesme, I didn't have the problem till they tightened everything up at the first service and it's mainly with the heavy gloves. I think the situation will correct itself when I can switch back to my other gloves and with more practice.

I had a cartoon dancing tomato as an avatar for a few days and it started to annoy me when I logged on. LOL. So, I changed it back to my Aero avatar and so , unless someone saw it I realize they will have no clue as to what-in-the-heck am I talking about. LOL

[x_cuesme]

Ha ha! Joke's on me- I thought you were referring to your BIKE!

I HATE thick gloves. H bought me a very thick pair on clearance sale (after I came in from riding with absolutely frozen fingers) and I tried them Saturday- with the scoot yet- and just couldn't stand them. Felt they interfered way too much with throttle control and didn't even want to think about how they'd feel on the MC.

I prefer the curved fit to start with. I had a decent pair of lined but my daugher has them now- she's offered to return them but I know she can't afford to buy a pair like them and she rides a scoot, so I told her to keep them. Got lucky over the weekend and found a pair of Honda performance gloves on sale for $39.95 at the dealer's- they normally run 81.00 there- and bought them. I'll have to get some isometrics or something for a liner for really cold weather but otherwise I think they'll work!

Didn't mean to thread jack but I'll bet the gloves have a lot to do with it. Are you grabbing near the end of the control or closer to the point it fixes to the bike? On my Reflex I have to make sure I stay to the 'outside' area of the control or it's a lot harder to pull it in effectively-

Good luck!

x_cuesme

[Mugster]

Well, the redneck fix is to put washers (several small rubber o-ring's work pretty good) between where the clutch lever bumps against the stop. You put some slack in the lever and then take it out with the washers. That'll have the net effect of moving the lever back towards your hand. Its better to use something squishy to put a little pressure on the lever to hold it against the stop, but you can use el cheapo metal washers in a pinch.