Clutch issues

[jdubya66]

I have 2 issues with my clutch ('01 Nomad FI), I went to Sturgis this year and took a scenic route from Tulsa out to Colorado, up thru Wyoming and on to So Dakota. Any who, as we were racing thru the Okla pan-handle, hotter than hell on July 31, I started to lose my clutch, when I pulled on it, almost NOTHING, main thing was I couldnt down shift, I would have to "pump" clutch some and that would help some, and then rev the throttle some and get the gears to "sync" and could then down shift. I found a shop in Trinidad, CO, and they changed & bleed the fluid, worked find till about 50 miles into day 2 of the ride. So I had to "baby" it till we got to Sturgis on Day 4 (Aug 3). After getting to Sturgis it worked fine, and is still working fine. FYI, I was pulling a trailer. So I am not sure if the master cylinder is going out or what. Plus, today (Aug 25, first time I have rode it since Aug 10) I noticed the cluth slipping in 5th gear. A year ago I replaced the clutch spring with the Mean Streak one.

Looking for some answers, plus if you would recommend a new clutch which one do you recommend.
I use Amsoil 10W-40 MC Oil, if that matters.

Thanks,
Jay
KawaNOW #00569

PS - also a friend riding with us (he was riding a HD Road King) "lost" his back brakes same time I "lost" my clutch, and he got his brakes back the same time I got my clutch back. STRANGE!

[cactusjack]

First, welcome to the Nomad Nation from the Grand Canyon State.

How many miles on the bike? I ride in the worst temperatures you've ever seen, and do it for months on end, so I don't think heat is the cause.

[zoom45]

I'm on my 3rd clutch spring (2000, 1500 carbed). :( My first went out at 18,000 and the second 32,000. I put the Meanstreak spring in the last time and it's still going strong at 52,000. Mine were worn to where it hardly didn't have any metal left. The Meanstreak was thicker and seems to do a lot better. Your initial problem sounds more fluid related than the spring. When mine started slipping it was more noticeable in 5th on the highway or when first taking off. I was about 400 miles from home when the first spring started slipping and it really got bad by the time I got home. When the second was first acting up I changed it before it got too bad.
Zoom45

If the clutch works better when you pump the lever repeatedly, it's a hydraulic problem. Clutch fluid is leaking past the piston seals. (It's just brake fluid and it's very thin.)

The old fix for this is to bleed out the clutch fluid & replace it with a common hydraulic jack oil like BarsLeak. It is slightly thicker but also contains solvents that will swell the seals and restore the hydrauilc action.

For a while.

But if you're out on a road trip and gotta get home it works great. Eventually you will have to rebuild the hydraulic cylinders, but it's always better to do so at your leisure than out on the road.

[jdubya66]

I put the Meanstreak spring in last year, at @ 28K miles, now I have @ 34K miles on the bike.

As far as "pumping" the clutch, that would just give enough to where it wouldnt die when I stopped. But now it works just fine, only had this problem while gaining elevation going to Colorado and going thru the Rockies in Colorado.

I talked to a guy in Sturgis, and he replaced his clutch with a aftermarket one, but for the life of me, I cannot remember what brand he told me.

Thanks for the info and the welcome,
Jay
KawaNOW # 00569

[ringadingh]

It certainly sounds like more of a hydraulic problem, rather than a slipping clutch issue.

The clutch cylinders use brake fluid, and brake fluid is hygroscopic. That means it sucks up water (even the humidity in the air) like a sponge. When that happens, the fluid is said to be "wet".

When wet fluid gets hot the brake fluid still doesn't boil 'til around 400^oF, but water boils at only 212^o, and that's at sea level. At high altitude it boils at a much lower temperature.

Anyhow, imagine the bike is hot and the water in the fluid turns to steam. While brake fluid is incompressible, steam is a vapor and VERY compressible. When you pull the lever the master cylinder just compresses the steam and the slave cylinder gets hardly any force at all.

Steam can certainly transmit pressure, and ran lots of locomotives for a century or more, but the cylinders on a bike clutch are just too small a stroke to move steam as an effective medium.

If this is the case, I'd just bleed out the clutch and the brake a couple times to make sure there's no air or contaminated fluid in the systems.

Because what happened to your clutch can just as easily happen to hot brakes. This is why you must change the fluid every two years, or more often under wet conditions, and never spray water around the brake or clutch cylinders as it can be forced into the system.

Originally Posted by JayW

I put the Meanstreak spring in last year, at @ 28K miles, now I have @ 34K miles on the bike.

As far as "pumping" the clutch, that would just give enough to where it wouldnt die when I stopped. But now it works just fine, only had this problem while gaining elevation going to Colorado and going thru the Rockies in Colorado.

I talked to a guy in Sturgis, and he replaced his clutch with a aftermarket one, but for the life of me, I cannot remember what brand he told me.

Thanks for the info and the welcome,
Jay
KawaNOW # 00569