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Clutch adjust ment

2K views 10 replies 7 participants last post by  memmax 
#1 ·
Riding girlfriends 650 V-Star 2001 notice clutch does not engage until handle almost fully extended .
maybe 1/4 inch of play after engaging clutch. Is that just a characteristic of this bike or do I need to adjust something.
I'm not used to having to open my hand so far before the clutch engages compared to my bike. I can get used to it eventually but wasn't sure if it was actually right.
 
#2 ·
no thats not good

the clutch slowly wears which moves the handle farther out

you have to put some slack in the adjustment, either at the lever or at the other end on the side of the case.

there needs to be about a 1/4" of freeplay on the lever
 
#4 ·
if the cable is tight there might not be any freeplay at all

look where the cable pulls the lever on the left side of the engine while you move the control lever on the handlebar

there should be about 1/4" of slack at the grip, you move the lever and the one on the bottom end does not move at all - its all slack in the cable

if you dont have that, loosen up the adjustment at either end. with the cable loose you move the bottom end lever and feel when the throwout bearing touches the clutch plate - its very easy to move, then you cant move it at all with your finger.
 
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#5 ·
Hello,
Those 650’s are notorious for having a very loose clutch leaver and tends to show as little throw-out or friction-zone play when releasing the clutch leaver.
To minimize the sloppy clutch leaver, you must first adjust the clutch cable at both the leaver end and the clutch end to achieve the clutch engagement at approximately 50 to 60% of leaver release, approx. in the middle, not at the last quarter inch of freeplay.

Once that is set you will probably notice that the clutch leaver is pretty ‘loose’ or sloppy due to the settings.
To get the slop out of the leaver you will have to take-up the slop or looseness by putting a spring between the clutch cable end and the clutch housing at bottom of the bike where the cable enters the clutch housing.
Hard to describe without pictures but I am out of the country now and cannot get a picture for you.
But search the internet and you should be able to find this remedy.
I did it on my daughters 650 last year and it worked real good. No slop in the clutch leaver and the friction zone or clutch engagement approximately in the middle of the clutch leaver range.
Hope this explanation is useful and helps in your situation.
I do not think it is a worn out clutch, too few miles.
I think there may even be somebody on e-bay that sells a little kit with spring to help with this situation. Not worth buying a kit, just get the spring yourself at hardware store and give it a try, very easy to do overall.
 
#7 ·
My 650 clutch lever is also almost fully out to engage. I almost took it back to the dealer before I got used to it. I have had other bikes that did the same thing that lasted for thousands of miles. I think it is just different not bad. The first ride off of the dealers lot was pretty comical after riding The Strat everyday for almost a decade.
 
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