New Clutch

[thebig450es]

I just replaced my clutch on my 2002 400ex, after i put it together i noticed the clutch isnt working. I did soak the clutch in oil before i put it together. The clutch wont disengage so the drive wheels are together with the engine. Do i need to try to ride on it abit to break it in? thanks

[CJM]

The last plate you made sure to put in the basket grooves itself and not with the rest of the clutch plates?

Cable out of adjustment maybe?

[honda400ex2003]

i would probably take the cover back off and verify that everything is installed correct first. it might be worth lifting the rear end up and checking it out a bit but i wouldnt take it for a ride without verifying that it is at least together properly also make (not stretched out) and clearances are all properly adjusted.

if it is then take it for a ride only after verifying all.
steve

[thebig450es]

Yes the last plate is in the small grove lack of better term, i have had the rear end up so the wheels can spin freely. Could it be that i didnt soak the clutches long enough? would i need to take it all apart again and soak them longer? Anything else ?

[CJM]

About all it can be is something internal if everything on the outside turns out fine. Could be as simple as you didnt put 1 part together right.

Then again its rather straight forward, all you did was remove the old and put in new plates right?

[honda400ex2003]

if it soaked for 5-6 hours that should be plenty. take it apart and verify that it is all in correctly, i know it sounds rude but you never know. I know i wouldnt be taking it for a ride without at least verifying that it is all in correctly. make sure the puller part is in correctly, i think it will fit in there but can still get messed up if not in the correct place, thus not pulling the plates apart properly.


steve

[thebig450es]

How much should the arm rotate when the clutch lever is pulled in? i dont think i can rotate the arm foreward anymore by hand in addition to when i pull the lever. I thought i tripled checked everything before i put it all together but tommorow ill probably take it apart again to check

[honda400ex2003]

it should be just about snug without pulling it. then it will go further when pulled. heres a test for you, if you can take a channel lock and turn it to release it, it needs to be adjusted. at least you will be able to tell if it is working or not.

i suggest getting the manual downloaded and checking all of the adjustment points for proper adjustment. esp the one on the side cover itself.

steve

[CJM]

I wanna say that little lever moves maybe a half inch, not 100% sure.

I do know its a real pain to get it to grab the little detent (or whatever you call it) that comes out of the center of the clutch setup. I had a heck of a time doing it more than a few times now.

[thebig450es]

Yeah i just checked and the cable pulls it the whole way, i made sure the little spring was correct for the lifter before i put the cover on. Also thanks for all the help

[honda400ex2003]

does it pull easy? steve

[thebig450es]

It has a good bit of resistance

[honda400ex2003]

hard to say then. lol take it apart and see how it goes again.

steve

[thebig450es]

i only soaked the clutches acouple hours i have a feeling its that

[honda400ex2003]

its possible i suppose. did you just put them in tonight. let them sit over night and come back out tomorrow and see how it goes then. if you take it apart and all looks alright resoak them again for a good 6-8 if not over night if possible.

steve

[thebig450es]

Well i took it apart and let the clutch disks soak for 24 hours in oil. i put it back together and it still wouldnt disengage the clutch so i took it apart again. Then i loosened the bolts of the 5 springs by about 2 full turns and put it back together and it would partially disengage. Any ideas guys? Could it need worn in alittle ? Im stating to get frustrated abit lol .

[jtalleman]

u dont even have to saok them just rub oil on them and put them in and sometime my clutch would get suctioned together if u didnt get the glae off the plates so i had to rev the crap out of it in nuetral to get them to unstick and it was fine

[thebig450es]

so it could just be the oil keeping the clutch disks stuck together duh..... i'll tighten the springs back to snug and put it all together and put it neutral and spin it a bit.

[CJM]

Are you sure the clutch cables adjusted right?

And YES you must soak brand new clutch plates as they are fibrous and need to absorb the oil, otherwise they will get torn apart from the friction if they dont have enough.

[thebig450es]

The clutch cable seems to be adjusted right , it has a god pull distance

[CJM]

I once fixed an old f250 that had a similar problem. The clutch wouldnt disengage when you pushed the pedal on this thing. so we dragged it full on with another truck pumping the clutch as we went and it freed up.

But this truck hadnt moved in like 10 years and thats why we thought it was locked.

At this point if everything in the clutch itself is fine after you checked, the cables good, try riding it I guess. Not sure what else to suggest.

[freeman79]

i just put the emgo clutches in mine that i bought off of ebay and it was doing the same thing . i tore it down like three times. and finally i looked at the old set and the new set i just got and there was a huge difference in the thickness. the new ones were way thinner than the stock ones. so i put the stock ones in and back to riding with no problem. hope this helps

[thebig450es]

The problem was.........the clutches were sticking with too much oil, i put it in neutral and warmed it up and reved it out a bit and then the clutch worked great. Wasted alot of time but thanks for all the help and now i know for next time

[CJM]

Sucks we wasted so much time, sometimes the most obvious answer eludes us lol.

Then again, what did I say about the truck that sat in the field and I drug till the clutch freed hehe.

Happy it all worked out, enjoy the ride.

[thebig450es]

Well i can take the clutch apart real quick now lol so something good came out of it .....now time for more power lol