Can someone please help me identify the correct clutch slave position?

[tho9504]

Hi,
I been messing with the clutch free play tension and can't get it to work properly. Every time the engine is hot (+205 F) and i give full throttle all of the sudden my rpm races up bu the bike does not move with the rpm speed. If i increase the clutch free play, then the problem only comes up once in a while while the engine is running really hot. If i decrease the clutch free play, then the problem occurs more often. I know the free play range is 0.39" - 0.59" at the levers. I wanted to see where the adjustment PUSH LEVER ASSY on the fairing side rests at when the clutch is NOT pulled in and When the Clutch IS pulled in.

Currently, the notches are not aligned when the clutch is not pulled in. When i fully pull in the clutch, then the notches are aligned. Can someone please check their bikes and see if the notches are aligned without clutch pulled in or with clutch pulled in? In that way, i could verify if my cable needs to be tightened.
Attached is a pic of the part i am talking about. Please tell me if this part is aligned on your bikes without the Clutch pulled in? i got the pic from this forum but couldnt verify if the pic was taken with clutch pulled in or not. If it's without the clutch levers pulled in, then i definitely know, i need to adjust the cables at the fairing side to make them aligned.

 

[tho9504]

to be more specific, the alignment i was talking about was between these two notches. the arrow on the "slave assembly" and the line marker on the bike.

Are these two lines aligned on all of your bikes (FZ6R) when the clutch is NOT pulled in? or is it aligned after fully pulling in the clutch?

 

[Vath]

Let me run out to the parking lot real quick and check for you! I'll update in a few minutes.

 

[Vath]

Alrighty. Here are the pics I just took out in the ol' employee parking lot. Sorry for potato quality.

(Just to note, I have a 2012 FZ6R that I bought brand new at the beginning of April in 2015. It was a hold over they had forgotten about in the back. So these parts on my bike are just around 2 months used.)

This first one is how the lever sits WITHOUT the clutch being pulled in.


And this one is how the lever sits WITH the clutch being pulled in.


It looks like you have some adjusting to do. Hope this helps!

 

[tho9504]

Thank you so much!!. I have a 2012 FZ6R also. I definitely need to tighten it based on your pics. It looks like from the 1st pic (without clutch pulled in, the arrows are lined up). I am going to adjust it like that take it for a test ride soon as the rain here is over. Thanks again for taking your time to go out there and take the pics.

 

[tho9504]

Vath,
i wanted to confirm something without before i started adjusting. Even though the 1st pic you posted (without clutch pulled in) looks aligned to me on the pic, was it slightly off? Did it perfectly align up at the end of the clutch free play. meaning if you pulled in the clutch to the end of your free play (0.39" - 0.59") or was it perfectly aligned up without pulling in even for the free play. The reason i am asking is because i came across another post where it says it should not be aligned atleast until the end of free play. I know i definitely need adjustment but wanted to make sure if the notches aligned up perfectly without even pulling in the up to the freeplay or they were aligned at the end of clutch free play. Since the difference is just millimeters, it's a little difficult to see from the pic if they are perfectly aligned. below is the post i read that i was refering to too. Thanks again for your help...

If you don't have enough free play (slack) in the cable, the clutch will not engage all the way and slip under power. If you have too much slack, the clutch will drag and not release all the way which is what you're describing. A good cable adjustment almost always fixes this. As the clutch wears and the cable stretches, usually you check the "gap" every few hundred miles and make small adjustments before any of these problems happen.

Did the clutch worked fine and then changed right after you changed sprockets? If you removed the push lever assy on the left side above the sprocket, it is possible that you did not put it back on the right way. That is the lever that the other end of the clutch cable is attached to. To make sure, there is a mark on the edge of the lever and a mark on the body of the assy that is below the lever. These marks should not be aligned in normal position. Then as you push the lever towards the cable, (forward as if the cable were pulling it), it should start to feel hard to push when the marks align.... that is when the push rod starts to lift the clutch plates. If this is not correct, the clutch adjustment will not work. Fix this first if it is wrong. If it is wrong, I don't know if the clutch would even work at all.... so it doesn't really sound like th problem.... but make sure the marks look ok as described.

If the clutch is worn out a lot, there is a way to adjust the pushrod. That is way more complicated and involves taking the clutch cover off which is on the right side of the engine. You probably do not need to do this unless you have to put in a new clutch. The push rod can wear out too, but that should only happen with many thousands of miles and several clutches.

 

[Vath]

Vath,
i wanted to confirm something without before i started adjusting. Even though the 1st pic you posted (without clutch pulled in) looks aligned to me on the pic, was it slightly off? Did it perfectly align up at the end of the clutch free play. meaning if you pulled in the clutch to the end of your free play (0.39" - 0.59") or was it perfectly aligned up without pulling in even for the free play. The reason i am asking is because i came across another post where it says it should not be aligned atleast until the end of free play. I know i definitely need adjustment but wanted to make sure if the notches aligned up perfectly without even pulling in the up to the freeplay or they were aligned at the end of clutch free play. Since the difference is just millimeters, it's a little difficult to see from the pic if they are perfectly aligned. below is the post i read that i was refering to too. Thanks again for your help...

It is a bit off! Good catch there. Yeah it looks like it lines up once the free play is gone. With the clutch not being touched, the lines aren't too far off though, so it won't need to be too far off center when you adjust it.

 

[tho9504]

Thanks for check that out for me... Here are the pics from my bike before any adjustments are made (i didnt change anything yet). There is a huge difference where you markers are and mine are. I would've expected my clutch to no function at all with those difference in the setup?? Mine works fine until i give it wide open throttle (WOT) all of the sudden and then my RPM races up but the bike does not move according the the rpm. once i let go of the gas, everything normalizes and i could slowly increase the speed. This only seems to happen during WOT.

I am going to change it to your setting and see if the problem persists.

 

[dart1963]

I'm no expert, but, I wouldn't think those notches mean much, you either have the free play correct or not.
The clutch springs keep tension, as it wears out, the position might change. The only adjustment you can do it is take out slack from the cable, and leave just enough so when you turn the bars full lock, that you are not disengaging the clutch. It sounds like you clutch plates may be worn and just need replaced.

 

[tho9504]

It sounds like you clutch plates may be worn and just need replaced.

That is what i am starting to believe also. But my bike only has about a 1000 miles. I purchased it from someone when it had 650 miles. it hard to believe the clutch plates got worn out so quickly.

Do you know if it's difficult to change the clutch plates for the FZ6R?
Also, once dissasembled, the notch above with spring tension we mentioned above, it that hard to align into place?

I have seen the clutch plates being changed on a R6 which seems not that hard, but couldnt find anything on the FZ6R online. Just didn't want to get hit by any suprises once i start disassembling. i was thinking of just ordering the Barnett clutch kit.

 

[dart1963]

Marthy has changed his, said it was pretty easy. When he pops on, he might have more insight.

Bad Request

Like I said, I'm not an expert on these at all. When it comes time to change my clutch plates, it will be a learning experience. I wouldn't worry about the notches aligning, it is sort of self aligning if it is installed right. There may be some measure that let's you know it's time to change the parts out, but you'd have to look at a service manual.

 

[Marthy]

I was the first to post on this but for some reason it doesn't show...???

If there's some play in your lever when the engine is at running temp, your fine. Clutch should last forever on those bike but shit happen? I had to change mine at 25K miles or so. I blamed it on 16/38T I had once... just too much to handle.

In your case, maybe the first owner beat the hell out of it on take off or who knows. Clutch is very easy to swap. The last disc is a bit of a pain because you need to get in there with a pick tool and some patience and remove the retaining ring to change the last disc.

My suggestion is change oil for bike recommended and see if it keep slipping. If it does order a new clutch...

There's some pics here of the clutch that I took to do a "How too" but never got to it. Plenty of other bike pics too...lol

http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/s361/marthy6R/6f5f63fe.jpg

 

[tho9504]

Thanks Marty... I just recently changed the oil (600 mi service) a couple hundred miles ago (Mobile1 4t 10W-40) and also installed an after market gear indicator (GIPro X). After that oil change/gear indicator install is when i first started noticing the problem. It could've been there before i never WOT it before the oil change.

There is plenty of free play on the clutch. The less free play i have the more i feel the slipping. the more free play i have i less i notice the slipping. i know the reference point is 0.39" - 0.59" for the free play at the lever. i have set Mine is way beyond that so i get less slippage if i wot. for reference, i think someone metioned a nickels' witdth is the normal range. Mine is probable 4-5 nickels width.

I plan of changing the oil and filter again around the 1000 mile mark to be on the safe side. I might then try to see if i could get the clutch plates out while the oil is drained out.

 

[tho9504]

Just to show you guys what i am talking about regarding the clutch slipping, i created a video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wALPj7KGBX4


@2:07 it slips a little as i am giving it gas the RPM races up but bike does not move as it should. My gear indicator shows one gear lower for a quick second till i let go off the throttle and the gear indicator shows the right gear.

@4:56 it's a little more visible. my rpm race up and my gear indicator goes from 4th gear to 2nd gear till i let go off the throttle and then it fixes itself. This only happens when i WOT.

 

[dart1963]

That's dangerous, get her fixed before it causes an accident! Don't wanna be trying to get out of the way or come out of a turn and have that happen.

 

[tho9504]

I was the first to post on this but for some reason it doesn't show...???

If there's some play in your lever when the engine is at running temp, your fine. Clutch should last forever on those bike but shit happen? I had to change mine at 25K miles or so. I blamed it on 16/38T I had once... just too much to handle.

In your case, maybe the first owner beat the hell out of it on take off or who knows. Clutch is very easy to swap. The last disc is a bit of a pain because you need to get in there with a pick tool and some patience and remove the retaining ring to change the last disc.

My suggestion is change oil for bike recommended and see if it keep slipping. If it does order a new clutch...

There's some pics here of the clutch that I took to do a "How too" but never got to it. Plenty of other bike pics too...lol

http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/s361/marthy6R/6f5f63fe.jpg

Marthy,
Thanks for the pics. I noticed from the pics that everything that was taken off was on the right side of the bike.

1) When you put the new clutch plates in, was there anything you needed to align?

2) Also, did you had to do anything with the clutch slave lever(i think that's what it's called) which connects the clutch cable to the engine on the left hand side of the bike? Or can i just un-screw the right hand side, pull the springs/pressure plate out and replace the clutch plates without messing with the clutch slave lever on the left side of the bike?

3) Was there any special tool you used besides the pick tool to pull the plates out?

 

[Marthy]

It cam all be done from the RH side. First you need to soak the clutch disc 24hrs or so before install. Between the clutch pivot (what you call slave cylinder) and the clutch there's a shaft that go across the engine. That shaft need to be adjust so both mark on the other side line up like its suppose to. Mine were a bit off but I didn't bother... still working just fine after 20K miles lol

 

[tho9504]

Marthy, Thank you so much for the quick reply.
After taking off the pressure plate, do need to take off the "Clutch Boss Assembly" (Big nut in the middle behind the pressure plate)? or once the pressure plate is off, i could just pull out the plates?

 

[Marthy]

Marthy, Thank you so much for the quick reply.
After taking off the pressure plate, do need to take off the "Clutch Boss Assembly" (Big nut in the middle behind the pressure plate)? or once the pressure plate is off, i could just pull out the plates?

Unscrew the 6 bolts evenly a little bit at the time so the stack don't get crooked. Once the 6 bolts are out you can pull on the whole stack. Clutch disc and steel plate. Try to keep everything in order... that will give you a good reference on how to put it back together. Few pics as you go won't hurt either.

On top of my head... one disc is slightly different, that the first one to go in with the retainer. (Last one to go out...)

 

[Scott_Thomas]

Unscrew the 6 bolts evenly a little bit at the time so the stack don't get crooked. Once the 6 bolts are out you can pull on the whole stack. Clutch disc and steel plate. Try to keep everything in order... that will give you a good reference on how to put it back together. Few pics as you go won't hurt either.

On top of my head... one disc is slightly different, that the first one to go in with the retainer. (Last one to go out...)

Marthy needs a cape and S on his chest. Saved us all a few times or more.