Changing the clutch, do I really need to drain oil and coolant?

trepetti

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Parts will be in next week (@townsendsfjr1300, I went OEM!) and although the manual says to drain the oil, the clutch is so far above the sump that I find it hard to believe it needs to be drained. And on the sidestand the clutch is even more uphill. Anyone done this without draining the oil?

As for the coolant, I am guessing that removing the little hose from the water pump makes it easier to get the clutch cover off, but it looks like lib is do able with the hose in place.

Lastly, it looks like reengaging the release lever might be a bigger pain than the manual mentions? Any pointers?

Thanks

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Parts will be in next week (@townsendsfjr1300, I went OEM!) and although the manual says to drain the oil, the clutch is so far above the sump that I find it hard to believe it needs to be drained. And on the sidestand the clutch is even more uphill. Anyone done this without draining the oil?

As for the coolant, I am guessing that removing the little hose from the water pump makes it easier to get the clutch cover off, but it looks like lib is do able with the hose in place.

Lastly, it looks like reengaging the release lever might be a bigger pain than the manual mentions? Any pointers?

Thanks

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

I think I met you in the other thread, you should just do the oil change, if I recall your at 20k miles, and coolant is easy, simple maintenance
 
With the bike on the side stand, you don't need to drain the oil..

As for the coolant, (looking at mine), looks like just that hose is in the way... Not sure where that goes to.
As I re-call reading, other clutches were changed out and no mention of coolant removal. You can probably put a short piece of hose (plugged off) on the WP nipple, vise grip closed the other end of the hose...

As mentioned above, wouldn't be a bad idea to change coolant, might take 1/3 a gallon of pre-mix.


Re the pull release lever.

As you can see below, the marks(yours should be the same) on the lever and case should be lined up at rest (cable adjusted correctly).
Once you start to pull the cover off, you'll see it rotate slightly (it will pop way out anyway with the clutch cable off).

You just want to make sure when re-assembling the lever ends up in the same position. You may have to "re-clock" a couple times before the marks line up..

Might want to measure the springs right away while it's apart. Likely Ok but your already there..

 
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Thanks Scott. Ordered the full monty, frictions, steels, springs and even a new bearing.

Changed the coolant at the start of the season and the oil 500 miles ago. Not going to spend any time thinking about coolant. If it needs to be replaced theb no big deal.

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Glad you grabbed that bearing as I was going to suggest it. How many miles and why are you changing it?

As for cover install, as you slide it on you'll start with the lever out there a ways and as the cover seats, hopefully a homerun has the marks aligned when seated.

After a couple of stabs you'll hit that homerun.
 
Glad you grabbed that bearing as I was going to suggest it. How many miles and why are you changing it?

As for cover install, as you slide it on you'll start with the lever out there a ways and as the cover seats, hopefully a homerun has the marks aligned when seated.

After a couple of stabs you'll hit that homerun.

Thanks Randy. Just turned 62k and started to get a soft engagement into 1st, especially when operating in hot weather.

I am really proactive with parts replacement. I don't need to get any more use out of the existing clutch. Rather do it now on my terms than wait till it gets closer to failure.

I don't have a press, so can the release bearing be tapped out with a drift?
 
I don't have a press, so can the release bearing be tapped out with a drift?[/QUOTE]

You should be able to get it off W/O a press.

When re-installing the new bearing (if the old one was pretty tight) , put the clutch "rod" in the freezer to slightly shrink the OD of it.
Should make in-stalling the new one a little easier but work fast and of course don't hammer on the outside of the new bearing..
 
I don't have a press, so can the release bearing be tapped out with a drift?[/QUOTE]

You should be able to get it off W/O a press.

When re-installing the new bearing (if the old one was pretty tight) , put the clutch "rod" in the freezer to slightly shrink the OD of it.
Should make in-stalling the new one a little easier but work fast and of course don't hammer on the outside of the new bearing..

We used to pack leader bushings in dry ice and install them in injection molds.
 
If you get around to it, I would appreciate if you could snap a picture or two of the old clutch plates [emoji106]
 
That baring shouldn't be terribly tight.

When in use, that "rod"(not the correct word) is being pulled to the outside with the bearing.

IE, that bearing is under tension all the time and is being pulled onto that "rod" , it's not going anywhere..


As Brick asked above, maybe some spec #'s of the used plates compared to the new ones (if your able to measure accurately)
would be interesting to see..
 
OK Everyone, clutch is done. No drama to speak of, but getting the release arm in the right spot was a bit of a pain. As [MENTION=15974]FinalImpact[/MENTION] pointed out, it took 2 or 3 tries to get it, but nothing to be concerned about.

The soft engagement problem is gone.

What I found odd was that all the friction plates mic'd out at .119", worn but not as bad as I expected. The new springs were significantly stiffer, so I am assuming that the springs were more the culprit than the plates.

Sorry guys, no pictures, but there was nothing to show. Nothing broken and no signs of excessive wear.

Thanks for the assistance folks.
 
OK Everyone, clutch is done. No drama to speak of, but getting the release arm in the right spot was a bit of a pain. As [MENTION=15974]FinalImpact[/MENTION] pointed out, it took 2 or 3 tries to get it, but nothing to be concerned about.

The soft engagement problem is gone.

What I found odd was that all the friction plates mic'd out at .119", worn but not as bad as I expected. The new springs were significantly stiffer, so I am assuming that the springs were more the culprit than the plates.

Sorry guys, no pictures, but there was nothing to show. Nothing broken and no signs of excessive wear.

Thanks for the assistance folks.



Good job. Glad that fixed it.
Kind of late now but did you soak the new frictions in oil before installing them in the basket?
 
Good job. Glad that fixed it.
Kind of late now but did you soak the new frictions in oil before installing them in the basket?
Sure did. Next repair is replacing clutch cable. Next mods are to install S2 swingarm and 4 degree advance.

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