Clutch and oil questions

[TownsendsFJR1300]

7Up I think the main thing is detection. Noticing the the change before it self destructs. In this case the actuator arm at the transmission had to move a substantial distance and basically do nothing.

For most of us I doubt there is a need to to just replace it unless its primary use is that of a city bike idling in traffic on a daily basis.

[MENTION=15369]foxbass[/MENTION] what is your primary use? Can you snap a close up of the failed bearing?

+1 above, especially if the clutch is used OFTEN as Foxbass was (downtown London, always clutching, stop and go HEAVY traffic).

Agreed, if the covers off check it. If there's no releasing issues, really no reason to take it apart unless your conditions are similar.

 

[foxbass]

Sorry guys, out of the loop there for a day.
Final impact, my heads up to members was just a prompt to go listen to your bike when pulling the lever. No gear selected but with engine running obviously. if that puller bearing is shot (#7) there will be a clear rough whirring sound made by the steel balls grinding away the inner bearing shell. Its not a panic situation but a warning to swap out at next oil change. I've had the bike for 2yrs and noticed the slight (then) sound and thought it was just the way it was.
Ignore it for a year or so, fine, but much longer and you might start to get the odd problem with gear changes or tapping down at lights etc. Mine got to the point that the inner shell had almost pulled right through the outer shell. These standard type races are not thrust bearings at all, they are rotational, so the designer either had no idea or it was a simple expedient and therefore a throw-away component.
The running surfaces of a rotating element bearing such as this are heat treated to create a 'case' of extra hard material for the balls to run against. this could be as little as 5-10 thou thick. It would not take too long for the lateral stress caused by incorrect practical application (as here) to wear through that case hardening and begin a war of attrition on the much softer steel under. This means that once the case is breached (and the bearing may already have begun to sound a it noisy) further wear is much more rapid.
This would explain why I was adjusting the cable every couple of rides. It wasn't the cable stretching, I was shredding metal into the oil!
Sadly I binned the part after showing it to my service mechanic (and ex racer) who then recommended that I use a C3 type not the C4 as original. I already had.
He explained that the c4 is slightly higher temp spec but has much more slack which in turn means more friction and therefore wear. It runs in a bath of oil so the c3 should be fine.

If you have occasion to pull the clutch cover, all you need to do is check that the inner shell does not pull outwards (away from the engine) in any way. If you can see it move even half a mm then swap out, its shagged.

I wouldn't mind betting that a few of us have been periodically adjusting the clutch cable believing that it must be stretching loads, not realising that it could actually be that little bearing!

I'm finding any excuse now to jump on mine jus to ride with a beautiful clutch action that I thought this model just didn't have!

Shame I'm selling it now!
Any Londoners interested in a well looked after bike?

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

You might want to keep that FZ when the F800 is in the shop!!

(great write up above and recommendation BTW!)