Clutch Cable Appears To Be Binding

[Zealot]

Heya folks! I've been keeping up with regular maintenance on the bike as best I can, and every time the clutch starts to get a bit harder to pull I go about and add some oil (10W40) which seems to fix the problem - although the oil never seems to stay for very long. I noticed yesterday that it seems like it's binding around where the bar adjustor is, and appears to be doing so toward the front of the bike. I've seen pictures of other setups and mine appears to be about as stock as it comes in concern to cable routing and the likes. Free play in the lever is kept on the lower side. It pulls in and goes out no problem, there's just a sort of 'bumpy' feedback while it does so - like the cable rubbing against something.

What would you suggest I do? I'm thinking of blowing the line with WD40 and trying again, but odds are I'll sooner invest in some of that dry cable lube. Not sure if there's a better way to route the cable, so I'm open to suggestions on that front too. Pulling the clutch on other bikes is met with a silky smooth, featherlight pull the whole way through. Mine feels like there's something up as of late.

 

[Zealot]

Alright, so I took apart my entire clutch lever installation and blew WD40 through everything, washed all the parts I took off with soap+water before rinsing them, and then reassembled it with oil on the cable with bits of grease everywhere. Works a hell of a lot better! Seems that the grittiness was all the muck that was in and around the lever components, and that's what was giving me the grindy feel.

 

[beatle]

Thanks for the update. I think I'm due for some clutch cable maintenance. I lubed the cable last year and it made a big difference. Then it got stiff again so I lubed again but there wasn't much difference this time.

 

[FinalImpact]

More oil and make sure it gets past that top 90° bend and Grease the top section when done (where it enters the metal 90° bend).

 

[Zealot]

More oil and make sure it gets past that top 90° bend and Grease the top section when done (where it enters the metal 90° bend).

Are you saying to grease the upper section of the clutch cable? I did have some issues getting WD and the likes out the opposing end of the cable sheath.

Thanks for the update. I think I'm due for some clutch cable maintenance. I lubed the cable last year and it made a big difference. Then it got stiff again so I lubed again but there wasn't much difference this time.

As you saw in my post, a full teardown, proper cleaning, and re-application solved most of my woes. Took about 30 minutes total.

 

[SandyN]

Mine did that earlier this year and lubricant did not help. The plastic covering on the cable split and started jamming inside the sheath - only remedy was to replace. What a difference afterwards. ...

Sent from my GT-I8190 using Tapatalk

 

[Zealot]

Mine did that earlier this year and lubricant did not help. The plastic covering on the cable split and started jamming inside the sheath - only remedy was to replace. What a difference afterwards. ...

Sent from my GT-I8190 using Tapatalk

I've seen the plastic covering and it appears to be intact. I can see what looks like the start of it up top, and where it comes out on the bottom of the line. My buddy's bike in comparison does not have his sheath showing, since he apparently pushed his in - and his clutch requires a gorilla grip.

 

[vinmansbrew]

Best way to lube a cable, create a funnel at 1 end of the cable. Hang it up and put oil in it. Slowly move the cable back and forth till oil comes out the bottom. Cable is now fully lubed. I have tried the cable lubers that you use spray on and they just don't work as well.

Also, some cables have the plastic sheath, some don't. Usually the cheaper cables don't. oem cables usually will if the bike came with such a cable, new.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

WD40 is fine for flushing but it is NOT A GOOD LUBRICANT, period.

Either use engine oil, (I have a very small squeezable applicator with a thin tip I can squirt oil down the sheath. This is recommended in the manual-doesn't specify what weight) or cable specific oil. I've experimented with chain lube with mixed results...


A couple of weeks ago, I lubricated with cable lube and a clamp on pressure tool (the cable end).

Note, I lube the cable at least every 3 months. This last time, with the pressure/can method, so much nasty crap came out the end, WTH? The bike rarely see's the rain, nor dusty conditions/ garage kept. Just wear /tear I gather.

But loose the WD40 for certain.

 

[Zealot]

WD40 is fine for flushing but it is NOT A GOOD LUBRICANT, period.

Whoops, that's totally my bad. In my update post I meant to include that I used engine oil and fed it all throughout the cable sheath. WD40 to blow the crud out, then I followed it with some clean motor oil. I'd read in the past about how ineffective WD40 is as a lubricant - and fixed my old post to make sure that a newcomer doesn't read it and stick strictly to WD.

 

[erburtt]

I've got a little motion pro tool that clamps on the end of the cable and has a hole in it for a feeder straw. It seals around the cable and forces whatever you blow through the feeder straw (WD40, etc.) down into and through the cable. When mine gets bad I blow all the crap out with brake clean then let it dry a bit and follow up with a cable specific lube. I really only need to lube once a season depending on how dusty and rainy the riding conditions are. The motion pro thing and lube are fairly inexpensive, I think like under $20 CAD for it all.

 

[vinmansbrew]

Tried one of those and it didn't work worth a darn. It did work good at giving me a face full of lube though. Now I just use the tennis ball method.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Tried one of those and it didn't work worth a darn. It did work good at giving me a face full of lube though. Now I just use the tennis ball method.

oh, yea forgot to mention, you have to wrap it in a rag or paper towel... Once that's done, just a couple of squirts will blow the crap out..

 

[Zealot]

I bought some Dri Slide Bike Aid and holy ****, even better than my all out method. Crazy easy clutch pull now!

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

I bought some Dri Slide Bike Aid and holy ****, even better than my all out method. Crazy easy clutch pull now!

Got a link to purchase it/ check it out?

 

[Zealot]

Got a link to purchase it/ check it out?

I bought it from here to avoid some shipping fees, and since Amazon was all sold out of the stuff. Drislide Bike-Aid, 4oz Bottle with needle applicator-3 pack.

Got it within two days, surprisingly.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

I bought it from here to avoid some shipping fees, and since Amazon was all sold out of the stuff. Drislide Bike-Aid, 4oz Bottle with needle applicator-3 pack.

Got it within two days, surprisingly.

Thanks, but holy c...p! Just a tad bit expensive!

 

[erburtt]

Thanks, but holy c...p! Just a tad bit expensive!

Gotta remember that price is in beaver chips (CAD), the USD has quite the stronghold on us these days

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Gotta remember that price is in beaver chips (CAD), the USD has quite the stronghold on us these days

True, but not that much...

Thanks for the link in either case!

 

[Zealot]

True, but not that much...

Thanks for the link in either case!

Converted over, before shipping fees, it's about $33 for you. That's $11 per bottle. It's about on par with when I buy a bottle of chain cleaner or lube from the store, so to me that's a pretty fair price - but to each his own! You might be able to find it being sold elsewhere, from a US distributor.