Lost the clutch cable last night....

[Jax]

Riding home from work and going into 3rd and what do you know no clutch...looks like it busted at the engine side...I did a search..yeah for me since this is usually an issue...back to the subject....I noticed most posts were the cable breaking at the lever...since mine broke on the other side is it more difficult? What should I be careful of?

By the way thanks to many of the topics I read hear in the past I kept calm and clutchless shifted into neutral and coasted safetly to a parking lot where a friend of mine...with a truck and ramp...alway good to have one of those on hand...came and picked me up...but thanks to you guys and your experiences I was able to think this out and stay calm...

[trinc]

it doesn't matter which side breaks because you have to replace the whole cable anyway.

it's very easy to replace - but you may find it easier to remove the left fairing - or at least unbolt it so you can get to all the clutch cover bolts.

read the manual ( maybe someone will post it ) you need to follow the instructions on how to adjust the cable both at the handle & cover side & adjusting the tension.


on a side note: the cables are about $20 each ( 2x throttle, clutch & choke ) i may be over the top but during my winter teardown this year i replaced them (20k miles ). it's much easier to do with the bike torn down ( tank, plastic off ). you can't always plan ahead, but often you can prevent simple things from ruining your day.

tim

[Black_peter]

FYI
I always buy cables in pairs..
(or an extra type that hasn't broken yet)
You usually don't pay extra shipping for 2 and you
have one ready...

I have on hand:
2 speedos
1 clutch
1 throttle..

[kwebbel]

probably the cable didn't break, often it's the little lever inside the crankcase which happens to be broken.

[Jax]

Thanks for the advice...picke up the cable today at the local Suzuki dealer 14.95+tax...not bad now to perform surgery...found BP instructions on a thread..printed them out so now I'll check it out...

[md86]

Yeah , the "bucket" that the ball on the end of the cable goes into has a tendency to wear and bend , sometimes causing the cable to just pop out . I lost one of the bolts on my lifter mechanism , and THAT cause me to lose my clutch once , too . But having a spare is good . Easy job , though . Just a little dirty under the sprocket cover is all .

[Jax]

Ok question about removing the cover thingy...ok I've had a little bit to much to drink to night but just had a brain fart.....back to the subject....removed the 6 or 7 allen bolts and loosened the shifter thingy...now I'm trying to pull off the cover but it won't come off...the shifter thingy won't come off eventhough I have loosened it all the way...any advise/tricks on getting that thing off?

[HS2020]

Did you take your shifter off? You have to remove the shifter to get the clutch cover off. Make sure you have all the bolts out.

[md86]

There's the circlip on the shaft you gotta take off to get the lever ALL the way off , and there's an allen bolt in the middle of the cover that's easy to overlook . Once that's out of the way , it should pop right off . Those bolta are all different lengths though , so um , watch where they go as you're taking them out or something .... As for the circlip , without the right tool it's a little tricky to get off , but it CAN be done with a screwdriver and pliers . Just might want to put a rag or something over it because it WILL fly across the garage and be lost forever . It's like a spring .

[rwcreigh]

and drink some more..lol good luck.it was pretty easy on my600 ninja

[Jax]

Got the cover off an it was just the cable that broke..actually the ball on the end broke off...now that I've got the whole thing apart...is it ok to hit that area with brake cleaner to get all the crud off? I want to ask before I do it because I don't want to hurt any thing....and is there anything else I should take a look at while I got her apart?

[kwebbel]

clean it, but don't spray the chain with brakecleaner. while being there inspect the frontsprocket, the clutch-pushrod, the basket md86 refers too and clean/grease the clutch screw assy

[md86]

I used some of the cleaner/degreaser I had for cleaning the chain to clean the whole area in there . Some stuff that a local shop said they used for chain cleaning . Brake cleaner is a GREAT cleaner , but it eats rubber , too . So the o-rings in your chain would be hurting , as would the countershaft seal . Yeah , taking that worm gear assembly apart and re-greasing it is a good idea , too . But be careful putting it back together again . If it's not lined up right , it'll just be .... wrong ? You'll know it if it is .