8200rpm Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 The master cylinder was weeping a little fluid from the lever side. Every few rides I would see few droplets of dark brown/black liquid on the top of my side fairing or on the tank (blown from the wind while riding). The fluid looked medium brown and clear from the reservoir sight glass. Maybe the color of medium honey, but not too bad. Definitely not light amber as DOT 4 should be. Fluid level was not noticeably decreasing either. Ordered a new piston kit for the MC and seals, springs and gasket for the SC. After draining the fluid, the remnants in the reservoir looked NASTY. The rubber seal around the MC piston was worn down. The boot on the push rod was completely torn. The brass bushing in the lever had the hole for the push rod worn all the way through. Down at the slave cylinder, things were just as bad. The cup seal around the slave piston was intact but leaking. Old dried fluid that had turned to black sludge covered the inside of the sprocket cover recess where the slave piston meets the clutch push rod. Spent couple hours cleaning everything with a toothbrush and 2000 grit wet sandpaper. I wish I’d done a better job at photographing the condition of all the parts and my progress, but I was in the zone and just kept working to get everything cleaned up and back together. Lesson learned. Don’t ignore the clutch hydraulics just because the fluid looks “okay” through the sight glass. Considering the condition of the system, I’m shocked at how clutch function was not noticeably degraded. I suppose it’s robustness engineered into the system, but there’s no excuse for this level of neglect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Grum Posted December 10, 2019 Member Contributer Share Posted December 10, 2019 Wow, glad you got it all sorted, that crap looks like it's been there for 20 years, sure hope the brake system doesn't look like that! Seeing the clutch gets a far greater workout than the brake system it's probably more likely to develope contaminates, it's often seen as a low priority system when compared to brakes, however, it's just so easy to bleed the clutch. If you can get into the habit of a clutch (and brake) flush/bleed every 12 months you'll never see that crap build up again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8200rpm Posted December 10, 2019 Author Share Posted December 10, 2019 Brakes are next weekends job. 9 pistons, 18 seals and 7 bleeder valves. 🤯 Hoping the master cylinder is in better condition. Didn’t order the parts. Might have to make a run to the dealership. 🤑 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer raYzerman Posted December 13, 2019 Member Contributer Share Posted December 13, 2019 Juice clutches will darken the fluid much sooner than brakes because of the constant exposure to engine heat at the slave/cooling cycles on every ride. Yes a good item for annual flush and bleed, it won't look nearly as bad. What I saw in your pic is likely more than 2 years old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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