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1998 Clutch Lift Rod


bigmac9137

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So I changed sprockets and chain and now I am trying to put the front sprocket cover on, that has the slave cylinder attached to it. I am having an issue getting the clutch rod all the way in. It goes in but comes about 1/4-1/2” short of going the whole way and therefore can’t get the cover flush. It feels like it is hitting a wall on the other side.

Any ideas?

Thanks!

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The cover with the slave cylinder attached will feel likes its pushing against the rod as you bolt the cover down, its normal and I noticed this when I did the same job on my 8gen front sprocket replacement. I tightened up the cover evenly and clutch ops were completely normal.

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Hard part is I can’t get it close enough for all of the screws to reach. It’s a solid 1/2” away from being flush, that can’t be right. Is there any chance something slipped out of position on far side within the clutch?

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2 hours ago, bigmac9137 said:

Hard part is I can’t get it close enough for all of the screws to reach. It’s a solid 1/2” away from being flush, that can’t be right. Is there any chance something slipped out of position on far side within the clutch?

Ok, that doesn't sound right. Assume you did not activate the clutch lever while removed, and the slave piston is retracted. I wonder if the lifter push rod has not properly located within the lifter piece of the clutch assembly. Have you tried rotating the rod to see if it will fully insert?

Do you have the Service Manual?

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You're sure you have the slave cylinder piston pushed in far enough?   Once pushed in, if left on its own it will migrate out enough pretty quickly to leave a gap when placed on the pushrod. You should be able to close it up by hand.   I would not use the bolts to draw it in - they're small, thread in to aluminum and you don't want to strip them.  The pushrod engages the pressure plate - it's always been self centering when I've had it out - really no way to mis-align it. 

 

Was brake fluid added to the master cylinder while apart? It would be possible to hydraulic lock the piston too far out if the system is over filled.   

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No brake fluid was added but while I had it apart I did gage the clutch at one point a d switch gears.  I have made sure the rod is all the way in the cover slot. I am not sure what the slave cylinder piston is and how to make sure it is all the way pushed in.

 

is it normal that at this point I can’t pull me clutch in, it’s tight. Is that because the slave cylinder isn’t currently connected to the lever?

 

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It is possible to take the counter shaft cover off with the clutch slave cylinder attached and to then get it all back together as one. I have done it a couple of times, but had the same issue as Big Mac on the third try. Now I take the slave cylinder off separately, tape the piston in place and then remove the counter shaft cover to change the sprocket. Then put it together as two separate actions.

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Yes. That’s how I overcame the issue you seem to be having. My problem seemed to be purely related to alignment of the push rod with the depression in the slave cylinder piston.

 

Just be very very careful.

 

DON’T touch your clutch lever and make sure you tape/keep the slave piston in place, within the slave cylinder.

 

DON’T let it migrate out of the slave cylinder or you’ll be in a world of pain.

 

 

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Bigmac, I had not activated the clutch when my issue arose. I think it was just misalignment that caused the problem for me. If you activated the clutch and somehow changed gear, with the cover off, there might be another problem. But I still think you’ll need to take the slave cylinder off the countershaft cover, to sort it out.

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I have the slave cylinder off. I am trying to get it back on with the rod, but I am still coming up just short.

 

so how do I press the piston in farther to create more room? I’m thinking like a brake caliper and c-clamp?

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Yes it’s like moving brake pistons at a pad change. I have managed to push the piston back with firm constant pressure with my hand. It just moves very slowly.  

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Further. The piston needs to be recessed so that when you pull the clutch lever it has plenty of room to move, without hitting anything solid.

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Try fitting it, after every little attempt to move it. Once the slave cylinder slides into place correctly, your done. Keep an eye on the master cylinder, to make sure you are not creating leaks up there. It’s a bit of a balancing act. Don’t get ham fisted.

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6 hours ago, VFR78 said:

It is possible to take the counter shaft cover off with the clutch slave cylinder attached and to then get it all back together as one. I have done it a couple of times, but had the same issue as Big Mac on the third try. Now I take the slave cylinder off separately, tape the piston in place and then remove the counter shaft cover to change the sprocket. Then put it together as two separate actions.

 

That's the ticket - separating the two pieces.  Leaving it as a single assembly makes it very difficult to manage the position of the slave piston.  It's likely possible to just push on the entire assembly to move the piston back once the piston is in contact with the clutch pushrod, but you might not feel comfortable doing that.  Be very mindful of where each bolt goes particularly if you remove the speedo drive - mix the wrong ones up and you'll strip the threads out.  They're all the same diameter, but a subtle difference in length can mean insufficient threads are caught by a bolt and they'll pull out. 

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I had the same challenge on my 02... and i tried to force it, and ultimately thats never a good idea and I did some damage to one of the seals on the slave piston.  That forced me to pull the slave, clean and rebuild, and bleed the clutch again.  Absolutely perfect since.  The reality was I hadn't been into a slave cylinder before and so was not super interested in opening it as option one... but it was so quick and easy, and I cleaned what i expect was ~20 years of old fluid gunk... totally worth the investment of time.  Also took apart the master at the time, measured the internals, replaced seals, and bobs your uncle... (it was last summer, and with COVID of course there was a backorder of OEM slave seals so the bike had downtime... aka tinkering time)

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I also had this problem when installing new sprockets. The piston slowly protruded and I had to use a small c- clamp to push the piston back in. Then everything fit and I was able to get the housing flush with the engine case.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

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3 hours ago, interceptor69 said:

I also had this problem when installing new sprockets. The piston slowly protruded and I had to use a small c- clamp to push the piston back in. Then everything fit and I was able to get the housing flush with the engine case.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk
 

To prevent the piston from doing that,  when removing the slave cylinder I use a couple of large zip ties around it to hold the piston in place.  

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All fixed! I had to press the slave cylinder piston in and that fixed it. I got the cover on and then put the slave cylinder back on. I used a C-clamp to push the piston back. Then I put cover on, cylinder, and then speed thing.

 

Thanks for all the help!

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