Weird clutch problem

[Ghillie]

New to the forum and new to the Valk. This is without a doubt the sweetest bike I have ever owned. I got this 98 Standard about 6 weeks ago, no issues at all until last Thursday. Pulled out of the drive and went to clutch and the lever stops hard at halfway depressed. Checked the master cylinder and it has pressure. Have not gone in and checked the slave yet but this feels mechanical not hydrualic. Anyone got any ideas what the likely culprit is? The bike has 38k miles and I know the previous owner. The bike has been meticulously maintained and all recommended service was done at the appropriate intervals.

[chrise2469]

If you have checked that the bushing on the clutch lever is good and the small push  rod is seated  properly -it sounds like your damper plate rivets may have failed. 

Here's a few pic's and links to look at
http://www.far-riders.com/albums/thumbnails.php?album=68&page=1
http://www.valkyrieforum.com/forum/tech_archive.cgi?read=780791
http://www.jkozloski.com/pics2/clutch/Clutch%20101.htm

If you want to tear into the bike yourself just ask away and many people will post some answers.  I'm currently waiting for a new pressure plate so its pretty fresh in my mind.

[Ghillie]

Thanks, sounds exactly like what is going on with mine. I guess I am going to tear into this when the service manual shows up. If the push rod is good it looks like this means a total rebuild of the clutch. Anyone wanna weigh in on how tuff this will be for someone of average mechanical ability and slightly less than average patience.

[chrise2469]

It's a weekend project for average ability  and an afternoon for an experienced person.  If you plan to do it yourself you are going to need a bike lift, an impact wrench and have to make up/get some specialty tools.  The cost to have a clutch rebuild done is around 1000-1200 bucks.

Here is link from Dag's website for a service manual. Its a 157meg file so don't try it on dial up.
http://www.valkyrienorway.com/1520manual/valkyriegl1500.zip

From the previous links you can see that lady draco was able to do it (far-rider link).

For parts you can try http://www.hdlparts.com its an online parts fiche and you can see if your local dealer will price match. 

The best plan is to actually pull apart the clutch and see what is damaged.  If it is the damper, you should replace all the pressure and friction plates.  You can also asses if the the clutch outer, pressure plate and center are damaged.

If you want a detailed tool list and some pic's of my homemade tools let me know.  I was going to do a tutorial in few days anyways.

[Ricky-D]

Before you start to tear into things be sure the problem isn't simply an after-market clutch lever that jams in the mc housing.  Also, you didn't say whether or not the clutch works at all. 

[Ghillie]

Clutch lever is smooth when not connected and cylinder has pressure. The clutch does not engage at all, you cannot even depress the lever far enough to engage the neutral safety switch. Transmission works fine, bike can be power shifted easily and runs up and down the road smoothly, no noise or weirdness. Got the Clymer manual today and plan to start at the slave cylinder and continue troubleshooting from there. Hopefully be up and running by the weekend. There is a run to Ft Smith AR this weekend I was looking forward to.

[Jay]

I thought I read a while back about the rod that goes between the slave cylinder and clutch.  Someone had issues with this and had to clean it up and apply some light grease to it. 

[Ghillie]

Started to work on the bike today, interesting is that the clutch seems to function within the range of motion for the lever. With the bike in gear and the lever depressed as far as it will easily travel, the clutch disengages enough to roll the bike easily and or shift it at lower speeds. Slave clinder has pressure so going to examin the slave piston/push rod for burrs, deformity, or lubrication issues. Weekend is looking better if that is all it is.

[Ghillie]

Thanks for the help and the links, turned out to be the damper plate came apart. got the clutch back in tonight, will close it all up and take a test run in the morning.

[chrise2469]

Wow, that was quick   Was there any damage to the clutch outer and did you have a new damper?

[Ghillie]

We pulled the basket about 6:30 yesterday eve. Called Al Lamb Honda in Dallas and they had the damper in stock. Ran up and grabbed it at 10 to 7. Talked to the service manager and he pulled the old damper and put the new one in the basket in about 15 mins for a whopping $25 dollars. Cannot say enough good things about those guys. Went back and maneuved the clutch in after about 40 mins of coaxing the plates to line up. Closed it all up and did a quick oil change and drive service this morning, synthetic of course. Bike runs AWESOME. Eliminated almost all the noise from the drive mechanisms going all synthetic.

[chrise2469]

That's good all the way.  Glad your local dealer had one in stock and your back on the road again.

[donaldb10]

What is the Honda part number of the plate?

[Ghillie]

22322-MZ0-000

http://hondaparts-direct.com/

this site is great for looking up oem parts and schematics, I used the clutch cover list to map the bolts when I pulled it and put it back on as well as being able to tell the parts department exactly what parts I am looking for