REmove 2 clutch springs to lighten lever pull?

Hello all,

I read on another board that someone removed 2 clutch springs and it made the clutch lever easy to pull. It was a cheaper solution to buying the EVO or Yoyo. A few other guys posted after him and agreed. Has anybody else hear of this technique?

Simon

Yes, it works great with no slipping. I first heard this tip about a year ago from 908SSP (alex ortner) and tried it on my s4 around the same time I purchased an evo slave and gp radial master. Out of the three, removing two springs reduced the pull the most. I switched the slave and MC first cause I was skeptical about removing two springs. The switch really did not reduce pull as much as I had hoped. So I then removed two of the springs and was very happy with the result, still a strong pull compared to the wet 620s clutch but much, much better than the stock dry clutch pull. But the other two items serve other purposes than just reducing clutch pull.
If your aim is to reduce clutch pull and your current slave is working correctly just remove two springs from the clutch (two springs that are across from each other, not side-by-side.). Its free. If you feel you need to reduce the pull more and/or your slave is leaking get an aftermarket slave in addition to removing two springs. GP radial master moves the clutch engagement point so you don't have to pull the lever in as far to shift/reach the friction point. Improves the feel a bit and reduces the pull a tad as well.

it works for effort but personally, i DID feel the clutch start to slip when GETTING ON THE GAS in the upper revs. but it hurts nothing to give it a try.

Ok, I may be getting out of line here but...My suggestion: go to Home Depot, buy a 2" spring clamp [orange ends, the kind you squeeze with your hand... about $2 bucks] Now, while sitting in traffic [if you don't ride a bike to work, if you ride a bike; do this while watching "Law and Order"] do 3 sets of 20 squeezes, each way [to and from work] after three weeks..you'll be like "what clutch?". Do both hands, and you'll beat everybody on the brakes, lap after lap, into turn 1.
Now, before you burn me to a crisp...remember, I'm sure you heard about the famous "Ducati clutch pull" before you bought one, and...you probably sat on the bike you purchased, and pulled it, before you bought it.
Honestly, I do this simple excercise all the time. I haven't had any thoughts about it since [besides...it's better stress relief than shooting the a$$hole who's driving you nuts in traffic anyhow] PLUS, you will look like Popeye, and chicks dig that!

in advance: ouch, you're hurting me.....

I pulled 2 springs on a fairly new Barnett pack and loved the reduced effort. (I commuted 120 miles a day, 60 miles each way, including 17 miles on the Washington Beltway Blade, which is about as bad as it gets anywhere in the COUNTRY, let alone Stanford. No offense! Some days it took me over 2 hours to get home, and no, I don't want a Burgman. )

However, like Strati, I did notice some slipping at higher RPMs, and I'm hardly the most aggressive rider here. It seems to me that a better way would be to put some kind of spacers, like thick washers, between the pressure plate and the posts on the basket on all 6 cap screws that fasten them together. Maybe 2-3mm. This would effectively reduce the spring pressure uniformly around the plate... I haven't tried it, and there may be interference issues w/ the clutch cover, but might be worth a try.

I hear you on the DC traffic, Bob. I grew up in Springfield, and my Mom still lives in Alexandria [over by the Beacon Mall]. Anyhow, in the interest of trying to actually be helpful here, I'll add this; I purchased a set of Barnett replacement springs to keep in my track box, and upon close inspection noticed that their springs were wound differently than the stock ones. The Barnett springs were longer, and to compensate for that, the retainer cups were deeper [by a few mm].
Now, I tried The barnett springs [just to make sure there were no issues] and found no difference in pull. I wonder though, if you were to use the deeper cups from the Barnett kit, and the stock springs, it would effectively release a few mm of pressure from all six springs evenly. That might work nicely. I honestly don't know if the Barnett cups will even fit into the stock springs, or the exact difference in length, but I will pull them out of my box tonight and do some measuring.
Bob, I tell people who complain about traffic up here that they won't know what traffic is until they've been on the Beltway @ 4:30 on a weekday. If you handle that regularly on a bike....

Now that's funny... I grew up in West Springfield; in Orange Hunt right off Huntsman Blvd. Went to school at Lake Braddock! And you're right; the only people who even have any idea of what traffic is like around here are from LA or NY.

Your idea sounds like a good one. It would seem to have the same effect as my spacer idea. Not so light as to allow slipping, but lighter. Hmmm. Let us know what you find out tonight.

If your lever is to hard to pull maybe you should try exercise or ride another type of motorcycle.

P.S. Don't take up water Skiing your hands well get tired

Classic! I graduated from WSHS '78. I spent a lot of time driving up and down Huntsman Blvd. Unbelievable how much Springfield has changed since then. What year did you escape from Lake Braddock?

I'll check the spring thing out tonight, and get back with a report for all concerned.

Graduated in 1982. And the bus (when i took it) drove right past West Springfield HS every morning and afternoon! Something about having to go around some train tracks or something...

I lived on Grey Fox, just off Huntsman, from about '69-'74; my Dad was made SAC of the FBI field office in Knoxville, TN, and we lived there for 2 years. Then he was promoted to Section Chief in DC, and we moved back into a house on Red Jacket...right around the corner from our old house! Same friends, schools, etc. Was pretty wild. Lived there 'til I left for college.

Looking forward to your report. And Califblue: If my left hand isn't stong enough from the exercises I already do regularly I doubt more will do any good. I'll just get sore.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Califblue &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If your lever is to hard to pull maybe you should try exercise or ride another type of motorcycle.

P.S. Don't take up water Skiing your hands well get tired</TD></TR></TABLE>

opinion noted, but remember we don't have lane sharing here in NC. So if I have to sit in bumper-to-bumper/stop and go traffic and I have a choice b/w the stock pull and something a little easier, I would pick easier everytime. Call me stupid if you like. I take backroads on my commute most of the time but I still have to sit in bumper to bumper traffic for 10-40 minutes a day, no matter which way a take. I don't care how much you masturbate or work out your clutch hand that shit gets old after about 5 minutes. 90% of the time I don't even think about the clutch hand, it doesn't bother me. Its just the commute home that's a bitch.

screw water skiing, I rock climb and trail ride which put much more of a strain on the hand than riding the ducati. I view questions about reducing clutch pull the same as people that ask about bar risers (no I don't have them on my bike), some people just like to change things, some have medical issues, etc.

Next time if you are not answering the topic posters question (or in this case bitching about a question he had), how about not posting.

I didnt know my original post was only the tip of the iceberg...

Also looking forward for the report.

Thanks
Simon

it was probably me on the other thread. try it, if it doesn't work go back. how hard can it be.

on a late 1.84 ratio primary drive bike (3 phase alt except 748) the clutch load is lower than the older 2:1 pd ratio my 851 has.

mine has different springs from std too, so 4 of them are heavier than 4 std ones. if you could add another plate or two to the pack that'd help stop it slipping with less pressure too. there's a few ways to play with them.

Well, my report is pretty pitiful... I dicovered:
1] my shop is a disorganized mess, with 748 and 750ss parts all jumbled together, and I need to do something about it.
2] I was wrong about the Barnett spring cups, they are the same depth as stock. the difference in spring length I mentioned is due to the fact that they are not for a dry clutch, they are 40mm free length [which is the proper length for wet clutch ducs.]
3]I did though, measure a spring cup that BCM sent me for racing applications [for a wet clutch] and it is much deeper [fully 6mm deeper]. Of course, I could not find the stock wet clutch cup [see #1], so I have no comparative measurement for you.

Sorry, I wish I had more input. Ultimately, I'm with all the other guys. Try it without 2 springs...if it works for your riding style [as in; how much time do you spend with the throttle whacked wide open?] you win.
I do like DesmoBob's idea of shimming between the cup and post. It sounds like an easy way to tune the tension, and guarantee uniform pressure.

I've run with 4 springs now for about 8 trackdays with no slipping. I don't know if it makes a difference but I have fairly new alloy clutch plates fitted.

Along with the Evo slave cylinder it makes it one of the lightest clutches I've ever used.

Several thoughts (wonderings) about clutches. I was taught to not hold in the clutch when stopped but to put it in neutral for anthing over, say about, 6 seconds. This was supposed to save the throwout bearing in a car. Is there a difference between a car and bike in this regard? Also I thought another reason for a lighter clutch pull is that when riding you keep minimal pressure and input on the bars, except countersteering. A harder clutch requires a bit of upset pressure on the bars when yanking on a hard clutch. So you can be smoother and more precise with a lighter clutch. True or false?