Clutch adjustment

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iav8 · #1 Unread post by **iav8** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 2:09 am

After lubing the clutch cable on my CM200T, the bike creeps forward when shifting from nuetral into 1st gear. There was always a "clunk," but it never felt like this before. I've tried the fine adjustment (at the lever end) but it does not seem to make a difference either way: it just makes for less free play and harder to pull the clutch lever. Is this something that I should worry about? If so, how can I fix it?

I hope I am not getting to be too much of a pest in the maintenance forum, but this is the first time that I've owned motorcycles and I am still waiting for the service manuals to arrive... hopefully I can "give back" after I've accumulated some experience.

ejshotgun · #2 Unread post by **ejshotgun** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 3:18 am

Do you have the manual? I always get the manual of any Bike that I have or that I'm going to be doing any maintenance on. Saves on future headaches.
I'm not sure on your Bike but there should be a way to adjust your clutch. What you described is adjusting the play of the clutch lever not the actual clutch.

iav8 · #3 Unread post by **iav8** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 4:56 am

I have the aftermarket manual on order... not sure if I will get the "official" manual yet. Yes, I understand that the clutch lever and cable are at issue (or at least that I what I hope). I understand from the owner manual that I need to keep a bit of "play" at the lever. I adjust the called for amount and have the bit of creep. I thought that if I took out the "play" that the lever would pull the clutch further thus taking out the creep, but this was not the case. Note that I only did this as a diagnostic. I put the requisite amout of free play back into the lever.

flynrider · #4 Unread post by **flynrider** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 7:28 am

Since neither of us have a manual for your bike, let's play it by ear

If you pull the lever all the way in, yet the bike still wants to move forward, that's a sign that your cable is not pulling far enough to fully disengage the clutch. If your bike is like most of my old ones, the adjustment at the handlebar is for adjusting the amount of play in the lever. It won't fix this problem. Follow your cable down towards the engine and about halfway down, you should see a pair of adjustment nuts on the cable. These are used to adjust the length of the pull. The usual setup is two longish nuts, each with a locknut. What you want to do is adjust these so that they are farther away from each other. This effectively makes the cable housing longer, giving you slightly more pull.

If you're cable doesn't sound like what I've described above, then we're out of luck.

iav8 · #5 Unread post by **iav8** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 8:38 am

So, here is the closest thing I could find to what you describe. It is right at the end of the cable. As I adjust it to make it "longer" it does appear to pull the clutch lever. However, after testing, the bike still has some creep. Couldn't over-adjusting this cause slipping? Is is possible that the creep in first is normal? I should note that it does not stall or even load up the engine at idle... am I too sensitive?

We got the bike last fall; rode it for a bit; had a fall service done and stored it for the winter. Could the oil change make a difference?

Since this adjustment didn't make much difference I'm headed back to "shorten" it to about where it was before... Thanks for the help - any other suggestions?

flynrider · #6 Unread post by **flynrider** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 9:16 am

That's the doohickey I was talking about. It should have increased the pull distance. Are you saying that there was absolutely no change when you adjusted it out? If that's the case, I'd venture to guess that you're fully disengaging the clutch.

It's normal for a bike to have a small bit of creep when you put it in gear with the clutch pulled. It keeps the chain taut, so that it won't suddenly snap up the slack when you let out the clutch. Generally, it should be enough to spin the rear tire slowly when it's on the centerstand, but it shouldn't be moving the bike forward if the tire and your feet are on the ground. You also shouldn't notice much of an rpm drop. If that sounds like what you're experiencing, then it's normal.

If you still have suspicions, when you get your repair manual, it should have the complete clutch adjusting procedure which will include both cable adjustments, and possibly and adjustment for the little lever that the cable actuates.

Oh yeah, it's probably not related to your oil. Oil will only cause this issue if it is so cold that the oil is extremely thick. Generally not a problem if it's above freezing.

iav8 · #7 Unread post by **iav8** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 9:23 am

Thanks for your help, flyinrider, and also for being so quick... it sounds like this is just normal. I'll check against the manual when it arrives. But for now it sounds like my wife is ready for a long overdue first spring ride!

iav8 · #8 Unread post by **iav8** » Fri Apr 14, 2006 2:47 am

Just to wrap up this thread: I finally got the Clymer manual in the mail yesterday. It did detail the adjustment on the two ends of the clutch cable but the focus was only on getting the correct amount of free play in the clutch lever. In response to the symptom of creeping it suggests ensuring that there is not too much free play in the clutch lever. In my case the creep occurs even with all the free play taken out of the cable. This was where (with flyinrider's help) I decided that the creeping was normal. The other Clymer suggestion was to check for indentation in the clutch drum and burrs on the clutch plate tounges. I'll not likely be doing this unless things get much worse. Cheers, and thank for the help!