Clutch cable and suspesnion adjustment questions....aka welcome to the newbie hour

[ebrake]

Ok so earlier last week I noticed my clutch cable was rubbing. I repaired with some heavy duty shrink tubing and rerouted it, trying a couple different ways to buy me some more slack for my Rox Risers.

The way I have it routed now, there is significantly more slack in the cable than the way it was routed stock. I have it coming off the clutch and going directly forward and up past the outside of the fan and popping through the fairing below the coolant overflow tank. Not ideal as it is exposed and looks bad but stock has a gnarly rub point and the route that another user posted a video of does not let my clutch full disengage at all, like it's baaad news bears tight and if I gave it gas RPMs would spike toward red line, fall and then acceleration would happen slowly.

BUT I still feel like my clutch is not fully disengaging and my friction zone has moved further toward the end of the lever travel. It was also a tight squeeze to get the thing reinstalled on the lever side.

I checked my suspicions by hooking the cable up with it hanging free on the outside of the bike and the friction zone is completely different and starts to engage early and with vigor. I observed that it was fully disengaging at the hook up down at the clutch end and it was extremely easy to install the cable.

I am thinking I just need a longer cable, or I damaged my current one somehow. Because the way I routed it is extremely more direct and slack than stock. Unless there is an adjustment that can be made. I have been looking at all the pieces involved and I am not sure what/how to adjust....What do you guys think?


Also any tips on how to adjust suspension preload? I tried the spanner and tried the hammer/screw driver method briefly without much luck....but I am generally sort of reluctant to hit expensive things with hammers hahah

 

[krussell]

Also any tips on how to adjust suspension preload? I tried the spanner and tried the hammer/screw driver method briefly without much luck....but I am generally sort of reluctant to hit expensive things with hammers hahah

When I had my 600 mile service on my Strada last year I asked the dealer to give it a couple of clicks. I was out in the retail area of the shop and heard the hammer/drift approach being applied. Definitely sounded like it required more enthusiasm than I'm generally comfortable with.

 

[oregonsage]

Sounds like the rear spring preload being adjusted. Hammer and drift to both loosen lock ring and then re-tighten after adjustment.
Dont watch housebuilding while the walls are open...that has a similar effect on most people...lots of 'creative destruction' going on.

 

[AUS_TR650]

Also any tips on how to adjust suspension preload? I tried the spanner and tried the hammer/screw driver method briefly without much luck....but I am generally sort of reluctant to hit expensive things with hammers hahah

Did you do this with the wheel jacked up/suspension unloaded? Just make sure you don't spear the fuel tank. The spanner is useless...

 

[nev..]

BUT I still feel like my clutch is not fully disengaging and my friction zone has moved further toward the end of the lever travel. It was also a tight squeeze to get the thing reinstalled on the lever side.


I am thinking I just need a longer cable, or I damaged my current one somehow. Because the way I routed it is extremely more direct and slack than stock. Unless there is an adjustment that can be made. I have been looking at all the pieces involved and I am not sure what/how to adjust....What do you guys think?

I had the same issue last weekend when I rerouted my cable. At the engine end, did you mark the spot where the cable clamps onto the shaft before you removed it? I did and I found it almost impossible to reinstall onto the same position on the shaft without loosening the cable a bit. At the lever end of the cable there is a rubber boot. Slide that down the cable and it will reveal the adjuster. Screw in to loosen and out to tighten. I had to tweak the tension a couple of times after rerouting the cable.

 

[Lekolite]

Was gonna say, as the poster of the video, I had to readjust the cable fully at the lever. Loosened it up gave a couple of pulls, then at the guidance of my buddy Next, we tightened until there was about a dimes worth of play, ie you pull the handle a bit and nothing happens on the clutch end.

 

[DirtyOldMan]

Did you do this with the wheel jacked up/suspension unloaded? Just make sure you don't spear the fuel tank. The spanner is useless...

Likewise, the spanner is worse than useless. A long screwdriver and a ball pein hammer worked for me.
Still can't get used to the fuel being down there, glad it wasn't on my mind at the time or I'da poked a hold in it sure as heck.

 

[ebrake]

Thanks for the responses everyone, very helpful. Upon reading them, I believe what I need to do is readjust the connection at the engine, by removing that clamp from the splined post so that the cable can have more length, as my adjuster at the lever was already as loose(aka screwed down all the way) as it could go. Simple enough I suppose. Unless there is something I need to keep an eye out for when removing that clamp from the splined post? (I actually didn't remove that when I took the cable off, I did it backwards and removed the clutch lever) The last time I messed around with something that looked similar to what s going on down there it was a rear drum brake and it was internally spring loaded and a pain to get back in the right exact position for the brake to actuate correctly, I don't think it would be the same with the clutch but it never hurts to ask dumb questions.

As far as the suspension adjustment goes, yes I had her up on the lift, but I guess I just wasn't hitting hard enough with the hammer. But if you guys saw it takes some force, I'll give her.

 

[mag00]

Make absolutely sure you are going the right direction Depending on how you look at things, lefty loosy righty tighty as you face it from the end.