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slipping clutch

  • Thread starter Thread starter thr3shold
  • Start date Start date
T

thr3shold

Guest
I've noticed that my bike will almost free rev after I yank on the throttle and get up past a certain rpm in lower gears. I am assuming it is the clutch slipping. I've got a 1980 GS1100ET, can anyone tell me about how much good clutches go, which ones are good, and how long/how hard is it to replace? I've got a 4 into 1 header, supertrapp muffler, K&n pods and 33mm smoothbore roundslide carbs on it, so it has a little bit extra power, but nothing crazy.
Thanks.
 
You can get the clutch plates/springs/gasket for probably $150 total (or less) mail order (Chaparral, Motorcycle Accessory Warehouse). Get heavy duty clutch springs, Barnett makes them. THe job is easy, hardest part is scraping the gasket, IMO. Not that big a deal.

Tom
 
You need to check the clutch plates and springs for wear. The specifications for these parts are in the manual and its pretty easy to do. You will need a pair of caliphers though.

If the clutch basket has grooves from the clutch plates, it will need to be replaced. If there are no grooves, I wouldn't replace it unless you hear bad noises coming from it.

I would replace with stock Suzuki parts, they seem to work very well for non-racing applications. If you plan on racing it, that is another story and the cluch and crank will need a lot of modifiactions. That = $$.

As was posted earlier, not a very big job at all.

One other think that should be said. The clutch slipping could be due to oil additives. If this is a new bike to you, then there may be a possibility that someone added STP or similar.
 
I agree with Swanny. Stock plates and springs are the way to go. I had a Barnett clutch and heavy duty springs in my 1100 and it made shifting and clutch pull harder. My local dealer whom I trust, recommended the stock items and after the installation ... ahhhh, just like new.
 
Yep. Change the clutch plates and springs. The job is easy and takes about an hour as you have to put the new plates in an oil bath.

I would stay away from those heavy duty springs. I put them in once and my left arm hurt for days after using the clutch. I let them sit for some time and even left the clutch lever pulled in a whole night to soften the springs. I did not help.

Use stock springs. Alternatively shimming the old springs is a sollution (using spark plug shims or the like).
 
castrol

castrol

I've heard people mention oil as being a possible cause of clutch slipping so I'm going to post what I use and hear what you think of it. If I remember correctly, I use Castrol fully synthetic 10w40 motorcycle oil, nothing else. Let me know, thanks.
 
Re: castrol

Re: castrol

thr3shold said:
I've heard people mention oil as being a possible cause of clutch slipping so I'm going to post what I use and hear what you think of it. If I remember correctly, I use Castrol fully synthetic 10w40 motorcycle oil, nothing else. Let me know, thanks.
Click to expand...


I put syn in a Yamaha 1100 and the clutch slipped ever since. It did have around 21,000 on it so it was probably getting weak anyhow, but it really slipped bad after that. I had an 82 1100g once too and the clutch started slipping a bit, it turned out that the cable was sticking and not letting it fully engage.
 
I've used full synthetic or synthetic blend almost the entire life of my bike and never had a problem.
 
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