Clutch not disengaging?

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ack
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Clutch not disengaging?

Post by ack »

My son was riding the KDX in the backyard, really slowly, and dumped it on the left side. Picked it up, and the clutch lever has hardly any tension on it. The clutch lever perch and barkbuster had been pushed upward from the impact. I can shift through the gears, and can feel the trans & counter-sprocket engage when shifting out of neutral into 1st or 2nd, yet the drive will not engage.

Pulling the clutch lever moves the actuator on the clutch, so we know the cable isn't broken.

Basically, it acts like the clutch is always engaged (lever pulled), but not releasing.

My other 2T has a hydraulic clutch that I know inside and out, but I don't know much about the mechanical clutch systems

What should I expect when I open the clutch cover?

Thanks,
Steve
Steve
Raleigh, NC
'05 KDX 220, '00 KTM 200 MXC, '04 KLR 650, '03 WR450
Just learnin' and looking to have fun.
bmcd308
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Post by bmcd308 »

I bet that what has happened is that the teeth on the clutch wheel hung up on the teeth on the clutch hub such that the clutch is locked in the fully engaged position. To fix it you will have to pull the cover, take the 4 bolts off that are over the springs, then thread two of the screws back into their holes without the springs or the pressure plate. They will act like handles that will let you wiggle the wheel up to engage the teeth in the hub. If you feel it rotate just a little then click into place, you will know that was it.

I have been having problems trying to install an autoclutch, and in experimenting with different ways to put it together, I have created and solved this problem several times.

If that's not it, I have no other guess.
bmcd308
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Post by bmcd308 »

Oh, and the KDX clutch is very simple. Lay the bike on its left side with the fuel hoses over a catch pan with the petcock off. Gas will run out the carb drains. It needs to be leaned a little past 45 degrees for the oil not to run out when you take the cover off.

Use a long screwdriver hooked under the footpeg and under the frame to hold the brake pedal down so that the brake pedal is not in the way of the clutch cover.

Loosen the adjusters (hide threads) by the lever and in the cable by the numberplate to put a little slack in the cable to give you a little more room down at the bottom to pull the cover off.

Remove the clutch cover bolts. Note which one has a washer. If you carefully pull the cover straight off so that it just clears the little pins that stick out of the case, you can flip the bottom of the cover up over the top of the cover and sit the clutch cover on top of the transmission under the pipe just in front of the kickstarter (the inside of the oil glass will be facing you at the top, and the front will still be at the front), and you won't have to deal with unhooking the clutch cable, which (at least for me) requires removing the lever.

If you can't wiggle it back together, you will have to undo the main bolt in the center of the clutch with a rattle gun and reassemble the clutch pack.

There is a good series of photos of the inside of the clutch on Thumpertalk - search in the KDX forum for Dyna Ring and there will be a thread with a name that lets you know it has pictures.

Brent
ack
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Post by ack »

Brent - thanks for the help. Your posts are very well written and easy to understand.
What I did was loosen the clutch cable up at the lever enough for me to disconnect the cable end from the actuator over the clutch.

After taking it off, I can tell that the arm did not sit quite right, so I gave it a shot with the back of a screwdriver. I heard the actuator snap back in to place. I was then able to get full range of motion out of the actuator arm.

I put the cable back on and tested it, but I still wasn't getting any resistance. I started pumping the clutch lever and I heard a click down by the clutch (I think it came from within).
I then got all the resistance back in the clutch. I started it, clutched, put it in gear and it all worked again normally. Rode it for about 15 minutes and did lots of shifting. All seems good.

I am going to use your posts as a guide when I do the top-end this summer. That will be a good time to dig into the clutch and see condition everything is in.

Thanks for taking the time to respond. Much appreciated.
Steve
Steve
Raleigh, NC
'05 KDX 220, '00 KTM 200 MXC, '04 KLR 650, '03 WR450
Just learnin' and looking to have fun.
michael
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Location: australia

Post by michael »

>|<>QBB<
bmcd308 wrote:Oh, and the KDX clutch is very simple. Lay the bike on its left side with the fuel hoses over a catch pan with the petcock off. Gas will run out the carb drains. It needs to be leaned a little past 45 degrees for the oil not to run out when you take the cover off.

Use a long screwdriver hooked under the footpeg and under the frame to hold the brake pedal down so that the brake pedal is not in the way of the clutch cover.

Loosen the adjusters (hide threads) by the lever and in the cable by the numberplate to put a little slack in the cable to give you a little more room down at the bottom to pull the cover off.

Remove the clutch cover bolts. Note which one has a washer. If you carefully pull the cover straight off so that it just clears the little pins that stick out of the case, you can flip the bottom of the cover up over the top of the cover and sit the clutch cover on top of the transmission under the pipe just in front of the kickstarter (the inside of the oil glass will be facing you at the top, and the front will still be at the front), and you won't have to deal with unhooking the clutch cable, which (at least for me) requires removing the lever.

If you can't wiggle it back together, you will have to undo the main bolt in the center of the clutch with a rattle gun and reassemble the clutch pack.

There is a good series of photos of the inside of the clutch on thumperpud - search in the KDX forum for Dyna Ring and there will be a thread with a name that lets you know it has pictures.

Brent

Whats the washer for? myne dont have one.....
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