clutch drag

Jun 7, 2006
43
0
dragging clutch

Hey. I have a '95 KX125 and the clutch is dragging pretty bad. Start the bike in neutral and pull clutch and shift to first the bike lurches and dies. Same thing if I try to skip to second from neutral. I'm pretty sure that they call this clutch drag but I wanted to know the most likely problem, and if it is expensive to fix. I know what the manual says, and it says a lot. I just wanted someone with experience with this to give me some advice before I go taking things apart. Thanks alot.
 

adamant

Member
Mar 20, 2006
149
0
Possable causes are miss adjusted lever or arm worn clutch & hubbs pressure plates & springs or a wrong gear oil would make the plates stick
 
Jun 7, 2006
43
0
hi all.. I have bad clutch drag, bike moves with clutch in, stalls when shifted out of nuetral, the whole nine yards. yes i know there are many posts about this, but i've had this problem for a long time. I brought all my pieces from my clutch to a kawasaki mechanic and he said everything looked good. I shaved the basket and he thought I did a great job. anybody ever heard of anything unusual that can cause drag? The mechanic ran out of ideas, he asked me to bring it in, but I don't have that kind of money right now. thanks for any help.
 

psd

Member
Aug 4, 2006
15
0
Would excess heat, from say excess slippage cause warpage of steels/fibers? Yesterday my clutch cable got caught on a bolt and that added a little extra tension and my clutch was slipping bad. Fixed that and thought everything was all good, nope. Same story as above, clutch adjusted to the extreme to the point that it rolls easy in gear, put in gear when running and it just slips like crazy if you keep it from dying.
 

psd

Member
Aug 4, 2006
15
0
I got her working again temporarily. Took a file to the basket and all is good,...sort of.
 
Jun 7, 2006
43
0
yea, he checked out every piece i could think of, inluding the frictions and steels. he specifically looked for warpage in them.
 

BSWIFT

Sponsoring Member
N. Texas SP
LIFETIME SPONSOR
Nov 25, 1999
7,926
43
The problem you discribe has three common causes.
1. The clutch basket is "notched".
2. The cable is improperly adjusted.
3. The plates are warped.
The easiest check is the cable. You should be able to put a dime between the lever and the perch without putting any pressure on the cable. Make adjustments at the perch or the sleeve to acheive the proper free play.
If you have checked the basket AND filed off the "notches" you can only expect a modest improvement AND you can only do this once. I have found that when you do this, you should "flip" the fiber plates over and insure that the tangs have no sharp edges on them. If the inner hub is notched, you will have to change it out. Filing the splines on the hub can be done but you will weaken the hub and will likely have a catastrophic failure.
A dial caliper and a perfectly flat surface is the only way to determine if your metal plates are warped. Excessive slipping will cause the plates to overheat (burn) and should be readily visable. The next thing to look at is the pressure plate. Determining if this part is warped will likly take someone with special equipment. This is probably the least likely problem and if it comes down to this, replace the hub rather than pay someone to tell you it is warped.
The next possible problem for a dragging clutch is the thickness of the clutch pack. Using dial calipers, check each fiber and metal disc in several locations. Write the measurement down and add them up. Assertain the maximum clutch pack thicness and see if you are within specs.
If you were experiencing slipping, I would check the springs but a dragging issue is a different problem. Finally, the actuator lever and push rod could be worn. This problem will not show itself until all of the other possibilities are elimenated. If this is the problem, a properly adjusted cable, plates within spec, and a hub/basket/pressure plate in good condition will show that the clutch pack is not spreading sufficiently to allow slippage with the cutch engaged.
Most of the things I've discribed can be done easily but an experienced mechanic maybe your best bet. Dirt bikes are fun but they take money to keep them in tip-top shape.
Good luck. If any of my discriptions are wrong, I'm sure other members will correct them. I don't claim to be an expert, just sharing my experience and this info is general and NOT bike specific.
 
Jun 7, 2006
43
0
In response to your information, though I don't know for sure, I think all if it is correct because I have been reading through all sorts of threads and hearing that mechanic talk about it. Anyways, thanks a lot for the great post. I just rebuilt the motor so it's about time to get back to the clutch. Thanks again.
 

Josherichy

Member
Sep 23, 2006
125
0
I had the same problem and we took the clutch apart, one of the plates was bakwards and when put back together it worked fine
 
Jun 7, 2006
43
0
I was told that the clutch plates didn't have a front and back. just as long as they are in the right order.
 

MC_NickP

Member
Nov 2, 2009
9
0
yea is there a front and back? i am having some drag problems. filed the basket, but still having problems and i run kawasaki wet clutch gear oil
 
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