"Grabby" '99 KX250 Clutch...

[the_monk]

Howdy. First post and all.

I just purchased a pretty clean 1999 KX250. When starting out from a complete stop nice and smoothly, the bike jerks and shudders as the clutch is engaging. The best way I can describe it is like a driving a drag car with a racing clutch in it. There is a pretty harsh chatter. But, if the bike is rolling, there’s no problem. I can lug the bike along in first, ride the clutch to get the revs up with no problem. It seems to be only when I’m starting out.

I would assume that this wouldn't be a problem for most folks, but I'm a bit wet behind the ears, which means there's lots of stops/starts/falls in the really tight stuff we ride in.

I've tried different tranny oil. The clutch plates look brand new. No bluing of the steel plates. The pressure plate looks brand new too. The teeth on both the basket and the hub are almost perfectly smooth.

Now for the scariest part: a guy I know described my problem to me perfectly. It turns out, one of his buddy's '99 KX had the same problem. He tried a new clutch, basket, et al to no avail.

Anyhoo, does anybody have any ideas or suggestions? Anything else I should try (aside from not being such a pansy and just gas it)?

Thanks for any and all help!

 

[Senior KX Rider]

My 99 had a tendency to do that too. I started running TYPE F ATF in the gearbox and cured it completely. If all of your clutch components are in good shape ( the Kaws clutch baskets are bad for getting grooved) it may be worth a try.

 

[VB Racing]

Try lubing your clutch cable also, a binding cable will also cause jerkiness.

 

[the_monk]

Thanks Senior. I'll try that. There was a thick red fluid in there that resembled some of the synthetics I've used before. I switched to something lighter (the SG/SF motor oil that the manual referred to). I'll stop by the auto parts store and pick up some ATF tonight. As far as the basked being grooved, the drive side of the basked has the sharpened edge to it from a little bit of wear, but the fingers on the basket are very smooth. Running your finger tip/nail along them reveals one tiny nick on one of the fingers. The grooves in the hub are also smooth to the touch.

And thanks VB. It never occurred to me to lube the cable.

 

[the_monk]

Update: Tried the cable lube first, but that didn't seem to help (even though it needed it). Then tried the ATF. That worked wonders. Now, there's very little stutter when going into first. It's still there a little, but I only noticed it 2 times in about 3.5 hours of riding.

Thanks for the great tips!

 

[Senior KX Rider]

The KXs seem to like ATF :) I change it more frequently and have had zero reliability problems with my 310. It has run ATF for about 4 years