Clutch Slips in higher rpm's 2-up

Hey!

So a friend had been wanting to go on a ride, so the other night I took her on one. We had dinner at this place in the country so the driveway is on a 55 mph road. We turned out of the driveway and I told her to hang on.

I accelerated in first pretty quickly but at about 40 mph the clutch slipped and the revs just rocketed. I shifted into 2nd and it caught again, but it just kinda surprised me.

I'm like 180lbs and she's 120-30ish so Its not like it was thatttt heavy of a load. This has never happened to me by myself though.

Not enough Oil? Worn friction plates? Springs worn? Is it something that i have to replace or is it something that I can clean?

Thanks guys!!

 

I'd try cable adjuster in first instance, if hanging up and not returning fully even the slightest touch on the cluch lever will cause revs to jump and clutch to slip.

As this is the easiest option before removing basket it must be worth a try?

 

How long have you had the bike, how many miles on it? I'm assuming you haven't replaced the clutch.

Cable adjustment is the first step, and RickCoMatic wrote a thread on it (I think it's in his signature). Bear in mind that if you cannot adjust for the slippage it, then it's time for a new clutch.

Also note that if you clutch is slipping at all, even if you don't "notice" it, then you can overheat it and warp the metal drive plates, so the longer you put off fixing the problem, the more parts you'll need to replace. Replacing a clutch is easy (and BigFitz52 wrote a great How-To), so don't put it off if it's required.

 

what kinda cost are we talking? just ballpark, i'll hit up len if thats what needs to be done.

The bike has 14k on it, ive had it since november of last year.

 

Replacing clutch plates would cost £30-40 depending on where you buy them (although Yam parts from a dealer could be more). In the meantime, you'll only be overheating the clutch if you slip it, so if this is the first time and it doesn't slip in normal use, the work may not be very urgent. 14 K is not many miles to have covered before he clutch is worn out unless it has been used hard or someone has been very hesitant and driven with theeir hand partly on the clutch all the time.

If you pay someone else to do the job it will probably cost about £100. They'll charge you a little more for the plates than you could hunt them out for, labour should be half an hour. You'll need a gasket and an oil change.

 

It's reminding you that it needs attention too.

It's thirty years old-- rebuild it. All you should need are new friction plates and springs unless it's been hammered.

Clutch friction plates are a collection of tiny brake pads; any of the time your bike spent sitting, the clutch was half in and half out of the oil. Half of those little pads dried out, the other half became oil-petrified. Now that you're getting them hot and putting them under load, they're starting to glaze over and/or crumble. The symptoms begin under the highest loads; but it will slip more and more. If you wait, you'll just end up needing plain plates too.

 

I haven't had any problems with my XJ clutch. I had a Kaw that was borrowed to ride in a Christmas parade. The rider constantly reved and slipped the clutch. When I rode it the next day, it was slipping only under load. I thought I was going to have to replace the discs, but actually only changed the oil, and and adjusted the clutch and slippage disappeared.

Now mind you, any slipping at all is sign the discs are on there way out, but you might only need some adjusting and get more riding out of it. There is no real formula for how many times the clutch can be adjusted before replacement is needed. If adjustments won't stop the slipping, then replace.

Not sure about the cost. PM Len and ask for quote.

 

Don't forget a new gasket! The old one WON'T come off in one piece!
I played around for a while adjusting before biting the bullet, and 3 of my plane plates were warped out of spec. It had 27k miles on the clock when I bought it, and I have no idea of the history before that.

 

Do yourself a favor and get some Permatex gasket remover. It's gonna be a PITA otherwise. Well, it might be a PITA either way, but it'll be less of one with the gasket remover.

 

That stuff will also take off the clearcoat, so if you weren't planning to strip and polish the cover, you will be.

I use a dull chisel-blade X-acto knife as a mini-gasket scraper to good effect.

 

It didn't hurt the clear coat on mine. I applied it three times in total while working on that gasket, each time leaving it on for 15-20 minutes.

 

1st thing, check the cable to be sure it wasn't a 1 X thing....
what kind of oil do you use?
It is REALLY important to ONLY use oil that is approved for bikes with wet clutches!!!
I had a friend who used some kind of friction modifiers in his oil and his clutch started to slip... he listened and changed the oil and never had another problem with his clutch....
knock on wood