Just figured i would post my results for anyone looking to do this in the future. My stock clutch was slipping but engagement and progressiveness was nice. The pilot clutch looked ok and flat, the shoes looked ok and nothing looked terribly worn and from what i've read everything seemed to be ok. In retrospect i think it was just that the linings were very very old and the bike had been sitting for a number of years. I made the decision to order a multiplate setup from coventry spares. Build quality was nice, and installation was fairly straightforward at first. However, i discovered that the overall height of the clutch was about 1/4'' more than the stocker and consequently there wasnt enough adjustment for me to get the clutch to release. A call to coventry and John suggested i get a 1/4'' triumph clutch roller which i obtained locally and inserted between the two halves of my clutch pushrod, it gave me enough distance to get the clutch to release. My next issue was that even with all the slack taken out of the clutch cable, and everything adjusted to get the most throw out of the pushrod, i was still getting a pretty crunchy gear change and was having a lot of difficulty finding neutral. With another call to Coventry, John's son (cant remember his name) suggested i get a multiplate clutch adjuster to replace the factory pivot thing that threads from the outsite of the gearbox cover. The new one is flat instead of rounded and consequently gives you a little more throw on the pushrod. The kickstart cover needs to come off as the new one threads in from the inside. With everything adjusted, it works much better, neutral is much easier to find and gear changes no longer crunchy. It is worth noting that i am still at the limit of adjustment in my clutch cable with zero slack. I would suggest to anyone doing this swap that you order the roller and adjuster at the beginning....as i understand it they are not always needed but they are cheap and it will save you some waiting. Hope this helps someone in the future.
Coventry Spares mulitplate clutch experience.
- Thread starter usefulidiot
- Start date
Useful,
I made my own multi-plate clutch from a mixture of Vincent and Triumph components. I found that to get full lift, no silent engagement, and slack in the cable I needed to place a couple of washers between the cable abutment and the G50 as the movement of the clutch arm under the gear change cover was contacting it, the cable abutment.
Steven
I made my own multi-plate clutch from a mixture of Vincent and Triumph components. I found that to get full lift, no silent engagement, and slack in the cable I needed to place a couple of washers between the cable abutment and the G50 as the movement of the clutch arm under the gear change cover was contacting it, the cable abutment.
Steven
I do have the correct clutch lever according to john it's the bigger one don't remember what the measurement was and I'd read that before on the owners club main site
arrrrgh. Frustration. Out riding the other day and the bike is running great. I notice i'm having some more trouble than usual finding neutral again. Then i realize that i have more play at the clutch lever than i should. Upon Inspection, the little ball in the primary side adjuster has worn a ball shaped divot in the end of the clutch pushrod, creating more clearance in the system. I readjusted everything to create as much lift as possible without preloading the rod on the adjuster more than just a touch. Still very difficult to find neutral. I just dont think that this particular multiplate clutch setup is capable of functioning well with the given amount of travel in the system. My original clutch functioned well, just slipped. I originally made the decision to go with the multiplate as i was familiar with this setup and was intimidated by the stock clutch. I think i'm going to get the shoes relined and a new pilot friction plate and throw the old one back in with a new pushrod of course and see what happens.
Sounds as if the end was not properly hardened and annealed. A length of drill rod of the appropriate length and diameter hardened and annealed might be worth a try before throwing in the towel.
Steven
Hi UI, You're only having the same learning curve we converts to multi-plate have already been through. Steven's right about the spacer (washers), it doesn't matter how much travel you've got, the end of G94 (see MO25) can still be the limiting factor.
If the shaft has worn as much as you say, I suspect "no slack in the cable" translates as "tension on the pushrod" and it's turning all or most of the time causing the wear. Put another (and another) roller in to make the pushrod the right length (or make another pushrod from silver steel) and make sure you've always got play in the cable.
I put a small flanged bearing in the pressure plate on mine (similar clutch to Stevens by the sounds of it), this means that the bearing turns when the clutch is disengaged, not the pushrod.
Good luck
H
If the shaft has worn as much as you say, I suspect "no slack in the cable" translates as "tension on the pushrod" and it's turning all or most of the time causing the wear. Put another (and another) roller in to make the pushrod the right length (or make another pushrod from silver steel) and make sure you've always got play in the cable.
I put a small flanged bearing in the pressure plate on mine (similar clutch to Stevens by the sounds of it), this means that the bearing turns when the clutch is disengaged, not the pushrod.
Good luck
H
I like the bearing idea for sure. Seems like if i could do that i could keep what i had without wearing the pushrod out. I see what you guys mean about the washers and G94, but i'm approaching it not quite contacting it. The entire travel of the clutch lever is contributing to lift, and it still isnt as good as it should be. So in my case my particular limiting factor is the actual length of travel of the clutch lever. I read somewhere, i believe from big sid but not positive, that part of the perch could be ground down to create like 1/8'' or so more total travel in the lever. Gonna go look for that...
If you do not already have one fitted the VOC Spares Co sell a ET27/2SS Clutch Adjuster for a multi plate clutch. This gives a little more lift on the clutch by moving the pivot point on the G91 lever. The G1 Kick Start cover has to be removed to fit the ET27/2SS as the end is larger than the tapped hole in the G1.
I fitted an ET27/2SS when I was using a multi plate clutch and although increase in lift is small it did make a difference. Not expensive at £7.21 so worth a try.
Other things that improved the multi plate clutch was making sure that the pressure plate lifts square. Sometimes the springs are not of an equal strength causing drag because the pressure plate then "tips"a little to one side. This can sometimes be improved by checking that the springs are all the same length/pressure and swapping the order of the springs.
Another older "dodge" while you are experimenting with the push rod length is to make up a shorter pushrod and fit a suitably sized valve at the clutch end. This also helped my pressure plate to lift square as the outer diameter of the valve head makes it more difficult for the pressure plate to tip unlike the point contact of the 1/4" end of the pushrod.
Having said all that I eventually fitted the original Vincent clutch. It is a bit complicated to understand at first but once set correctly it is a very nice light clutch.
I fitted an ET27/2SS when I was using a multi plate clutch and although increase in lift is small it did make a difference. Not expensive at £7.21 so worth a try.
Other things that improved the multi plate clutch was making sure that the pressure plate lifts square. Sometimes the springs are not of an equal strength causing drag because the pressure plate then "tips"a little to one side. This can sometimes be improved by checking that the springs are all the same length/pressure and swapping the order of the springs.
Another older "dodge" while you are experimenting with the push rod length is to make up a shorter pushrod and fit a suitably sized valve at the clutch end. This also helped my pressure plate to lift square as the outer diameter of the valve head makes it more difficult for the pressure plate to tip unlike the point contact of the 1/4" end of the pushrod.
Having said all that I eventually fitted the original Vincent clutch. It is a bit complicated to understand at first but once set correctly it is a very nice light clutch.
Yep, done that. Be careful working on the lever, you need long hands to span the extra reach, and the bite point is often in the wrong place.
A good clutch is very underrated when it comes to rideability, especially at low speeds.
H