new clutch cable problems
 

I just replaced my clutch cable and now I can't get the right feel back in the lever. It is stiffer than it was, but not because there is tension in the cable, it feels mushy and slow. When I release the lever it doesn't spring back all the way either.

I tried adjusting it the way the owner's manual says to, but if I move the lever adjustment all the way in, I can't get the bottom adjustment to pull the cable tight enough. On the lower adjustment, the manual says to loosen both lock nuts then spin the adjuster nut. What is that supposed to do? All mine does is spin freely.

In this pic, the top arrow points at the adjusting nut that spins freely and the bottom two arrows point at the lock nuts that are adjusted all the way up.
http://img94.echo.cx/img94/6827/may1st72kb.jpg

Any suggestions?

First disconnect the cable at both ends and make sure that your new cable isn't stiff/damaged - even with a new one it's not unknown - and make sure that it follows a route that doesn't put any tight bends or kinks in it, take care over this, it makes a big difference, not just to the feel of the clutch but also to the life of the cable.

That being well, make sure that the operating arm is at the bottom of it's travel, loosen the locknut and turn the centre screw in until it meets resistance and then back it out a tiny bit (1/8 of a turn), refit the cable ends and turn the lever adjuster nearly all the way in - toward maximium cable slack - and with the lower adjuster, set the cable slack roughly right, about 3/8"-1/2" at the tip of the lever, the upper of the two nuts in your picture is the adjuster nut - the arrow on the right, when that's right hold the adjuster so it doesn't move and nip up the lower nut - the locknut. Turn the bars from lock to lock and ensure that there is a little play at the end of the lever all the way through the travel of the steering, make fine adjustments with the lever adjuster.

While your there, may be worth putting some lube on that chain... looks very dry... :roll: :wink:

Thanks for the how-to for the clutch adjustment. I'll try it tomorrow. (University has been seriously infringing on my riding time :wink: )


Yeah, I just cleaned it a couple of days ago so it has only had one shot of chain wax.