No resistance with clutch

velocityflier16 · Apr 26, 2015

Good morning everyone,
I was heading out to escort the OKC memorial marathon this morning and I had no clutch resistance. I did well over 500 miles yesterday to the RTE in Kansas and had no problems. It's a real disappointment this had to happen today but a blessing in disguise it happened at my house.

Does anyone have a clue what it may be? I talked to Keith earlier and he thought it may be the master cylinder. There is no leaking fluid or bubble in the reservoir window.

Mellow · Apr 26, 2015

The clutch fluid is easy to bleed so I'd give that a shot first just in case there's air in the system.

Kevin_56 · Apr 26, 2015

Like Joe said easy to do if you have done brakes/clutch before. It can be done the old fashion way by pulling the clutch slowly in. Loosening the bleed nipple and re-tighten nipple before the clutch lever fully stops moving. Release lever and reapply pressure, loosen - tighten routine till you feel you have ran about one reservoir of fluid through the lines. The nipple is behind the long lower black cowl that runs from the front of the bike back to the rear pegs on the LEFT SIDE.

vinny · Apr 26, 2015

When you said there is "no bubble" in the window... is that because the fluid level is maxed, or is the fluid gone? Fluid present, check the master cylinder, then the slave. It's hard to believe air got into the system if it's been trouble free for many miles unless the fluid has been forced out. If no fluid, refill and the source of the leak will reveal itself.

Mellow · Apr 26, 2015

Great article from Mark aka Milehigh here:
Clutch Fluid Replacement
You don't need a special bleeder as Kevin stated, just a tube to keep the fluid away from the bike and in a container and the old-school technique will work just fine for this.

Being that it is an ex-police bike, clutch issues are not a surprise if it is that.

velocityflier16 · Apr 26, 2015

There is plenty of fluid in the reservoir as it was just changed Monday at the dealership. I have not done any clutch/brake type maintenance on the bike. I will try to bleed the line later when it is light outside. I did not mention it's a PA model 1300.

Kevin_56 · Apr 26, 2015

;1848127]Unless it is a linked system[/quote]

Clutch is not linked.

Kevin_56 · Apr 26, 2015

velocityflier16 said:
There is plenty of fluid in the reservoir as it was just changed Monday at the dealership.

Hmmm, Bleed the clutch if you feel comfortable in trying that.

Mellow · Apr 26, 2015

velocityflier16 said:
There is plenty of fluid in the reservoir as it was just changed Monday at the dealership. I have not done any clutch/brake type maintenance on the bike. I will try to bleed the line later when it is light outside. I did not mention it's a PA model 1300.

Ah... well, most things mess up after someone does 'something'.. .lol So, another bleed would definitely be my 1st step. Don't assume because the dealership did it that they did it correctly. Some do and some don't.

dduelin · Apr 26, 2015

Just because the dealership worked on it a few days ago doesn't mean the reservoir is full. Trust but verify. If it worked yesterday for 500 miles I doubt it a bleed will fix it long term unless the tech that worked on it left the bleeder slightly loose. It [reservoir] might have been full a few days ago but it isn't now. There's a leak somewhere, my thought anyway.

okckeith · Apr 26, 2015

Wish I could come help you out today. I got to get some sleep. My next day off is Wednesday. If I had been at home, you cold have taken one of my bikes today.

vinny · Apr 26, 2015

velocityflier16 said:
it was just changed Monday at the dealership.

Why.... there is your problem. Got an air bubble in it. Bleed as suggested.

velocityflier16 · Apr 26, 2015

Thanks everyone for your posts. Vinny, that would of been one of the last things I would've thought about. I've put almost 1000 miles on since last Monday and never had a problem. If a bubble in the line is indeed the culprit, that would be a first for me.

Byron · Apr 26, 2015

Out of curiosity, if you try pumping the clutch lever a bunch does any resistance build?

velocityflier16 · Apr 26, 2015

Byron, I tried that for about 45 minutes this morning and there is no progress. I tired it with engine on and off.

Blrfl · Apr 26, 2015

Byron said:
Out of curiosity, if you try pumping the clutch lever a bunch does any resistance build?

The clutch parts don't have the same kind of hard stop as the brakes (pads squeezing the rotor), so there's not a lot of opportunity for resistance to build up beyond what you usually feel in the lever when the system is working normally.

--Mark

v8-7 · Apr 26, 2015

with the reservoir cap off, slowly pump the lever several times .
If there is air in the lines you will see small bubbles coming from the hole in the bottom of the reservoir.

It does not take much air in that system to cause a malfunction.

Bleeding the traditional way can be difficult as the clutch line is very vertical and you end up trying to push an air bubble down.

vinny · Apr 26, 2015

velocityflier16 said:
Thanks everyone for your posts. Vinny, that would of been one of the last things I would've thought about. I've put almost 1000 miles on since last Monday and never had a problem. If a bubble in the line is indeed the culprit, that would be a first for me.

I learned a valuable technique from Igofar... after bleeding the fluid and refilling, pull the lever towards the hand grip and strap it there and let sit over night, this allows the "micro bubbles" to escape through the return orifice. This works great for the brakes and the clutch. Could be the air from the micro bubbles are trapped somewhere else and did not make it to the reservoir. Worth a try. When doing this turn the steering to make sure the reservoir is above the banjo fitting.

Nashcat · Apr 26, 2015

Just a thought. Could the plunger in the master cylinder be stuck, and not returning?

John

velocityflier16 · Apr 26, 2015

Quick update for everyone. The man of the hour, Fred, stopped by to check things out. Turns out everyone's suspicions were spot on. Lots of bubbles in the line. Took about 15 minutes to bleed and double check everything.

I just want to say thank you to everyone for being so supportive and quick to respond with help. Your input is greatly appreciated as well as everybody's willingness to mentor the youngster here.

I will be calling the dealership tomorrow to let them know what happen so this doesn't happen in the future.

No resistance with clutch

velocityflier16

Mellow

Joe

Kevin_56

vinny

Mellow

Joe

velocityflier16

Kevin_56

Kevin_56

Mellow

Joe

dduelin

Tune my heart to sing Thy grace

okckeith

vinny

velocityflier16

Byron

velocityflier16

Blrfl

Natural Rider Enhancement

v8-7

vinny

Nashcat

velocityflier16