No resistance with clutch

velocityflier16

velocityflier16

Joined
Dec 26, 2014
Messages
157
Location
OKC
Bike
VFR800
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.
 
The clutch fluid is easy to bleed so I'd give that a shot first just in case there's air in the system.
 
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.
 
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.
 
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.
 
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.
 
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.
Click to expand...

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.
 
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.
 
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.
 
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.
 
Out of curiosity, if you try pumping the clutch lever a bunch does any resistance build?
 
Byron, I tried that for about 45 minutes this morning and there is no progress. I tired it with engine on and off.
 
Byron said:
Out of curiosity, if you try pumping the clutch lever a bunch does any resistance build?
Click to expand...

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

John
 
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.
 
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