Not being much of a mechanic, I had to replace the clutch on my b40,
all new bits and a Haynes manual in hand, I completed the job.
The manual said something along the lines of tightening the springs down till only one coil of the spring is visible above the cups, and then finely adjust so that the basket runs true, cable and pushrod adjusted and the bike goes well.
However a mechanic friend now tells me that the springs should of been tightened all the way down and then slackened off to balance the basket, so it runs true..
I'm sure that both ways work, because we ride our b40's together occasionally.
Does anybody know if one way is better than the other, or any pro's and cons for doing it one way or the other.??
And are there any benefits or drawbacks for using ATF fluid in the chain case, instead of 20/50.
Many thanks for your input..
Provided the clutch is not too heavy, does not drag and does not slip then the spring adjustment is ok. The oil is basically there to lubricate the primary chain and, provided the clutch doesn't slip, it should be ok whatever you use.
It depends on the condition of the clutch plates and length of the springs. I tend to prefer to go with having a coil visible above the cups, but this is as long as there's no slip during use. This should give a lighter action and less drag.
Its worth considering wiring the nuts once they're adjusted. On my B40 I found that one of the nuts worked loose during use. The clutch worked fine but when I removed the cover to work on the gearbox mainshaft, the high nut had gouged quite a deep groove in the inner surface of the primary cover.
Yeah I've fitted nuts with locking wire, so the general consensus is,
it doesn't really matter as long as it works ok.
Sometimes the problem is that the clutch lever becomes too heavy to use due to the springs being tightened too much. However, if the lever action is ok for you and the clutch works as it should then there is no real reason to change the way the clutch was assembled.
If you tighten them all the way down, wouldn't they become coil bound so that you can't compress them further to seperate the plates? Just a thought ???