Subject: Re: bearing damage?

Ok - I found my issue (or, at least AN issue), pulled the
rear wheel, and pulled the rear fork back and removed the
clutch arm (had to heat it up - the pin hadn't been
removed in a while, say 30 years or so). Pulled the outer
body out and lo and behold, I had put the throw out
bearing back on in the wrong order when I reinstalled the
tranny - oops. I didn't sandwich it between the 2 outer
bodies (washers) - must've been imbibing. So I replaced it
- correctly, put it back together and voila - positive
clutch engagement/disengagement. I'll drain everything
again to get the bits of the bearing out, and replace the
cable just for good measure. DOH!

It'll be awhile before it gets back on the road though,
pulled lots of stuff off in the process to paint and
polish.

Thanks for all the hints - I was convinced the clutch was
hammered (it may well still be, won't know til I put it on
the road again).

-tom

On Fri, 22 Apr 2005 08:18:12 -0500
Todd Nordwig <d_da-@hotmail.com> wrote:

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From: Patrick Hayes <peha-@comcast.net>

The primary reason for failure of the throwout bearing is
over-adjusting the clutch lever and cable too tight. The
bearing is designed for intermittent use, not constant
load. Very easy to tighten the clutch freeplay to zero
and force this bearing to spin constantly. Won't last
long that way.

This may have contributed to the current problem. I
tightened the
clutch cable late last fall, and put less than 600 miles
on since I tightened
it.

BTW, how do you handle your bike during prolonged clutch
use? You come to a traffic light that just turns red as
you arrive. You know there is heavy cross traffic and it
will be awhile before you get a green. Do you just sit
there with you clutch hand pulled in and wait? Two
minutes? Three minutes? How much effect do you think
this has on the poor little bearing? If I can't predict
green within 10 seconds, then I instantly shift to
neutral and release the clutch to unload the bearing.

I have done both, but the clutch pull on this bike was
so stiff that I usually
found neutral and let my had rest. That said, it
doesn't mean I didn't damage
it on other occasions......Now I know what not to do.

Also, due to the design of the Guzzi clutch, as the
friction plates wear, the throwout system moves aft and
takes up any slack in the cable system. You have to be
attentive to loosening up the cable play as the clutch
wears. The most dramatic rate of wear occurs in the
first few thousand miles after new plates are installed.
Ignore the loss of freeplay and you have doomed the
bearing.

I guess it's time to get the tools out and see what kind
of trouble
I can get into. Patrick, thanks so much for the
information and taking
the time. Now its my turn to put in some time and
figure some of
this stuff out. I appreciate all the patience......

Todd

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Subject: Re: bearing damage?

Author: Tom Christian

Date: Apr 22, 2005, 10:48 PM

Post ID: 1718746483

Entire thread: