84 250R clutch question

[homebrew13]

hey guys, well i just traded an older fellow from across the mountian his titled 84 250r for my 85 350X. the R was very clean(except front fender) and is supposed to have 300 kit on the motor, has a 4+ swingarm and a chromed fmf fatty pipe. runds good have bald reartires and a sand shark on the front. when i got home the next day i swapped out the tires, changed the gas and oil, ect. went to take it for a spin and the clutch isn't working. adjusted it to the end and still no go. well had a cable off an 82 laying around so i swapped it in. same thing. has plenty of tension on lever like its working but when you try to shift into gear it dies. my question is this. could this be the cable? were both at there end? or is it something inside the clutch pack or on the other side where the cable attaches. really want to go for a ride today and if its something simple would like to know.

[Dirtcrasher]

I don't know how the 84 works but inside there has to be a pivot and a piece that presses on the pressure plate etc. If you can feel spring resistance on the lever it may be a cable related issue.

Can you feel any spring resistance??

Otherwise it's inside. If you look up a parts fiche online, you should be able to see what engages the clutch. Like the 85 250R that has a ball and a long rod that wears out, you may have something similar going on. Either way, it will have to come apart....

[homebrew13]

theres plenty of resistance. the lever feels like its working fine. just kills motor when put in gear. i am going to pull the side case and see if the clutch pack is stuck together. bike has been sitting under a carport all year as its to fast for the old guy to ride where he lives. i rode it before i traded and clutch worked fine(didn't get to rip it as we were at the Odot cinder pits) so somthing happened in the 12 hrs since i rode it and started fiddling with it.

[Daddio]

If It's been sitting for a long period of time it could be that the clutch plates are stuck together.
It works just like the liquid cooled Rs. The ball could be worn or the rod could be worn. If it were mine I would drain the oil out and take the Clutch side cover off and see what it looks like in there. That cover uses an O-ring to seal instead of a gasket and it is re-usable. What did the oil look like when you changed it?

[homebrew13]

well i took apart the clutch case. the disks and plates were ok looking, oil was a bit greyish. with cover off when you squeeze clutch lever you can see the plates move. not sure if there moving all the way. i took the cable off and you can move the clutch arm back and forth pretty easy. my buddie thinks thats the problem. he says it should have alot more resistance. i'm not sure what to think anymore. i'm going to tear it apart again and see what i can see. picked the wrong day to do this as nothings open!

[roger86200x]

ROFL dude!

I litterally JUST put my 84 250r together and had the SAME problem!!!!

I think all it was was the clutch plates stuck together!

I took it apart and it all seemed fine but the plates were stuck to the fiber discs.

Heres how I fixed it.

1. Adjust clutch cable at the clutch arm all the way tight.
2. Adjust cable at the clutch perch 50% out.
3. Put a 100 mm socket and ratchet on one of the many nuts on the clutch pack and turn it clockwie with the lever pulled. Then try to turn it without holding the lever in. Adjust it at the PERCH until it seems like it works good with you turning the pack with the ratchet and socket.
4. Put the cover in, put NEW oil in it.
5. Start the bike and rev it up real good and pull the lever in and out a few times. Then pull it in and let it slam out a few times.
6. Try starting and going into gear
7. If it still stalls adjust the clutch perch out alot more until it works to put it in gear but then it prolly wont move - clutch slipping.

If you get it to slip and not go forward in 1st rev it up good to get those plates moving around and unstuck.


Thats EXACTLY what I did to get it to work and now its PERFECT!

Roger