I took my primary cover off to have it powdercoated about 2 months ago. I got the cover back and reinstalled it per service manual. I adjusted the clutch per service manual also. The thing I'm not sure of is when I put it in gear and pull in the clutch there seems to still be quite a bit of drag on the clutch. I've gone over and over the installation of the parts I reinstalled and the clutch adjustment and everything seems right. I also have noticed that the diaphram spring plate is being pressed in when the clutch lever is being pulled. So maybe the bike sitting without the cover on has dried the friction disks up being its a wet clutch and causing excessive drag on the clutch. everything seems to be working properly. Should I just start it up in neuteral and let the fluid work its way into the clutch to see if it takes care of the problem? Any thoughts?

The clutch wasn't removed just the primary cover. First I removed the derby cover and the spring locking mechanism. Then I unscrewed the adjuster/release mechanism (the part with the three ball bearings inside) inside the derby cover until the release mechanism was all the way off. then I disconnected the cable from the release mechanism. Those were the only parts besides the primary cover removed and reinstalled. The bike is an '04 883.