06 Clutch Install

[Rios]

Originally Posted by vferdman

Very good write-up. I think the clutch on my '04 883 is going at 43K miles. It is very difficult to adjust (been adjusting it every 5K per service manual) and shifting becomes horribly difficult. I drained the primary oil and saw a lot of metal shavings on the magnet drain plug. I am not refilling it until I find out what is wrong. I think the spring plate may be coming undone. I need a spring compression tool to remove the clutch stack. Can you point me to one? Or better yet, can you perhaps lend me yours? I'll be happy to pay shipping and give you a deposit. I am just not at a good place to buy a single use tool for $100. Also, will I need a new primary cover gasket? Sounds like I will. What other supplies do I need to round up before I do the job? Assuming the spring plate is damaged and also damaged the neighboring friction disks, I will need two friction disks and I will most likely want to eliminate the spring plate and use two steel plates and a friction disk instead of the spring plate (spring plate elimination kit). What else besides these obvious parts? Circlips, etc.?

Thanks! Can't wait to get the bike back on the road.

Hey vferdman, I recently repaired my 08 Nightster so its a 1200. Tool:You had asked where you can find a tool and to me it seemed like i got the most well made for my dollar at MacTools. i was able to order online and have it in a week, they gave me a UPS tracking number which was nice. There is a company out there that selsl the tool with the clutch pack kit as well. i only bought the tool separately because i had already purchased the clutch pack. Parts: I decided to purchase all of the gaskets that i would be tampering from harley. Mostly because i used to work as a mechanic, i know how worn and dry gaskets can be easily broken or ruin your project when you notice after its all put together, you have a leak. So for about $15 i had my peace of mind. If the spring plate is damaged it probably damaged your clutch shell(the outer ring of grooves which the friction plates rest). Make sure you remove all of the brass rivets and metal shavings. With my repair i had to go as far as using my flat needle file(Sears if you don't have any) to remove the burs from the groove that the failed spring plate had created. I filed only the damaged areas that would not allow the friction plates to slide in and out smoothly. I would probably replace the entire clutch pack with a kit that was made to eliminate that center spring plate. If you just slide in some random friction plate and steel plates it may affect your stack height and cause more damage or riding trouble in the long run. Conclusion: I know this was a long reply but i hope i was able to help you out. Look over your Harley repair manual carefully a few times over before you start the project and it should all be ok. PS: if you dont have one just find the pdf online.

[Rios]

Originally Posted by Rios

Thanks for putting up the step by step. The only trouble i am having today is understanding how to remove the retaining ring(Lining the 5 prongs) and spring seat once you have compressed the spring. seems like there isn't enough room between the seat and ring to compress the ring with retaining ring tool. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

With the proper spring compression tool (Motion Pro i believe) i was able to gain enough clearance necessary to push back the retaining ring plate that was behind the retaining ring itself. Which allowed enough clearance to allow the retaining ring to be drawn together and removed. went pretty smoothly after that.

[hawnd83]

ok, so i got my clutch spring compression tool fab'd up and i wanted to share it with everyone. you do not need to buy the 50 or 70 dollar tool to replace your clutch. it was by far one of the easiest tools ive ever had to make, and it works like a charm!! i spent a whole $16.35 on supplies from my local hardware store (Lowes). here is a parts list of what you need to make your own!

two 1/4"x20x12" all thread
two 1/4"x20 nuts
two 1/4" washers
a 3" PVC coupler
20" of 1/8"x1-1/4" angle iron.

step one: you thread in the all thread into the very front and rear holes of the primary cover(the holes with the case alignment sleeves in them)

step two: drill two 1/4" holes in the angle iron exactly 17 and 1/8" apart from each other. when finished slide the angle iron over the pieces of all thread. it should fit perfectly with minimal binding.

step three:install the washers and nuts onto the all thread a few inches THEN use a pair of pliers to make sure you have as much all thread threaded into the primary bolt holes as possible.

step four: place the 3" PVC coupler onto the face of the spring. making sure it is centered, slide the angle iron up against the PVC coupler and run the nuts up behind the angle iron.

step five: tighten the nuts down on the all thread. do this a few turns at a time switching from one nut to the other. this applies even pressure to the spring surface flattening it out. push the retainer back and pop the clip out with a screw driver. (this can be done without any access hole cut in the PVC coupler)

step six: once you have the clip removed simply back the nuts off the all thread to release the pressure of the spring. the PVC coupler will fall out. take the all thread out and set your home made compressor on the floor. your clutch internals are now free to be removed.

i have tried to be as thorough about this as possible. if anyone has any questions dont hesitate to ask! i wouldve included pictures but for the life of me can not figure out how to load pics on here. if you would like me to email you pictures of the tool installed on the bike PM me and i can send you some. i hope this helps everyone out!!

[vferdman]

Originally Posted by hawnd83

ok, so i got my clutch spring compression tool fab'd up and i wanted to share it with everyone. you do not need to buy the 50 or 70 dollar tool to replace your clutch. it was by far one of the easiest tools ive ever had to make, and it works like a charm!! i spent a whole $16.35 on supplies from my local hardware store (Lowes). here is a parts list of what you need to make your own!

two 1/4"x20x12" all thread
two 1/4"x20 nuts
two 1/4" washers
a 3" PVC coupler
20" of 1/8"x1-1/4" angle iron.

step one: you thread in the all thread into the very front and rear holes of the primary cover(the holes with the case alignment sleeves in them)

step two: drill two 1/4" holes in the angle iron exactly 17 and 1/8" apart from each other. when finished slide the angle iron over the pieces of all thread. it should fit perfectly with minimal binding.

step three:install the washers and nuts onto the all thread a few inches THEN use a pair of pliers to make sure you have as much all thread threaded into the primary bolt holes as possible.

step four: place the 3" PVC coupler onto the face of the spring. making sure it is centered, slide the angle iron up against the PVC coupler and run the nuts up behind the angle iron.

step five: tighten the nuts down on the all thread. do this a few turns at a time switching from one nut to the other. this applies even pressure to the spring surface flattening it out. push the retainer back and pop the clip out with a screw driver. (this can be done without any access hole cut in the PVC coupler)

step six: once you have the clip removed simply back the nuts off the all thread to release the pressure of the spring. the PVC coupler will fall out. take the all thread out and set your home made compressor on the floor. your clutch internals are now free to be removed.

i have tried to be as thorough about this as possible. if anyone has any questions dont hesitate to ask! i wouldve included pictures but for the life of me can not figure out how to load pics on here. if you would like me to email you pictures of the tool installed on the bike PM me and i can send you some. i hope this helps everyone out!!

Brilliant! Thanks! I just borrowed a tool from my indie. He is a good indie and is very helpful to fellow bikers. But this is very good idea. Now that I've done the job with the tool, I can totally visualize your idea. Excellent!

[hawnd83]

No problem! did i mention this method of compression doesnt put any stress on the throwout bearing assembly or its retaining clip!? just thought id throw that in.

[vferdman]

Originally Posted by hawnd83

No problem! did i mention this method of compression doesnt put any stress on the throwout bearing assembly or its retaining clip!? just thought id throw that in.

Actually, the tool I borrowed from the indie did not put stress on the throw out bearing either. The bearing with the plate is removed and replaced with a plate that comes with the tool and fits into the throw out bearing place and then the tool pushes against that while the bearing is resting safely next to the bike. Interesting design and it took me a minute to figure out that that's how you use it. Still, your way is awesome and if I have to do it again I will try it.

[dhsemp]

I just installed an energy one clutch with the Barnett spring compression tool -- I have pics on my thread if you guys are interested.

http://xlforum.net/vbportal/forums/s...386358&page=19

Cheers!
Derek

[minira]

good job for this post

[54-FLE]

Well Iv'e been reading this thread for some time now and just took the plunge myself. Ordered the kit from Energy One and the tool from J&P Cycles and just finished changing everything out on my daughter's 02/883 sportster and man what a difference. First thing I noticed was the grinding and loud clunk is gone just a nice click when it goes into first gear. The second thing I noticed which is really why I changed it out is I can actually feel the tranny ingaging into second gear now before with the stock Harley set up I couldnt tell if it was in second or nuetral most of the time. I'm runing the stock Harley oil for right now. I couldnt be happier. GREAT Customer service from Energy One. Can't remember now who started this thread but THANKS for doing so.

[Ratchdaddy]

It's good to be back on a Sporty. I just traded an old truck for a 96 883. On the way home from getting it the clutch went out. Turned out that the rivets had all popped out of the plates. I found an Energy One kit on Ebay, got the parts yesterday and we are back on the road today. I love the simplicity and accessibility of this bike. I found this thread after I had already torn it down but the thread helped me put her back together. Good group. I was on Sportster.org years ago. Good to see that the Sportster community still rocks.