Clutch Is gone

Guys, I'm new to Nortons having just bought my first 1974 850 Commando last month. I've wrenched on other old bikes and determined my addiction was on the up swing and therefore it was time for something cool. last night I was riding a lost my clutch. At first the cable went slack and I adjusted the tension at the hand controls. With in a few hundred yards the clutch was useless and I couldn't [/url][/img]get the clutch to move. I drove home in first gear and parked it in the garage. Today I opened the gearbox window (circular panel next to the right foot peg) and noticed the semi circular arm is in the top position. I believe it supposed to be horizontal taking as much slack form the clutch cable as possible. How do I adjust this? Are their any good diagram's or manuals. The workshop manual is way too wordy and I need pictures. Any help is appreciated. Thanks,

I think maybe your problem lies inside the primary cover, you gotta take off the left foot peg and then there is just the one big bolt in the middle of the outer primary cover, put a pan under it because fluid to lube the primary chain will come running out.

So, once you have the primary cover off on the right side in there you will see the clutch, my guess is the securing lock nut has maybe just backed off which allowed the tension on the clutch rod to also back off.

Yep, its time you got intimate with your new bike, do you have a clutch spring depressor tool yet?

anyway, you can also just take off that big inspection plug, the right one, on your primary cover and look in there and see if the nut is on tight or not, let us know and we can help you out on this.

IF the nut has backed off then you just need a screwdriver for the adjustment bolt.
Since you are new to all this, you could screw this up, anyone in your town Commando knowledgable you could call?
Where do you live?

If not the clutch adjustment, then yes the arm the clutch cable secures to inside the gearbox may also be the wrong position, but I would check inside the primary first, do you have a shop manual?

I suspect your clutch nut has come loose. This allows the clutch basket to move outboard on the mainshaft and you lose clutch actuation. You will have to open the primary and remove the large diaphragm spring to gain access. You need a diaphragm spring tool to do the job, but you should own one anyway. They're not expensive.

Hope to goodness gracious that your splines on your mainshaft aren't buggered.

Yep As 1up3down says. ^^^^ Sorry for the double post.

Or your circlip sheared.
Number 53 located behind number 54.
http://www.oldbritts.com/1973_g10.html

If and when the time comes use this number 06-8072 and not 060752.

I just ran to the garage and did some adjustments. As background, I live in ATL and there is a guru nearby. He is brilliant and I'm kinda retarded at this stage in my development curve. So my goal is to try to remedy my issues first and them bother him.

A few weeks ago he lent me his spring compressor system and I took the clutch apart and clean it. Before it was sticking like crazy and now the plates come apart pretty well.

After pulling the primary "viewing" hole out I noticed a lot of threads were showing in the main shaft. Thinking, I must have installed it incorrectly, I loosen the nut and drove the main shaft in a few revolutions. This was after slackening the clutch cable and positioning the "retaining" arm (term?) in the gear box. For some reason this seems to have solved the issue. I can grab the clutch and it will allow me to move the bike while in gear. Seems too easy.

Life as I know it is typically more painful

Did I solve the issue?

Probably, but you should really adjust the clutch 'by the book'. Look at the top of the Norton forum list, the top thread lists books you can get on line. It's not hard, but you should really become very competent with the clutch adjustment. The book explains it perfectly and there are enough pictures.

Dave
69S

Drand said:

A few weeks ago he lent me his spring compressor system and I took the clutch apart and clean it.

Click to expand...

Aha! You screwed with it. Explains everything.

Bear with my dark sense of humor above but good for you in taking this upon yourself.

I believe what you are calling the main shaft is only the clutch adjusting screw as you cannot see the main shaft even if you pulled the complete primary cover off.

I suspect the adjusting screw lock nut just came loose and allowed the clutch adjusting screw on the clutch diaphragm spring to backed out.

Use the clutch adjusting screw and set things up per the book. In the past when my only tools were a rock and some bailing wire I used a screwdriver through a socket and held the socket on the lock nut with a vise grips but ultimately the adjusting screw lock nut needs to be tight. It might be better to pull the primary cover to get at it with a box end wrench. When tightening the lock nut often times the spring diaphragm will slip and turn in the clutch basket. Usually a rap or two on the wrench gets the nut tight enough.

Other more obscure causes of your clutch symptoms include:

Main shaft nut (beneath the diaphragm spring) coming loose as previously mentioned.
The clutch actuation mechanism unscrewing from the inner cover of the gear box.

A sheared circlip behind the clutch hub would not directly cause the clutch to slacken but indirectly if the clutch hub nut becomes ondone.

congratulations!

you fixed it!

and you do know that you use your screwdriver to screw in that bolt just until it seats then back it off 3/4 turn and snug up the your nut

sounds like you did it

If you followed the manual, the torque spec of 70 ft. lbs. is incorrect for the clutch hub nut. If that is the case, the circlip is mangled.

concours said:

If you followed the manual, the torque spec of 70 ft. lbs. is incorrect for the clutch hub nut. If that is the case, the circlip is mangled.

Click to expand...

Maybe yes, maybe no. Mine had 70 ft-lbs on it for a long time, but when it came off it wasn't nice. Can't tell, but if it's had 70 ft-lb on it, it's due for an inspection and the new clip from pv. I need to put some of those in stock. 06-8072

Dave
69S

Well done you have just fixed your clutch ajustment, the Commando clutch is one of the best and easy to maintain, I am still running my orginal clutch sinse I brought the Norton new (well over 120,000 miles now) but use to slip when run in oil, the best thing I did is put a belt drive on and now run a dry clutch, no more slipping clutch, get a good workshop manual and you can't go wrong.

Ashley

get a good workshop manual and you can't go wrong.

SEI.

After driving it down my driveway, the clutch went away. I pulled the primary and plates and found the "retaining" nut had come off and the basket was free. I loosened the rear wheel and transmission and put everything back together. Now the clutch is working well. Thanks