Can't shift into neutral while engine is running.

96 fc501. I have owned it for about six months. Previous owner (original owner) told me that it has always been like that. "That's just the way that Husabergs are." Is this common or can it be adjusted out of the clutch? Bike shifts fine and the clutch does not drag while idling in gear, stationary, with the clutch pulled in. It just won't get neutral. I tried the cable adjusters at both ends. Is there an internal adjustment on the clutch? Thanks. Berg newbie :sign2:

You can check the clutch basket for wear, that is the standard answer. I have owned 3 bergs, 2 since brand new. They have all been very difficult to find nuetral in while running.

Is pressure plate flex not allowing the plates to separate far enough. Remember reading that in 97 the pressure plate was beefed up to help this matter. Never tried to put a 97 pressure plate in my 96 though as a new one was mucho dinero. Maybe Dale or someone would know for sure if the change can be easily made. Should be plenty of the later old series motors available for parts today. I helped mine a lot by retaining the Magura lever. You know the one that takes basketball player hands to reach? These pull the cable a long distance and help matters, but as stated by Berger his many bergs had this trait. The newer ones just have it to a lesser degree.
dan

Its a Berg thing. I wouldn't worry about it.

neutral

hey dirtandstreet, try putting into neutral while your still moving
even at very low speeds, this will help. It is due too some drag.
early ktm's were like that 2.

on my model i would urge you to get a new drum. it was the 100% cure. however i can't say for older bikes.

regards

taffy

First two Berg's could never find neutral when stationary. '05 model you can. It was never a bad thing as you rarely hit neutral whilst riding.
I just got into the habit of finding neutral before coming to a complete stop.

Mark

husabutt said:

Its a Berg thing. I wouldn't worry about it.

Click to expand...

My 02 KTM 520 did it. My 03 FE650 does it, as does my 04 300EXC.
I dont worry at all. Must be something to do with that hydraulic clutch.
I just click nuetral prior to stopping.
I tend to think it is more of a Magura thing.....?

no. it's the drum. 100% cure.

it's alright, you'll get there in the end.

regards

Taffy

Taffy said:

on my model i would urge you to get a new drum. it was the 100% cure. however i can't say for older bikes.

regards

taffy

Click to expand...

Hi Taffy,
Yes, I read that prior to my reply. Please elaborate on percieved drum issue (now there's some big words) so I can cure my 650 and 300 of said fault. Just what do you call the Drum?. The inner or outer hub or the pressure plate? as us Aussies and you Brits seem to have different layman terms for same components.
Cheers,
AUSBERG

aus berg

we say (inner) drum and (outer) basket. pressure plate is called the pleasuratus pusipasto here though.

the basket is made of something incredibly hard so it's the inner drum that gets grooved up, it's made of a soft alloy and the plate edges are sharp and thin and cut in to it. this grooving stops the plates seperating nicely so they drag.

it's a 100% cure on all later models.

anything else - just ask!

regards

Taffy

anything else - just ask!

O.K. Taffy,
Brain teaser time. All of my bikes with the Magura clutch have exibited this same fault. 02 520. 03 FE650. 04 300 EXC. All from brand new, supposedly non grooved inner hubs ( sorry, inner drum). My personal belief is the earlier Magura master to slave ratio may not have provided enough seperation of plates to overcome drag factor required to seperate input/output shaft load facilitating the transfer to neutral. This could be the issue, or it could be the splarkfubelgruten causing the problem.
Your input appreciated, as always.
AUSBERG.

i believe that al youngwerth (he who has made the rekluse cluch) has said that there are two magura m/c's to choose from so to validate what you say perhaps you could find out if you were given the smaller cylinder and whether in the light of this they changed and learnt the error of their ways later...!

the inner drum change HAS cured recent bergs though and that's all i can be sure of isn't it?

sometimes it's nice to be told of a cheap or even a quick cure but sometimes you've got to do it for yourself.

the inner drum cure was from me this time BTW. tried to use a wood chisel to clean the old one up and you could turn the plates further than michael schumacher's steering wheel!

regards

Taffy

I own an 04 FE650, straight off the showroom floor. From day one I could only find neutral with the bike running at low wheel speed. Alternatively, when stationary I can find it by placing the bike in first gear and attempting to flick/shift into neutral whilst popping the throttle on and off lightly. Takes a bit of practice but works every time.

this is turning into a willie measuring contest?

i've got the biggest willie of all!!!!!

naaaah!

so, back to the thread if i may. i couldn't but now i can;
snick it into neutral, anywhere, anytime, anyplace with anything including my ****!

i have more trouble finding and keeping a gear than i do finding neutral. i have a low tickover. i have the lever adjusted right OUT.

i have a big d... oh there i go again!

Taffy :wink: :wink:

With regard to "new" or "as new" clutch assemblies:

(1) Pressure plate "throw" is minimal on cable
actuated clutches. A properly adjusted hydraulic over
mechanical upgrade performs wonders.

(2) "Oil selection is critical regarding proper clutch behavior."

(3) Early OEM hydraulic units provided reduced clutch lever
effort and improved feel albeit @ the expense of reduced
throw.

(4) Excessive and / or uneven pressure plate spring tension
(yes brand spanking new as delivered from the OEM)
will promote drag.


Sincerely,
Dale

Hi Dirt and Street,

Well here's my two cents worth.

I have seen several comments in this thread that are quite correct. One from one who has the biggest unit of all, check the inner drum of the clutch and make sure that it is not grooved too badly. You can smooth out SMALL indentations with a small mill file. If it is grooved too deeply then replacemnet is the only answer.

Another from Dale Lineaweaver, make sure you are running a good quality motor oil. I would suggest Motul 5100 15w-50, or perhaps motorex 5w-50, the lower the winters number the more it will help your cause. But, the motorex is quite a bit more expensive than the motul. It's always going to drag a bit until the motor oil comes up to temp.

Now for the meat (get it Taffy?) of the matter.

I had a 94 & 1/2 FE501 that I used for desert racing and trail riding. The clutch worked fine while riding, but, it would drag with the trans in gear and the motor running. I used to (as another post suggested) find neutral as I rolled to a stop. But, the worst for me was that I couldn't start the bike in gear, which is way no good for dead engine starts like we use in the desert. So here was my solution, which I got from Eric's in Pasadena.

Seems that (according to another post which is true) the earlier pressure plates, yours included, would flex as the push rod would try to lift the pressure plate, thus, not allowing full dis-engagement. So, I put a 1997 pressure plate, and 350cc springs in it, along with a domino control. I was concerned that the 350 springs would allow the clutch to slip, but it did not ever in many hundreds of miles of racing and riding. Some of it with great abuse to the clutch. And, I could now start the bike in gear, and find neutral while sitting still. The domino control came standard on the 97's and I think gave more lift, but, keep mind that you're limited on the amount of throw of the lift mechanism.

A cheaper fix is to make sure that 1) none of your steel plates are warped. If they are you'll never get it to stop dragging. 2) that your lift mechanism is properly adjusted. This is crucial to proper dis-engagement, as well as, when the clutch wears there is proper clearance between the push rod and the pressure plate and lift mechanism. Here's how to set it.

First remove your clutch cable from the throw arm, and remove the clutch cover. At this point you might want to use a cable luber and lubricate the clutch cable. I like Tri-flow myself.

Replace your clutch springs with ones out of a 350, this will help the pressure plate to not flex as much when lifted. (When you are doing this, if you remove the pressure plate and pull out the push rod, you can then pull the throw arm out of the motor to get a better understanding of how all these parts work together, then put the pressure plate back on with the 350 springs. Be careful not to over tighten the spring bolts as they strip easily)

Your pressure plate has an adjustment screw in the center of the pressure plate ( the 97 pressure plate uses different thickness shims to adjust the free play) that has screw and a lock nut.

The push rod for the clutch rides in a bearing on the pressure plate (which is attached to the adjustment screw), and in a notch on the throw arm. This notch is a flat ground into the throw arm shaft, and the clearance between the push rod and this flat spot is critical to get maximum lift.

Check to see how much play there is in the throw arm, it shouldn't move very much before it starts to engage the push rod and try's to lift the pressure plate. The push rod should not have any pressure on the lift mechanism or throw out bearing, it should float just above them. (Remember, as the clutch wears this dimension will decrease.) Loosen the lock nut and adjust the lash as neccessary. You'll have to play around with it a bit to find a happy medium, to get the most lift, with out having any pressure on the push rod.

Once you have finished adjusting, put the cable back on, leave at least 5mm of play at the end of the lever and check for proper function of the cable and lift mechanism. With the cable lubed, and the push rod adjusted properly, you will notice a big difference it feel. When you are satisfied, put the clutch cover back on, fill with oil and give it a try. I think you'll be happy with the improvement!!!

Taff whilst your on the subject, I've been told that the size of your D.... is inversely proportional to the piston size of your motorcycle. So in Husaberg terms, Taff you may be telling the truth about your size, I'm considered average with a 550, but to all those who own a 650, I'm soooo.. sorry.

Don't know how to estimate the size of a wally by reading a mans post but, I do know that a quick test to see if a clutch hub is notched is to do your best Ricky C. MX start and if the bike starts taking off with the clutch pulled in when you rev it up, your hub is probably notched. Thanks DaleEO for the pressure plate interchange info, will see if Peter at HMS has a 97 unit among his dozens of parts bikes to help my 96.
Dan

I don't know about any of you guys willy size or really care ( mine has always pleased me and that is what is important). I do know that my 2001 fe 501 from brand new would drag the clutch and do it so bad it would creep the bike in the tight stuff when you are waiting for your slow buddy to pick him self off the ground. Never got in to neutral with it running. Stoped or while still rolling.

After every ones suggestion to bleed the clutch line from bottom to top and then vice versa the damn thing still dragged. After much hair pulling and asking around I asked a buddy who is a fine mechanic to check it out. By watching the basket with the cover off and measuring the throw of the slave cylinder we came to the conclusion that the slave was contacting the motor case before the rod was pushed far enough to disengage the clutch. I think the rod was too short for some reason but I was told there was only one length but no one knew how long it was supposed to be.

All of this is to say I fixed mine by putting a ball bearing about 3mm in between the slave and the rod. Been fine ever since. It is important not to use too big of a bearing that it does not let the clutch completely engage. You must make sure that you still have some free play in the rod and the slave.

I must have gotten a Friday at 3 pm clutch rod.