Home-made foot clutch setup?
#1
Home-made foot clutch setup - UPDATED WITH PICS
Updated: pics of my setup
I've been planning on a foot clutch/jockey setup on my '05 Train for awhile now. I don't really like to buy stuff off the shelf if I don't have to, always looking for an excuse to fire up the welder! So I've been looking around at some of the setups available, and I really don't like the clutch cable routed in front of the downtube. I'd much rather run it under the bike or straight back and across between the engine and oil tank. The shift arm is the easy part.
I'd like to know if anyone has done this? What are some things I need to look out for? Where is a good place to get the new clutch cable? Or do I even need a new cable (can the stocker be cut and attached to the lever somehow?) Is there any particular ratio that needs to be maintained between the pedal and the cable attachment point?
Lots of questions I know, just trying to avoid the inevitable "build it once, then do it again to get it right" situation. Thanks for the help guys, looking forward to seeing some home built stuff!
P.S. before you ask, don't worry, I will be posting pics when I do begin the fab!
I've been planning on a foot clutch/jockey setup on my '05 Train for awhile now. I don't really like to buy stuff off the shelf if I don't have to, always looking for an excuse to fire up the welder! So I've been looking around at some of the setups available, and I really don't like the clutch cable routed in front of the downtube. I'd much rather run it under the bike or straight back and across between the engine and oil tank. The shift arm is the easy part.
I'd like to know if anyone has done this? What are some things I need to look out for? Where is a good place to get the new clutch cable? Or do I even need a new cable (can the stocker be cut and attached to the lever somehow?) Is there any particular ratio that needs to be maintained between the pedal and the cable attachment point?
Lots of questions I know, just trying to avoid the inevitable "build it once, then do it again to get it right" situation. Thanks for the help guys, looking forward to seeing some home built stuff!
P.S. before you ask, don't worry, I will be posting pics when I do begin the fab!
Last edited by jreichart; 01-02-2012 at 04:20 PM. Reason: Updated
#4
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#6
I too attempted to design my own setup. I finally decided I didn't trust my abilities and just bought one. One thought I was pursuing was to make a mechanical linkage from the left side to the right. Attach sleeves to the down tube, run a rod with levers on each end, thought the sleeves and when you step on the clutch the rod would rotate. Then attach a real short cable on the right site. Never got off the paper though.
#7
As promised, here are some pics from the foot clutch/jockey shift fab.
I started by trying to make my own plate to attach the shift arm to, but quickly got frustrated trying to get the bolt holes in the right spots. I bought a setup off ebay for $90, hoping it would be just what I wanted. It wasn't. The holes didn't line up, and the placement of the arm was too far forward and stuck too far out. So, I cut it apart and welded it back together to put the shift **** in a nice comfortable spot.
I started by trying to make my own plate to attach the shift arm to, but quickly got frustrated trying to get the bolt holes in the right spots. I bought a setup off ebay for $90, hoping it would be just what I wanted. It wasn't. The holes didn't line up, and the placement of the arm was too far forward and stuck too far out. So, I cut it apart and welded it back together to put the shift **** in a nice comfortable spot.
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#8
This was my first attempt at the foot clutch. I cut apart my old clutch lever and used the parts to make this. The cable is from Exile, it's the one they use standard in their kit and gets routed from the tranny, under and between the engine and tranny, and up around the bottom of the primary. It does require a forward control extension, which is what that aluminum plate is behind the controls (I'm making those myself as well, just need to trim down the plate once I get the new kickstand).
I didn't like how it turned out. It was perfectly functional, but just looked too bulky and overly complicated. I decide to clean it up a bit, and make all the brackets myself. Here's what I finally came up with:
I didn't like how it turned out. It was perfectly functional, but just looked too bulky and overly complicated. I decide to clean it up a bit, and make all the brackets myself. Here's what I finally came up with:
#10