So yesterday I took the Ride Like a Pro class in NJ. I didn't drop my bike so that's a plus. Great class though. I had an issue with my clutch.

As the class went on it seemed the friction zone actually moved. It was in the middle of the clutch pull. It eventually got to the point where the clutch wasn't engaging until it was almost fully out. I found out the hard way that it was no longer fully disengaging. I went to start my long ride home and noticed that when I would accelerate the engine would rev but the bike wouldn't increase in speed much. The bike want dead but I didn't want to drive it anymore so I pulled off into a gas station and had it towed to a dealer that wasn't far. I had called my Harley dealer and they said it sounded like the clutch was cooked. I found it hard to believe because there were 5 other Harley's in the class. I actually did longer breeze outs after each exercise than anyone. I figured it was an adjustment. So the dealer it was towed to adjusted it and I test road it and it was fine. The only problem is they said that they did smell a little burn.

So I know I need to learn a little wrenching for sure because I could have saved hours of my day if I could have adjusted it. However my question is, can the adjustment change that drastically in several hours? I am almost at my 5k service so I'll see what my Harley dealer says about it needing new clutch plates. As of now it's running as it should.

 

Ride Like a Pro definitely works but, it's hard on the clutch, as you have found out.
I use the friction zone but, not to the extent as the "pros" do. You need to find a happy medium. Remember, from the class, the most important part is to look where you want to
go.

 

And yes your clutch can fad that fast, especially if you are using it a ton like ride like a pro class. I always suggest to my friends to adjust their clutches before and after any class like that or track weekends. I have never needed to adjust my clutch more frequently than the manufacturer recommendation until I moved to the Washington DC area, besides track days, or riding courses that are at slower speeds requiring a lot more clutch. You can easily learn to do your own clutch adjustments, it only requires a few tools, and takes a few minutes, just remember to do it with the clutch COLD. Good luck brother

 

You can smoke a clutch in 30 minutes if your not careful. The trick to riding in the friction zone is to get comfortable with it. You don't want to be riding the brake hard, causing you to have to rev the engine more to keep your balance. Doing that will "smoke" the clutch. Keeping the RPM's low while in the friction zone, will keep the clutch happy. However, no matter how nice you are to the clutch, over and over use of the friction zone, will still wear it out.

 

If the clutch jam nut was loose the clutch can came come out of adjustment just like you experienced.

 

Yes the big thing is definitely head and eyes. But there is certainly the balance of the rear brake, friction zone and throttle. Finding that was difficult for me, especially when the friction zone was changing. In real life I know I won't be using the clutch that much. I will most likely take the class again next year and want to be more prepared in regards to my bike, mechanically.

 

your owners manual shows how to adjust the clutch I believe. buy a service manual, very useful. you can watch videos on youtube on how to adjust your clutch. very easy to do and part of your maint. good luck

 

You need to read up and start turnin wrenches. I will admit, under warranty, I stress that it gets done correctly.

 

Excellent and informative thread fellows. Thank you.

 

Hiya TS!