Went for a short ride today and twice as I applied full throttle at about 60 I both watched and felt the RPMs climb faster than the bike was accelerating. The clutch did not slip on hard launch starts however. I then applied full throttle at about 70 going down hill and once again I could feel the clutch slip.
I was afraid of this happening after I did the cam upgrade and tuner install about 3000 miles ago. Is the stock clutch pack so marginal that it can't handle what In my opinion is fairly mild upgrade? Has anyone else experienced clutch failure after doing similar (please see upgrades in signature below)?
Bob

 

Have you adjusted it recently? I doubt the clutch is toast.

 

I have done Stage II upgrades on TC's where the clutch would slip in higher gears under acceleration....even after proper clutch adjustment.

Make sure clutch is adjusted properly and that there is no synthetic or synthetic blend in the primary.

If it is still slipping you can get a stronger spring and that should take care of it.

If you want to go with an entire new clutch, the Energy One is a great option. Just put one in my 1250 conversion and am very happy with it...now just the back tire slips.

 

I suppose I should try the clutch adjustment first but the reason I was concerned and inquired is because it turned bad suddenly and still launched hard with no slippage. I'll do the adjustment procedure and advise.
BTW, I have read where the derby seal/gasket must be replaced after every removal of the cover. Is this really critical or just a HD policy to sell parts?
Bob

 

That derby cover can be re-used if not distorted and dry when installed.

My 96" with 48 cams has never slipped during any amount of abuse on the dyno or otherwise. Perhaps the 30T (faster rev up and higher starting RPM meaning higher torque) and 103 together are causing the slipping?

 

So this doesn't have a se or any heavy duty spring in it? I've had stage 1 96s slip without a good spring. I wouldn't even ride the bike without one. Mine lasted 41k miles, always at or over 100ft lbs. Made 135/130 when I finally upgraded it. Showed pretty bad slip on the dyno but still could barely feel it on the street. I have many friends making 110-115+ ft lbs, dynas, baggers and softails with 40k+, beat to hell, wheelies and burnouts regularly, none of them slip. Just a se spring. Just making examples of what the stock pack will handle with a $30 spring and proper adjustment.

 

Slipping in higher gears first is normal, more load on the clutch than a low gear that lets the engine rev up more easily. If you tried starting in second gear, it'd probably slip, not that you'd want to do that. That doesn't indicate why it's slipping, though.

 

Did your 2012 come with a E-Z pull clutch from the factory? If so that may have some bearing on the situation.

 

Nope.

 

No need to replace the derby cover seal unless you damage it. I have two bikes, one with 80,000 miles, the other with 60,000 miles and they are both still on the original derby cover seal.

As far as the slippage goes, of course checking the adjustment would be the first step. Assuming that is not the problem, next I would replace the stock spring with the SE one.

Mine started slipping at around 40,000 miles on my Limited. I disassembled the clutch and inspected the plates and found them to be in perfect condition. Micrometer measurements were essentially identical to new plates. I replaced the stock spring (with the SE one) and all is fine. I actually prefer the feel of the SE spring over the stocker too... A bit more pull pressure but still very manageable.