Howdy all,

I bought a chopped 77 Sportster off a friend about a month and a half ago. Here's the rundown:

He had problems with keeping the clutch in adjustment; it seemed to always drag a bit and clunk into first gear hard. He got accustomed to getting a slight roll going before shifting into first when starting from stoplights. He and his dad built the bike way back when. He thinks it had a Jackson racing clutch installed? He dragged it at the race track a few times to see what it could do, but it was not ran often.

I bought it off him and have been having to adjust it out at least once or twice a week. It will adjust out to be just slightly slipping when hard on the throttle in top gears, but after 2-3 days it would go right back to dragging and shifting hard from a stop. I thought it was shaking the adjuster loose.

Well today I find out that I now have the adjuster as far in as I can get it to go, and it's still dragging and stalling out when going from a complete stop, unless I give it gas. This wouldn't be the adjust mechanism underneath the primary cover, right? It's most likely a toasted clutch?

A few odd symptoms: If the bike was dragging hard, I could pull in the clutch while driving down the road, rev hard and good, and the clutch cable would go half slack. I would have to reach down and tighten it back up, but I'm pretty sure the adjuster wasn't actually moving at the cable....so I think it might have been coming loose in the cases somewhere.

Also, if I tightened the clutch cable too much after an adjustment, I could feel a 'pop' at the end of the lever pull when pulling in the clutch. If I tightened it a good bit too much, it would pop under the cover, the clutch would pull and stay all the way in, and I would have no clutch. If this happened while riding, I could rev and it would pop the lever back out. I had the primary cover off, and it seems like if I tighten the clutch cable too much and pull the lever in, it pulls the clutch into a 'dip' at the end of the round cam it rides on on the adjuster mechanism. Not sure if this was related, though, that might be normal. This is my first Harley.

Also, I found out after I got it home that the primary chain's adjuster bolt had fallen out, so the chain was ran fully loose for a few days and it may have been ran a bit without any tranny fluid. The chain chewed the inside of the cases just a bit; not bad at all, but enough to get plenty of small metal flakes into the tranny fluid.

So before I throw down some cash I don't have, does anyone have any insight into this problem?

 

You are very lucky that you still have a bike that runs. If that bolt had been caught between the chain and either sprocket while you were riding happily along, it would be Good-Bye old friend and you could set the bike by the curb for the next heavy trash pickup.
No trans fluid is certainly not good either. Bearings, bushings and the like go bad, and you know what?.......They do not get better or repair themselves. It is all downhill when they get damaged. So keep a close on all the oil levels, unless you like to spend gobs of money.
Do the clutch adjustment and I suggest you remove the primary cover to check all of the bolts for proper tightness unless you feel sure all is well inside...........pg

 

Yep, first Ironhead. I know they clunk, but this was bad enough so it would stall if you didn't give it a good bit of gas when taking off, and it wanted to pull the bike right out from underneath you!

I have a Clymer's manual. I have been using it and this forum to set the adjustment screw (I believe it's called the clutch release screw?). I have no clue how you adjust the release ramp; I don't have my manual with me right now, but don't remember reading anything in that section about adjusting the release ramp. I'm sure I had the release screw adjusted correctly; it's the screw in the primary-side case cover, under the rear inspection bolt and has a lock nut holding it tight?

 

I think you need to pull the cover off and have a look at things, that way you get a better understanding of the inner-workings and you can stop guessing.

I have a feeling that the popping sound you hear is the ramp assembly not staying in it's rotational position and when you pull the clutch, the whole assy spins untill the tab "falls" into it's intended postion. That would be why the cable goes half slack. The The cause maybe that the last time the case was put on, the ramp assy was not held in place well enough and allowed to turn before the case was locked down tight.

This situation will absolutely cause a false, proper adjustment. I learned this on my own '77 and was lucky enough to figure out what was happening before I ever ran it. What I did was made a big nut that would screw onto the adjuster screw from the outside to hold the ramp assy in the case durring removal and assembly.

Hope this give you a fresh idea.
Rich


PG, the chain tension on a '77 is done with a screw from the outside bottom of the case and should be locked down with a jam-nut, also on the outside of the case, so I don't think he was in danger of a loose nut inside the case, just a very loose chain which is still bad.

 

PG, the chain tension on a '77 is done with a screw from the outside bottom of the case and should be locked down with a jam-nut, also on the outside of the case, so I don't think he was in danger of a loose nut inside the case, just a very loose chain which is still bad.

Ha-Ha! I knew someone would catch me (again) talking out of turn with comments on something newer than a 1974. Thank you Rich, I stand corrected.
Here is what I have on the adjustment, and remember it is for up to 1974............pg

 

No problem, PG.

The pict makes it easier to explain. What I was talking about before was the tab on #8 should mate with a groove in the case and not spin at all. With the '77, you also have the shifter shaft that has to come through the case when reassembled and the chain tensioner has a spring that presses against the bottom side of both halves of the case. It all makes it a bit more difficult to line everything up with only one hand while you try to pull/hold the ramp assy in place with just the tips of your fingers on the other hand. Threads start to hurt, finger slips, assy drops, start all over. or instead of dropping the assy, it shifts into a bad possition. That's what I think has happened.

Rich

 

Alright, here's an update to my problem. I've got three bikes all needing work, and I'm back to getting them all back on the road.

The Ironhead is still giving me the same fits. Here's what it's doing with pics:

When I would reassemble the clutch adjuster and ramp, sometimes it would pop and the cable would go slack with the lever all the way back. Here's what was happening on the inside:



I think I may have been letting one of the ball bearings slip out of its groove. I carefully reassembled it and set it correctly. Now, this is where it stands. I forgot to get a pic of it actually installed, but here is the relative positioning I installed the adjuster at:



After careful reassembly, I screw in the adjuster until the clutch just starts to engage. This is where it is:



As you can see, I only have around 2 threads left on the adjuster, and that's with the locknut NOT installed! I still have two turns to turn it in to be at proper adjustment, which happens to be right where it will not turn in anymore.

Here's the backside of the adjuster:



Here's the clutch pack:



And here's the side with the cover off:



At this point I'm stumped. What would make me have to constantly adjust in the clutch adjuster until there is no adjustment left? Any ideas at all?

 

I have given about all of the clutch knowledge I have in my preceeding posts, so this is really nothing new.
However, let's give it another try.........
Your first pic shows the release ramp/lever way past the point it should be (counterclockwise direction as you are looking at it)
Is that the result of the 3 ***** 'jumping' a space when you pulled in the lever?
That should not happen, so let's go to the beginning and I have a question for you......

The 3 ***** have to be fully seated in their respective positions.
So, to do this you press down on the 3 ***** holding them in place seated in their depressions, while you unscrew the adjuster shaft on the clutch cable. When all slack at the clutch lever is zero......stop adjusting and tighten down the lock nut on the adjuster.
Install the cover on the engine.
Then do the 'clutch release' exercise again.

I think what has happened with you working on it is that you have the clutch release adjuster screw too far in the clutch plate before you even begin. As a result you find yourself without enough threads to install the lock nut on the release screw.
I do not know how else I could explain it, but I believe that is one of the problems, if not THE problem.
As I said in my opening statement........
The 3 ***** have to be fully seated in their respective positions.
So, to do this you press down on the 3 ***** holding them in place seated in their depressions, while you unscrew the adjuster shaft on the clutch cable. When all slack at the clutch lever is zero......stop adjusting and tighten down the lock nut on the adjuster.
There is not much else that could cause the ***** to jump position except failing to carry out the forementioned step.............pg

 

Alright, just to clarify. The '***** jumping slots' and the cable going slack problem are no longer a problem. I was just showing what was happening. I happened to have made it jump slots by not having the clutch release adjuster screw not in enough and trying to compensate by tightening up the clutch cable.

New question: Do you agree that while the cover is off, the position of the clutch release adjuster screw does not alter the clutch cable adjuster shaft? In other words, I can have the adjuster screw all the way in or out, but either way I can still set the clutch cable slack at the correct point (as long as I hold the adjuster/ramp assembly in the right position in the side cover)?

 

New question: Do you agree that while the cover is off, the position of the clutch release adjuster screw does not alter the clutch cable adjuster shaft? In other words, I can have the adjuster screw all the way in or out, but either way I can still set the clutch cable slack at the correct point (as long as I hold the adjuster/ramp assembly in the right position in the side cover)?

My understanding of what you just said is this:
The position of the clutch release adjuster screw has no affect on the cable adjuster shaft when the cover is off......I agree with that.
Then this is where I become confused by what you go on to say, so.......
The adjuster screw has no purpose (other than to hold the release ramp until the cover is in place. Just unscrew it a ways with the cover off, say enough to get the lock nut on it fully. Then....

Again I will repeat.......Holding the 3 ***** firmly seated in their depressions while you unscrew the clutch cable adjusting sleeve until you obtain zero slack in the cable at the clutch lever end.
Now you are ready to install the cover. Do so.
Next you will screw the cable adjustment sleeve back into the case a ways until you get slack at the clutch lever.
Then turn in the clutch release adjustment screw inward until it touches, plus another 1 or 2 full turns. Then....
Follow the remainder of the instructions for adjusting the clutch release mechanism.
Something tells me you are using the sleeve adjuster to obtain clutch cable slack at the lever end, and if so then this is just plain wrong.
That is how you adjust most other bikes out there to get clutch cable slack.......BUT not on a Sportster............pg