After completing a 3 day rental on a new M8 Road King, I made some comments to the rental manager regarding the clutch. The shift point is different, it felt different, and IMHO was harder to pull than my '12 with the SE clutch and clutch spring. He mentioned that many people make comments, some good, some not good. And as such HD prepared a write-up on the new "Assist & Slip Clutch with Hydraulic Actuation". I'm not in the mood to type up the whole thing, so I've taken a picture of it, as attached. Check it out...it's interesting. But...doesn't explain why the clutch on the M8 aggravated my carpal tunnel issue...

 

Of course it won't explain your carpal tunnel, but you should consider riding other bikes with Hydraulic clutches.

I have a KTM that you can use 1 finger to pull the clutch in

 

This is only a guess, but.....

The hydraulic clutch engages/disengages much later (at the end of the lever travel) than the cable clutches. My cable clutches are totally engaged/disengaged at about halfway through the lever travel.

I suspect that with a hydraulic clutch, the pressure remains on your fingers farther as you release the lever while engaging the clutch, and requires pressure sooner as you squeeze on the lever to to disengage the clutch (make sense?).... thus causing more strain on your tendons....

Again, just a guess...

 

If in so this is the case, then a reduced reach clutch lever would solve this issue.

This is my guess.

 

This is what I would hope for.

 

I am waiting for someone to make an adjustable lever that fits the 2017. had it on the 2016 worked great. But the 2016 will not fit.

 

new sg coming next week and that is one of the first things to take care of.

 

Coming from BMW I was like, oh cool this HD has a hydraulic clutch. Then I was like, wtf? Tight engagement range and stiff as a brake lever at times. Here I wondered why I saw so many HD riders sitting at the light out of gear, now I knew

 

I was told all the reasons why not to get a new hydraulic clutch bike, but i love it. I love it ten times more then my 2013 normal clutch. I wonder how it will hold up in 100k miles, but i enjoy it.

 

Not sure when or if about the adjustable lever but I have a reduced reach lever coming from Softbrake right now.