Clutch issue ? - Ducati.ms

falcodave · Nov 21st, 2011, 5:17 am

Wondering if anyone else has run into this - first use of the clutch and sometimes second, after starting/warming the bike first thing in the morning it's grabby, fine after that. 5000 miles, using Mobil 1 now, Motul 300V previously, same thing w/both. ?

CessnaTPA · Nov 21st, 2011, 6:32 am

I've got 9k miles,use Motul 300v and it feels fine.

AKjitsu · Nov 21st, 2011, 12:58 pm

I've found that leaving the bike in neutral and pumping the clutch lever 10 or 12 times before rolling out for the first time of the day does a lot to smooth things out. These Duc hydraulics are a little flaky.

Good luck.

minusone · Nov 21st, 2011, 1:31 pm

The oil needs to circulate around the clutch plates.
I imagine the colder it is the thicker the oil and hence the issue until warmed up. I have this problem with my lesser used trials bike.
Just need to open and close the clutch at idle to allow the oil to spread.

DanF · Nov 21st, 2011, 2:23 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by AKjitsu

I've found that leaving the bike in neutral and pumping the clutch lever 10 or 12 times before rolling out for the first time of the day does a lot to smooth things out. These Duc hydraulics are a little flaky.

Quote:

Originally Posted by minusone

The oil needs to circulate around the clutch plates.
I imagine the colder it is the thicker the oil and hence the issue until warmed up. I have this problem with my lesser used trials bike.
Just need to open and close the clutch at idle to allow the oil to spread.

Jerry and Ian

This is the kind of stuff that riders like me would never know unless told so on a forum like this. Every once in awhile I learn something here that makes my owning a bike a lot easier.

P.S.

Ian

A bit of trivia, Mate. Your wheelie avatar (while very cute at first) is a "minor" distraction to any member who is really interested in reading your posts. And we all are...as you know your bikes and your contribution here is way up near the top of the list!

The way to avoid the visual distraction is to scroll down so that the cute little wheelie guy is hidden below the screen frame.

Dan

minusone · Nov 21st, 2011, 9:28 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by DanF

A bit of trivia, Mate. Your wheelie avatar (while very cute at first) is a "minor" distraction to any member who is really interested in reading your posts. And we all are...as you know your bikes and your contribution here is way up near the top of the list!

The way to avoid the visual distraction is to scroll down so that the cute little wheelie guy is hidden below the screen frame.

Dan

I created that wheelie guy as a little project from a photo me riding my VOR dirtbike. Needless to say it wheelies better than me, however I can still truthfully say - Hey that's me there!

Thanks for your kind comments.

minusone · Nov 22nd, 2011, 2:54 am

Some other reasons for a grabby clutch can be found after the clutch has been overheated.
This can cause the metal plates to warp and or the fibre plates to be glazed.
If you feel this has not happened then There is probably not much to worry about.

falcodave · Nov 22nd, 2011, 4:44 am

No, i haven't worked the clutch hard enought to hurt anything. My KTM does the same thing but that clutch gets tortured. Thanks for the feedback.

Willie B · Nov 22nd, 2011, 9:03 am

I agree with MINUSONE regarding the clutch plates. I have several trials bikes that are ridden pretty extensively. If I don't engage the clutch lever when storing the bikes, the clutch plates are almost always welded together, and dropping one in gear becomes somewhat of a challenge, especially if you aren't prepared. Engaging the clutch lever when parked always eliminates this. I haven't noticed the Multistrada's clutch being a problem, but my Hyper seems to suffer from this (notchy), especially when I'm close to needing an oil change. I typically use an elastic looped device with an integrated plastic ball to engage the lever around the bar grip. You might try this to see if it helps.