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When a clutch cable snaps


Jst2fst

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This happend to me this summer I was out riding in Hilliard and my clutch cable snapped on me. I had to call for a tow truck because I was stuck in rush hour traffic and could not idle in neutral. I was kinda worried how they would tow a bike but I was surprised to see it was done pretty well. Was stuck for an hour at a gas station on Hilliard Rome rd looking at the highway on ramps. How far have you been stuck from home when this has happend if it has happend to you?

Tow setup.

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Loaded and on our way.

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I keep a very small set of vice grips for snapped cables. As long as they snap up top on the handle you can fish out the cable, lock on with vice grips and at least limp it home...I've had clutch cables snap before but luckily I was right infront of my dads house so I just parked it there for a few days.

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I keep a very small set of vice grips for snapped cables. As long as they snap up top on the handle you can fish out the cable, lock on with vice grips and at least limp it home...I've had clutch cables snap before but luckily I was right infront of my dads house so I just parked it there for a few days.

I could not do that on mine there is a switch on my clutch that looked like it had to be pushed in order to shift. My katana i tried that and failed.

Mine snapped two summers ago. I had just pulled out of the driveway and went to shift into second. I just circled through a parking lot and parked it back at my place. Took the car to work.

At least you were close to home

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I had a shift rod break and go missing so then my shifter just fell limp. I had been slabbing it out 1.5 hours out from my house and went to downshift on the exit ramp and there was just nothing there. I kicked the shit out of the shifter after I looked down and was able to get into 1st somehow and limp to a parking lot. Thanks to the American Legion Riders Post 103, we scrabbled some duct tape and a brass rod so that I could get back home. It was an early day unfortunately :(

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I had mine break about an hour from home once. Luckily it was all state highways out in rural indiana, only about 7 stoplights the whole time. Most i either caught green or could slow down and roll through. Stopped at one, had to push it to a run, hopped on and slammed it into gear.

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my buddies snapped about 3 miles down the road from my place. He luckily was able to grab enough of it under his frame (he had a standard at the time) to limp home at about 25mph. It wouldn't have been terrible to push it home but it certainly woulda sucked

the day it happens to me I'll be lost. Probably call someone to pick me up and I'll just have them take me home and go get my trailer to pick it up and take it Pauly to figure out wtf the problem is :lol:

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I had a shift rod break and go missing so then my shifter just fell limp. I had been slabbing it out 1.5 hours out from my house and went to downshift on the exit ramp and there was just nothing there. I kicked the shit out of the shifter after I looked down and was able to get into 1st somehow and limp to a parking lot. Thanks to the American Legion Riders Post 103, we scrabbled some duct tape and a brass rod so that I could get back home. It was an early day unfortunately :(

Props to them for helping you out. Its a bit amazing to see how many people will not ask to see if you need help on a disabled bike.

I had mine break about an hour from home once. Luckily it was all state highways out in rural indiana, only about 7 stoplights the whole time. Most i either caught green or could slow down and roll through. Stopped at one, had to push it to a run, hopped on and slammed it into gear.

Sounds like you had some good luck with your situation

This is one reason I've practiced shifting without the clutch.

This summer I averted a clutch cable breakage by replacing it before it broke!

Yea, I tried shifting without the clutch the bike just did not wanna shift for me.

my buddies snapped about 3 miles down the road from my place. He luckily was able to grab enough of it under his frame (he had a standard at the time) to limp home at about 25mph. It wouldn't have been terrible to push it home but it certainly woulda sucked

the day it happens to me I'll be lost. Probably call someone to pick me up and I'll just have them take me home and go get my trailer to pick it up and take it Pauly to figure out wtf the problem is :lol:

That would of sucked to push the bike three miles would of been a nice workout. I wish that I had someone to call to get me. Too bad I didn't have something in my tool kit to get me home.

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you can push off as you hit the start button and get it rolling and sync shift it through the mountians for 40 miles to a hill jack repair shop and get it fixed on a saturday evening for $35...ask me, gump,maxpower or casper how we know...:lol:

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you can push off as you hit the start button and get it rolling and sync shift it through the mountians for 40 miles to a hill jack repair shop and get it fixed on a saturday evening for $35...ask me, gump,maxpower or casper how we know...:lol:

Wow that sounds like an adventure from hell when did this happen?

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you can push off as you hit the start button and get it rolling and sync shift it through the mountians for 40 miles to a hill jack repair shop and get it fixed on a saturday evening for $35...ask me, gump,maxpower or casper how we know...:lol:

and here I missed all the fun since I was trailering our shit back to Cleveland :lol:

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this past september when we were down at deals gap...here was the thread about it http://www.ohioriders.net/showthread.php?t=82783&highlight=robbinsville

Thats pure luck he rode the same bike you did and had the part on hand. But 40 miles doing that had to be a pain.

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Thats pure luck he rode the same bike you did and had the part on hand. But 40 miles doing that had to be a pain.

i never stoped it was in the mountians so there were not many side roads or turn offs, the only oh shit momment was in robbinsville there was a stop sign with 3 cars sitting at it but i lucked out and the gas station parking lot on the cornner was near empty and i just cut through, it worked out very well..maxpower followed me the whole way incase here was any problem

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i never stoped it was in the mountians so there were not many side roads or turn offs, the only oh shit momment was in robbinsville there was a stop sign with 3 cars sitting at it but i lucked out and the gas station parking lot on the cornner was near empty and i just cut through, it worked out very well..maxpower followed me the whole way incase here was any problem

sounds better than i thought

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you can push off as you hit the start button and get it rolling and sync shift it through the mountians for 40 miles to a hill jack repair shop and get it fixed on a saturday evening for $35...ask me, gump,maxpower or casper how we know...:lol:

Sounds a lot like one of trips to the Gap on the FJR. Last trip through on a Sunday heading home by myself when I crashed, snapping clutch lever off up near the pivot. :o...:mad:

After hanging out with one of the Killboy photogs for an hour or so(and smoking half pack of cigarettes) I finally decided to try to get underway without the clutch and expected the 500 mile ride home was going to be one loooong complicated ride. Lucked out and found another remotely similar clutch lever at the 129 Motorcycle Pitstop. And borrowing some of their shop tools got it rigged so I would atleast have some clutch control the rest of the way home... I was ecstatic to say the least. :D

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In the city sometimes you can get lucky and ride in circles in parking lots waiting.for.lights. you could.also get your bike insured with progressive and take advantage of their free roadside assistance. Usually one tow home offsets the price of decent liability insurance on a 600 (about $115 / year). I know this from experience, was carving asphalt out in east Jesus and the valve stem in my front tire abandoned ship. Took 2 hours but got taken home on a flat bed for free.

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Its a bit amazing to see how many people will not ask to see if you need help on a disabled bike.

Damn I remember seeing you that very day standing by your bike at the Shell station. Can't remember if I was on mine 2up or in my truck but I remember sayin to the chic "that looks like one of the guys from the forum". Later I realized it was you by your avatar. I live less than a minute from there & thought you were just waiting for other riders to show up or something. I have a bike hauler & would've gave you a lift.

After taking the straps & bar harness off:

imag0059u.jpg

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Damn I remember seeing you that very day standing by your bike at the Shell station. Can't remember if I was on mine 2up or in my truck but I remember sayin to the chic "that looks like one of the guys from the forum". Later I realized it was you by your avatar. I live less than a minute from there & thought you were just waiting for other riders to show up or something. I have a bike hauler & would've gave you a lift.

After taking the straps & bar harness off:

imag0059u.jpg

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

No worries man, I can see how other riders would think that. I didn't wanna post up for help because I didn't know if anyone should be able to plus I already had a tow truck on the way. Thanks for the concern though, hopefully I can have a trailer next season hopefully.

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Never thought much about it. I just ride it home. Did it once or twice in a car even...

edit: I did eventually learn to inspect, service and repair before it fails...

and yeah, most insurance now has road service or towing features.

Edited by ReconRat
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Pretty minor in the overall list of what could happen, really.

The two times it happened to me, I was able to continue on my route by shifting into neutral to come to a stop, and then shifting up into second to resume moving again by feathering the thottle to keep the bike from stalling. Pretty jerky starts and I lofted the front wheel a bit accidentally several times, but it worked.

Once you are moving, shifting between the gears from 2 up and back down to 2 is fairly easy with no clutch cable.

In really heavy traffic I don't think I would want to try it, I'd probably just call AMA roadside.

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