Early XL Clutch Problems

[chopper]

Those early Harley Davidson XL clutches can be tough to set up, but I'll tell you what I usually find that screws them up.

Too much oil in the primary. Only need a pint and too much gets in the plates and causes drag. If the motor sits for more than a month, the oil drains from the tank by gravity and winds up in the primary. Try draining the excess off through the check site on the side of the cover and then adding more to the oil bag once the engine has warmed up.

Heavy duty springs in the clutch. If you have Barnett or other heavy springs, get rid of them and put regular stock springs back in. The heavy duty springs aren't necessary and cause bad clutch drag because they cause the cable to stretch and the worm gear to bend. Also because there is no throwout bearing it burns up the 3 pc rod through the mainshaft. (Sound familiar?

High friction Barnett plates. If you have a drag racer great, but the stock el cheapo plates work better because they don't grab as much and disengage better. Use the CCI ones, and if you don't have the clutch dome to keep the oil out, make sure you use the wet/dry numbers.

Improper adjustment on the tensioner nuts. You only need enough pressure on the plates to keep the thing from slipping. Any more and you cause clutch drag and it's a fine line. I adjust them to the book spec. and only more if it slips.

Warped steel plates. Take the steels out, check for blueing and then stack them up, flipping over every other one. If they act springy and are not perfectly flat, you'll get bad clutch drag.