Adjust clutch lever free play

Free play is the distance the clutch lever moves before you feel the cable start to pull. With too little, the clutch never fully grips and it slips and burns. With too much, the clutch never fully lets go, so the bike creeps, gears are hard to select and neutral is hard to find. A small gap also protects the release bearing (the bearing that spins when you pull the lever). Check free play at every service and whenever the clutch feels different. This page is for bikes with a hand clutch lever and a cable. A hydraulic clutch adjusts itself; see Bleed a hydraulic clutch.

Safety

• Do the adjustment with the engine off.
• When you test on the stand with the engine running and a gear selected, the rear wheel and chain turn. Keep hands, sleeves and cloths well away.
• Test ride at walking pace first, in a quiet place.

You need

• Spanners for the locknuts at the lever and at the lower (engine end or mid-cable) adjuster.
• A steel rule to measure at the lever tip.
• Cable lubricant, if the cable feels rough.

Steps

1. Put the bike on its centre stand or hold it upright, engine off, in neutral.
2. Pull the lever gently until you feel resistance. Measure how far the tip of the lever moved. K-Light 125: 10 to 15 mm at the lever tip. Other bikes: use your manual's value.
3. Turn the handlebar fully left and fully right and measure again. If the free play changes, the cable is routed wrongly or trapped. Fix the routing before you go on.
4. To adjust at the lever, loosen the locknut on the barrel adjuster.
5. Turn the adjuster out of the lever bracket to reduce free play, or into the bracket to increase it. Recheck after each half turn.
6. If the lever adjuster runs out of thread, screw it almost fully in. Then make the main adjustment at the lower adjuster near the engine or in the middle of the cable, and use the lever adjuster only for the final fine setting. This leaves room for the rider to adjust on the road.
7. Tighten both locknuts. Turn the slot in the lever adjuster away from the slot in the lever so the cable cannot pop out.
8. Pull the lever several times. It should move smoothly and spring back fully. If it sticks, lubricate the cable and lever pivot (Lubricate control cables, Service lever pivots).

Check your work

• Free play is in the specified range and stays the same from full left to full right lock.
• Engine running, lever pulled: first gear goes in without a big clunk and the bike does not try to move.
• Lever released slowly: the bike pulls away smoothly.
• On the road: in a high gear, opening the throttle raises speed and revs together, with no slip.

If it did not fix the problem

• Still slips: check the oil level and grade, then go to Clutch slips.
• Still drags or creeps: go to Clutch drags.
• Cable is stiff, frayed or keeps going out of adjustment: Replace the clutch cable.
• Correct free play cannot be reached at all: the plates or release mechanism may be worn; see Inspect and replace clutch plates and springs.

Reference values (K-Light 125)

The K-Light fault charts on PDF pages 28 and 30 give 10 to 20 mm. These are generic charts for many models; the model service instruction on page 69 is used here.