Premier clutch friction plates

[ADVGD]

Just come back from a three day ride on the West Coast, lots of new tracks explored, new places seen, an absolutely great trip. But, the newly installed Premier clutch friction plates gave me a dog of a time in the rough stuff, in no time flat they would heat up dumping untold slack into the clutch cable until the plates cooled. Admittedly running 14/41 gearing to get decent road speeds means I give the clutch serious abuse in the rough terrain, however the OEM set lasted 36,000 km and never once had this problem. It's not that I have cut corners here, the friction plates are of a similar price as OEM and Moose Racing plates, very curious to hear if anyone else is using Premier plates or has any experience with them.

Cheers

[JATZ]

Yip... I killed a set of new plates when we went through the Mackley at new years. They were brand new and burnt out getting up the steep gnarly exit after the second creek crossing.
They came rightish after cooling for a bit. This was on the Big.
From memory they were about $190 for the set

Also.... piglet wants to know what those noodles you raved about are called

[ADVGD]

Yip... I killed a set of new plates when we went through the Mackley at new years. They were brand new and burnt out getting up the steep gnarly exit after the second creek crossing.
They came rightish after cooling for a bit. This was on the Big.
From memory they were about $190 for the set

The thing is I treated these plates the same as the OEM plates, the only difference is that the OEM plates handled it just fine, I could ride extended periods up rocky riverbeds, climbing steep hills, etc, be slipping the hell out of it and it would be just fine. This Premier plates seem unable to handle this.

Also.... piglet wants to know what those noodles you raved about are called

A thread about clutches and noodles, what next

They are these ones:



Super yummy, hot and spicy, awesome to heat you up after a winters ride. In most supermarkets, normally in the asian/oriental section

[Brian d marge]

Something doesnt add up , things expand when they get hot, the clutch would drag . Unless they are sticking together and acting as a single plate

How were they installed ???

Stephen

[JATZ]

Something doesnt add up , things expand when they get hot, the clutch would drag . Unless they are sticking together and acting as a single plate

How were they installed ???

Stephen

Mine were installed by me, steel plates were "roughed up" a little and cleaned with brakeclean before being installed with the new friction plates and heavy duty springs.
I believe mine became glazed with the heat of the oil, they were taking a hiding trying to push the bike up a steep loose slope using plenty of clutch.

[ADVGD]

Something doesnt add up , things expand when they get hot, the clutch would drag . Unless they are sticking together and acting as a single plate

How were they installed ???

Stephen

Hi Stephen, it makes sense, as the plates heat up they expand and then push towards and against the clutch springs with the result being slack put on the pivot arm > clutch cable > clutch leaver. The clutch operates fine under normal riding (racked up over 1,200km no probs over the 3 day ride) but in the gnarly stuff the more the clutch is worked and heated (while still operating fine without dragging) the more and more slack results

[ADVGD]

Mine were installed by me

Did you use OEM or aftermarket?

they were taking a hiding trying to push the bike up a steep loose slope using plenty of clutch.

Not surprising, that DR BIG is a big unit of a bike

[Brian d marge]

Hi Stephen, it makes sense, as the plates heat up they expand and then push towards and against the clutch springs with the result being slack put on the pivot arm > clutch cable > clutch leaver. The clutch operates fine under normal riding (racked up over 1,200km no probs over the 3 day ride) but in the gnarly stuff the more the clutch is worked and heated (while still operating fine without dragging) the more and more slack results

Mine usually give a heap of clutch drag . to the point that you cannot change any gear or separate the drive from the engine

you said a lot there was a lot of slack. I would be laying the bike on its side flicking the cover , without hurting the gasket , and looking for some evidence . Those are big bikes to be pushing around if the clutch goes south

Stephen

[ADVGD]

you said a lot there was a lot of slack. I would be laying the bike on its side flicking the cover , without hurting the gasket , and looking for some evidence...

Stephen

Cheers Stephen, it appears to be a common problem with cheap clutch fibres when you Google it, here are a couple of comments from forums of those that have installed aftermarket clutch fibres/kits and have cable/leaver slackening issues:



You're abusing the clutch enough to cause the slack. Never had a bike that did that without clutch abuse. If it doesn't go away with new stock plates (all of them) and springs, lower the gearing even more, change your habits, or live with the extra slack until it cools down

I have an EBC clutch on my drz and I have the same problem. Clutch lever is stiff at cold, normal when riding on road and a lot of play while offroading. Oem clutch wasn't doing that... I've bought the EBC because I needed it fast and it was the only one in stock but I'll never put back another one on my bike

ebc clutches are junk

OEM and MOOSE have proven them self’s over and over again

Installed a new clutch kit and ever since the leaver goes all slack after lots of use in dirt riding



My question is, does Premier fall into the bracket of "cheap"? As said above I didn't aim to cut corners, the fibre plates were the same price as Moose Racing ones which appear to have a good name...

[Woodman]

Whats a clutch???

[ADVGD]

Whats a clutch???

I'll use this image of your bike as an example of where the clutch is located on a motorbike



Oh hang on Woodman, it appears your clutch housing is obscured by a sh*t load of water and mud

[JATZ]

Did you use OEM or aftermarket?



Not surprising, that DR BIG is a big unit of a bike

Like I said.... the clutch took a hiding trying to get up that hill they were premier clutch plates and I think were about 180- 190 $
New heavy duty springs installed at the same time
I would hate to think what Snoozuki would want for OEM plates for the Big.

Oh hang on Woodman, it appears your clutch housing is obscured by a sh*t load of water and mud

: thats a good one

[XF650]

Where were you riding on the Coast, that caused this clutch grief?

[Woodman]

Wonder if running a thicker oil would help??

[ADVGD]

they were premier clutch plates and I think were about 180- 190 $

Interesting

New heavy duty springs installed at the same time

Yep, did the same

Where were you riding on the Coast, that caused this clutch grief?

I spent the 3 days GPS logging every track through Hohonu and Nemona Forest, some of the tracks were steep and/or rocky in paces. Blackwater Creek track is a wee gem the only problem is it is too short