Question
1974 qa-50
QUESTION: good evening wayne! thanks again for your help with my clutch!and yes!! it did get the bike going again. its running great!! compression is right on,idles perfect,shifts like new!!! no 2nd gear slip,no leaks!!!! the only problem im now having is the kickstarter is slipping on me??? so i torn the engine down today and figured i,d replace the whole kickstarter assembly(because i have an extra 1 on the shelf??? when i took the old kickstarter ass. out i couldnt find anything faulty on it?? return spring and holder are good,no broken teeth on gear,shims on both sides of shaft,the spring on the gear seemed good BUT....i figured since its torn down i might as well use the other kickstarter shaft/assemby that i have and replace the old 1......well,i put the whole deal back together and i have the same problem??? kicker is still slipping??? bike starts with 1 kick.....if you can get it to catch???? slips probably 8 out of 9 kicks?? im using the shims that were in the engine when i took it apart....is it possible that these shims could be the wrong ones and part of the problem or is this unlikely? hoping for some suggestions,why do i get the feeling im going to have to tear this thing down again??? any ideas wayne?? thanks,rick
ANSWER: Hi Rick,
did you notice if there was a wire clip on the kickstart shaft
on the opposite end from the return spring?
It is designed to hold the gear so it spirals out and engages when
you kickstart it. If it is slipping or the tension is low on it
then the gear will tend not to engage and turn the engine.
Number 13 in this image:
http://members.shaw.ca/wsamel/2641_TRANSMISSION%20@%20GEAR%20CHANGE.gif
Wayne S
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QUESTION: hey wayne! thank you,yes...i have the wire clip(the wishbone looking one)on the opposite side! it appeared to be intact and working properly when i was trying it with the cases open?? and the 2nd kickstarter assembly i put in yesterday was a working unit in a bike i torndown for parts less than a month ago???....it worked perfect in the old engine it came from??? so thats 2 seperate kicks that are not grabbing in this engine???? could this possibly be clutch slippage? or a clutch adjustment? thanks for your input always,rick
ANSWER: Hi Rick,
If the clip is working it could be clutch slip.
Try turning your clutch adjust screw
A bit clockwise to see if that helps.
Maybe the plates are settling in but should
hold if they are okay.
Wayne
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kickstarter1 
kickstarter3
QUESTION: hey wayne,i tried the clutch adjust screw(a bit clockwise)and then a bit more clockwise..also tried backing it off a bit counter-clockwise all having no effect on the kickstarter?(still slipping)also the clutch i should mention is work great(dis-engages nice and smooth now also shifting is very smooth)when i try to kickstart it you can hear the teeth clicking like its just missing engaging? is there a way to tell if the friction spring(which you mentioned earlier)is faulty while the piece is out of the bike? i noticed my friction spring (which is held on top of the kickstart gear by a collar)spins both ways when im holding it in my hand??? not sure if this is correct? im also wondering if the shim that sits on the bottom of the shaft may be wrong and pushing the whole assembly out of alinement?? again when you try to kickstart you can hear the teeth slipping? like there just missing by alittle bit?? sometimes if i push the kicker slow with my hand it will engage and start but it seems to be less as time goes on???
Answer
Hi Rick,
PS (I just noticed that your wishbone clip looks backwards on the shaft)
Better check that out!
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The little wishbone shaped spring should have some tension on it
so it won't slip but it sounds like the gear that it is turning
is not engaging far enough. This might be due to spacing
on either the kickstart shaft or on the clutch gear that it engages.
When it finally engages then things depend on the clutch plates
themselves and the ramped gear in back of the clutch unit.
The gear on the wishbone clip should also be inspected
and the gear it is supposed to be engaging to turn the engine.
They could be worn but if not then the clip gear is not
spiraling in far enough to catch the other.
This might be a pain to see or fix unless you measure
the spacing of all the shafts and gears to be sure
that kick gear will move far enough to work.
The wishbone friction spring clip also has a place that it sits
in the case so the clip will be held while kicking.
Check that it is in place.
The little wishbone clip is just a fiction fit so it can move
either way but should have enough tension to make the
gear spiral out out the shaft.
I forget the actual tension but it might be like 2 lbs??
Wayne S.
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