Motorcycle Repair: Clutch not working (?) on an 85 Honda Shadow 1100, honda shadow 1100, clutch master cylinder

Question
Bill,

Been reading all the posts searching for a similar problem to mine...

I recently bought a 1985 Honda Shadow 1100 from a buddy.  Bike sat in the garage for a couple of years, no use.  

Changed the oil, new battery, new fuel.  Problem is this....
I put the bike in neutral, pull in teh clutch handle, start it up, kick it into 1st gear, release the clutch....and nothing happens.  Bike does not go into gear.  I can "feel" the bike going thru the gears w/ teh clutch handle pulled in (hear and feel a "clunk"), but again, once i release the clutch handle, nothing happens.  I'm thinking i need to rebuild (or at least clean) the clutch plates?  Any ideas?  Any help or guidance would be most appreciated!

thanks in advance,

jeff

Answer
Jeff, Think it over again. The clutch is designed to be engaged all the time, unless you release it with the clutch master cylinder and slave cylinder on the engine case. If the clutch plate pack were damaged or burnt up, the clutch wouldn't engage under any circumstances, but that is a fairly rare occurence. If the clutch hydraulics fail, you can't release the clutch. Often, the clutch pack will stick together, when left unridden for a few years, but that results in a no release condition, which would cause the bike to stall when you put it into gear.

The engine power is transmitted to the transmission, through the clutch assembly, then to the cross shaft, where the power flow turns 90 degrees, then heads to the drive shaft and final drive. From there the final drive drive hub splines engage with the rear wheel hub flange.

When you changed the oil you would have noticed burnt clutch friction material in the oil and filter, if the clutch was fried. Metal fragments and debris would have been apparent if there was something seriously worn/broken inside.

You didn't mention the mileage, so I can only guess about overall condition and maintenance history.

Usually, when you have a no-drive condition like this, there are terrible noises from the broken parts in the drive train or at the rear wheel hub.

I would start at the end and pull the rear wheel to see if the hub splines are not stripped out/damaged. Run the bike with the rear wheel off, to see if you have power to the final drive. If not, then you have to work your way backwards until you find the missing link.

http://www.bikebandit.com/houseofmotorcycles/honda-motorcycle-vt1100c-shadow-198...   A shop manual will be a good friend to you in this repair sequence, along with a good set of metric tools.

Bill Silver