JoeGibs
Novice Class
Posts: 73
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posted August 08, 2011 06:11 PM
cheap ebay levers
i had my 12 fall over in a parking lot, kick stand sunk into the tar. the only thing that really broke was the clutch lever. it was interesting getting home from out of town with a busted lever. anyway, i have always been curious about the cheap adjustable ebay levers from china, so i decided to order up a pair for 40 bucks shipped. i put them on a couple nights ago, and they went on with ease. i havent gone for a ride with them, but just testing in the garage, they feel firm and tight, and look pretty damn nice.
i have set of crg adjustables on my r1, and those are very easy to adjust while flying down the road, but these cheap ebay ones take some good effort to move the little lever to adjust. it may get easier if i use it a lot, but this, a pretty minor thing, is my only complaint. the only other thing i'm concerned about is the finish wearing out over time.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320691513656&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWNX%3AIT
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JoeGibs
Novice Class
Posts: 73
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posted September 03, 2011 03:57 PM
so i finally got around to taking the bike out for a cruise, first time with the new levers. just for shits and giggles, i checked my brake lights before taking off, and sure enough, the lever didnt activate the brake light. rear brake still lit up the brake light, so its definitely something in the lever. will be investigating soon
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JohnD
Parking Attendant
Posts: 9
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posted September 04, 2011 05:18 AM
I looks like more damage than just the lever! Just kidding.
I solve the problem of hot asphalt, soft ground etc. by always carrying a flattened aluminium can (tin, I think for you UK'ers) in my jacket pocket or motorcycle's storage bin. Just slip under the kickstand and I have pease of mind.
If I somehow don't have the can, I just look around for one and 90% of the time someone has thrown one in the trash or on the ground nearby. Just stomp it flat and under the stand it goes.
I have seen these levers on EBay. Most people have had no problems with them from what I have read on various forums.
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JoeGibs
Novice Class
Posts: 73
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posted September 05, 2011 11:08 PM
i usually have a kickstand pad in my jacket, but i put it under my old man's hardley's kickstand a few days before the tip over.
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JoeGibs
Novice Class
Posts: 73
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posted September 11, 2011 10:25 AM
i still havent got the brake light figured out, but i went out for a spirited ride down some local backroads yesterday. i noticed that in the higher rpm's the clutch was slipping almost to redline. is this a common problem for the zx12r's for the clutch to go out? or is this something that is likely lever related? 13k miles on the bike.
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tommytt1
Parking Attendant
Posts: 11
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posted September 12, 2011 04:52 PM
Clutch Slipping.
Just curious; What kind of oil is in your bike?
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JoeGibs
Novice Class
Posts: 73
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posted September 12, 2011 11:59 PM
shell synthetic, i forget which weight though. probably 1500 miles tops on the oil and filter. spose it wouldnt hurt to do my winter oil change a bit early to see if that has any relation to the slipping clutch.
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tommytt1
Parking Attendant
Posts: 11
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posted September 13, 2011 03:55 PM
quote:
shell synthetic, i forget which weight though. probably 1500 miles tops on the oil and filter. spose it wouldnt hurt to do my winter oil change a bit early to see if that has any relation to the slipping clutch.
The oil is most likely the culprit. Shell Synthetic isn't rated for wet clutches. Basically it's too slippery. Use only synthetic oil with the 4t designation, it's for motorcycles with wet clutches. Mobil 1 4t, Castrol 4t and Valvoline 4t are available at my local autu parts store.
I learned this in 1992 with my 88 CBR 600 Hurricane, when I thought mobil 1 car oil was some great stuff, just not in a MC. The bike ran awesome, but the clutch slipped like hell. Back to straight 30 and the problem went away.
The three oils I listed above work well and also let you find neutral easily, European(Agip, IP, etc.) oils tend to make it harder to
find.
Tom
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frEEk
Administrator
ummm... yeah
Posts: 9660
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posted September 14, 2011 08:31 PM
With a few claimed exceptions, can't use auto oils in a wet clutch bike (as tommytt1 said) due to them having friction modifiers.
Cheap alternative to bike oil is Shell Rotella T, either dino or synthetic. A number of people use it (including racers) and Shell themselves say it is ok to use in wet clutch applications.
As to clutches going out in 12s... uh, yeah. That is most definitely a common problem. fish_antlers went thru 3 in the first 12000 miles if I remember my numbers correctly, and he isn't exactly a drag racer. Quite a few people had issues in the early days with frequent clutch replacements. On the other hand I've got 55,000 miles on my '00 stock clutch.
As to it being level related... only if you have it adjusted too tight. It should be trivial to look whether there is any residual tension on the cable when the lever is released.
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JoeGibs
Novice Class
Posts: 73
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posted September 15, 2011 10:08 AM
it is indeed shell rotella t i'm using. the reason i'm concerned it being the clutch is for the first half of the ride everything worked perfectly. then about half way through, as i ripped it open and got into the higher rpm's, it started slipping. it seemed pretty uniform through all gears too.
i'm on my way to the parts store to see if i can find some 4t oil. i grew out of paying 60+ filter for an oil change using amsoil
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zx12r2001
Parking Attendant
Posts: 13
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posted September 15, 2011 01:42 PM
Check your clutch lever adjustment. Mine was doing the same thing and adjusted the thumb screw and it corrected it. Just a suggestion......
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tommytt1
Parking Attendant
Posts: 11
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posted September 15, 2011 03:20 PM
quote:
it is indeed shell rotella t i'm using. the reason i'm concerned it being the clutch is for the first half of the ride everything worked perfectly. then about half way through, as i ripped it open and got into the higher rpm's, it started slipping. it seemed pretty uniform through all gears too.
i'm on my way to the parts store to see if i can find some 4t oil. i grew out of paying 60+ filter for an oil change using amsoil
I'm buying the 4t oils for about 9 to 10 a quart at the local Advanced Auto Parts. I used to run Amsoil, Great stuff but I just couldn't see spending the money. It used to seem to get dirty sooner than the Mobil I'm using now.
Use the Kawasaki filters or you might have to burp the filter (messy) and aftermarket autoparts filters are not designed for our ZX-12 engines(can cause a drop in oil pressure as they filter too much).
Also +1 on checking the freeplay on the lever adjuster.
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frEEk
Administrator
ummm... yeah
Posts: 9660
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posted September 15, 2011 09:40 PM
Rotella T is not a car oil. It is heavy duty diesel oil and will not be the cause of your clutch slippage. Either your clutch cable is badly adjusted (like I said, trivial to check by just feeling the actuator on top of the clutch cover), or your clutch is just plain going.
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JoeGibs
Novice Class
Posts: 73
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posted September 16, 2011 09:14 AM
i'm using a wix filter, and found a reasonably priced 4t dino oil. i'll check out the cable adjustment before heading out for a ride in a bit.
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JoeGibs
Novice Class
Posts: 73
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posted September 17, 2011 08:59 AM
 Edited By: JoeGibs on 17 Sep 2011 17:05
i didnt get a chance to adjust the cable before i took off, i had to hop on and go. i hit some back roads on the way to my destination, and the slipping seemed to be a little better, but still very noticeable. if the oil is the culprit, i'm assuming i have to give it a fair amount of miles to work itself into the clutch plates. the slipping happens at WOT starting at about 7500 rpm's and slips up to about 10000 rpm's, sticks there for half a second then drops back down to about 8500 and then rises as it should. the entire time i keep the throttle pinned wide open and kept my hand entirely off the lever.
as for the brake light, i'm stumped. when you pull the brake lever, there's a little pin that pushes out and should activate the brake light. i kept the lever pulled in, and pushed the pin in and out repeatedly with a screwdriver, and got nothing. i checked the wire connections to the lever assembly and both were on tight, and all fuses were good to go. sweet.
on another note, i'll be posting a video later. if anyone's familiar with the south east minnesota region, its the flood run today. thousands and thousands of bikes will be out (bar hopping, pretty much) all the way down the mississippi. i have a blast going out people watching the flood run, but this year i'm going to drag the 12 out for some fun. i need a new rear tire, so i talked to a guy who's a family friend and owns the biggest bar in town, and he gave me the ok to do a massive burnout to melt the old tire by saying it sounded like fun 
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frEEk
Administrator
ummm... yeah
Posts: 9660
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posted September 17, 2011 09:36 AM
The brake switch could just be broken. I am on my second broken unit at the moment.
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JoeGibs
Novice Class
Posts: 73
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posted September 17, 2011 10:10 AM
weird that it would coincidentally happen the same time i put the new levers on. hell, i suppose it could have been broken for quite some time before the tip over.
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JoeGibs
Novice Class
Posts: 73
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posted September 20, 2011 09:03 AM
Edited By: JoeGibs on 20 Sep 2011 17:05
guess i wont be able to find out whats up with the slipping clutch until next year. the 12 is down for the winter to finally get around to chopping up and fiberglassing a tail, and building a headlight. she went out in style, as in 140mph burnout
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBV4GuWazYQ
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