Clutch arm

R

ren

Guest
After reading some info on here about clutches I'm concerned about mine. Not so much the clutch but the clutch arm. I have an 07 NE5 with the 90 mm auto clutch, when I tighten the bolt that mounts the clutch arm to the motor the arm does'nt want to move. Is the spring designed to keep tension on the arm so the arm can float. Is this a problem?

Thanks
 
Hi ren there is many different out looks on this let me touch on some points.(1) As Quenton has pointed out many times the bushings and hold down bolt has a hard time keeping the arm straight.I am looking for a one piece heavy bronze bushing with a face area for arm to square up againest.(2)I mill the arm to align for belt track and to square up.at this point Im ok with leaving A little loose for spring ride..on the other hand I have trued chev and clutch that it worked great with arm tight.Im sure other people will have a different out look .. Hope this helps some ...Bill
 
Hi Ren,
If you make the arm tight against the motor and the sheeve isn't perfect [they never are] the belt will stress the rear spokes and often break several if the sheeve is off center or out of round. The spokes don't like the belt going loose & tight and often snap the head off of the spokes at the hub. I would guess I replaced at least 30 or 40 spokes in different wheels before I learned this lesson. The vintage Whizzer clutch arm & bushings [which the current company tried to copy] used the spring to compensate for the rear sheeve, and to keep the belt tight, and I have never had any spokes break on any vintage Whizzer ever.
There is a lot of difference between a smooth, secure, & well thought out vintage clutch as opposed to the current setup. For example, most current clutch arms are secured by passing the bolt through the motor, then the hole in the arm and then a nut. I always turned this around on all the bikes I sold because if the nut works loose [and it has happened] the arm can simply fall off, whereas if the bolt is run through the arm then the motor, then the nut, loosing the nut isn't as destructive because the long bolt will drift out and be stopped by the clutch pulley. It is important to note that a properly aligned clutch works about 200% better than one that is loose, or too tight, or running at an angle.
Have fun,
Quenton
 
The clutch pivot arm on both my 06-07 ne5 is slotted at the pivot,

is that normal and also cocks when tightend up so I keep it tight.
BILL b
 
Hi Bill,
The arm with the slotted hole was an error. The hole was drilled in the wrong location and they just corrected the error by making the hole longer. Sadly the longer slotted hole made the arm weaker and I had to replace several [at my expense], because they broke where they mounted to the motor. I had to drive 45 miles to pick up a stranded Whizzer rider last year because the "slotted" arm snapped, dropped the clutch into the belt guard, shattered the guard and proceeded to cut his leg [luckily just a minor cut]. It is important to note that the clutch is heavy and spins at half of the motor speed, so it is important that the clutch arm be secure and the belts are straight. If the automatic clutch assembly isn't straight the front belt can try to pull the clutch apart and cause the retaining washer to rub against the hub and seal and wear out quickly. With just a little effort and some good ole' American engineering the clutch can be lined up straight, pivot at the rear of the motor [as it was designed to do], and the spring can keep the pressure even on the pulleys and rear belt sheeve. I can assure everyone it is well worth the extra effort to make it work perfectly. I have pictures of how I upgraded ALL of my personal Whizzers if anyone wants them [remember some of my Whizzers will lift the front wheel off the ground using the automatic clutch]. Just email me at quincy163@yahoo.com requesting the photos.
Have fun,
Quenton
 
Well, since the manual clutch moves on the pivot more than the automatic clutch, I will tell you if all the contact areas are correct the clutch will work soooooooooo much better. It doesn't take rocket science to realize that if the arm moves smoothly [and snug] in the bushings at the rear of the motor and doesn't allow side play, the belt path will be consistant, and the belts will grip and release much better. If the arm is loose on the bolt the arm will move left or right, mostly outward
because of the front belt trying to grip as the clutch is starting to engage, and in many cases the belt will no longer be inline with the flywheel pulley. On the vintage Whizzer the clutch doesn't move sideways, and the belts are always in line. I can tell you when I first altered the arm to remove the excessive play, the clutch took on a more civilized attitude and stopped depositing belt dust in large quanities on the inside of my belt cover. It reduced the belt noise, and dis-engaged much better, and most importantly it was an even pull on the ball bearings that the clutch pulley resides on.

Have fun,
Quenton​
 
Thanks for everyones advise. I will re-evaluate my situation and try to see where it needs improvement. Next week I will finally install the modified parts I purchased from Quenton some time back, will post upgrades and results when done.
 
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