This is probably a really dumb question, but can you use the older design clutch in the newer bike? My 01 XC has the best working clutch I've ever used, period.Far better than any KTM I've owned or ridden. I love the feel of the Honda CRF-X clutch, it is a tad lighter in pull than my GG but it overheats much more easily and cools off more slowly. I'll take the predictability of the Gasser anytime. I'm not knocking the KTM or the Honda clutch, both are pretty good but the GasGas is even better.
I just rode last weekend in some of the nastiest technical singletrack anywhere, including Red River where the Last Man Standing was, and my clutch worked perfectly except one time when I made several rookie mistakes and finally overheated the bike until it was steaming for 15 minutes. The clutch still worked ok but just got a bit grabby. As soon as the bike cooled just a little bit the clutch worked fine again. Even seriously overheated I could still modulate the clutch, slip it if needed, etc. Both KTMs I've owned would have also still worked but would have been so grabby they would be like on/off switches. My CRF would have been slipping and unuseable until I cooled it off. I used to carry an extra bottle of water behind the headlight/number plate on the Honda just to pour on the clutch sidecase for those situations to keep the clutch working.
|