[(F5)]

OK this is starting to really get me griffed & I'm not even sure that is a word.

I'm having problems kickstarting it in gear. Most threads seem to have a bunch of people claiming a particular oil fixes the issue & it is obviously an issue on some bikes.

OK history:
02 EC200. Never used to be a problem.

Starts dragging, adjust the lever & run Castrol MTX as recommended (can't get helix here in NZ). Sort of cures it.
Next try is a 0.7mm shim under the clutch pressure plate (ie: 2 shims now). The idea must be that the slave cylinder can't push far enough. This actually seems to work.

But gradually it starts dragging again.


OK so now to get scientific.
Take the clutch apart & inspect the steels. Hardly marked, no blueing, no warp as far as I can tell with a super thin feeler on glass. Frictions 2.8mm, ie new thickness. Pushrod & everything free & straight (well pretty straight, but not touching anything so not critical).

Change oil, bleed as good as a good thing & adjust so there is like absolutely no freeplay. Basket looks fine, I had ground some tiny ridges out last time, but really minimal, I’ve seen so much worse without a problem on other bikes.

Measure the throw at 1.7mm when I pull the clutch.

Right throw it back together with some Bel Ray this time (also suggestion on another thread).

Drags like a dog, well never a problem in use, just can’t kickstart it. I even tried pumping the lever a few times in case there was some air in the system.

Grrr!

OK the other thing I noticed is when I pulled the clutch lever when I had the cover off I could turn the inner basket with a socket on on of the spring bolt-heads & let the lever out till it grabbed. So far so good, but sometimes it would grab & needed a shock to release it. But I would have thought the kickstarter would do that & pulling the lever a few times.

OK so maybe the slave cylinder needs a rebuild, but it will move the pressure plate 1.7mm so I don’t think it is that at all.

So am I left with perhaps sharp tang on the steel grabbing a friction somewhere in the pack? Bead blasting? Buying a new basket for seemingly fine original ones?