Clutch

[jwall11]

Hi, I am new here, new to trikes. Got off the back of my husbands bike and tring to learn. I have a 2007 Sportster with a Lehman conversion. I saw a add for a auto clutch, does anyone know anything about them.

[FBTRIKE]

I have read about them, they are used a lot in dirt bikes. They use centrifugal force to engage. As you rev. the engine the clutch spins faster, and the clutch starts to engage. After a certain RPM they become fully engaged. Don't really know much more than that, how reliable etc. I do know, you don't want to sit at a traffic light and rev your engine.......:eek:.

[FBTRIKE]

One thing I forgot to mention, the auto clutches are used only for starting from a stop and when coming to a stop. You must still use the clutch to shift gears while moving, unless you want to float the gears, (not use the clutch when shifting). This can be done but takes a little practice to do it right. It's a matter of matching engine speed to transmission speed (or road speed) to shift. I drove 18 wheelers for years and once I was moving, I didn't use the clutch to shift. These auto clutches are not the same as riding a Ridley, which uses a CVT transmision. Hope this helps.

[jwall11]

Thank you very much, they make one that is suppose to work on a HD sportster, but I just could not fiqure out what it really does.

June

[BlueTrinity]

Just to reinforce what Fred said; the Auto Clutch should not be confused with an automatic transmission. You still must shift through all the gears using the clutch in the normal manner.

The Auto Clutch is simply a zero-pull clutch at idle and slightly above, that allows you to not have to manually release the clutch to pull away from a dead stop.

My opinion is that it will be a great advantage starting out from an uphill stop, but is an expensive gimmick otherwise.

On the other hand there are many things on my trike that others would consider "expensive gimmicks" as well.

[Gorilla]

jwall11 they just about covered the sugject. So I'm going with Welcome aboard