Hydraulic Clutch?

[bogieboy]

Originally Posted by ChondaChondaChonda

Cables are so much simpler. Otom makes a nice brace that stops the flexing of the retainer issue and makes the pull a tiny bit lighter:




I have a Karoo trials bike that I never ride because of the broken hydraulic clutch. It's just a bigger pain than it's worth.

i have heavy springs in my clutch,and have snapped 3 cables in 3 years.... LOL i alsio have a good background in hydraulics from my day job, working on john deere tractors.... so fixing them comes easy to me... broken cable you are sol until the new cable shows up...LOL

[ChondaChondaChonda]

Well, come fix this Karoo!! Lol

[2LZ]

I'm with Peter Y. If anyone makes a batch order of these, count me in.

[bogieboy]

Originally Posted by ChondaChondaChonda

Well, come fix this Karoo!! Lol

got pics of the master/slave? might be something simple....LOL

[Bruce's]

We need some pictures and info on this Karoo ,I can’t find anything on my google box ,and usually know ,own,and have fixed all the weirdo bikes but never heard of this one .

[ChondaChondaChonda]

Originally Posted by Bruce's

We need some pictures and info on this Karoo ,I can’t find anything on my google box ,and usually know ,own,and have fixed all the weirdo bikes but never heard of this one .

It's actually a Key Roo made by Fantic. My bad memory strikes again.

[ChondaChondaChonda]

[Bruce's]

I had no idea it was a fantic ,I had a burgundy one around 1995 or so ,when it broke ,it was a long wait before replacement parts floated over here in that darned bottle .Does yours have the rads along the backbone under the tank ?

[bogieboy]

Chonda chonda chonda, i would start with a new clutch hose for the bike.... i highly doubt that the hose clamp on that is factory, nor do i believe that it can stand up to the pressures potentially involved with hydraulics....my friend/coworker dan (a former bmw bike mechanic) agrees with me as well...LOL

so start with a fresh hose, bleed it real good, and try again...

[ChondaChondaChonda]

Yeah. The hose clamp was the previous owner.



I've never really tried to bleed it - just looked for the hose with no luck. Been meaning to pull it apart and take it to a hose place; but it just hasn't happened.



This is why I say a cable is simpler. If this bike had a cable I would have it fixed by now.

[bogieboy]

Originally Posted by ChondaChondaChonda

Yeah. The hose clamp was the previous owner.



I've never really tried to bleed it - just looked for the hose with no luck. Been meaning to pull it apart and take it to a hose place; but it just hasn't happened.



This is why I say a cable is simpler. If this bike had a cable I would have it fixed by now.

it appears to be a somewhat standard end on both ends, im sure you could order a custom made hose off ebay... just a thought. some more reading on the fantic clutches you may be able to get something from a bicycle shop, it appears that they used a Magura handle setup, and magura made brakes for downhill mtbs in the mid 90s (still do..LOL) AAAANNNNNNNNdddddd.... theres a chance, depending on the year, that Fantic used mineral oil in the res, and mineral oil specific seals, even thought the master cover said dot3...which will eat seals for mineral oil....so the seals in everything could be crapped out along with the hose...

so, to sum it up..... a cable is much simpler.....but the feel of a hydro clutch is second to none...

heres a bit of reading on the matter for you....LOL *clicky*

[bogieboy]

Just for fun, heres my clutch setup on my roketa db07a

[Paeksukis]

Here's my setup.

Bought a cheap master cylinder with a bore size of 12.7mm and a cheap clutch slave.
Installed in on my zong, after bleeding the system, I noticed that the clear brake fluid turns cloudy.
Had no time to bleed it again because I have to care for my newborn baby.

I feel that my hydro clutch system has more resistance than the cable clutch. So I switched it back to cable clutch on the next day.

I think I will not continue with this project until I got enough budget to buy a better master cylinder and slave cylinder.

Sorry for the poor image quality.

[bogieboy]

the cloudy fluid is from crud in either the master, or the hose... gotta love china products.... LOL

[Megadan]

Originally Posted by bogieboy

broken cable you are sol until the new cable shows up...LOL

You lack imagination. Or experience.

Hydraulic system failure, due to bad seal or burst line - you are SOL until new ones arrive. Unless you travel with extra fluid, lines, and seals. Much harder to field repair, if at all.

Broken cable - I can name several ways to field repair a broken cable to limp you home. Some that can be done with just a bit of bailing wire, or small cable clamps, both of which can be easily hidden away in a small baggie under the seat, wrapped around a part of the frame etc.

That said, properly maintained cables should last a very very long time.

Or that a good high quality Venhill cable kit is less than 20 bucks, and I always keep one on hand. If I break a cable, I can whip together a new one in 15 to 20 minutes with a small pen torch, some wire cutters, and solder.

Keep in mind that I love Hydro clutch setups. I have converted many of my own bikes to Hydraulic, but I will never discount the advantages of a cable setup.