CB360 clutch behaviours

[Riccarr]

Hi guys

Been working on my 74 CB360T project bike and am at the point of wishing I'd never taken the clutch cover off.

Had a hell of a time getting the push rod and ball bearings/clutch assembly back together such that it wouldn't make that POP sound every time you pull the clutch lever in. It now seems to operating smoothly however something is still amiss.

The primary oddity is that when I have the clutch lever pulled in, I can operate the kick starter but its not engaged with the engine (pistons not moving). If I have it in neutral, clutched pulled, then I can just crank on the kick starter and it moves easily but nothing is engaged - no piston action, and no gears/wheel movement.

If I put it in gear, clutch pulled and then operate the kick starter, then the gears are engaged and the back wheel moves, however the engine is still not engaged (no piston movement).

What does this mean? This is what perplexes me. If I compare this to my Honda XR400 dirt bike, whether its in gear/not in gear, with clutch pulled in then the engine (pistons) are always engaged when I pump the kick starter. This is what I expect on the CB360 in the same situation.

Also, if I have the CB360 in neutral and I push the bike around, the kick starter lever gets yanked forward or backward (depending on which way I push the bike) and there's clicking sound.

Furthermore, the kick starter does not rise back up on its own when I kick it down; I have to raise it by hand.

What do these symptoms sound like that the issue is? Saying "clutch needs adjustment" might be a bit of a vague answer. I assume some sort of adjustment is needed, but I don't understand the internal operations of a clutch to have any idea of what needs adjusting.

Thanks for any replies.
Cheers!



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[frogman]

Kicker should not move unless you push it down, something is amiss with it, be it the ratchet is stuck or it is put together wrong. It should also return when pushed down, possibly the return spring has come loose?

Now, holding in the clutch and trying to kick it over not making the engine itself spin is by design on a 360 and many of other other twins of that age, you shouldn't be able to. The reason for that is so you have to have the bike out of gear to kick start it. You CAN however, hold the clutch in and use the E-Start since it is a separate system.

Clutch "POP" is caused by over extending the arm inside the sprocket cover. If your cable is completely loose that arm should point down, not straight out or up. Some newer cables have are just a hair short and make that angle hard to achieve.

 

[Riccarr]

I'll have to go back in and see if there is a spring that wasn't hooked up properly.

As for the engine not spin with the clutch, by design ... thanks for that, I didn't realize. I assume it'd be the same as my dirt bike.

I've also taken the electric start motor off, so kick starting is going to be the only way to turn it over.

Thanks for the comments.

 

[frogman]

The return spring is part 24 wwhich you can see from the clutch side once you remove the cover. To see the internal parts of the kicker you have to pull the engine and split the cases.