On my XTR the clutch bite is at the very begining of the leaver pull, is this right for the XTR or is something a miss? can it be moved elsewhere within the pull stroke as TBH i hate it being there.

Have you tried adjusting the cable?
There are two places where adjustment is possible, at the top of the cable on the clutch lever and at the other end of the cable.

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I'm always in the sh1t, only the depth varies

Before you try adjusting anything, I would check the following two things:

1) Have you got any free play at the lever? You must have some or the clutch won�t engage fully and you risk clutch slip. Check that you have about at least a few mm of play before the lever arm on the top of the clutch cover starts to move. You can have more, to allow greater lever travel before disengagement, but too much will cause the clutch not to disengage fully and you will experience clutch drag or creep.

2) With some free play at the lever, next check the punch marks on the lever arm and the clutch cover. Do they line up?



They should line up when the clutch is fully engaged and the cable still has a little slack. If these two punch marks don�t line up, then the bite point will be affected. This is due to the clutch cable pulling in a straight line but the lever arm end (where the nipple fits) moves in an arc, meaning that the leverage is not consistent. If the lever arm (on top of the engine case) is too far back (toward the rear of bike) a small movement at the handlebar lever will make a bigger change at the clutch end (it will also feel heavier/stiffer). Too far forward and the clutch will feel lighter, but the movement at the handlebar will cause a lesser movement at the clutch, moving bite closer to the grip.

Also, it is worth measuring the current adjustment before fiddling, then if it goes tits-up, you can go back to what you had before. Simply measure the amount of thread exposed on the bar lever adjuster and also at the clutch end.

Once you�ve checked the above, then start your adjusting. I always wind in the handlebar end adjuster fully in then back it out a turn. You can then do all the adjusting at the clutch end of the cable leaving the a good amount of spare adjustment at the bar end for easy future adjustment (without tools) to accommodate clutch plate wear.

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I know it's not my question... but just thought I'd give Pleiades a big rap for the good work he does in replying in detail to everyone's queries no matter how big or small an issue they have. Maybe I'm feeling sentimental at this time of year, or else it has occurred to me that you're always chiming in with invaluable and timely advice for us less experienced punters... but it is great to have you as such a resource. So thanks Pleiades!

Cheers for that Pleiades, i'll have a look once the sun comes up. Does this get mentioned in any of the manuals? i've not read them all the way through but i've got Haynes and the Yammy one and don't recall seeing it.

Well thats everything checked over, all the adjustments are in the correct place, so maybe it'll have to be adjustable levers.

AFAIK, it is mentioned, but doesn't explain why.

Investing in some CNC span-adjustable levers as the answer long term. They really do make a worthwhile difference to clutch feel, fatigue and comfort. I got a pair for less than �20 off ebay, and they've been a great bang-for-buck mod. Sorry I don't have a link for XTR/X levers, as the Tenere's levers are different. A quick search should bring something up.

Wow! I am humbled by your kind words.

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