joeb Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 Hi all, hope no one here is seeing bright spots from trying to see an eclipse. Slave cylinder..... 2003 r1150rt 92,000 miles I've been following Allen Cs posts on clutch fluid contamination and slave cylinder replacement. I suspect I may have a similar issue as my clutch went spongy and fluid was looking like graphite was mixed in it.After bleeding to clear fluid, Clutch holds for a few thousand miles then gets spongy again. Fluid almost immediately turns grey. Question is, will changing the slave cylinder solve that problem ? From reading the other posts, I can't tell if there are other seals or bearings that may be involved. I have no noticeable leakage and fluid levels don't seem to get lower.Master cylinder has no leakage .As always, thanks in advance for all your input. Link to comment
dirtrider Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 Hi all, hope no one here is seeing bright spots from trying to see an eclipse. Slave cylinder..... 2003 r1150rt 92,000 miles I've been following Allen Cs posts on clutch fluid contamination and slave cylinder replacement. I suspect I may have a similar issue as my clutch went spongy and fluid was looking like graphite was mixed in it.After bleeding to clear fluid, Clutch holds for a few thousand miles then gets spongy again. Fluid almost immediately turns grey. Question is, will changing the slave cylinder solve that problem ? From reading the other posts, I can't tell if there are other seals or bearings that may be involved. I have no noticeable leakage and fluid levels don't seem to get lower.Master cylinder has no leakage .As always, thanks in advance for all your input. Evening Joeb Your problem sure sounds like bad slave cylinder (sucking air in & contaminating fluid). Link to comment
joeb Posted August 21, 2017 Author Share Posted August 21, 2017 Thanks, that's what it seemed like to me. The other post mentioned an after market cylinder from BeemerBoneYard. Any thoughts on replacement cylinders ? Link to comment
dirtrider Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 Thanks, that's what it seemed like to me. The other post mentioned an after market cylinder from BeemerBoneYard. Any thoughts on replacement cylinders ? Evening Joeb I haven't used one myself so can't tell you much about that cylinder. Link to comment
Tri750 Posted August 22, 2017 Share Posted August 22, 2017 I would use the BB part with no hesitation. They sell quality parts. Link to comment
joeb Posted August 22, 2017 Author Share Posted August 22, 2017 thanks for the info. looks like I have a weekend project. Link to comment
joeb Posted August 22, 2017 Author Share Posted August 22, 2017 ordered the slave from BB last night. Maybe when the part arrives the replacement process will become apparent, but till then , after reading AlanCs post im wondering about the shaft. It sounds like when the slave comes off , the shaft stays in place in the clutch housing ? If that is the case , do I need to pull it out and grease the ends or would it be better to let it stay in place and not disturb it ? Or, do I have the wrong mental picture. On the Chris Harris video, I don't recall any talk about the shaft. Thanks again. Link to comment
RPG Posted August 22, 2017 Share Posted August 22, 2017 I just had mine apart last winter ('04 RT, 97k) and I only re-lubed the bearing (inside the slave cylinder) and added grease to the rearward facing thrust rod. I could have removed the rod and greased the front side but I had no real reason to do it. My clutch still works like new. RPG Link to comment
Lowndes Posted August 22, 2017 Share Posted August 22, 2017 (edited) Joeb, On my '99 r1100s (some parts similar to 1150) the slave cyl is easily accessible from the rear, maybe remove the rear tire. That's the slave with the two banjo fittings on top. I think my throw out bearing (built into the slave cyl piston) failed causing the piston to spin which caused the seal to fail. Had to replace the clutch, too. The clutch rod will/should slide right out. Your bike may have the felt on the rod to keep it from rattling. You might put just a touch of lube on the forward end of the rod. I bought and installed a slave cyl from BBY a year ago and no problems since. I did drill a weep hole in the slave cyl mount on the transmission in case a slave cyl leaks again. Without the weep hole, the hyd fluid will travel down the clutch rod to the clutch plate which you do not want to happen. Check to see if you have a weep hole. If not you may want to install one. That's the hole at about 8 o'clock in the back. Edited August 22, 2017 by Lowndes Link to comment
dirtrider Posted August 22, 2017 Share Posted August 22, 2017 ordered the slave from BB last night. Maybe when the part arrives the replacement process will become apparent, but till then , after reading AlanCs post im wondering about the shaft. It sounds like when the slave comes off , the shaft stays in place in the clutch housing ? If that is the case , do I need to pull it out and grease the ends or would it be better to let it stay in place and not disturb it ? Or, do I have the wrong mental picture. On the Chris Harris video, I don't recall any talk about the shaft. Evening Joeb If you can easily get the pushrod out without damaging up the rear end then I would pull it out & put a little grease on the front end (just a little). If it won't come out easily then probably leave it be. Link to comment
joeb Posted August 23, 2017 Author Share Posted August 23, 2017 All good input. Thanks,all your input really helps relieve some of the anxiety of the unknown. Maybe I'm losing my mind but I'm actually looking forward to working on the beast this week. Of course I'll need an extensive test drive of a few thousand miles just to be sure the bike is in shape to sit in my garage when I'm finished. Link to comment
flars Posted August 26, 2017 Share Posted August 26, 2017 The hydraulic lines are held on by allen bolts, and are tough to get off because there is very little room to work above them. Get an allen wrench to fit them, and cut the short end down to maybe a quarter inch. Loosen them BEFORE you remove the bolts holding the slave cylinder. Also, get a 'wobbly' allen wrench to fit the slave cylinder bolts, because, again, there isn't a lot of room to maneuver a wrench. Link to comment
Alan Sykes Posted August 27, 2017 Share Posted August 27, 2017 (edited) Lovely clear close-ups, Mr. Lowndes. During my clutch swap-out last year, the only real PITA during the entire job was the top-most footrest bolts either side of the bike that go into each end of the transverse alloy rod that's slap-bang in the foreground of your second foto. Berlin-Spandau's assembly guy back in 2004 had powered the bolts in bone-dry with his Bosch electric screwdriver, and the chemical action between the steel of the bolt and the alloy of the rod over time and with condensation had effectively welded the bolts in place. Had to be chiselled free and air-gunned back out. New BMW bolts - $$$$ each. One more for the Greedy Berlin Pig. Honk-honk. See Tim's comment at timeline 6 mins 15 secs in his Clutch Replacement How-To video :- AL in s.e. Spain Edited August 27, 2017 by Alan Sykes Link to comment
joeb Posted August 28, 2017 Author Share Posted August 28, 2017 So far here is what I've done. Removed rear wheel. Removed left side Tupperware. loosened and dropped left metal foot peg, gear shift lever mounting plate/bracket. Removed seat height adjust mechanism, removed rear shock absorber. I used ball end hex driver to remove the 3 mounting bolts on slave. I was able to get enough slack on clutch line to rotate slave into a position[ where I could remove clutch line. Was able to maneuver slave along with bleed line still attached out of frame. Now all I have to do is reverse the whole process.A little fiddly but not insurmountable.......so far. In retrospect, would suggest for anyone attempting to do this for the first time, take an online proctology course. Your coming in from the same direction and using some of the same tools. A proctoscope would be a big help. Keep you posted on progress. Thanks for all your advice. Link to comment
PAS Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 As already mentioned, add some additional grease to the bearing in the slave. Link to comment
Lowndes Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 As already mentioned, add some additional grease to the bearing in the slave. I'm not sure additional grease would do any good. The small bearing is sealed. It looked like a regular ball bearing, not a "thrust" bearing, but I did not take it apart. The BEST thing you can do is 1) drill a weep hole to keep any hydraulic (DOT4) fluid off your clutch; 2) get into neutral ASAP; 3) carry a spare slave cyl on long trips. If you DON'T have a weep hole and it leaks, THIS is what you'll be looking at: Link to comment
PAS Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 The grease is supposed to be inside the hole..LOL! Link to comment
joeb Posted August 31, 2017 Author Share Posted August 31, 2017 update. Got bike back together and it runs fine. My advice, take the time to remove as much stuff as you can to gain the best access . ie. Left Tupperware, rear shock , wheel , left peg/ gear lever mount bracket, muffler. Thanks for all you advice . Really helped to get it back on the road. Link to comment
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