Transmission Clunk Gone

I am approaching 78,000 on my '99 which I bought in July 01 with 11,092 on the odo. From day one it had an audible "clunk" when shifting from neutral to 1st, seemingly not uncommon among bikes in general and I have read message threads about it on the VFR list so I assumed it was normal. However, after installing new clutch disks and springs the clunk is gone. Other than that the clucth works exactly like it did before except no more slipping.

I am puzzled about this. I assumed the old clunk was due to the clutch disks dragging slightly but I would think new disks would be more likely to drag than old ones or am I wrong about that? The only other factor I can think of is spring bolt torque.

It's possible the old disks were slightly warped. If so, that could lead to a bit of dragging. However, every bike I've owned has done the 'clunk-jerk' to some degree. Disengaging the clutch for 30 seconds or so as the bike warms and blipping the throttle almost always overcomes the clunk. Just be sure to let the engine fall back to idle before pressing the shifter.

chappuis, Jan 22 2007, 11:01 AMHowever, after installing new clutch disks and springs the clunk is gone. Other than that the clucth works exactly like it did before except no more slipping.

Hmmm, report back in 3000 miles or first oil change, I'm curious as to whether it will return (IMG:style_emoticons/oldemoticons/lurk.gif)