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Cleaning clutches ... a tutorial

YukonMP

TY 4 Stroke Guru
Joined
Dec 25, 2014
Messages
834
Location
Yukon Territory
Country
Canada
Snowmobile
2014 Venture MultiPurpose 2020 VK Professional ll
I've read dozens of threads on cleaning clutches and do mine regularily but realized I don't really know what I'm doing .... not the first time. It is kind of like telling the hygenist I brush my teeth and finding out twenty years later I wasn't supposed to be brushing side to side.

So here is what I think I know. Blow the belt dust out of the clutches as often as you can. I pay special attention to the weights and rollers in the primary. About every 1000kms I lay a towel under the clutches and flood them with brake cleaner. At the same time I exchange my belts and wash the one just removed.

So what am I missing? What should I be looking out for? I know half of the value of routine maintenance is seeing a problem before it becomes a PROBLEM.
 

Cleaning is one thing, inspecting is another.

Something that is a major wear item are the secondary pucks/buttons that the helix rides on....these can mushroom over and wear down in about 3,000 miles. Easiest way to check them it pull of the belt, engage the brake (either with the parking brake or plastic zip ties), grab the back sheave of the secondary and twist so the helix moves away from the buttons.

Also, the bushings in the weights wear out in the primary. These can be checked by wiggling the weights side to side. You may also notice funny wear patterns on your rollers or top of weight.

Check for cracks in clutch sheaves! This is very important if your sled has quite a few miles on it....but should be checked regularly. Cracks will be more evident down toward the steel main shaft of the primary. (Ever see a sheave or clutch blow apart? Not pretty.....)
 


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