Replacing a snapped clutch cable on a 2008 Enfield 500

[Rogerborg]

5 speed Electra pre-EFI.

At the roadside.

With a small multitool.

Cable bodge kit from the local Stealer, or call recovery and let the man with the van suck his teeth and say "Oh, I can't do owt with them new fangled bikes." ?
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Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[map]

You mean the bits aren't already under the seat?

Has cable broken/snapped or just frayed and nipple (steady, not that sort) fallen off?
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...and the whirlwind is in the thorn trees, it's hard for thee to kick against the pricks...
Gibbs, what did Duckie look like when he was younger?

[Rogerborg]

[yen_powell]

Start engine, sit on bike, push along with your feet till you are able to knock it into first, change gears without using clutch, down is easiest if you let the revs drop as low as possible., work out way home without having to stop too much.
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Blackmail is a nasty word........but not as nasty as phlegm!
XT1200Z and a DR350 in bits

[Rogerborg]

Or, call Auto Aid, get Man With A Van to take me home in comfort. Did, done, Enfield is now on the Naughty Step in the garage.

It snapped in Glasgow city centre, conveniently right next to a bike bay. Trying to get it out through traffic would have been comical.

Small crisis, not many dead.

-20 man points, although I claim the extenuating circumstances of being on a lunchtime run to try and scoop the latest picture challenge.
____________________
Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[chris-red]

Should have been a man and ridden home like me,

It's an interesting thing, pulling away on a 900 twin without using a clutch, it is a strange feeling having the front wheel off the ground AND the rear spinning at the same time.
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Well, you know what they say. If you want to save the world, you have to push a few old ladies down the stairs.
Skudd:- Perhaps she just thinks you are a window licker and is being nice just in case she becomes another Jill Dando.
WANTED:- Fujinon (Fuji) M42 (Screw on) lenses, let me know if you have anything.

[c_dug]

I rode through the centre of London at about 6pm on my old car with no clutch once. It was... Interesting.
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I am a bellend, I am a man of constant sorrow, I am a gummy bear, I am a rock.

[mudcow007]

without sounding stupid.....how do you change (either up or down) without a clutch?

just had a play, an failed miserably

the gear selector didn't move when the bike was moving

[SQL]

To change up

> Accelerate
> Preload Gear (Lift gear lever pressure on it but not enough to change it)
> Snap throttle shut

Should change gear smoothly

[hmmmnz]

[SQL]

[arry]

Stopping in Glasgow City Centre is not a small crisis in us southerners book it's a bloody nightmare

[talkToTheHat]

I once snapped a throttle cable on a GZ125, RAC there in a handful of minutes, and reliably told by their expert that his somewhat depleted cable bodge kit won't be restocked because "all new bikes have electric or hydraulic". I don't think that was the case then or now, but he was most instant. I wonder whether most RAC motorcycle callouts are home assists on expensive toys that only get used on the 3 sunny weekends of the year.

[trevor saxe-coburg-gotha]

AA guy replaced one on my old cb500 a few months ago. Was there in 20 mins, and constructed - I nearly said bodged, but his work was honestly really neat and he took a lot of care one way or another - a cable at the road side. I bought a genuine Honda cable from David Silver Scares the next day - but the bodgeroo is still on the bike even unto this very day. The new one is hanging oiled in t'garridge - and is half as thick as the one teh AA dude made.
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"Life is a sexually transmitted disease and the mortality rate is one hundred percent."

Mobylette Type 50 ---> Raleigh Grifter ---> Neval Minsk 125

[Rogerborg]

Well, following up then.

Man With A Van was from 911 Rescue and Recovery. He didn't do cables, despite being a specialist motorcycle recoverer. From the cabin chat and dearth of tools, I suspect that they mostly just fling 'em in the van and get them home or to a dealer and collect their money - he was taking one down to Coventry later.

He also didn't take cards, despite Auto Aid assuring me that he would, nor give receipts, despite them apparently being required for the claim. Pictures were taken, shenanigans will be played out to the end.

He turned up quickly, recovery was efficient enough, and he was clearly careful, but still managed to catch the starter switch on something and pop it out of its slot. Not terminally, but a reminder to examine your vehicle thoroughly before and afterwards.

It turns out that my Bodge Tin only has a thin cable left, nowhere near as thick as the meaty stock one. That felt bone dry despite having been lubed with 10W40 a month or so previously. Might try gear oil on the next one.

[Robby]

Assuming the stock cables are crap and pattern ones will also be crap, is it worth going to Venhill to get a set of decent cables made up? Or buying a spool of thick cable and some nipples and making your own ones?

Making cables from scratch seems to be a popular thing in the pushbike world, but not so much for motorcycles. This always seems a bit odd to me, seeing as pattern cables aren't all that cheap and are quite shit.

[Rogerborg]

Thanks I'll bear that in mind. £42 and up, and 7-10 working days though. Making my own, well, yes, that does make sense, I'll look into that. I'd like to re-use the existing sleeve and keep a spare in situ and ready to swap in.

There's a particular issue with Enfields in that they change the designs more often than Smiler claims he's planning to get his license, so I've ordered from Hitchcocks, who are very specific about models and dispatch same-day.

It's "British made" so it'll likely still be the wrong one, it cost 4x as much as an Indian one, and will come pre-rusted and will snap as I'm trying to fit it...
____________________
Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[mudcow007]

[yen_powell]

[Islander]

[Islander]

[SQL]

[Ballpien]

What with it being bank holiday in Scotchland today, you should have plenty of time to fix that cable and switch

[Islander]

[stinkwheel]

Can't be of much help because I'm not sure what happens on the gearbox end of an electra one.

My Bullet is still on it's original clutch cable but I do carry a spare just in case. On those you take the kickstart, gearshift and neutral finder off. Six bolts off for the gearbox cover and remove it. Hook the new cable onto the little lever then reassemble. You need a screwdriver, a 13mm spanner, a 12mm spanner and a 3/8 whitworth spanner as I recall.

If you're just replacing the inner from a repair kit with a solderness top nipple, you just need to swing back a keyhole cover thing and thread the new inner through.

Check the new cable runs free. I've had a couple of "sticky" cables off Hitchcocks before where the inner didn't run properly through a mid-cable adjuster. One of which was a throttle which was entertaining!
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.