clutch issue after plate replacement 2003 zx636

[Kuro]

So I replaced my old steel and friction plates with new OEM Kawasaki plates on my 2003 636

I've read lot of tutorials and watched some videos and I'm pretty sure I did everything right but I've encountered a problem.

After I replaced the plates and put everything back together and filled up with oil, I realized that the clutch lever is suuuuuper soft now. So soft to the point where if I put it in first, I can spin the rear tire quite easily with my foot but there is enough resistance to know that the clutch is partially engaging. Bounce back on the lever is also weaker and slower to return to original position.

Things I've tried so far.
I tightened the locking wheel at the lever as much as I could (tried both tight and loose)
I tightened the nuts by the clutch cover as much as I could (tried both tightest and loose... all combinations)
I removed the clutch release link (not sure the name, its the rod that goes into the clutch cover) and put it back in.

Nothing worked. So now I'm thinking I did something wrong with the replacement.
- I did pre-soak the fibres for 24 hours so there shouldn't be issues with tolerances.
- I counted the number of plates coming out and going in, so 9 fibres and 8 steels out, 9 fibres and 8 steels back in.
- I did not pay attention to the orientation of the fibre plate as they were going in. (Does this matter?)
- The pressure plate I did not notice any markings to signify which orientation it must go back on. It looked completely symmetrical to me (I know that the 05 636 there is a specific orientation)
- The push rod I didn't take notice ..... although it really only goes on one way.
- Steel plates all went in the same way (all sharp edge facing out, all rounded edges facing in, same as the old plates)
- Clutch springs were hand tightened not torqued. (The basket spins so its hard to tighten. I just tightened as much as I could while holding it still with my hand)

The only thing I can think of is to drain the oil, open her back up and do it all over again.
I'm not sure what I did wrong.

Any ideas?

Thanks.

 

[frekeyguy]

there could be TONS of things that can result in this sort of result.

But sounds to me more like a you are missing a plate . make sure your assembled stack height meets spec...I think its around 38MM for that bike (but i'd look at the manual just to be sure)

 

[frekeyguy]

Make sure you haven't done anything silly like..started and ended with a steel plate.....and that the clutch push rod is functioning properly.

 

[Kuro]

Well I counted plates coming out and going in... stack height should be OEM since they're new oem plates, but I'll double check anyway. I'll also measure the stack height and compare it to the book values.

There are 9 fibres, 8 steels, so if I reversed the order I'd have one left over since the plates are alternating. That in itself is a failsafe.

The push rod is what I'm suspecting since I didn't really inspect that. (The push rod does seem to connect to the clutch link)
If I remember correctly, its just a push rod, and a spring. The spring looked ok. I don't think I could have installed it backwards?

How will I know if the push rod is not functioning properly?

Thanks for the advice.

Anything else I should look for?

 

[Kuro]

**SOLVED** - Pressure plate I thought was symmetric but its not. It was dark at the time and I couldn't see the markers at 12 and 6 o'clock on the top of the pressure plate and I had fitted it incorrectly. Once fitted correctly, clutch ran fine.