clutch rpm. engagement

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mymumisaman

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Iv got an intriguing question .... Can you lower the rpm at which the clutch engages? I have a clutch that id like to engage at a lower rpm , it has a spring that runs round the pads, don't ask me what clutch it is lol cause I haven't a clue , but I was thinking ,if I replace that spring with one that's weaker would I see any problems with the clutch engaging at lower rpm?

The way I understand it is as it spins the weight of the pads increase (so to say) which then contact and lock to the drum / bell, im just wondering if they need to get to a certain rpm / weight to engage properly or is this governed by the force of the spring?
 
Poboy kartman

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Yes and no. ....it's been done before. ...the thing is. ..while the weaker springs will let the weights contact sooner....you still need the pressure supplied by centrifugal force to eliminate slippage. ....

So to a certain extent. ....yes...
 
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But a weaker spring will also lower the amount of RPM's for full lockup due to the fact that the spring does pull pack on the pads even at full lockup.
 
Poboy kartman

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True.....but to put it in simple terms. ...if the clutch only turns 500 rpms....it will never lock up. ....no matter how weak the springs.....

So.....Yes and No weaker springs will allow the clutch to engage sooner (and that means lock-up too).....But...there's a minimum amount of RPM's needed to eliminate slippage.. . .
 
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IMO... bad idea. A weaker spring could cause it to engage at a 'too' low of an rpm after alil while... causing the kart to drive off as you start it... or cause your motor to bog off as you stop the kart, one day. I 'believe' that the highend clutches have a 'progressive/multipaul' spring rate/set for fuller engagement at a lower rpm...w/out the dangers of an engagement upon startup... and let me tell you the 'kewl' part of a kart taking off upon startup(w/ noone on it) only last for about 3secs... after that, it's... "... hmmm wonder how im gonna stop that thing?!?... as it cruizes towards traffic...(yep something of the sort happened to me"gyroscope incident"... think half my head went gray in 30secs... but im sure yours wont be traveling as fast as mine was at the time, so youll probably be able to run after it... hehe).
 
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Lol started a debate lol , yeah my engine has a 6-1 reduction , im working round it with some gearing on a jackshaft , but if I could lower the engagement rpm of the clutch from 2000 to say 1000 I should be ok , iv played with the engine and can get it to idle pretty slow ;-) il have to have a play , see what I can come up with .
 
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anderkart said:
Do the 2 ends of your old spring simply hook to each other?
If so, maybe you could try installing a small nut or flat washer in-between the 2 ends, to slightly lower your spring tension.
Click to expand...

Ahh great idea!
And yeah it's a tention spring that's just hooked end to end ....iv ended up buying some lace curtain wire ( it's basically a big tention spring with a rubber sleave) and cut it to size , given it a quick test run and it works ok ....for now , but il definitely modify the original spring and use that for a more permanent fix :)
 
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