Clutch too stiff to disengage

[bucknasty]

First time installing...My clutch is so stiff/firm that there is no way my clutch cable and hand lever can pull back the clutch arm to disengage the clutch and allow the back wheel to spin freely. The only way i can disengage the clutch is with my hand and it takes alot of pressure to do so.
I tried adjusting the clutch but it didnt make the clutch arm any easier to pull back(and disengage the clutch). And when i was feeding the chain through i felt that might have had something to do with the stiffness in the clutch arm, because i thought it was looser before i fed the chain through. As i was feeding the chain through the pin and little ball bearing fell out, but now the ball bearing doesnt come out. So anyone know what going on? Thanks a ton.

 

[Greg58]

I did a search is your's put back in like the pic. below?

http://motorbicycling.com/attachmen...torized-bicycle-clutch-assembly-left-side.jpg

 

[bucknasty]

yeah its put back just like that, but ive taken the pin out several times trying to figure out what going on, the difference is the ball bearing doesnt come out like the first time i took the clutch plate off to thread the chain through.

 

[Greg58]

Here is another good one on the clutch.

http://motorbicycling.com/f4/bicycle-engine-clutch-222.html

 

[BarelyAWake]

There are some basics that there's no way of tellin' if ya know or not - so forgive me if it's obvious lol

The cables are shipped dry, be sure to lubricate them well - this alone makes a world of difference.
Make sure your cable routing involves the gentlest bends & turns possible, ideally no cable should have a bend tighter than what would make a 6" circle if completed. To easily check your cable routing, disconnect the end on the clutch/brake/whatever and squeeze the lever - there should be little to no resistance.
The pin & ball and the actuator shaft & ramp should be lightly greased, the bearing can be removed w/a magnetic philips head screwdriver or any metallic probe - if you don't have a magnetic one, stick a magnet to the shaft and now you do lol
The "instructions" include two springs for the clutch cable, a larger one as a heat shield and a smaller one to assist the clutch lever return - if properly routed, neither are needed, most particularly the return spring.
To help with routing, brake noodles can be invaluable - check out this thread: http://motorbicycling.com/f30/brake-noodles-clutch-throttle-clearance-problems-13715.html

There have been products offered that claim to alleviate the excessive force "required" for the clutch lever... I can't state whether or not they're effective as honestly - I've never needed any assistance with any of my builds. No only do they tend to get easier w/time & some wear - with correct cable routing, lubrication & the elimination of the unneeded return spring I can easily pull my clutch levers with just any two fingers

 

[WildAlaskan]

Sounds to me like the spring Is threaded on too tight I think u can loosen it with out taking the clutch shaft out but it's tricky easiest way to fix the tight spring would be to remove clutch with a weird little crank pulled tool and hammer the Clutch shaft Out using a block of wood then unthreading the spring tensioner