does this sound like the clutch???(kz5550 help!!!)

Ouch

How are you deciding they are fried? You have to check the thickness and the runout according to the FSM. I have yet to see a set of 550 didsks that were thinner than the limit, but sometimes there is a little bit of runout on their flatness. They all look like yours when they come out, ie burned looking. New ones look similar to that as well, once oiled up.

I often see slippage right after an oil change if the oil was slightly over-filled. (The manual even mentions that as a possibility.) If the thickness is good on the friction disks, and the plates are flat, I would just get new springs and very very lightly scuff the metal plates with 500 or 1000 grit, but just barely. I recently went through this and scuffed the plates a little too much, and without changing anything else, the clutch now grabs hard, but does not completely release when the clutch is pulled in. So just a little scuffing went from massive slippage to dragging.

Stick with (new) stock springs and factory clutch.

Of course, make sure the clutch is assembled correctly and the adjuster and cable are adjusted properly. Have a look at the adjuster instructions in my signature. Some of the manuals are incorrect for some of the years (there are two types of 550 adjusters for the early years.)

look at the top friction plate pics Lou. new slippy oil in, slight unoticed clutch slippage on long run then clutch overheats until it is cooked?

The clutch may have been slipping, this may explain the burn look, but burned enough to cause the bike to stall and act like it is in neutral? I doubt. Even 100% burnt plates and discs will still provide enough friction for some drive.

RonKZ650 wrote: The clutch may have been slipping, this may explain the burn look, but burned enough to cause the bike to stall and act like it is in neutral? I doubt. Even 100% burnt plates and discs will still provide enough friction for some drive.

Yes, I agree. I assumed there was probably more than one thing going on with the clutch, and he would find some broken piece or something to explain the neutral-like symptom. But now, re-looking at the photos, if the plates are in fact brown with burnt and gummy oil on them, maybe they can slip a lot more? I haven't dealt with anything that extreme.

Tyrell Corp wrote: look at the top friction plate pics Lou. new slippy oil in, slight unoticed clutch slippage on long run then clutch overheats until it is cooked?

Yes, I agree that can happen, but I guess I just can't tell enough in the photo if the plates are actually dark or if the photo is making them look dark. They look to have oil on them, but is the oil thick and burned, or can they just be easily wiped clean. I have plenty of dark-looking plates that sem to work fine. If it really is burned, gummy oil, then I'd have to agree with that scenario, especially if no other problem is found.

What i feel like what happened was i did an oil change and that flushed all the gunk oil that was keeping my clutch together out and started to make my bike slip. And the plates are burnt and just about bare metal. I ordered a barrent clutch kit with new plates and spring so im hoping i can start riding again after i get that installed

The plates with the gear teeth on the inside should be bare metal. The friction disks should have a very thin layer of friction material. In the photo I don't see any spots where the material has worn down below the rectangular pattern's grooves.

The wear limit on the friction disk thickness is 2.7mm, ( .106"), but oddly, I thought I recall the base metal is around .110". Maybe the base metal is thicker on the torque tabs.

Most of my 30 year old disks measure between .117" and .119".
The brand new EBC clutch disks also measure between .117" and .119".

Usually aftermarket brand disks slip more, so they require much heavier springs. Be careful installing them. Turn the 5 bolts in many stages. If you go uneven, the spring stud can break off. Also go easy on the torque. They strip out very easily. Use an inch-pound torque wrench if you can so you get more feel.

loudhvx wrote: The plates with the gear teeth on the inside should be bare metal. The friction disks should have a very thin layer of friction material. In the photo I don't see any spots where the material has worn down below the rectangular pattern's grooves.

The wear limit on the friction disk thickness is 2.7mm, ( .106"), but oddly, I thought I recall the base metal is around .110". Maybe the base metal is thicker on the torque tabs.

Most of my 30 year old disks measure between .117" and .119".
The brand new EBC clutch disks also measure between .117" and .119".

Usually aftermarket brand disks slip more, so they require much heavier springs. Be careful installing them. Turn the 5 bolts in many stages. If you go uneven, the spring stud can break off. Also go easy on the torque. They strip out very easily. Use an inch-pound torque wrench if you can so you get more feel.

Dont copy me and go foot pounds lol torqued the head off a clutch bolt I was lucky I had an easy out to remove it

loudhvx wrote: ....Most of my 30 year old disks measure between .117" and .119".
The brand new EBC clutch disks also measure between .117" and .119".

Usually aftermarket brand disks slip more......

+1
I have found the genuine Kawasaki friction plates to be VERY high quality and last a very long time as long as the proper oil is used. Personally, I wouldn't switch to aftermarket plates or springs since the genuine parts work exceedingly well. Ed

Yes, I learned the hard way with the EBC disks. The required springs would have given Schwarzenegger a hard time in traffic.

At around that time, I called two local speed shops to find out what clutches they recommend. They both, independently, were very adamant to use nothing but OEM disks. I've been using nothing but, ever since.

This is a better pic of friction plates