Tightening a Clutch on a Kinetic TFR
Published December 17th, 2006 in TFR Project, TFR Techical Info. Tags: cable, clutch, diy, engine, exhaust, kinetic, luna, maintenance, manual, moped, motor, puch, repair, service, tfr, tool, weights, wrench.The Kinetic TFR clutch is pretty hard to get tight if you don’t have the right tools. The manual tells you that you are supposed to put a screwdriver between one of the fans in the flywheel, but it seems like you would be damaging the flywheel if you were going for the kind of torque that you need to tighten the nut.
I ended up making a tool that works pretty well. Here is how to do it:
Go to Home Depot and make yourself a $5 clutch tool. This is key. I don’t know any other way to get the kind of torque on the nut that you need without this. Click here for directions on how to make one.
There are 2 holes in the outward facing plate on the clutch (the one with the vents in it):
Take your clutch tool and put one bolt end into each hole to use as leverage when you tighten the nut:
Using a 17mm socket on the end of a torque wrench, tighten the nut with your right hand while you hold the clutch still with your left.
The manual says to use 3 kilograms of torque. But that isn’t really a measurement of torque. So I am taking that to mean 3 Kilogram Meters of torque which translates to about 22 Foot Pounds for all of us Americans or about 30 Newton Meters for the rest of the civilized world.
6 Responses to “Tightening a Clutch on a Kinetic TFR”
- 1 Pingback on Dec 17th, 2006 at 12:19 am
- 2 Pingback on Dec 17th, 2006 at 12:55 am
I have a 97 kinetic moped with 800 miles on it. I just got it back from a couple of thiefs would tore it up, they broke the turn signals, and tried to hot wire it. They were taking it to the junk yard when I saw them drive by with the moped in thier truck. I called the police and they were busted. All this said, I have put a new carb in it and a new clutch. It seems as through the new clutch is going out again. Why do you think this is so? I really enjoy your site. Thanks, Joe
That’s cool that you got it back from the thieves. I get a lot of e-mail from people who have issues with the TFRs and most of them say that their clutch has gone out. My clutch even went out. So i guess it stands to reason that the clutches are sort of crappy.
You might be able to force a vespa clutch on it, but in talking to some people who have done it, i have been informed that it isn’t really a great improvement because they have different drive shafts (kinetic and vespa) and you have to deal with that issue.
Bill at zippymopedparts.com found that the Newer TFR USA clutch does not fit the older TFR. The drive shaft on the older model TFR is shorter than the drive shaft on the TFR USA. I changed the web site accordingly.
This is a good thing for us older tfr-ers (mine is a 97 as well), because it’s more like a vespa shaft, a malossi variator for a vespa fit on mine with no modification, another guy I know has the stock vespa variator on his (we are both using variated vespa rear-ends). As far as I know you can variate one-speed ciaos as well, so a one speed ciao vespa clutch should fit older tfrs with the correct spacer and lock washer.
Ryan,
Good site. My clutch came off the other day and I made the tool, tightened the clutch and know I get nothing. It just spins and won’t turn over. I have fuel and the carb is tight to the manifold (another previous problem I had) as is the airbox. Any ideas?
Craig