Autoclutch: Love em or hate em?

[bowhunter007]

Winter riding concentrates quite a few of the guys who race our local enduro series, to pretty much Tahuya. I haven't met one rider who's "had" an auto clutch that didn't like it. I'd venture a guess that within that circle of racers, if a guy "had" one...he's about to purchaes one for the "new" bike he/she is riding. Based on what I know(which concerning bikes, isn't much), There are far more people who like the auto clutch than do not. I myself don't have one do to it's expense. I'm probably not a good enough woods-rider to gain much anyway...But I'd certainly take what I could gain from it.

 

[rbm33]

i would just about bet money that if most people rode a properly set up core EXP that they wouldnt even know it didnt have a standard clutch.

 

[fasteddy]

Sometimes it's not a matter of being lazy. Age has a way of slowing down the reflexes and sometimes technology comes along and gives us something that helps make up for the things that time takes away. If I can use an open mind to new things to gain a second on the younger guys, I'll take it.

A big PLUS 1 to that.....

 

[PEB]

So the general consensus is they are for old guys? Does that start at 50? Before the cutoff they are for sissies and wives kinda like electric starters on a 2t?

 

[fasteddy]

Hmmm, for old used to be Fast Guys.....

Ed...

 

[M357.5]

So the general consensus is they are for old guys? Does that start at 50? Before the cutoff they are for sissies and wives kinda like electric starters on a 2t?

LOL, guess I'm going to be a sissy....but not quite to the point of needing an electric kicker just yet.

 

[andoman]

LOL, guess I'm going to be a sissy....but not quite to the point of needing an electric kicker just yet.

With my Core EXP I stall so rarely hat an e-start would just be extra weight. For normal starting I hope I never get so feeble that I can't work a kick start lever!

 

[IDAHOSPUD]

Love my Rekluse. I am on my 6th. EXP core, is there best yet. For me i think of it this way: its one less thing i have to think about, and if i want to use the clutch i can. It clutches better then i can when you are crawling or needing traction in slippery conditions. I am so used to it now that the free wheeling thing does not bother me any more, i just blip the gas and the clutch engages and the engine braking starts to work again. It only disengages when you lock up the rear tire. Honestly there are only 2 downsides; the cost, and the no bump start. I can live with both.
Do you need one? no. Especially if you have great clutch skills. Is it cheating, no more then a stabilizer, or a trials tire, or electric start.

 

[desertgasser300]

THIS TOPIC!!!!

And yes, right now I am bored!!!!

 

[twowheels]

THIS TOPIC!!!!

And yes, right now I am bored!!!!

If you get an auto-clutch for the Victory your stable will be complete and ready to ride ... well, except for the one in the picture. I'm afraid there's nothing to do to help him now.

 

[Cruiser]

I have the z-start in my ktm 450 that I bought used.. I hated it at first.. it was setup wrong.. I changed it around.. I really like it now. But would I spend the cash putting it into another bike... If I ever planned on running sumo wheels NO! its almost impossible to ride safely with sumo wheel on road.. Too much traction had the clutch doing weird things going in and out of the corners.. Fought the tires too much. Off road only on bad rocky up hills the best if you ever ride sweep! you can stop help someone in the worst spot and look like a pro getting started again..

 

[erniebearskin]

I'll never own another bike without one. I have more fun and conquer nastier terrain with the Rekluse, my last two races I hit the first turn in 1st (out of 18) and 2nd (out of 13) I believe Rekluse was a big part of that.... and e-start.......and because GasGassers are awesome.....of course.

I don't even try to convince people to try it anymore, it works for me and I couldn't care less what everyone else thinks of them

 

[jgas]

If someone kicks that dead horse on page 3, and it gets up, I'll put an autoclutch on that horse and ride it.

I rode with two older (over 60) but still very fast and gnarly guys last weekend. We rode at Brock Creek which is one of the hardest places in the nation to ride. One guy had an 11 KTM 300 with an autoclutch. The other guy had an 11 KTM 200 without. Both guys are on the small side. They switched bikes just to see if the other guy had a better bike/setup. The 200 rider with the regular clutch only commented that the 300 felt torquier but heavier. The 300 rider commented that the 200 felt lighter, but lacked power.

Neither guy mentioned that the other guys bike had a different clutch setup! I was just listening and waiting for this topic to come up, but it wasn't mentioned. Even later after the ride, neither guy said anything about clutch setup, or even seemed to notice that the other bike was different regarding the clutch. Both guys were about the same speed on either bike. Both guys have owned autoclutch bikes, both guys have owned 200, 250, and 300 KTMs, both newer and older models. Both guys are former A riders who can still ride at that level when they want to.

The autoclutch guy said he rarely has to adjust or work on his autoclutch, the other guy said one big reason he quit using one was increased maintenance, the lack of really needing it, and expense. Both guys were equally adamant about their choice, although both said they could do with or without it if needed.

I have known both of these guys quite a while and the only difference I can note about them is the non-autoclutch guy rides ALOT! I mean, 3 times a week, often in varied and tough terrain, and always has several bikes such as supermotos, DS bikes, Adventure bikes, but all his bikes at least have an off road ability, even if he almost never rides his supermoto off road or his Adv bike on any off road other than dirt roads. In other words, he has no regular street only bikes. He did say he had a slipper clutch on 2 bikes, and loved them for the street, but preferred a regular clutch on dirt.

I think this all goes to point out that no one really NEEDS an autoclutch, except guys with injuries that are helped by one, and perhaps beginners. I'm still not convinced that I want to use one, mostly due to expense. I'd rather put that money into suspension, tires, ergonomics, and gas money to go ride more. But as time goes by, I think it becomes more likely that I'll want one.

 

[Ud_luz]

Whats holding me back is the cost, $900 for a clutch is a lot of $$$

Rekluse screwed us on this one. I have the Z-Start in my 300 that's been flawless. For whatever reason Rekluse decided to dump it for the Core at over twice the price. The old Z-Start worked perfectly for most trail riders.

I've got the EXP in my 500exc and while it's nice, it's on the spendy side for many.

 

[robszombie]

Any word on if their gonna make one for the 2012/13 models?

 

[jgas]

Yes, the move to the new type Core seems strange to me when the Z start was so popular and effective. Can we still buy the Z start? Can someone explain the difference, perhaps in terms a dumb Arkie can understand with engineering facts, and also compare real world performance between the Z start and Core? I have read a few posts on this and other sites, but am still not clear on the differences and +/- between the two.

I did notice in this months Dirt Bike mag that several of the Pros in the Tennessee Knock Out used autoclutches. Not currently remembering details of who won, and which auto they used. Anyone know which they used and why? Until recently I have not been reading that many Pros use any autoclutches, but the mags mainly cover WORCS and GNCCs, which are basically easy wide open interstates these days. I raced Loretta Lynns GNCC in 07 and I could have ridden my KLR 650 easily through the entire Sunday long course. I wouldn't have been fast, but would have had no problem finishing. Not much need for any autoclutch there. As we know, a long course Enduro is a different animal, as is all of the "Extreme Enduro" events.

Now that I'm finding that more Pros use Autos in the harder events it makes me a bit more interested in trying one again.

 

[GMP]

If your going to ride a 4stroke MX bike in an extreme event or on technical trail I think it would be a no brainer to use one, to get around the tall first gear and avoid the stalling and hard restart. Maybe even on a 2stroke YZ250 for the same reason and to avoid gearing it down too far. On a 2stroke woods bike like a GG with a proper transmission and a juice clutch, you can keep it, unless you have some specific physical limitations that it helps with.

 

[twowheels]

I did notice in this months Dirt Bike mag that several of the Pros in the Tennessee Knock Out used autoclutches. Not currently remembering details of who won, and which auto they used.

Maybe ... but maybe not. Numerous pros run the Rekluse manual clutches, and some just run the cover.

Agree that you don't want to be stalling big thumpers, so maybe running an auto clutch helps keep them lit.

 

[mcnut]

Yes it does. It also makes somebody with mediocre skills or sloppy clutch work, an expert. I still use my left lever as I did pre- Core EXP. I'm just way better.

 

[andoman]

The Core's advantage over the Pro is the super ease of adjustment. The lever feel is also truly unchanged from stock. On the Pro, the lever feel would vary to some degree with RPM.