[JFMNINJA400]

Done

I installed the spring I got from Spears Racing, nice touch with the candy and stickers, Mr. Spears! I have a 6x12 trailer I need to fill with stickers! I will be honest, it took me longer than 5 minutes to install. I followed the instructions from Kiwi and the awesome pics from TiggLe and I got the job done. That rubber boot was pretty much just covering the cable not doing anything else. The spring will do a much better job no doubt. Ok guys what’s next, what else needs to be done on these aweomse 400s!!!

 

[b0Xcrash]

Interesting to read the feed back on the Spring....after 40 years in business , we truly understand the cost of goods, went to Home depot and tried several springs, we have a Spring MFG that has been doing our units for decades, so with that we went to them and had them draw us up something that first was made of stainless steel (not a coated zinc spring) next was the purpose and the diameter once this was done we had poundage or pull in the direction of travel and release. Once we were happy with the spring we had to do a few hundred to keep the cost to the point were we could make it right for the end user.

I see a lot of you are so quick to want to run out and to purchase a different spring for less $$$ I get it and welcome it.....our unit is purpose designed and built by engineers...

we are going to lesson the cost of shipping, this is sold in a "per item" one off will now ship for $5.00, this will cover the cost of the envelope, and will not be sent via priority mail, it will be sent first class, and that from the postal it will be between $2.75/$3.50 plus the cost of the envelope.

we are just trying to make items that will make you experience better and not allow you to have any issues with your Kawasaki Ninja 400 (Commuter motorcycle)

again Thank you for the Feed back........Gregg Spears

Thanks Gregg, and yeah I talked to you on the phone as well, not about the spring but a few other things in the past.

I may have been of the first group to buy one, and even though the shipping was $8 as I said before for under $15 or whatever it was, it made sense to me. I could spend my time better doing something else than chasing around springs and cutting them to length from Home Depot, Lowes, Ace, Fastnel or anywhere else you want to try....and maybe still not have it right.

Gregg is a great guy and knows his stuff, also great to see that he reviewed the cost of shipping and adjusted it using a different service for something as simple as a spring.
Good job Gregg, thanks again!

 

[b0Xcrash]

No, I tried to do it that way for a start and just made it hard for myself. And no the boot does not fit over the spring.
So my suggestion is to cut the boot off and thread the spring on over the cable with it in place. 5min job.

Yeah I hoarde motorcycle parts, lol
Granted that boot seems to be nothing much, but it seems like to me it had two purposes, in the absence of the spring its intent was to help with the return, cause if you look at it when its fully squeezed it has resistance to push back out, obviously it did not work as intended and was more of an atheistic, keep crap off that part of the cable, pointless boot.

I try to save all the OEM parts, and aftermarket because in my mind you never know when you may need one...or someone else does, and to me that is priceless when they say "Man I have been looking everywhere for this or that part! And the dealer wants $$$ for it and back order" And I reply with "you mean this part??" and then proceed to give to them for free, which even amps up the OMG's :grin:

Especially young riders whose bikes get beat up in the first years of riding, or kids getting into the sport or activity and they have wire twists or the wrong bolt part installed from the hardware store and I can fix it up right and safely for them.

 

[Lucros]

So I got mine in the mail today (Thanks again Spears Racing! Also thanks for the mint, and stickers.) dropped the girls off at girl scouts came up and pulled the bike out from it's storage spot in the garage for winter. Snapped a few pics of the process I was solo and my garage isn't the brightest and it's in the middle of a winter rain downpour.... But i thought I would share the pics since I was asking for some and other's are also.

On the right side of the bike, there's the rubber boot cut it off. ( I used my carry knife but you can use a razor etc)
Slide one end of the spring on to the cable.
I found it easiest to put my left hand/fingers just on the back side of the cable on the end near the rear of the bike.
Then thread the spring on.
Don't let the spring just flip over the back side which is why I use my left hand to prevent that.
You want it to actually twist and thread on.
And your done new spring mod installed.


Edit: Spears or anyone else want to use these pictures elsewhere feel free too.

Just curious, why not disconnect the cable from the arm on the case, and then slide it over and reconnect to the case? Would that not be the easier way??

 

[b0Xcrash]

Just curious, why not disconnect the cable from the arm on the case, and then slide it over and reconnect to the case? Would that not be the easier way??

No it is not.
Cutting the boot and pulling it off, 30 seconds to 5 min tops if you are very, very careful.
Then twisting the spring on the cable and putting it all in place, 5 min tops.

So maybe 10-15 total time, possibly even less time.

Removing the cable requires loosening up the tension, so you can remove the lever and pull the cable out of it to give some slack, which is what I did, but then you have to also loosen it down at the case to get the whole adjuster and etc. to move towards the back of the bike enough to swing the cable slack around enough to get the end out of the arm on the case. (you could use a c-clamp to try to squeeze the clutch arm to give some more slack to work with, but risk scratching stuff up) It has a ball on the end of the cable that goes into the arm in way that it cannot easily fall out of the arm when tension is applies and then slack is introduced in very quick and interesting motions. So it takes some effort to get it all twisted around in a way the cable comes loose. The whole job can take at least 15 minutes upwards of 1 hour.

If you are not trying to save the rubber boot, save yourself the hassle and just cut it off and thread on the spring.

 

[Muchacho22]

How much harder is the clutch pull with that spring on? And does the lever return to it place completley unlike stock which is always 1-2mm back?

 

[TwiggLe]

How much harder is the clutch pull with that spring on? And does the lever return to it place completley unlike stock which is always 1-2mm back?

I could feel the pull being tighter. But it's not a huge change in the actual pull. Return felt snappy and re-assured me that it will fully release. I never had any of the issues that some have had with there clutch I did this mod just as a pre-caution. I also haven't gotten to take my bike out and ride since adding the spring as I'm in NE Ohio and well it's winter.

 

[TwiggLe]

Just curious, why not disconnect the cable from the arm on the case, and then slide it over and reconnect to the case? Would that not be the easier way??

See b0Xcrash's reply right after yours. You have to remove the boot no matter what as it won't fit over the spring. So doing it this way which is from what I can tell the majority of people are doing, is easier. You don't have to remove the cable and then re-adjust the cables etc. Just cut the boot off twist the spring on and your set.

 

[Roadking100]

I could feel the pull being tighter. But it's not a huge change in the actual pull. Return felt snappy and re-assured me that it will fully release. I never had any of the issues that some have had with there clutch I did this mod just as a pre-caution.

Ditto here...Just ordered my spring today.. Like you, a precaution.

BTW, I feel your pain about the weather in NE Ohio....Used to live up that way for 30 years. Moved to Florida for the "most" of the year riding. It DOES get a bit warm here in summer.:devil:

 

[Lucros]

Just curious, why not disconnect the cable from the arm on the case, and then slide it over and reconnect to the case? Would that not be the easier way??

See b0Xcrash's reply right after yours. You have to remove the boot no matter what as it won't fit over the spring. So doing it this way which is from what I can tell the majority of people are doing, is easier. You don't have to remove the cable and then re-adjust the cables etc. Just cut the boot off twist the spring on and your set.

Yea I read it ^_^ what do you guys think about ninja400r clutch cable spring? It looks like it slides over the boot

 

[TwiggLe]

Yea I read it ^_^ what do you guys think about ninja400r clutch cable spring? It looks like it slides over the boot

Are you talking about something different? Cause the spring we are getting from Spears does not fit over the rubber boot and the rubber boot doesn't fit over the spring.

 

[JFMNINJA400]

HotBodies

Must be referring to the spring from HotBodies, which does fit over the rubber boot. Its 19.95 and probably has to be installed the hard way. I prefer cheaper and easier. Even if I didn’t have the Spears one, that’s still the one I would get.:wink:

 

[NJA400]

Just installed the Spears spring (3800 miles with no clutch issues). Very easy installation as described previously in this thread. Clutch lever has a more positive return that is noticeable. Makes for cleaner shifts and gives me a little more confidence about the clutch engagement. This should be the first upgrade to any 400.

 

[b0Xcrash]

This should be the first upgrade to any 400.

Yeah, agreed...or Kawasaki could just do the right thing, put it there from the start, lol :grin:

 

[Lucros]

Must be referring to the spring from HotBodies, which does fit over the rubber boot. Its 19.95 and probably has to be installed the hard way. I prefer cheaper and easier. Even if I didn’t have the Spears one, that’s still the one I would get.

But couldn’t this make the clutch cable wear down faster without the boot protecting it from elements?

 

[Lucros]

Yea I read it ^_^ what do you guys think about ninja400r clutch cable spring? It looks like it slides over the boot

Are you talking about something different? Cause the spring we are getting from Spears does not fit over the rubber boot and the rubber boot doesn't fit over the spring.

Yea I was talking about the one from hotbodies on ninja400r.com , in the picture it goes over the boot

 

[Lucros]

Spears shipping is Fedex Express. Fast but not cheap.

Ninja 400r sells a clutch lever spring also, but has a longer pitch. May or may not have a firmer pull compared to the Spears.

Did you end up getting the clutch arm spring from ninja400r? I liked that one better because it lets you keep the boot on

 

[Lucros]

Just noticed Jeremey @ Ninja400r just added a spring to their catalogue, $19.95, so Spears almost $10 cheaper, not sure if there is a difference in quality/performance.

Hey just wondering if you ended up getting the Ninja400r clutch arm spring, I’m more interested in this one as it goes over the boot

 

[stikflote]

Would any spring do the clutch mod?

Cant find it on Spears site, but it might be very costly to ship to uk

 

[genx400]

Would any spring do the clutch mod?

Cant find it on Spears site, but it might be very costly to ship to uk

Got a link for you here :smile: https://www.spearsenterprises.com/product/clutch-spring-assist-kawasaki-ninja-ex-400cc-2018-2019/