C: Clutch Conways Honda Clutch

[Comet Rider]

The donor clutch used is from a 1970's Honda so not suprised they are difficult to find today. Occasionally one will appear on eBay which would almost mean a full time job for somebody at Conways to keep a constant eye out for them. Its not as simple as bolt onto a burman chainwheel as a special adaptor for the center is required which engages with the mainshaft. This adaptor uses a lot more of the mainshaft spline which is good as the original Burman adaptor only just engaged.
When I wanted a Honda / Burman clutch conversion I found and bought the Honda clutch myself and then sent it to Conways to be adapted etc.

I seem to remember its a Honda CJ360 clutch from mid 1970's but you may want to get that confirmed by Conways.

Yes Honda CB or CJ 350
A parallel twin I beleive

 

[oexing]

I wonder why they selected that old clutch for the Vincent mod. You could have any other types as the splined center adapter has to be made, same goes for any other type. So who knows why ?

Vic

 

[vibrac]

I wonder why they selected that old clutch for the Vincent mod. You could have any other types as the splined center adapter has to be made, same goes for any other type. So who knows why ?

Vic

its a long time ago when the model was common and it fitted
unfortunately supplies of spares for Hondas are not expected to last 70 years like another well known make

 

[oexing]

I don´t know about critical sizes for the Burman clutch mod. But I would not think you´d need Maughams for fitting a Jap clutch onto a Vincent. The complicated part is the splined adapter for the clutch hub to go on the input shaft. That would be a EDM wire cut job from a freindly tool room company . You just give them sizes of spline and shaft o.d. and tell them to cut half a millimeter deeper into the o.d. size so as to get full depth of spline from wire cutting. The wire has something like 0.2-0.4mm diameter so you´d get radii in corners - bad for having full depth of splines. So that is why to tell them to cut deeper , not just up to 1/2" shaft o.d. like on twins, don´t know about Burman sizes.
I like the Kawasaki clutches for their needle bearing to sit on the input shaft. They are 25mm by 42mm , so have the inner race opened to 1/2" . The Kawa spline will not fit, so maybe you have to turn an adapter from good steel and fix that into the clutch basket after spark eroding the spline. I did that by having a left hand fine thread on the adapter and same in the alu basket, glued in by Loctite 270 or 648.
On the twin it is a close fit under the primary cover, unless you cut out the wall for a very wet clutch.
So a few links to Kawa clutches for having an idea:

Vic
Kawa clutch

Kawa set

Kawasaki

 

[bmetcalf]

Bert Weisz made several twin clutches from Suzuki parts in the '70's. He was the 3rd shift maintenance machinist at the Windsor, Ontario Ford works, so he had access to nice machine tools, including a spline broach or something just right for the center.