Hi All,

I've looked through the site and surprisingly not much here on slipper clutches.
I was talking to a fast track guy about a quickshifter and he recommended a slipper clutch above quickshifters if you prefer corners to straight line speed (which I do).
Does anyone have one of these fitted?
What options if any are available for my 07 ZX-14?
Cost?
Does anyone have any feedback or advise regarding slipper clutches and the ZX-14?

Thanks guys...

* Last updated by: yannih on 10/23/2014 @ 1:35 AM *

The Gen2 busa has a stock slipper clutch. I almost can't tell it's there. IDK, maybe it's a good thing to not notice it. I guess in a real hard decel I'll think, "jeez, that rear end didn't shimy around at all, the sound and the feel of the engine breaking was kind of soft." This is mainly in first gear on the street when I am riding my hardest. I think I've felt it come on in second a few times. You'd probably have to be going about a hundred in second and roll off the throttle fast before it came on. I'm pretty sure it's never kicked in in 3rd. The reason is its not that necessary on a bike like a busa or a 14. I'm sure these bikes are heavy enough and long enough to counteract rear end hop for most of us. To tell you the truth, I will be disabling the slipper clutch on the busa some time in the future because it reduces the excitement of downshifting. I like the rear end to lighten up and i love the sound of full engine braking. Disabling the slipper clutch on a busa is not a common mod but I hear of it from time to time on the busa forum. My thought is that most riders don't push the bike hard enough to really prefer slipper or no slipper so they just leave it.

I did notice the rear end waving back and forth when down shifting and braking hard for tight corners on the track with my 14. That seemed to be brought under control by lowering the tire pressure. I also feel the tail skim when i brake really hard on the street (like emergency braking) and sometimes I can here my engine bounce the rev limiter a bit when i downshift hard. Personally, I like all of that. If I feel I need to modulate the clutch, I prefer to do it with the lever.

If you find that you are braking and entering corners at 9-10k rpm and that rear wheel hop is a little unpredictable and getting to the danger zone, maybe a slipper clutch is for you. IMHO, it would be something I might value a lot more on a smaller bike and that might be why your track guy is suggesting it. A quickshifter is going to enhance riding excitement all the time and something that comes into play a lot more than a slipper clutch.

Have you noticed the rear end squirming from hard decel on the track getting you into trouble? If not, I'd get the quickshifter and save the slipper idea for some time in the future. I don't think you will notice the slipper that much and possibly you will not even enjoy it on a big bike.

Gday Rook and thanks for the points of view.

I admit it has been very rare for the rear of the 14 to squirm on me during deleceration due to my riding ability or lack of.
And when it has happened from memory it was only at the track.
Even though we do ride pretty hard in the quiet country areas I don't recall this ever happening in these situations.
Plus "braking and entering corners at 9-10k"?
Rarely.
Your opinions on slipper clutches seem to be justified by the fact that this mod doesnt seem to be very popular with the ZX-14 faternity at all.

Unless anyone else contributes something to the contrary that makes sense, I think I will take your advise and stick with adding a Quickshifter.

Very interesting to hear you may disconnect your busa's slipper clutch.
Wouldn't have picked that one as I thought to have that option would have been a substantial bonus...

* Last updated by: yannih on 10/23/2014 @ 6:15 AM *

I too have to completely agree with Rook for all the same reasons! Unless you are doing some serious track riding with high RPM downshifting you won't get much benefit from adding a slipper. IMO buy the quickshifter, you'll have a lot of fun with it!!!

Very interesting to hear you may disconnect your busa's slipper clutch.
Wouldn't have picked that one as I thought to have that option would have been a substantial bonus...

Your opinions on slipper clutches seem to be justified by the fact that this mod doesnt seem to be very popular with the ZX-14 faternity at all.

* Last updated by: Rook on 10/23/2014 @ 11:22 AM *

I know my Connie has one, and I could have sworn I read that the 12 and up ZX14s have them too.
Am I wrong?

Other upgrades include the addition of a slipper clutch (to reduce rear wheel hop during aggressive downshifts), a stiffer aluminum monocoque chassis, sportier suspension damping, and lighter wheels for enhanced maneuverability. Finally, heat management has been improved through a more pronounced fin design with cleaner exterior surfaces and hidden fasteners, while revised instrumentation now offers controls at the handlebar and additional information including an external air temperature and an “Eco” indicator—ironic, we must say, considering this bike’s ball-busting M.O.

* Last updated by: jimmymac on 10/23/2014 @ 11:38 AM *

yes the 2012 and up zx41's come with a slipper clutch. You won't notice it on the street unless your at crazy speeds or have to down shift in a panic type braking and down shifting cituation. Or riding really hard at the track.
I'd have to agree with what has been said above.
You'll be happier and have more fun and get better use out of a quick shifter.

I've had a couple of occasions when aggressively rolling off the throttle at 280+ in 5th where it feels like the rear wheel briefly locks up several times. Is this the slipper clutch activating?

Would that be Kilos per hour?? :)

I'd say it's the slipper clutch not working. Sounds like delayed reaction. you must be in 5th or 6th gear. I'm surprised the wheel would lock at all even at peak rpm. I could see 1, 2 and maybe 3 but not 6th. I don't have a Gen2 but my Gen1 without slipper clutch is geared low and i do not have wheel lock when I close the throttle quick at 9000 rpm in 6th gear. I did feel the front sort of jerk up and down quickly a couple times. Maybe that was a slight wheel hop....IDK. Thought it was suspension. Never chopped the throttle at high rpm on my busa which has slipper clutch but I do feel the slipper come on occasionally and it is perfectly smooth. It only comes on when the back torque is very strong and sudden but it's just like i modulated the clutch by hand.

I've mostly had it happen during aggressive downshifting into lower gears into 2nd or 1st, hard on the brakes. I can feel it through the clutch lever and can describe it as the following -

- it almost feels like clutch chatter and I may feel it almost like a pulsing 3-4 times in a second
- if you barely disengage/engage the clutch in rapid succession 4 times in a second
- It's something like an ABS pulse, not quite as pronounced compared to my truck but probably a slower frequency

I do tend to run my chain on the looser side rather than tighter, so it could be some slack too but I'm fairly sure what I'm experiencing is slipper.

For sure a 2016 ZX14R has one!!!

I find these slipper clutches come adjusted so badly stock from the factory that
they don't really work.

Maybe just more of a marketing thing.

Both my zx10 and zx14 have stock slipper clutches and neither work.

You really need to tweak them to get them working right which requires
changing clutch plate thicknesses, springs and possibly the spring plate
to reduce judder. I gave up on the 10 because it became to expensive and
finding the different thickness spring plate was non existent.

Can't find anything that explains it in the 14 service manual but
how it's set up from the factory doesn't really work and oh I've locked
up the back tire many times at all different speeds and gears.

How to adjust on the 10 is not in the standard service manual either it's
in the racing kit manual.

Maybe someone that knows how to adjust the slipper clutch on the 14's will chime in?

* Last updated by: piken on 12/11/2016 @ 9:23 PM *

Seriously considering installing quick shifter...tried it on the track and completely impressed with results.

* Last updated by: WillsZX14R on 12/14/2016 @ 6:20 AM *

I've personally never been a big fan of the concept of a slipper clutch since most of what they are marketed for can be mitigated through other/better means without adding weight and complexity. The rear tire locking up due to aggressive downshifting can be mitigated by cracking the throttle where a fly by wire engine can (and some bikes do) crack the throttle when it senses wheel spin. The rear locking up due to aggressive braking should be handled by an ABS system.

Of course both of those issues could be resolved by the rider but the nice thing is to not have to worry about how hard to brake how much throttle to give it, etc and allow the rider to focus on the corner instead.

The only advantage, in my opinion, that a slipper clutch has is to help possibly prevent an accident in the event that the engine seizes as it would prevent the rear wheel from locking up. But that's about it as it won't help for a transmission or final drive failure since those are post-clutch.

I think maybe the key word in the Kawasaki vernacular might be.."Greatly reduces rear wheel hop"...don't remember them saying it totally removes that possibility?I also think if you don't get any rear wheel hop in more aggressive clutching or downshifting,that probably shows that it's doing what it's supposed to?She's a heavy bike to get quickly slowed(stopped).If she's not skidding on hard downshifts...the slipper is working.But you can always get that to happen with the right inputs...(skidding I mean..for a second or less).

* Last updated by: Grn14 on 12/14/2016 @ 8:40 AM *

IMO the slipper works just as it should from the factory. I believe it may vary bike to bike, Kaw doesn't seem to produce a very consistent product. The whole point of the slipper is to take the edge off engine braking, not slip like a bicycle when you stop pedaling. It should only mitigate excessive engine braking (or over revving) beyond there there should be no slip. I mean, it shouldn't allow the back tire just to free wheel.

I can say that from Gen 1 w/o to Gen 2 with the slipper on the track I notice a big difference. With G1 throttle blip was necessary to keep a scary wheel hop away banging downshifts into a turn. G2 no blip and no wheel hop or excitement

yep.On mine,I can get very small 'fishtail' when downshifting hard(high revs)...but the wheel isn't skidding.Well...it's sliding slightly,but not long enough or pronounced enough to create anything like 'loss of traction'...though it may be slightly.(if that makes any sense);)

* Last updated by: Grn14 on 12/15/2016 @ 2:48 PM *