I've heard a lot of people complain about the clutch pull on their Ducati. That it was too tiring. I didn't understand this, modern Ducati clutches have a relatively easy pull. But one chilly day I went for a long ride with a lot of traffic and shifting. Near the end of the day my clutch grip did seem to be losing strength. I blame it on aging muscles and poor physical conditioning since the clutch really doesn't take that much pressure to retract. I'm sure the cool weather didn't help any either.

A lot of riders have installed aftermarket clutch slave cylinders that have reduced effort but this doesn't appeal to me because with the reduced effort comes reduced clutch throw. This can cause difficulty finding neutral, especially if there is a tiny bit of air in the hydraulic system or if any of the components in the clutch stack are warped. It is also possible to reduce the clutch pull by installing softer clutch springs. This doesn't appeal to me either, I like to have the full pressure on the plates to be sure it won't start slipping on me while I'm away from home.

I think the best solution is to ride often enough that your grip remains strong. But this may not always be possible so I have found two devices that are sure to keep one's grip in top form and they can be used while sitting at a desk or unwinding after a long day at work. My favorite is called a Powerball. It's a gyroscope that you grasp in your palm and the gyroscopic forces are amazingly strong and will condition your grip and forearm muscles. The effect is rather dramatic.


Powerball wrist/grip excerciser

I think it's pretty neat that the Powerball generates all the electricity required to run it's internal lights. It's also available with a tachometer so you can see how fast you are able to spin it and it's great fun to see who can spin it the fastest. The world record is 15,840 rpm's and the first time you take one over 10,000 rpm's you will have a bit of respect for anyone capable of winding it up to over 15,000. A few minutes a day with one of these and I doubt you will ever have trouble pulling a motorcycle clutch again. There are a number of less expensive copies out there but the ones sold under the "Powerball" brand name are capable of reaching the highest speed. They are sold by RPM Sports in Ireland and range in price from $19.99 to $47.99 depending upon the particular model and the quantity ordered.

I spotted the grip exerciser shown below at Fred Meyers one day and was amazed by how much it felt like a real motorcycle clutch. It has adjustable tension and the geometry and overall feel simulate a clutch lever very realistically. If you have ever used one of those common grip exercisers, the ones with the curley-cue spring attached to two handles, then you already know they do not feel like a real motorcycle clutch lever at all. The Bally Total Fitness hand grip is the first grip exerciser I have tried that actually feels like a real motorcycle clutch lever.





Note the two bicycle/motorcycle style cables that are used to strengthen your grip. You can actually sit at your desk and pretend you are riding in a motoGP race. I find a setting of 3 1/2 replicates the clutch feel on my 2002 ST4s but I like to set it around 5 for a more challenging workout. Or crank it all the way up and pretend you are riding a superbike from the 70's! Now that's a workout! Now you will never complain about the difficulty of your motorcycle clutch lever.

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