OEM clutch replacement. Tusk clutch kit (review)

I have just over 8,500 miles on my 2020 WR250R. I have had a Core EXP 3.0 Rekluse kit in it almost as soon as I had gotten it and since the end of April, I have been loosening the clutch cable adjusters to take up the play from the fibers and drive plates getting worn from my having had at least 5-6 friends ride the bike as I will ride my Beta and I let my guests ride the WR250R. I suspect the clutch getting worn as some forget to downshift and the clutch will spin and burn and wear out.

Once I got the pressure plate off and could look at the fibers, they were quite worn. I knew this as I was down to almost no adjustment left at either the clutch perch and the inline cable adjuster.

I took a chance and for $55 shipped, got the Tusk Clutch kit with fibers, steels and springs and put it all in yesterday and had tried it out. First, the clutch pull was really stiff and even just riding around my neighborhood to adjust the Rekluse free play gain, my fingers and hand were tired. I had taken the springs out and put the OEM springs back in right away. I had also learned that if I lay the bike over and give it a minute or two, the oil will not spill out of the case and I can do whatever I need to on the clutch without needing to drain the new oil I had just put in, out. I think the last time I had needed to make an adjustment to the clutch throwout I did not wait and oil came spilling out of the case once I had taken off the clutch cover.

Otherwise, I had one steel and three fibers left over after the install as the EXP ring takes up the room in the clutch pack but the clutch worked well as it always has. I was happy I had remembered to put both the perch adjuster and inline cable adjustment at half way as it is the easier way to adjust the free play gain and I had to move both the adjusters almost all the way out to get the pressure plate off the clutch pack so there would be no drag on the clutch when stopped in gear and at idle. The benefit to this is that as the clutch (pack) wears, I can then move either adjuster in to get the pressure plate to clamp harder/closer to the plates without needing to go into the clutch and make the adjustment at the adjustable throwout bearing.

I will go for another short ride this afternoon to see how it all works as all I have done so far is slowly ride around the neighborhood to adjust the free play gain and report back.

I had taken the bike for a 60 mile, 3 hour clutch torture test and the Tusk clutch fibers and steels have both passed my test.

The clutch has a Rekluse Core EXP 3.0. It is the fourth Rekluse that I have installed in four different motorcycles.

One is a Core EXP 3.0 in a 2019 TTR-125. Another was in a 2017 Beta 500 RR-S that was the Radius CX and the other was a Radius X in a 2022 Beta 350 RR-S. I have the free play gain set how I like it in this 2020 WR250R.

The free play gain is set so that when warmed up, in gear and in idle with the clutch out, there is just a very slight drag. I have the light EXP springs installed so that the clutch engages as soon as it can possibly be engaged. I had done the break in of the new plates and no matter how hard I had tried, from standing starts in both first and second gears, and while rolling in most all the gears, I could not get the clutch to slip no matter how hard I had tried.

I did have to adjust the clutch cable at the clutch perch to reduce the free play gain so that I could eliminate a slight clutch slip in 3rd gear under full acceleration and once I had, there was no more slip as I suspect that the break in with the new clutch plates and all my testing had caused some wear on the plates that was easily taken up by letting more slack in the adjuster.

Rekluse instructs one to move both the clutch perch and the in line cable adjusters to the half way adjustment span so that if one needs to adjust, there is enough to take up for the wear in either the frictions, steels, pressure plate or basket and I had learned that in time, due to wear, that one must adjust the cable to allow more slack in the line to account for any material wear in the clutch system. I now have a lot of adjustment left in both of the adjusters as prior to the new fibers and steels, both of my adjustments had been almost totally used up due to all the wear on the fibers and some on the steels.

I will not use the Tusk heavy duty clutch springs as they are really stiff and I will try and order only the frictions if I ever wear out the current clutch pack as I don't want to have to pay for the springs if I will never use them but for $55 for all the frictions, steels and springs, it is a price that just cannot be beat.

The Tusk friction plates and steels are worthy.

I have gone out at least two more times, for over 2 hours and over 100 miles and as I was not torture testing the clutch and just riding normally, I did not have to adjust the free play gain for the Rekluse Core EXP 3.0 as the clutch did not slip at all.

Thanks for taking the time to post this up, my clutch finally burned out after 28k and I was looking for a review of the Tusk kit in our bikes. I appreciate the detailed review.

As I don't give a single thought to the clutch while I'm out riding, it means that the Tusk clutch is still working perfectly with the Rekluse Core EXP 3.0.

It is a worthy kit for $50.