Mousetrap on a Shovelhead

[RodFun]

Just acquired a nice 76 Shovel to keep me busy over the winter. The bike included a new Rivera Primo clutch kit that the previous owner had bought, but not installed. I had a vintage bike shop install it for me, since I've never worked on old Harleys before, and I think they did a good job.

I thought the Rivera would make the clutch lever easier, but I still find it to be a hard pull. I've had some surgery on my left hand and may be having some more. My grip is not that weak, but I get tired if I have to pull this clutch a lot on a longer ride.

So I've been googling some forums and it seems like you can fit a mousetrap on a Shovel FLH by replacing the stock clutch arm with a '65-'69 clutch arm. I found a nice used one on eBay that I ordered and I'm going to see if that actually fits before I order the mousetrap. I have one lined up a Dennis Kirk here and they have a good return policy if I can't get it to work. So that's my plan.

Just thought I'd float this on the forum here to see if anyone might have experience and any advice. One post suggested Harley may have had more than one generation of mousetrap?? I've included photos to show my set up.

Thanks!

Rod
'69 Moto Guzzi 750 Ambassador
'74 Moto Guzzi 850 Police
'76 FLH!!!

[joe fxs fxr]

If you don't get an answer here, try hdforums.com there's a lot of knowledge about classic harleys. https://www.hdforums.com/forum/shovelhead-62/

[Kozy]

There may be a lighter weight diaphragm spring available for that clutch, changing sprigs would be a lot easier and cheaper than the mousetrap route.

[duffeycycles]

I agree Shovels after mousetraps suck. Mousetrap with a Rivera Pro clutch can be a pain to setup because the travel for the 2 systems are different, but it can work. There is an over-center point on both mousetraps & diaphragm clutch & is tough to get them to matchup. Diaphragm clutch uses less travel than stock clutch. A mousetrap can work well with an easy pull with a regular clutch. The trick to make mousetrap easier to pull is do the setup & then back off the bottom nut on the mousetrap spring a very small amount.... too much & the mousetrap will not return. Make sure you have a good cable, well lubed & grease the mousetrap pivot & the spring pivot points. [ heavy springs on either clutch are counter productive for easy pull ]

[vph-d]

Make sure you have the -68 clutch springs, and not the heavier -41 springs. The later springs make the lever easier to pull.
vph-d

[otis71]

I would avoid the aftermarket mousetrap and look for a good used oem one if you do go that route.

[RodFun]

Awesome feedback. Thanks! I'm going up to visit the mechanic who put in the new clutch TG weekend and I will bring up all of these questions and suggestions.

[dukekleman]

RodFun,

The issue you'll encounter on a stock 76' shovelhead is the clutch arm. The clutch arm required for a mouse trap will not fit on your 1976.
The oil tank and inner primary housing do not have enough clearance.
The use of a different clutch arm defeats your purpose of what your trying to achieve.
I have built custom arms to clear in this situation but the OEM arm is not going to work. Sorry for the bad news.

Hope this saves you work and discoveries,

Duke Kleman

[sswaney]

RodFun
I've got two M/C's with the Clutch Booster mechanism. I have never been able to get the Mousetrap to work as designed without running the 38075-41 Clutch Springs and 37950-41 Cushion Plate. Also I believe you will have to find and run the Clutch Release Lever 37052-65 for use on your 76. All these parts mention went out of use in 67 when they went with the softer springs and more clutch plate. Good Luck