Hello,

so i actually joined this forum to solve the exact problem im about to describe the fix for.

If there is anyone with a dt250 or tt of the mid 70's range (has a clutch lever mechanism under the engine) than you may be experiencing a need to constantly adjust the clutch. after long rides.....after not riding it for a while.....the wind changes direction.....etc etc

you may have also convinced yourself that the slight loss of power you experience is just due to the age of the bike and the fact that its a 250.

well ive got some good news.

Chances are the clutch push rod has been adjusted incorrectly, on other models of dt and most enduro bikes of this age, the push rod is adjusted by a screw in the centre of the clutch basket, on this little fucker they decided to change it up and put the push rod adjutsment in front of the sprocket (small end of the chain, close to the front of the engine) this means its a little more prone to the elements and idiots playing around with it.

the manual says to release the lock nut, screw in the adjustment screw til it lightly seats and then turn back 1/4 turn. what it doesnt say is to.....

1 make sure you loosen the cable right off

and most importantly

2 dont screw the pushrod allllll the way in.

you see there is actually a point where you have screwed into a grove in the clutch assembly, in this grove there is also about a 1/4 turns worth of play between the two ends of the groove.

best way to do this is as follows

loosen the cable before this

1 remove the lock nut entirely
2 remove the pushrod from the crank case entirely (small amount of oil leak so get a towel)
3 place the push rod back in the case
4 screw in (around 3 turns) til you feel it just touch a stopping point. like its so lightly seated you will question it. you dont not want to hear a tap on hard metal
5 turn the screw back 1/4 turn
6 replace the lock nut
7 tighten the lock nut GENTLY, only so far that the rod wont move.
8 adjust your cables to allow for the correct free play.

this may have been shared on here before but ive been googling it for months and could not find instructions that went into enough detail.

thanks for reading. hope it helps

I'm certainly no expert on the 74ish 250's... But do own one and can't envision what you're describing.

One is that Yamaha didn't normally use a "screw in the center of the clutch basket" until the later monoshock years.

Two is that I'm not understanding how you're removing the pushrod... Maybe adjustment screw is what was meant?

Most importantly is that design uses an eccentric adjustment screw... Has an offset pin in the end of it that fits in a groove in the clutch lever shaft that comes up from the bottom of engine. Shaft has a wedge-shaped flat on it that presses pushrod when shaft is turned by lever. Eccentric screw is used to raise and lower shaft and therefore wedge to get the correct play between wedge and end of pushrod.

One half turn of adjustment screw will take you from shaft fully raised (maximum internal Freeplay) to shaft fully lowered ( minimum internal Freeplay)

Feeling a little loopy from meds I'm on right now but can't recall manual advising a "back off 1/4 turn" on that design or understand how your "light touch" adjustment method works? Maybe if you posted photos it would help?

Backing off the cable adjustment first is great advice... I like to actually remove the cable... And that mid-70's design is not my favorite and can be frustrating to adjust... So would like to understand your method better!