® The CB500 clutch pushrod

The factory CB500 clutch pushrod. Aluminum throughout, with steel tips. Make an effort to get the good one.

 

For sale on ebay. Don't buy one like this. It's not supposed to be in two pieces. It's broken.

The Internet forums have really screwed this up, but good. What they will tell you is it doesn't matter whether or not you use the original type clutch pushrod in your bike. But it does, and it matters a lot.

The CB500 Four has of course a metal rod to operate the clutch, much like 60s Brit bikes and even Honda's own earlier twins. The one in the 500 is pretty special however. It is actually made of aluminum. It has steel tips for wear, but the bulk of the rod is in fact aluminum. This is not for the purpose of light weight. It is aluminum so that the setting of the clutch lever clearance will be maintained as the engine warms up. The rod grows with the engine.

And it really works. Properly adjusted, the 500 clutch has as excellent a feel as the 750's clutch (which does not have a pushrod). This is not something you want to throw away by using a pushrod from a first-gen CB450, say, which is all-steel and does not therefore compensate as the engine heats up. The second-generation (and later) 450s and 500T also had an aluminum rod just like the 500 four.

The good news is if you search diligently you can occasionally find the correct one on ebay or on sites such as CMSNL and David Silver. And it is worth whatever you have to pay for it, which last time I checked was about $50.

One final note. The clutch pushrod is a one-piece part. Those in some rider's bikes and even many for sale on ebay are in two or even three pieces. These are not good parts. They are broken. Rough treatment, whether incorrect clutch adjustment or a poorly maintained drive chain can snap the steel end off of the aluminum rod. The part is then no good.


Last updated February 2023
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