Good evening team!

i need a gut check. My clutch was not disengaging at all. I decided to do a whole refresh, so I replaced the clutch cable and got new friction pads. The metal plates were flat and inside the mm parameters in the manual. I noticed that when the clutch stack is removed (as in the picture below), the assembly still does not spin 100% freely, there is still some friction. For example, if I give it a hardy spin with my fingers it might go around 1.5 times, but will slow down quickly. Is this normal for these bikes? Or should I dig back further and see if one of the washers behind it is bent or something.

Thanks in advance!

imgur.com/a/xaBuMwj

It does sound tighter than desirable but if it turn even if a bit tight then at least it turns so your main issue shouldn't be related to that. For it not to release or give those symptoms it would be solid, not turn no matter what, except forcing it would turn the crank too even without the plates stacked in. So restack your plates & visualize then separating when operating the clutch. If you can see that then pop it in gear & wheel it along disengaged just to be sure before cover goes on. Be extra careful the change shaft stays engaged & if it moves sideways its possible on that system to go back into mesh one tooth out on the change mechanism. Should be central on the teeth, equal both ways.