The NSS switch on a C-14 has always been a little 'hokey' with a Rostra, starting with the '08's. Not surprised it does not work with a later model; as it barely worked with the first models, if Kawasaki changed <anything> in the 'it is OK to start the bike circuit' (sidestand, clutch, engine kill switch, tip over switch, etc.) then it may have been pushed toward the area where it will not work at all.
Yes there is another choice for the secondary disengage and that is engine RPM, which was the first one I used. It worked poorly, slowly and often had the engine banging into the rev. limiter (somewhat unsettling to say the least) before it <occasionally> worked. The NSS was actually the second and better idea, first used and proposed by Fred Harmon way back when. So in short, you are probably not going to like the alternate method any better than the first- tried method, which is not working out for you.
All of that said, none of it is what I would call a deal- breaker; it is merely the second method to disengage the CC, with the first being reliable enough, IMO, that it is not all that big of a deal. And as far as safety goes, you can always pull in the clutch and even if the engine does rev. rather high in RPM, there is no safety issue with the CC and the bike, only that the engine may really 'wind up' until you have time to either hit the kill switch or turn off the ignition. I have never needed the secondary disengagement method in a decade and 100K miles and I do not think you will find many, if anyone, who has needed it and there are a lot of Rostras installed on all year C-14's. I know this is not the answer you were looking for but it is the best I can offer regarding suggestions or knowledge of this quirk.
Brian
So I’ve installed six Rostra Cruise controls now and I am encountering a problem with the NSS clutch disengagement feature during the install on an 2011 and 2017 model. The 08 and 09 models work as expected but the 2011 and 2017 I’ve done I can’t get the NSS to work. So what I have determined is with the bike on the center stand and the kickstand deployed the clutch works like the 08 and 09 when the clutch is pulled in the right tab on the clutch switch goes to ground. When you put the kickstand up both tabs on the clutch switch go to ground regardless if the clutch is pulled in or not. So the Rostra with not engage because the NSS sees it grounded. Am I doing something wrong or is there an alternate fix to this or even using the RPM disengagement feature?
Help a Connie out!!!!!
Thank You