Final Drive

[rainman]

My 2000 FI has 108,000 on it and have never done anything to the final drive. It has now developed humming noise, I was wondering if any of you guys have ever changed out the roller bearing and seals in your final drives???? Any special tools and other problems I might have if I attempt this task. Any help would be appreciated. I talked with Gadget and he has never opened up a final drive. Where could I get another one if I had to.
Thanks,
Dennis

This is a job for a very knowledgable specialist. New bearings, seals, and different shims could probably add lots of life to this gear box, but it's gotta be set up properly and it's a bit tricky to do.

It usually takes me at least three tries to set up a bevel or hypoid gear box and get it just right.

If it's set up wrong, the gears will still be noisy, and will wear quickly.

An alternative would be a low-mileage box from a junked bike. They are around.

[rainman]

Where would you look for a used gear box????? Are there any procedures in print that a person could use to get it setup right??? Do you use shims to set the clearance between the gears????? You have done it, maybe you could be my guide. A used final would probably cost an arm and a couple of legs. Thanks for the quick reply.

A new one is about $2000!

There are motorcycle junkyards that auction parts all the time on eBay. That's where I got my spare drive shaft. Now I don't know what a used box would sell for, but Kawasaki wants almost $300 for a new drive shaft and I got a perfect used one for $35 + shipping. If you could get a good used box for $500 or so that would be a real good deal. I think you'd pay someone $600 to fix yours if it didn't need new gears. Just the two gears are around $900 a set new as I recall.

To fix it yourself you'd need about $300 worth of special tools you don't have. I don't have some of them either, because I've never done a Nomad gear box. Just older Fords and Mopars. The principals of setup are all the same though. You have to put marking paste (I use red anti-seize) on the gear teeth, and turn them against a resistance strong enough to account for running deflections. Then you look at the pattern on the gear teeth, and based on experience estimate how much shim to add or subtract from each gear. Of course you must buy some shims and you really won't be able to even estimate which thicknesses to buy until you tear the box down, then check the pattern and measure the existing shims.

There are about 28 different shims available. They cost from $2.50 to $6.00 each. You probably only need three, but they need to be the correct three, and there's no good way to tell in advance which ones they will be.

You reassemble the box with the new shims, apply the paste, and test spin the gears again, then you take it apart, change the shims and do it again until you get the best possible pattern, without any rough engagement and minimal backlash. With brand new gears and bearings, these things all coincide, but with used gears you must make some judgments on what's the best you can get with what you've got to work with. That's the part where lots of experience makes a difference.

You really need a guy right there to show you what it's supposed to feel like and what kind of pattern it's supposed to make, when it's right. There are diagrams in the manual that show you these things, but they don't account for setting up used gears to run as well as they can run. They show you the patterns that new gears will make. An experienced guy will know these things. That's why he gets good money to set up gears.

I hope I've discouraged you a bit here. This is not a job for the casual weekend mechanic.

OH, yes...

If you want to read the full instructions in print, get the factory Nomad manual. They're fairly involved.

If you just want a rough idea, go to a library and look up any older Motor's manual or decent car manual and look up how to set up the differential gears. The basic theory and procedures are the same. There's a few more steps with a car, because of the spider gears which a bike doesn't have, but the basics are pretty much the same.

[rainman]

Thanks, I believe that I will locate a used one. Thanks for your help. Have a good day.

[watchman]

I bought a used 04 Nomad final drive from the salvage yard that parts bikes out on ebay and installed it on my 01 classic. I gave $250 and shipping. Parts to rebuild the final drive from Kawasaki was over $300 plus labor.

[oldbikers]

Rainman check this out http://cgi.ebay.com/KAWASAKI-VULCAN-...QQcmdZViewItem
or maybe this one http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/KAWAS...spagenameZWDVW

[ringadingh]

That gearbox on Ebay is off an 88, it looks the same and would probably fit, but because of its age it way be worn also. Id look for a newer one if it was me with low miles on it. A transmision repair shop may be able to repair your old unit for you. I would be very leary of letting a dealer work on it. Most likely it will be his first time also.

[oldbikers]

I didn't check to see what year they came off of just thought it was something he couldn't look in to.

[rainman]

Thanks for the help, it gave me a starting point. I called Ron ayers today they are going to warranty my tire, its only got about 2 hundred miles on it. It might take a little time to get my credit back, but at least they are doing it. I ordered a new tire and and going to try that before investing in a final drive, although I probably need one anyway with 108,000 miles on her. I had my tire balanced twice and still seemed like it was way out of balance. I did'nt notice it before I replaced the tire. Maybe that will work. Thanks, I'll let you know what the outcome is. I think I will still buy a final drive if I can find a later model with little mileage. Does anyone know if the final drives are the same on the 01,02,03,04,05 & etc. Gosh my bike is old.
Thanks
rainman

[cactusjack]

I remember rebuilding an automotive rear end in high school auto shop about 30 years ago. It's not a trivial process. You need to adjust for gear lash, bearing pre-loads and the like. That's the only one I have ever done, so I'm not the go-to guy for answers. I do remember it was quite involved, though.

[Yellow Jacket]

Hi rainman. I really like the paint job on your tank! (Both sides)

[rainman]

Thanks for those kind words, Bob. My paint has been on since she was a baby,about 8 years now in October, the art work has been on for about 5 years. I just cant seem to change, done too much work and spent too much money.
rainman

She is a beauty alright. The tail lights are really slick.