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Scooter829

07 Foreman front end issue has me stumped

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Thanks for the add. I’m looking for some info and hopefully y’all can help me out. I’m looking a buying a 07 Foreman 500 from a family member. It’s been a hunting bike since new so it’s not been mudded or abused. Anyway, it starts and runs fine. About a month ago he was riding about 15 mph down a gravel road. Suddenly the front end started dragging and became really hard to steer. He put it on a trailer and brought it home. Yesterday afternoon I started tearing it apart to see what’s going on. He thought the breaks had maybe locked up. Pulled them off and both calipers and all the pad’s appear to be working properly. What I noticed was that with the wheels and calipers removed and the handle bars straight (it is very hard to steer to the right) the front hubs will not spin freely. If you turn the bars fully to the left, both front hubs spin freely. Once you begin to straighten the bars, the left side hub is almost impossible to turn. Also, as you straighten the handle bars, the left side a arm raises. As the suspension goes up, the hub binds and will not turn. 
Any ideas of what may be causing this? Nothing appears to be bent. No obvious bend in the tie rod. No obvious play in the tie rod end or ball joints. I thought possibly a bent shaft on the CV axle causing binding, but I can pull the cv out of the hub and move it to any position and it still spins freely. Even at angles it can’t reach when attached to the spindle. So I’m thinking it’s not an axle issue. But I really have no clue at this point.

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Welcome aboard.

 

Which CV did you pull out, or did you pull them both? 

 

Does it do the same in 2wd and 4wd?

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25 minutes ago, jeepwm69 said:

Welcome aboard.

 

Which CV did you pull out, or did you pull them both? 

 

Does it do the same in 2wd and 4wd?

I only pulled the cv from the hub on the left side. Didn’t not pull the right side CV. I haven’t been able to get the axle out of the differential yet. It’s stuck in there. 

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14 minutes ago, Goober said:

Check oil in differential. Maybe clutches are dry?

Drained the diff fluid. It was at the right level and fluid looked good. No metal in it. 

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How are you trying to remove it? i see these members using a rope tied to the cv end and  to a sledgehammer. Swing the hammer lightly to tug the shaft out.

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36 minutes ago, Scooter829 said:

I only pulled the cv from the hub on the left side. Didn’t not pull the right side CV. I haven’t been able to get the axle out of the differential yet. It’s stuck in there. 

 

I'd try pulling both CV's.  I'm wondering if the retaining wire and cage pulled out on one side just enough to bind everything up.

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5 minutes ago, Goober said:

How are you trying to remove it? i see these members using a rope tied to the cv end and  to a sledgehammer. Swing the hammer lightly to tug the shaft out.

So far I’ve just tried pulling it by hand. I have a slide hammer that I’m gonna try when I get more time. 

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6 minutes ago, jeepwm69 said:

 

I'd try pulling both CV's.  I'm wondering if the retaining wire and cage pulled out on one side just enough to bind everything up.

Once I get back to working on it I plan to pull both sides. 

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You said you were having trouble getting one of the cv-shafts out ---- tie a rope around the cv-shaft right where it meets the differential , the tie that rope to a big maul , on the handle right at the head , then swing the maul and pop the shaft out 

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If you can get one side out, you can take a long drift/ bolt, stick through the diff and hammer the other one out.

 

I had to do it the other day on an 08 front diff.  I used a long half inch grade 8 bolt

 

 

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