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Clutch Replacement.

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Well crappy news for me.. while out hunting last week end I ran into an issue with my quad which really surprised me to be honest. (Other than the battery being dead.) I let er warm up & headed for my ground blind. I was on the dirt road & there was an incline. The clutch started to slip pretty darn good. Currently it has the EBC Dirt Racer kit with High Lifter Outlaw clutch springs. I know my weights were getting close to max spec of 2mm I believe as well. 
 

so I called Honda..

 

Friction Plates $130

Steels $76

Clutch Weights $228

One way bearing $ 187

 

plus I might as well do the timing chain while in there as I don’t want to go back in for a long time. I should of done all that while the motor was apart last spring!!!
 

there has to be a cheaper place other than Honda for OEM parts..

 

@shadetree can u point me in the right direction?? Or anyone else for that matter??

 

Thanks guys!

 

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2 hours ago, Wheeler said:

Well crappy news for me.. while out hunting last week end I ran into an issue with my quad which really surprised me to be honest. (Other than the battery being dead.) I let er warm up & headed for my ground blind. I was on the dirt road & there was an incline. The clutch started to slip pretty darn good. Currently it has the EBC Dirt Racer kit with High Lifter Outlaw clutch springs. I know my weights were getting close to max spec of 2mm I believe as well. 
 

so I called Honda..

 

Friction Plates $130

Steels $76

Clutch Weights $228

One way bearing $ 187

 

plus I might as well do the timing chain while in there as I don’t want to go back in for a long time. I should of done all that while the motor was apart last spring!!!
 

there has to be a cheaper place other than Honda for OEM parts..

 

@shadetree can u point me in the right direction?? Or anyone else for that matter??

 

Thanks guys!

 

i buy all my oem parts from rmatv, or if they dont have them ?, i go to ( shiver ) partzilla. is this where i get to tell ya, ya shoulda left it stock ?, and did i not mention way back then, now is the time to change out all these parts your now needing ?..hmmm.

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Thanks shade. I checked out the prices, & they aren’t cheap there either. With shipping & exchange rate, maybe even more than here. 
 

I didn’t say my one way bearing, timing chain, or weights are shot. I just figure while I pull the cover off might as well do it all at once so I won’t have to worry about them over the next few years... I ran factory Honda friction plates on my old quad & they wore out one me one else as well.

 

If we all ran everything like yourself (OEM EVERYTHING) it would be a pretty boring place around here... we wouldn’t have slams videos of his awesome 400ex, & Fishes array of modified 300s to say the least. They make aftermarket parts for a reason... (some which surely aren’t the best!) but that’s what makes working on, modifying & making it your own atv the way u want. I’m not sure if I’ll go back with EBC or go OEM this time.. but it’s great to have a choice..

 

Thanks though for letting me know where u get ur parts. Appreciate it.. I’ll call my local shop & see what they can price out for me too.. 

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11 hours ago, Wheeler said:

Thanks shade. I checked out the prices, & they aren’t cheap there either. With shipping & exchange rate, maybe even more than here. 
 

I didn’t say my one way bearing, timing chain, or weights are shot. I just figure while I pull the cover off might as well do it all at once so I won’t have to worry about them over the next few years... I ran factory Honda friction plates on my old quad & they wore out one me one else as well.

 

If we all ran everything like yourself (OEM EVERYTHING) it would be a pretty boring place around here... we wouldn’t have slams videos of his awesome 400ex, & Fishes array of modified 300s to say the least. They make aftermarket parts for a reason... (some which surely aren’t the best!) but that’s what makes working on, modifying & making it your own atv the way u want. I’m not sure if I’ll go back with EBC or go OEM this time.. but it’s great to have a choice..

 

Thanks though for letting me know where u get ur parts. Appreciate it.. I’ll call my local shop & see what they can price out for me too.. 

don't get me wrong ?, i know everyone has a way they like their atv...and i'm ok with this !. where i draw the line is: when you go changing stuff ?, get ready for odd results !. reason: when you change tires so to speak ?, this has a effect, this effect does other things to the drive line, some where in the drive line there WILL be a weak link ?, this weak link will break down, when it does..its gonna take other parts with it !. this is why i stay stock oem, when the dummies from the engineer table sit down and figure up the best way this atv will run ?, well..for the most part ?..THEY ARE RIGHT !. they don't design them to use as a boat !, they don't design them to be 10 ft in the air ?..they try to make them ( notice i said try ? ) to last as long as it can !. changing parts on something that IS NOT designed to handle ?..well..then your working on it 24/7 !..lol. anyway, do as you and any other owner whishes...it's your atv...UNTIL YOU BRING IT TO ME TO FIX/REPAIR/REPLACE PARTS ?!..THEN IT'S YOUR MONEY IN MY POCKET !..LOL.

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My question is, what the heck are you doing to that thing to wear clutches out more than once? 

 

The only clutches I've had to replace out of all the Hondas I've gone through were on ragged out 420's that I bought for total rebuilds. 

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14 minutes ago, jeepwm69 said:

My question is, what the heck are you doing to that thing to wear clutches out more than once? 

 

The only clutches I've had to replace out of all the Hondas I've gone through were on ragged out 420's that I bought for total rebuilds. 

 

Ok I'm not crazy. I was thinking the same thing. I have had to replace clutches in a 300 once and that was because the PO adjusted them incorrectly and never changed the oil. Arguably could have reused those same plates after taking it all apart cleaning and putting back together... something is up here. I have a 300 Honda with (no way to know for sure) but for sure 5k+ miles on the original clutches... I probably rode that thing 5000 miles myself and we got it used from a logger lol

 

The clutches I pulled from this foreman were still working at 8K miles but were outside of service life... something is up. What performance benefits are you getting from non-oem springs? I would pull a shade and blame any aftermarket stuff for not getting +5k miles out of a set of clutches. I understand it is different uses but some motorcycles go +50k without ever needing new discs.

 

Love aftermarket stuff in the right context but if it cuts the reliability it is not for me. You are running into that kind of a deal here I think.

 

What oil are you running? This just screams not wet clutch approved to me right now...

 

Edited by oh400ex

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I'm thinking maybe bigger tires with no GR.  That would definitely do it over time.

 

But even then, @Wheeler didn't put these things on that long ago, and those Dirt Racer clutches are good clutches.  LOTS of guys use those on 300's with great results.

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19 hours ago, Wheeler said:

Well crappy news for me.. while out hunting last week end I ran into an issue with my quad which really surprised me to be honest. (Other than the battery being dead.) I let er warm up & headed for my ground blind. I was on the dirt road & there was an incline. The clutch started to slip pretty darn good. Currently it has the EBC Dirt Racer kit with High Lifter Outlaw clutch springs. I know my weights were getting close to max spec of 2mm I believe as well. 
 

so I called Honda..

 

Friction Plates $130

Steels $76

Clutch Weights $228

One way bearing $ 187

 

plus I might as well do the timing chain while in there as I don’t want to go back in for a long time. I should of done all that while the motor was apart last spring!!!
 

there has to be a cheaper place other than Honda for OEM parts..

 

@shadetree can u point me in the right direction?? Or anyone else for that matter??

 

Thanks guys!

 

 

Those EBC clutch plates are good. 

 

For the centrifugal, Armor Tech makes decent stuff, and you can get those from G&H.http://www.ghdiscountatvsupply.com/1988-2000-honda-trx-300-fourtrax-5-centrifugal-clutch-shoes-set-free-u-s-shipping/

 

Not sure about this one.  I'd call and ask them who made it.

http://www.ghdiscountatvsupply.com/1988-2000-honda-trx-300-fourtrax-one-way-clutch-bearing-free-u-s-shipping/

 

Something's awry on that 300 though.  No way you should be replacing stuff again this soon.

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Thanks for the input. I was thinking the exact same thing about the EBC Frictions. They are supposed to be really good. I installed them in the late fall of 2016. However I only run the quad in the summers & don’t put that many miles on each year to be honest. I have only ever run Honda GN40 or what ever it’s called oil. The advantage of the HL Outlaw clutch springs are giving me a higher stall for larger tires. Yes I run 26” tires, but the are the lightest on the market. Zillas. Front weigh 19.2lbs & rears 23.3lbs from what I have read on the net. No I’m not gonna lie.. my quad is rode hard (hammer down high rpms a lot, 7k +) but put away clean & very well maintained. 
 

What I’ll do when I get back home is make sure they are adjusted correctly for starters. 
 

How exactly does the centrifugal clutch work? I understand the rpm of the motor causes the weights to engage, which in turn makes things move? I know my weights were almost at the max spec for replacement last time I checked them. I would assume this could be a culprit??

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Yeah, your discs might be fine on the change clutch.  Might just need to replace the centrifugal clutch.

 

That's what was slipping on those 420's.  The change clutch on both of them was fine.

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Little different on the foreman but thought you might find these pictures interesting.

Oil is 100% not your problem. GN4 may not be the best but it is dead reliable.

I don't know what is causing your problem but I'm not inclined to think it is the tires. Uneven wear for some reason though...

Jeep is likely barking up the right tree on the weights. My understanding is that is your wear surface. Also the steel discs in the clutch are likely fine. Make sure to clean well and measure before ordering new. The potential performance increase (for me) is not worth changing spring tension. I would replace all springs with new OEM.

 

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20201014_124944.jpg

Edited by oh400ex

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25 minutes ago, oh400ex said:

 

I don't know what is causing your problem but I'm not inclined to think it is the tires.

 

 

 

I would venture to say the problem lies with Wheeler's thumb .....   he needs to learn thumb control ----LOL

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1 hour ago, oh400ex said:

This just screams not wet clutch approved to me right now...

 

with wheeler ?? nope, i wouldn't think so.... more like what fish said ... plus the bbk engine he's running ... i never saw a guy pay so much attention to detail on mods... besides fish. 

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1 minute ago, _Wilson_™ said:

with wheeler ?? nope, i wouldn't think so.... more like what fish said ... plus the bbk engine he's running ... i never saw a guy pay so much attention to detail on mods... besides fish. 

 

You're right he already clarified he was using GN4. I had also posted... 

 

41 minutes ago, oh400ex said:

Oil is 100% not your problem. GN4 may not be the best but it is dead reliable.

 

To elaborate...

I love GN4 and run it any customer machines. My personal oil of choice nowadays is T6. Only thing I can get easily that is cheap and wet clutch.

Maybe I do waste some oil by changing too often but I am happy with my dollars per mile right now and don't see a reason to change it.

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I buy whatever is on closeout at Walmart.

 

I have a LOT of oil right now.  Wife ! about it constantly (it's next to the washing machine in the basement, LOL)

 

T6 (got 2.5 gal jugs for $30)

Mobil 4T ($2/quart)

Valvoline ATV oil ($1/quart)

Delo 400XSP full syn ($11/gal) 

 

 

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heavy thumb, heavy tires maybe ?, but !, what about the centrifugal clutch drum ??, how does the inside lip look ?. the springs in it wont matter, but the weights will. you asked how the change clutch works ? simple design. centrifugal clutch spins at high rpms ( heavy thumb ! ), the faster this clutch spins ( crank ), the further the weights move outward, then they make contact with the inside of the drum. when this takes place, the drum spins faster, on back of drum, gear, gear is attached to change clutch gear, which now turns the change clutch, disk adjusted right ?, they spin the tranny shaft, which then ends up at the wheels.

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@shadetree thanks for the explanation. Confirmed my thoughts. So I did some more research & considering my quad is 25 years old, & 4 years ago it got a nice restoration/make over including the new EBC DR6 Clutch, I would assume (based off my findings last spring as well) that my issue lies within the clutch weights & drum as they most likely have never been changed & been pushed hard over last 4 years. The only picture I have of them from last spring was on my Thread Splitting Cases... which doesn’t show a whole lot..

 

im going to try & get thru hunting season, then tear into it. I will order the new weight set from the site that was posted by Jeep. Great price compared to up here. 

795C8DC8-25A2-4F15-8042-C9EE6CFCFD99.png

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My local shop got me the weights, one way bearing, & gasket for $250 tax in. IF I’m lucky I’ll have them by Friday. 

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15 minutes ago, jeepwm69 said:

I just hope your drum isn't grooved bad. 

 

The OEM clutch drum is discontinued.


From my memory this spring it wasn’t. If I have to hit it with a round sanding flapper wheel I will. I don’t want to take the cover off until I have the weights as I may need it for hunting.. depends on when they arrive..

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Wow. This was fast. Showed up today. Went & picked up some more GN4 oil & filter as well. I know what I’m doing tomorrow now! Lol. 

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11 minutes ago, Fishfiles said:

How's about a pic of inside of your drum !! 

 Tomorrow when I take it apart I will. 

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