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Posted by Troll
- August 04, 2011, 18:53:18 PMOk, I got the u-joint today. My local Kaw dealer ordered it, and it only cost me $22 with the tax...Looks like the correct joint, so the next task is going to be getting the prop shaft out. I was, before retiring, an ASE master auto tech, who worked flat rate. The first rule of flat rate is know what you are going to do without having to look up anything...the second rule is never disassemble more than you absolutely need to. I am going to remove the swing arm with the final drive and wheel still installed, dropping only the brake caliper off and leaving the prop shaft on the trans. I will take pictures....After the swing arm is out, I will remove the shaft... I'm a little leery of this spring loaded lock pin, so I want lots of room to work. Just a note...I see that a lot of people think that the swing arm bearings need to be lubed every 7500 miles, but my factory manual says 24,000...The bike has almost 60,000 on it now, so I'm doing the bearings, whether they need greasing or not, but I have been investigating putting a grease fitting on the pivot shaft, like I did on the steering neck. The new u-joint has a needle grease zerk fitting on one cap, so I should be able to grease this joint periodically. I'm doing the work Monday morning...I am teaching an ERC class over the weekend, and I will be using the bike for demos. I suppose I could use my cafe' w650, but the class is made up of all H-D riders, so I don't want to hear any bitching about me using a "little" bike...Remind me to tell you about the new class I am certified to teach, now, the A.R.C.-ST... lots of fun and quite challenging.
Posted by chief
- August 01, 2011, 16:55:37 PMHope it works out... for you and for us!
Posted by Troll
- August 01, 2011, 16:50:12 PMI have a sneaky idea, that I'll keep to myself for the moment, but I will take pictures, etc. as I go along. If it works, it could be a real time saver......or not
Posted by chief
- August 01, 2011, 16:46:52 PMYeah, I try to get as much PM done as possible when I am pulling things apart. Let us know how it goes.
Posted by Troll
- August 01, 2011, 14:20:01 PMOk, then... using the part number from Gadget's site, I ordered the tucker-rocky joint...$22 plus some change. I think I'm going to pull the swing arm anyway. I was checking in my service manual, and it calls for swing arm bearing lube every 24,000 miles, and it's been about that long since I bought the bike, and had the bearings replaced. 2 years this month!...8-16-09...wouldn't run, no 2nd gear, and covered with "barn stuff".
Posted by Troll
- July 30, 2011, 13:35:33 PMI went down to my local friendly Kawasaki dealer this morning, but since it's Saturday, nobody but sales people there. They told me to try on Tuesday, when the techs are back to work...Maybe, then, pretty soon, I'll have the answer to the riddle of the prop shaft...maybe not...When I was in the car business, every place I worked was open 6 days a week, what is it about motorcycle dealers and being closed on Mondays?
Posted by Troll
- July 29, 2011, 16:33:36 PMYeah I read that a while ago, but I want to know if the shaft will come out without removing the swing arm. The service manual seems to say that, but I still have my doubts....
Posted by chief
- July 29, 2011, 15:20:57 PMPosted by Troll
- July 28, 2011, 16:42:59 PMI looked in my service manual, and it leads me to believe that I can remove the prop shaft without removing the swing arm....Hmmm. I want to inspect the front joint, and lube all the splines at both ends, since I know have almost 60,000 on the bike. Anybody here had the prop shaft out? I have read that the u-joint is a front axle joint for an atv, and is pretty cheap. I'm a big fan of prevention, so this looks like a good thing to be inspecting, since there is nothing else to do except ride it....