Starter clutch

[justa01`blaster]

Yes I know this is a forum for blasters but I think my starter clutch has gone out on my 400ex and I was wondering if anyone else has had this problem with a raptor or something else electric start. The starter spins and so does the middle gear and the flywheel but the crank shaft wont spin, sounds like my clutch right? here is a video of what it sounds like.

YouTube - 0129111519

 

[Braaaptor]

It could be the starter clutch (they CAN fail), but before condemning the clutch itself, check your starter motor's output shaft for play. The shaft's main bearing plate (inside the starter motor) can wear out, causing the shaft to bounce around when the motor starts to spin.

When this happens, the starter motor's shaft 'torques out' of alignment with the gear, and you get this nasty crunching. If it continues, you run the risk of breaking teeth off the drive gear inside the engine. To check for this problem, take the starter motor off the quad and try to wiggle or 'stir' the shaft around. If it moves side-to-side (any), there's your problem. A small amount of in-and-out play is OK. Replace or repair said damaged starter motor.

I'm dealing with this headache on my '87 Kawasaki motorcycle, although I got to it too late and now have a broken drive gear to deal with. Ugh.

 

[justa01`blaster]

It`s a brand new starter and there is no play. there is a little cover that you can see in the video that I took off and used the closed end of a wrench to hold it in place and I watched everything spin except for the crank, like I said the flywheel just free-spun

 

[Braaaptor]

Oh, Ok. Gotcha. If the flywheel itself is spinning freely on the crankshaft, you've either got a sheared key or broken ring gear. Otherwise, your clutch is, indeed, bad. Time to pull the cover and investigate a little further. You should be able to get a good, used starter clutch off ebay for a fair price, should you need one.

 

[justa01`blaster]

Thats where I`m stuck at now is to find a bolt big enough to pull the magneto off the crank-shaft to get to the flywheel

 

[Braaaptor]

Probably need one of these:

*MOTION PRO* FLYWHEEL PULLER HONDA TRX400EX TRX 400EX - eBay (item 170595772156 end time Feb-25-11 23:12:08 PST)

 

[jrn2786]

its probably the one way clutch (starter clutch) the best place ive found to get parts is Parts Lookup with Accessory Lookup, ATVs, Motorcycles and More - ServiceHonda.com sometimes you can get away with just the one way clutch buts its recommended you buy the outer clutch also. all parts are found under starter gear

Its fairly easy to do also you need one of these Flywheel Puller Honda VT700C 84-87 VT750C XL350R 20x1.5 - eBay (item 330533083666 end time Feb-26-11 20:55:39 PST)
Common issue with the 400EX

 

[justa01`blaster]

I pulled the clutch off and all the bearings were turned sideways and shaped like ovela and tears instead of round. The clutch was shattered. Well hears my problem lol.