[Turbo Twister]

Hi everyone, I recently purchased a Honda TRX300 FW Fourtrax quad in need of some repair. However, after some stripping back of the plastics and wheels, I found it needs a lot of work to get it right, so I have decided to do a full overhaul on the quad. I will post progressive photos from the beginning and will be asking for help along the way! Feel free to comment and give advice when needed as I don't admit to knowing it all!:big-grin My dad ( Bluezulu49) will also be in on the project and we hope to have the bike running again by the end of July/early August.

So far, we have done the following:

We have removed:

All racks front and back and the plastic mudguards.
The fuel tank (has a bad dent on the left side, any suggestions as to how to pull it out would be appreciated).
The whole front end of the bike, all brake components, hubs, knuckles, bearings, swing arms and a lot of the electronics.
The steering rack.
The cooling fan (motor is seized but we managed to buy a brand new old stock fan).
The exhaust pipe.

Along with my father, construction wise, we have so far:

Cleaned the 4x swing arms and repainted 3 of them.
Cleaned the stainless steel shrouds that sit at the back between the brake shoes and the knuckles on the front end.
Cut off the rotten steel from the bash bar and replaced with new steel, like for like. (I'm a carpenter by trade but have picked up the knack for welding over the years!).


I have spent a considerable amount of money on new parts which include the following:

New exhaust pipe and gasket.
New brake shoes and springs, front and back.
New knuckles x2.
Second hand brake drums.
Bearings for the front hubs.
New steering rack components.
New rear axle.
New brake fluid pipes x2 (they bolt onto the back of the brake guard on the front end).
New cooling fan motor.
New brake cylinders.

I may have missed a few things but there are more items still to be ordered, i just need to see what else needs replacing/ repairing first.

The next job is to remove the front driveshaft and engine to inspect the bottom side of the chassis.
Any pointers and tips are welcome, I will post up some pics shortly to show you what we have found so far.

Hope you enjoy the thread!

 

[fishfiles]

Nice project Turbo .... in the 4th pic above , it looks like something is bent , seems the rack mount is pointing down , but that tube doesn't look bent

 

[Goober]

Very cool project.
How is the fan controlled on the 98-00 models, does it use a separate fan control unit? Because I don’t see where it’s mounted—older models it’s mounted to the rider’s left of the CDI.

You can try to pop out the dent using any bodywork method except heating because of the petrol, right?

Is the tank rusty? Because you can use vinegar and a pound of BBs to remove the rust. Just remove the petcock and tank cap because the vinegar will destroy the rubber. Then neutralize the vinegar with a high pH solution immediately after rust removal and dry with a hair dryer.

Then you should smell no petrol—you can work on the dent more—or live with it. Buy a NOS tank and sell this one on. This type of treatment will make easy to ship—no fuel smell. Just remind the buyer to rinse out the pH chemical with fuel first because the calcium will clog the filter and these models don’t have one BTW.

 

[Turbo Twister]

Fishfiles, I think it's the angle of the photo. That bar is loose on the frame but not bent. The front by bash bar does have a slight twist though, which makes me think the bike may have been driven into something solid in the past and twisted it.

 

[_Wilson_]

does it use a separate fan control unit? Because I don’t see where it’s mounted—older models it’s mounted to the rider’s left of the CDI.

Good eye goober! I didnt even see that oem cooling fan...till you mentioned this^^^

I believe shade mentioned to me one time later year model 300,s .... The fan and cdi were built as a single unit (cdi) but.... I just checked and the only year model showing one single box , is the 2000 model, the odd thing is my 1999 300 ALSO has one control box (CDI) hm....that's strange ??

Edit: i just went and looked @ my 97 , it's the same (single unit) very odd!

https://www.hondapartsnation.com/oemparts/a/hon/506bbd84f870023420a22d8a/wire-harness

 

[fishfiles]

Fishfiles, I think it's the angle of the photo. That bar is loose on the frame but not bent. The front by bash bar does have a slight twist though, which makes me think the bike may have been driven into something solid in the past and twisted it.

now that you say that , the tube you might be calling the bash bar : is that the frame tube on the left in the pic with 1/2 the decal still on it ? from the angle of the pic maybe , but that tube looks bent to the side ----- did you ever get to ride the bike , I wonder how the steering was if it has a warp in it

 

[Bluezulu49]

Our 1998 TRX300FWW project is well under way and we have now received some of the parts we ordered.


This morning we got four new brake cylinders. I notice that the new ones differ from the old in that the new have breather pipes in both cylinders whereas the old only have them in one cylinder on each side. I suspect we will deal with this by drilling an access hole in each of the brake backing plates.
We went for new cylinders as they were about the same price as refurb kits and we could not unseize the originals.

Also the hole for the bleed nipple on the new cylinders is M10 x 1.25 while it is much smaller on the old one. We have solved ( we hope ) this problem by buying new M10 X 1.25 bleed nipples on ebay.

Picture of some of the repainted upper and lower arms and steering arm, new exhaust and new fan motor below. Also picture of old and new brake cylinders showing differences.

 

[_Wilson_]

Edit: i just went and looked @ my 97 , it's the same (single unit) very odd!

Correction.... The 97 does have both boxes, one wasn't shoved in the rubber holder.

So.... I take it the 1999, and 2000 are integrated ??

 

[Bluezulu49]

We spotted Fishfiles! I took off the front rack, turned it upside down and measured the distance from the floor to the top mount bracket on each side. There is a difference of 6 mm between one side and the other. See pictures attached.

 

[Jeepwm69]

Looks like a great project. Keep the pics coming!

As for the fan CDI, the 350 Ranchers in the US use the same CDI as the 98-00 300's, and have two wires for the fan control.

 

[fishfiles]

I quit running drum brakes a long time ago , but have taken many of 300 front brakes apart , seems I remember something like the 1st gen 300s 88-91 used different cylinders than the 2nd and 3rd gens ( which were all the same ) ---what year is yours are you sure it is a 98 or maybe you bought 88-91 parts

 

[Bluezulu49]

Hi Guys.
We have a leak in the front gearbox seal, see attached picture. We also need to change the cv joint rubbers and so need to take out the front drive shafts. Manual says just pull them out but I cannot get them to move. Anyone got any ideas other than pull harder?

 

[Jeepwm69]

Pull harder.

Take a hammer, tie a rope to the handle next to the head, tie other end to end of CV shaft, swing hammer.

Take two pry bars and gently pry opposite one another.

 

[Bluezulu49]

I quit running drum brakes a long time ago , but have taken many of 300 front brakes apart , seems I remember something like the 1st gen 300s 88-91 used different cylinders than the 2nd and 3rd gens ( which were all the same ) ---what year is yours are you sure it is a 98 or maybe you bought 88-91 parts

Hi Fishfiles,
Vin number indicates a 1998 FWW. The parts I bought were from partzilla. I see that there are two different types of brake cylinder and it looks like I bought the wrong type. With the boring of one hole in each of the backplates they will fit and I have already sourced larger bleed nipples.
The perils of ordering under pressure. It would not be economically viable to try to return the cylinders and would cause more delay than we want.

I must say we were happy to get fairly quick delivery from USA. Items were ordered on 21st June and arrived this morning.

 

[fishfiles]

We spotted Fishfiles! I took off the front rack, turned it upside down and measured the distance from the floor to the top mount bracket on each side. There is a difference of 6 mm between one side and the other. See pictures attached.

I got OCD bad , if something is just a little out of line I can usually spot it and it bothers me ---
Could you take another pic , from the same spot as in your #4 pic of the first post , but move over to the left a bit so you are centered in the middle of the frame ---------- did you ever get to drive this one , I seen a lot of times if there is a bend in the frame they are harder to steer one way or the other or they pull to one side , I wouldn't want to do a refurb and then found out I had problems ---- did that bike live close to the coast , it is pretty rusty

 

[fishfiles]

[
Hi Fishfiles,
Vin number indicates a 1998 FWW. The parts I bought were from partzilla. I see that there are two different types of brake cylinder and it looks like I bought the wrong type. With the boring of one hole in each of the backplates they will fit and I have already sourced larger bleed nipples.
The perils of ordering under pressure. It would not be economically viable to try to return the cylinders and would cause more delay than we want.

I must say we were happy to get fairly quick delivery from USA. Items were ordered on 21st June and arrived this morning.

I buy most of my parts from Partzilla also , I like the interchange they have , sometimes I get the part numbers from Partzilla and shop them on e-bay and find new OEM parts cheaper ---- I don't know if you knew it , but there is a disc brake conversion kit for the 300s front brakes , it cost about $225 US , by the time you buy the cylinders , shoes , springs , seals and hope the drums are not work out , it is a good deal , pads are $25 a set after that and 10 minutes a side changing them

 

[Bluezulu49]

Pull harder.

Take a hammer, tie a rope to the handle next to the head, tie other end to end of CV shaft, swing hammer.

Take two pry bars and gently pry opposite one another.

Many thanks Jeepwm69,
One heavy hammer, a long piece of baler twine folded in four, and one swing on the left, two swings on the right and the drive shafts are out.

 

[Turbo Twister]

Fishfiles, sorry I thought you were on about the bash bar that I removed. The decal on that bit of steel you mentioned is part of the chassis/frame of the bike. I think my dad answered your first question.

As for riding the bike, I took it out the day after buying it and the steering was awful! Lots of wobble due to 4 knackered end ball joints, but the main bushing on the steering shaft itself is fine.

I also found that on the rear axle, all the bearings are worn. The rear right hub where the axle meets with splines, well the splines are bald so I was not getting 4wd at all, just the front wheels and rear left doing the work!

 

[fishfiles]

Pull harder.

Take a hammer, tie a rope to the handle next to the head, tie other end to end of CV shaft, swing hammer.

Take two pry bars and gently pry opposite one another.

Many thanks Jeepwm69,
One heavy hammer, a long piece of baler twine folded in four, and one swing on the left, two swings on the right and the drive shafts are out.

Blue' , I know you'll are on the other side of the pond , we got some different terminology over here , you mentioned drive shafts and had a pic above of the front drive shaft , Jeep picked it up as being the cv-shafts , that is what we call them , the drive shaft is the part between the transfer case and the front differential

Sixity is a decent brand of cv-shafts for a decent price , they come in two quailites , good and better , they give a year warranty on them , as far as rebooting and greasing them , I find it is much easier and better in the long run to replace them

 

[fishfiles]

Fishfiles, sorry I thought you were on about the bash bar that I removed. The decal on that bit of steel you mentioned is part of the chassis/frame of the bike. I think my dad answered your first question.

As for riding the bike, I took it out the day after buying it and the steering was awful! Lots of wobble due to 4 knackered end ball joints, but the main bushing on the steering shaft itself is fine.

I also found that on the rear axle, all the bearings are worn. The rear right hub where the axle meets with splines, well the splines are bald so I was not getting 4wd at all, just the front wheels and rear left doing the work!

yes , the frame tube looks like it might be bowed out in that pic , could just be the angle of the pic like you mentioned

check the spline in the hub and on the axle of that rear axle you mentioned that one side is not pulling , very common problem