[Helmut]

You will have to leave the aluminum brake backing plate, because it has an axle bearing and seal in it. You can remove the brake shoes and the brake drum, but I would leave the cover because it has a seal in it and it will help keep mud and water from getting to the seal in the aluminum backing plate.

ADDED: You may even have to leave the brake drum. I can't remember if a seal fits over the end of the hub on it or not. If the brake drum don't help seal anything, then you can remove it too.

 

[Helmut]

the bearing in the brake was locked up. broke it free, put grease on it now??? what kind?? let me guess vasoline wont work, haha.

Any kind of bearing grease will work, but the marine would probably be better.

 

[Helmut]

I would say you will have to, at least, put the aluminum brake backing plate back on, because it holds the axle bearings. You might also have to put the brake cover back on, so the axle nuts will have something to tighten up against.

If you're going to have to do a lot of fab work, then you would be better off getting a Fourtrax 350 rear end and putting it under it. They hold up a lot better than the 300 rear end, because they have the axle tubes that go the full length of the axle.

 

[Helmut]

Didn't that backing plate have a seal in it? It should have the axle bearing and then it should have a seal on the outside of the axle bearing.

It should have an 0-ring where the backing plate bolts to the axle tube, so I don't really see why cutting the backing plate wouldn't work, but your axle nuts wouldn't have anything to tighten up against on the brake side. I don't know if the axle would try to pull out the left side or not, but I don't think it can. I guess you would just have to try that and see if it would work.

 

[Helmut]

there is an O ring where it connects to the axle tube, i was just thinking it would seep past the bearing on the other side.

ill have a pic up in a min, im a little confussed as to what your saying.

There should be a seal on the outside of that bearing that you're talking about.

 

[Helmut]

I remember now. There's a seal in front of that bearing, but the brake drum slides back into the seal to seal it off. Without the brake drum, it won't seal.

 

[Helmut]

okay i think i got it now.

the backing place holds the axle in place, the drum will slide up next to that and seal.

i could cut most of the back plate off, all the outside edges. pretty much cut it along the line of the studs so it will still bolt up like stock, and hold the axle in place. then cut out the outer portion of the brake drum, use the inner portion and slide it on to create the seal, then use the nuts to tighten it all down. then the axle is held into place, its all sealed, and i dont have this big chunk on the axle.

am i off base or am i on the right path???

That will work if you can get the axle nuts to tighten up against the piece that you cut off the drum. The piece of the drum will have to reach out to the threads, but I think it will. If it don't, you may have to cut a short piece of pipe that will fit over the axle, so the axle nuts will tighten up against it and hold pressure on the piece of drum so it will all tighten down tight. That should work.

 

[Helmut]

it reaches out to the axle nuts, only thing i want to remove off of the drum is the outer part of the circle, pretty much i just want the center of the circle and do away with the rest of the drum.

someone said its a 2 peice design and the center should just pop out, if thats the case that would be great but i dont think it is.

also what is your thoughts on packing the diff and axle tube with grease??

If it reaches out to the axle nuts, then it should work fine.

As far as packing the diff with grease, I've never tried that. I've read about it on other forums and they say it's ok if you are a mudder and don't usually ride fast. I've read that if you ride fast, not to do it. So, I really don't know. I don't really see any need to put grease in the axle tube, though, because the diff has a seal anyway.

 

[Helmut]

Here is a link to all the Honda gear ratios.

Gear ratios for every 4x4 Honda ATV ever built

Yeah, the 350 Rancher has a solid tube axle. I just went out to my garage and measured the axle on a 350 Rancher and it was 42 1/2 inches from the outside edge of one tire to the outside edge of the other tire. It has 10 inch wide tires on it.

 

[Helmut]

man measure from hub to hub... haha. i gotta do math, also what is the back spacing on the wheels, same back spacing as the 300.

i just read somewhere that it dont really swap over to the 300, something about having to have a 2in spacer on one side. idk.

how hard is it to swap differentials out???




and i was just playin, thanks for the measurement.

I'm doubting it would work too good on the 300, because the differential is more toward the center of the axle than the 300 is. The 350 Rancher has the longitudinally mounted engine, so it's a little different. I would say if it would work, the guys on the High Lifter forums would be using them, but I think they're just using the rear ends from Foreman 350s and Big Red 3-wheelers.

 

[Helmut]

you think a little propane torch would cut thru the drum and brake backing??

No, propane will only get hot enough to heat something. You'll have to have acetylene torches.

 

[Helmut]

aight, thanks.

got some grease, do i pretty much rub it on the bearing and spin it to try and get it down into it???

Your bearings won't be taper bearings, but this will still work if you don't have a bearing packer. You'll have to pull the seals out of the sides of the bearings.

YouTube - Correct way to pack a wheel bearing

 

[Helmut]

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.



what the hell would i do with out you??







i guess figure things out the hard way

Yeah, you would figure it out or someone else would tell you. LOL.

 

[Helmut]

haha there you go.

man, that was tedious work. with the bearing still in the brake backing plate (i dont guess it comes out???) and with a little screw driver i finally got the seal off and got a good bit of grease it in then it was a booger getting the seal back on. i feel better now tho knowing it wont lock up on me.

Yeah, the bearing comes out of the backing plate. It's pressed in, you have to knock it out with something. If you got some grease in it, it should be OK for a while, though.

 

[Helmut]

i think im just gonna leave the brakes alone, seal it all back up, get my other hub welded (was getting real loose) and just ride it till i can get a foreman 350 rear.

are the brakes better on those??

They have the drum brakes too, so they're not really much better. Maybe a little better.

 

[Helmut]

It's been so long since I owned a 350 that I can't really remember, but seems like they might have lasted a little longer. It depends a lot on where you ride. If you just trail ride, they will last a while, but if you're a mudder, neither one will last long.

 

[Helmut]

damn, i need to work on fixing my brakes now (the fronts, it leaks fluid some where, just gotta find out where) made a noticeable difference greasing the bearings. it rolls so much better now.

does the front have bearings??

Yeah, the front hubs or brake drums have wheel bearings.

 

[Helmut]

aight, next on the list. man what a difference it makes when its more free rolling.

Yep, without grease, friction comes into play. When it comes to anything mechanical, friction/heat = failure.

 

[Helmut]

if you plan on switching your old 300 rear end out..for a early model 350..get ready for some real fab work..i've studied it..and it won't be easy....good luck if you decide to do it.

It don't look like it would be that hard if you use the 300 swingarm and use the 350 diff and axle tubes. I've been reading about it on the High Lifter forum.

350 foreman rear in a trx300fw

 

[Helmut]

if you plan on switching your old 300 rear end out..for a early model 350..get ready for some real fab work..i've studied it..and it won't be easy....good luck if you decide to do it.

It don't look like it would be that hard if you use the 300 swingarm and use the 350 diff and axle tubes. I've been reading about it on the High Lifter forum.

350 foreman rear in a trx300fw

the 300 swing arm is different is width..but.you can measure one if ya got it..when i checked it..they were different..was on mine anyway.

Yeah, the 300 swingarm is narrower than the 350 swingarm. You have to make an extension on the axle tube on the right side where it bolts to the swing arm. See the extension in the picture below.