[Geep]

Hello all:
I've been all over the ATV forums & haven't seen this yet. I have a 2012 TRX500FE ES with 2000 miles on it. Recently it's been making an annoying buzz or gear slip noise near the drive motor when electric shifting into 1st & 2nd, occasionally into reverse. I've also had other intermittent problems that are probably related: 1) getting the "---" symbol when shifting; 2) getting stuck in gear and not being able to shift at all; 3) getting the 22 error code. So far I've replaced the angle sensor, tested the battery (reads 12.98v when cold), readjusted the clutch, checked the gear/differential oils, & removed & cleaned the drive motor. I've done a visual check of much wiring & don't see anything suspicious there. My thought was to pull the gearbox next but it seems there are so many potentials at this point, I thought I'd put the question out there before digging any further. I'm new to mechanical repairs & my SS income now requires induction by fire :smile

 

[retro]

It sounds like the shift motor or a reduction gear might have stripped out but it could be a support bearing too. You'll have to disassemble everything to find it and for cleaning up & relubing everything. Do you have a copy of the service manual yet?

 

[Geep]

I do have the manual. I took the motor apart already & it's good. The reduction gearbox is where I'll head next. Support bearing?
Thanks much for your reply.

 

[retro]

Yeah, the reduction gears are supported by bearings. Look for one that is cocked or otherwise not installed right. Push some synthetic grease into each one of them and coat the gears teeth too. Use syn grease in the bearings in the shift motor too. Seal the shift motor up to keep it watertight when you put it back together. Dielectric grease each connector plug as well. Keep us posted if you can...

 

[LedFTed]

i used permatex, orange copper gasket maker to seal my shifting motor, as water had got in there before, ruined the china shifting motor i got on e-pray. the motor was OK but the rust, ruined one of the bearings. i have 2000es450.
i know Shadetree is right not to use gasket maker, about engines, whether, it is close to the oil, or water part circulation, but gasket maker can be used it some applications. i think this may be one. do clean the gears off, before you put the lithium grease on them. i used marine grade. i think it was; NLGI GRADE #2. PENNZOIL 100%SYNTHETIC. might not be the right one, do some research..

 

[Geep]

Took the gearbox cover off. One tooth is broken on the reduction gear. Not sure if that's the cause of all the problems, but it's a good start. Part is ordered & I'll have it in a week. I have the copper Permatex from a previous project. I'll use that & will also check the bearings. Haven't seen any sign of any pieces of the broken tooth yet. I want to get the gearbox cleaned out well. Can I use carb cleaner on clean rags for this? I have high-temp N2 syn grease & plan to use that to regrease. I've read on several posts that antioxidants are preferred to dielectric grease on electrical connections. Any thoughts on this? Thanks for all the help with this.

 

[retro]

Yeah, clean it up with whatever ya got handy. Push NLGI #2 syn grease into every bearing, coat every gear with the same grease and dielectric grease the connectors. You can spray the contacts with anti-oxidant if you wish, but use dielectric grease for waterproofing the plugs. None of the plugs are waterproofed from the factory, you gotta do all of them yourself to keep the bike alive...

Lube the bearings in the shift motor with syn and seal that up. And seal up the angle sensor well too.

 

[LedFTed]

Took the gearbox cover off. One tooth is broken on the reduction gear. Not sure if that's the cause of all the problems, but it's a good start. Part is ordered & I'll have it in a week. I have the copper Permatex from a previous project. I'll use that & will also check the bearings. Haven't seen any sign of any pieces of the broken tooth yet. I want to get the gearbox cleaned out well. Can I use carb cleaner on clean rags for this? I have high-temp N2 syn grease & plan to use that to regrease. I've read on several posts that antioxidants are preferred to dielectric grease on electrical connections. Any thoughts on this? Thanks for all the help with this.

using orange copper permatex is something i did an see no harm with it. rather back myself up, then have water get in. i used carb cleaner on mine, if so it matters.
half if the bearings were got on one bearing, when i think the water got in. i cant say for sure if it was a good bearing to began with. is possible no water got in. i just seen the rust. was a e-pray china motor. i'm not knocking stuff from china. cause, sometimes, you do get a good deal.....

 

[Geep]

Lots of good information. Many thanks. Will report back after I get all cleaned, greased & the new gear in.

 

[Geep]

Thanks to your posts, I noticed the blind bearing behind the gear was slightly tilted. Got it out using the neat paper towel/grease trick & found the back cover was bent. There was some silver dust in the bottom of the gear case, but I never found the 1 1/2 teeth that were missing from the gear. I'm wondering if some of it might have gotten in behind that bearing. Got my parts & put it all back together yesterday. The noise is gone & I've never heard the 4-wheeler shift so smooth & quiet! FYI: I read in a post (forgot where) that someone reported to Honda how the factory grease dried up & that they changed it. Mine was almost non-existent and what was in there was dry and hardened. Great information here. Thanks again for getting me back in business. My 4-wheeler is a workhorse. Glad to have it back.

 

[retro]

Thanks for following up Geep and congrats on the great (thorough) work ya did to fix it!!!

Most folks are pretty slow (actually many are lazy, expecting instant gratification, but won't supply the required effort) to accept that Honda used an improper lubricant in ALL ES systems on all models. Honda never corrected that error, so obviously they were making wheelbarrow loads of money on unnecessary ES parts purchases and had no intentions of providing proper lubrication. Finding cocked bearings in the housings are very common too, so shoddy assembly at the factory has brought them many more loads of cash as well.

You did a great job on your ES prep. And you'll never have to touch it again once you've repacked it with synthetic grease, straightened up the bearings and sealed everything watertight.

Spread the knowledge... and celebrate!

 

[LedFTed]

Thanks to your posts, I noticed the blind bearing behind the gear was slightly tilted. Got it out using the neat paper towel/grease trick & found the back cover was bent. There was some silver dust in the bottom of the gear case, but I never found the 1 1/2 teeth that were missing from the gear. I'm wondering if some of it might have gotten in behind that bearing. Got my parts & put it all back together yesterday. The noise is gone & I've never heard the 4-wheeler shift so smooth & quiet! FYI: I read in a post (forgot where) that someone reported to Honda how the factory grease dried up & that they changed it. Mine was almost non-existent and what was in there was dry and hardened. Great information here. Thanks again for getting me back in business. My 4-wheeler is a workhorse. Glad to have it back.

glad the paper towel/grease trick worked. in the old days, i used white bread, not the crust part, an squeezed it until it was like a dough ball, an used it to knock out pilot bearings in clutch flywheels. whatever works is best.