[1000reasons2hide]

two years ago blew the drive bearing out on the chaincase side doing about 110 almost crapped my pants ive replaced every year since, the two bearings are alot cheaper than a track, chaincase, chain, and speedo cable............

 

[Frosty]

Hi Folks:
We have been having a little discussion about whether or not a recent driveshaft bearing failure is a "Cat" weakness. At first I didnt think so but another writer chimed in with the comment that he has seen it on many Cats and thinks it maybe to small of a bearing for the application. Sooooo, I thought another poll might help.
Thanks for your participation!
Woodsy SWRules[/b]

I think part of the problem is lack of maintenance. How many guys never grease the bearing at the speedo drive nipple?

Another possible cause- Some replacement bearings don't have holes on the inner seal, so even if you do grease it, it has a hard time getting into the bearings.
I always pop off the inner seal to expose the bearing.

Another thing I do when replaceing the bearing is to clean the retainer plates, the speedo gear housing and both sides of the tunnel where the bearing plates bolt on.
Then I use silicone on the retainer plates and the speedo housing.
I think water gets into the bearing thru and around the plates and into the bearing.

 

[ZR Sled Head]

I think part of the problem is lack of maintenance. How many guys never grease the bearing at the speedo drive nipple?

Exactly that.................grease it several times a season (better yet once a week) and they all but never fail.

 

[96ZRT600 XXX]

96 ZRT 600 Speedo Side bearing failed at about 3500 miles.

Grease is key.

 

[blasikov]

1996 ZRT 600, speedometer side bearing failed at 6000 miles. Not bad =)

I've popped three speedo cable adapters this season, so I think it's that time.

 

[valley acres]

2002 and 2003

Changed speedo side bearing last year on both 2002 and 2003 Pantera 2-up's, 1-550 and 1-800cc I also have a 1988 500fc Cougar over 16k miles never changed bearings(knock on wood) now if you want to talk idler wheels new ones junk, old great, same scenario
...VA

 

[162Whiskey]

Had my speedo side bearing give up last spring on a long trip and changed it on the road. (99 550 L/C Panther) The original had just over 10,000 miles (of coastal: saltwater exposure) use, though I did grease it regularly. I replaced it with the only bearing I could find in town, a Polaris set screw type bearing, the same kind that was still good at 15,000 something miles on my old RMK. Bearings are all about maintenance. And periodic replacement is what maintenance of them sometimes means.

 

[citationls]

Oh shit is that this thing???? haha cause I just noticed mine looked like it was missing something so I posted a thread about it.
-Dave

 

[itchythumb]

4200 mi on a 2001 ZL600 when the speedo side went out

 

[bpatterson]

Drive shaft bearing failure Speedometer side

My 2005 Arctic Cat T660 touring sled has less then 3000 miles on it and is stored all season in a heated garage. When trailered it is covered and always well handled. I love the sled but a defective 1 inch bearing that seized up during a trip caused the "check engine" light to appear and the sled was brought in for immediately repairs. This bearing is costing me over $800 in replacement parts (drive shaft, sprocket drives, labour etc.) because of a bearing with very little milege on it ? It appears to me that I'm not the only victim with this problem and hope Arctic Cat can either put a recall out on this concern and possibly use a larger more dependable bearing. Anyone else having the same troubles ??

 

[162Whiskey]

Just like the others, 'Cat doesn't make their own bearings. They use bearings made by the same companies other builders use. Will they fail? Yes, they all will. It isn't miles that ruin them so much as it is a combination of use - little or lots- over time. Obviously, good care helps. However, sometimes good care means avoiding temperature extremes. These machines aren't dogs or cats, and leaving them out in the cold isn't a bad thing in every way. I think it favors the bearings. Cold and ice don't hurt bearings; water and rust do. Our machines get used frequently if not every day. Sometimes that means a lot of miles, but it never means they sit and soak in whatever we put them through.

I think any machine needs to be inspected periodically for wear and deterioration some of which is going to happen even to a never run machine still in a crate. A 2005 machine might easily have rusted bearings.

 

[franced]

Add me times 2 - MTN Cat 1000 '01

New to sledding and found this to be a frustrating problem. '02 mtn cat 1000, 1300miles. I bought the sled with an unmaintained clutchside bearing and blew it a few weeks ago (after not maintaining it myself ;-)). I didn't find this thread, but found a few others that talked about this being a typical problem. I myself never greased it or knew to look so i figured it was my lack of maintenance and maybe a little overexertion (had 2 people of the sled and pulling 1 boarder through powder) that caused the bearing to grenade itself. Had to replace the flanges, both bearings, speedo pin and thought i was done with this problem for a long while, until...

Fast forward to yesterday and 250miles later, same thing happened. Almost identical scenario. Two things come to mind, did i put the locking collar on wrong and it came loose, or did my drive shaft have a slight bend making it wear out the new bearing and tear through the flange again? I paid close attention and didn't seem to notice a vibration after i got everything back together, and the dealer warned me of the locking collar reassembly so I paid attention when i put it together? What else am i missing?

I greased it before and after each ride (for the 250 miles with new bearing) and we'd only put maybe 50 hard miles (1 on sled, pulling 2, full bore up the mtns) on it the day it went...bearing is gone, flange is melted, chain bound up, case wrecked, etc.

so frustrated. I also have an 01 pantera 1000 that this is probably going to be an issue on (it only has 500 miles) as it is from the same previous owner that didn't maintain the MC bearings.

Buying NTN bearings, any other advice on reassembly? A fellow mentioned zip-tieing the rear arm on the skid to help in reassembly? I didn't do this the first time through.

Hope i didn't scare you away with too long a post. any suggestion will go along way for repairing my mechanical ego after such a terrible attempt at a fix.

Ozzie
"it was a package deal i couldn't pass up"
'01 pantera 1000, 2" track, 550 miles
'02 mtn cat 1000, 2", 1300 miles
'96 polaris, indy lite 340, 1100miles, WITH A BUSTED SPEEDO!! too ;-
3 spot tilt triton

 

[Yourworstnightmare]

Would anyone mind posting pictures of these bearings on an 04' Cat F7? I recently purchased mine used from a guy that was moving, and I'm not sure what all's been done maintenance wise. I've ridden it about a dozen times, but want to give it a complete go through here soon. Probably going to take it out for one more ride this weekend.

I sure appreciate the information!!


-Matt (USAF). Mountain Home, Id.

 

[SB49]

1900 miles speedo bearing gone they should make them easier to replace if they are going to wear out that fast.

 

[citationls]

I don't know if I already responded to this thread but I don't think I did. Anyways, I just replaced the bearing on the left side (clutch side) on my 89 jag afs because it was completely gone. The only thing remaining was the inner collar that was stuck to the shaft and the outer braces that you can unscrew from the frame which had a half moon in them from where the shaft wore away on them.
Oh, I noticed it at 2,400 miles

 

[Fleshwound250]

Just wondering if you guys knew some place where I could get an '' How to '' replace the driveshaft bearing ? or even a shop manual for it ... I looked at clymers but they don't list the model I have (and I don't trust the ebay cds stuff).

I just bougth a still nice 2600 miles 2005 bearcat 570LT for 1000$ (can) on an native reserve but the guy said the driveshaft bearing is done . I am sure i'll get other surprises but I would like to give it a shot at repairing it myself making it a nice budget project. I have good mechanical knowledge on dirtbikes and cars .. I just never worked on a sled before .

 

[GerryLavigne]

Hi Folks:
We have been having a little discussion about whether or not a recent driveshaft bearing failure is a "Cat" weakness. At first I didnt think so but another writer chimed in with the comment that he has seen it on many Cats and thinks it maybe to small of a bearing for the application. Sooooo, I thought another poll might help.
Thanks for your participation!
Woodsy SWRules

I have two, 2005 T660 Turbo Touring sleds. Bought new and both have about 5,000 miles on each. I have replaced the speedo drive bearing three times since ownership. I don't believe its a milage problem but a age problem the sleds are kept in a enclosed trailer and I maintain them above what AC suggests. The weak link is the bearing! A design should be made up so this bearing can be greased on a regular basis. And the speedo can be moved elsewhere. I also have two Yamahas, a 2005 RX1 and a 2007 RS Venture with about the same mileage as the AC's and have never had a problem with either one of them. AC needs to redesign this Archilles heel as im loosing faith in them! Thanks folks!