differential

[miabobo]

hi my name is bob new to forum i have a 2014 f6b goldwing trike bought last fall and have a problem with the differential ( to much play in the drive line) all is good till i get to the diff. i will be taking the diff. cover off to check the internals and hoping it is in the spyder gears and if it is easy to repair. looking for a complete diff. but hard to find the suspension is independent motor trike irs 2.72 ratio adventure kit. love this forum lots of good info. hoping to solve problem with you great members. tks bob

[Gorilla]

welcome aboard bob good luck with the repair

[rhino 2]

Welcome to Trike-Talk.........Bob.............

[trikeman]

[radismukes]

To the Trike Talk Family! FROM SOUTH

Howdy Bob!

Richard is your man. He usually checks in. Good Luck!

[FuzzyWuzHe]

Welcome to the Gang from Western Colorado.

Good luck with the repairs, if you get a chance, I'd love it if you'd post a pic of your ride ... I think the F6B would make a great looking trike, kind of the free wheeler of the Honda world ... sportier.

[trike lady]

Hello and to Trike Talk, glad to have U with us.

[bikerbillone]

Welcome, what year MT? Seems on the earlier models the drive shaft had to be pulled for routine maintenance and lube, not sure about now, hang in, someone will be along to help. Hope your fix is an easy one

[miabobo]

thanks for the replies mt. kit is 2014 has the green drive shaft independent suspension, trike will be coming out from winter storage soon as spring is almost here then i will get into the problem. if there is some major defect in the diff. i will replace the whole unit. i am looking for a complete differential but hard to find. will post pictures later. tks

[consitter]

Hey Bob!

I already welcomed you in your new member thread, but what the hay...WELCOME AGAIN!

[Speedy]

thanks for the replies mt. kit is 2014 has the green drive shaft independent suspension, trike will be coming out from winter storage soon as spring is almost here then i will get into the problem. if there is some major defect in the diff. i will replace the whole unit. i am looking for a complete differential but hard to find. will post pictures later. tks

Does the rearend howl or make noise when under power and then stop when you let off the throttle? If this is the case sounds like you have too much backlash in the ring gear and pinion gear. Once you get the cover off check the backlash, if there isn't a pattern on the gears you might get someone who sets up rearends to reset the backlash for you. If pattern is already set and can't be reset due to wear you might find out what kind of rearend it is and check with Moser or Mark Williams, they build and sell ring gear end pinion sets.

[miabobo]

thanks for the info speedy before i put the trike away last fall (purchased trike in sept ) 2nd owner i put 400 km on it no noise on drive or coast so im hoping the excessive play is in the side gears or the spyder gears. thanks for the info. bob

[trike tech]

hi my name is bob new to forum i have a 2014 f6b goldwing trike bought last fall and have a problem with the differential ( to much play in the drive line) all is good till i get to the diff. i will be taking the diff. cover off to check the internals and hoping it is in the spyder gears and if it is easy to repair. looking for a complete diff. but hard to find the suspension is independent motor trike irs 2.72 ratio adventure kit. love this forum lots of good info. hoping to solve problem with you great members. tks bob

Howdy Bob,

First question that I ALWAYS ask when it comes to diffs; it may sound "silly" but there is a specific reason.

How EXACTLY are you determining that there is too much play in the driveline? What have you done to determine there is an issue to date & what specific steps were taken so far to check it?

Once again, sounds redundant I know, but specific information is crucial in helping to determine what may be going on.

[miabobo]

hi trike tech how i got down to the diff. is i went through the whole drive line all the checks were good, disconnected the drive shaft held the axles and there was lots of play moving the yoke, i would say close to 2 inches no noise driving the trike (no gear whine on the drive side or noise on the coast side ) just lots of play in the drive line, when driving the trike you have to keep the load on the drive line when shifting or you will get a good clunk. right now i dont think it is the crown and pinion and hoping it is in the side gears or the spyder gears and the axle splines. i am the 2nd owner and i think the previous owner rode it hard. i believe the diff. is a ford 7.5 crown and pinion from a mustang or ranger.

[trike tech]

hi trike tech how i got down to the diff. is i went through the whole drive line all the checks were good, disconnected the drive shaft held the axles and there was lots of play moving the yoke, i would say close to 2 inches no noise driving the trike (no gear whine on the drive side or noise on the coast side ) just lots of play in the drive line, when driving the trike you have to keep the load on the drive line when shifting or you will get a good clunk. right now i dont think it is the crown and pinion and hoping it is in the side gears or the spyder gears and the axle splines. i am the 2nd owner and i think the previous owner rode it hard. i believe the diff. is a ford 7.5 crown and pinion from a mustang or ranger.

2" overall stop to stop rotation is a bit more than it should be when checking it that way. Are you holding the axles by leaving tires on the ground, or actually having someone "hold" the axles to feel when they start to move? IF tires are on the ground to restrict the axles you aren't eliminating possible cv axles from the equation; granted non of this is a "full proof" method either (as you stated removing the diff cover is a great way to check the internals). I'd say a little over an inch overall rotation of the pinion flange is pretty normal (truthfully my Jeeps pinion flange moves more than that, but another vehicle/story).

Have you removed the driveshaft assembly from the bike entirely and inspected the u-joint assemblies in hand & the spline engagement on the shaft? Also, if you haven't take a close look at the cv axles as well. Those by far a much more common cause of a "clunk" when shifting (beyond the normal sounds).

I also wouldn't entirely remove the bike from the possibility of cause as well. A "clunk" when shifting gears on a GL1800 isn't exactly undocumented even on 2 wheelers although most commonly noted between 1st & 2nd gear. Lots of theories but nothing definitive that I know of, most common comments I've seen in regards - Clutch fluid bled flushed per Honda recommendations (if so, was it bled properly)? Some claim oil changes or changing to a different type of oil in the bike helps (can't say how accurate this is). Worn clutch/plates (but this should have other symptoms beyond just a clunk, IE - clutch rattle in neutral, etc). Below is a link to one of many threads on the 1800 forum that discusses this too.

Don't get me wrong, I'm NOT trying to say you don't have an issue on the trike side; there may well be. Rotational slack in the pinion is normal to an extent as I mentioned above. I get calls about this (especially during busy season) & end up explaining what is actually being done when you rotate the pinion as most have the common misconception that they are checking the ring/pinion backlash by doing this. Typically an "issue" inside the diff results in a constant noise of sorts and not a "clunk", even a broken spider gear shim is more of a constant sound & typically doesn't cause clunking when shifting gears. Loading/unloading the entire driveline on shifts & resulting in a noticeable clunk can be a very long list of items (some on the kit, some on the bike). Did the previous owner mention if this clunking sound has been present from day 1 of them getting the trike, or if it's a more recent development that's recently starting coming on? If a recent development at what mileage & conditions did they notice it and what actions were taken by them in order to try to diagnose? That may help eliminate a few items from the checklist & reduce your headache in "the hunt" for the cause & in turn solution.

As far as the actual differential, it's a 7.5" Ford based differential with a 2.73 Ford ring & pinion gear set (spider gears too). The housing is manufactured for Motor Trike because of the IRS application, but the internals are off the shelf automotive parts. Another note that is not to be overlooked - on ALL MT shaft drive irs kits, gear oil is a standard 80-90W base oil with no additives & fluid capacity is 1.25 quarts (well below fill plug level).

[miabobo]

hi trike tech thanks for the reply as for your scenario removed the drive shaft lubed the slip yoke splines good very little movement, checked axle joints four new boots very little movement, wheels are off held axle close to diff. housing turned yoke back and forth lots of play till i felt the axle start to move, out put shaft from the engine very little play, clutch has no chatter engages ok, so i basically isolated it to the diff. i drove another motor trike same set up and did not have the back lash that mine has. i will pull the diff. cover and see what the out come is and report back. spring is in the air and will be getting at it pretty soon. again thanks for the info. bob

[rodekyll]

If you come to needing that gearset I've got it. I removed it from my GW MT Adventure with less than 10k on the clock. I was changing ratios -- nothing wrong with the stuff that came out. I was just fixing to list it on eBay, but if you need it I'll let you have it for $300+shipping. Let me know.

[trike tech]

hi trike tech thanks for the reply as for your scenario removed the drive shaft lubed the slip yoke splines good very little movement, checked axle joints four new boots very little movement, wheels are off held axle close to diff. housing turned yoke back and forth lots of play till i felt the axle start to move, out put shaft from the engine very little play, clutch has no chatter engages ok, so i basically isolated it to the diff. i drove another motor trike same set up and did not have the back lash that mine has. i will pull the diff. cover and see what the out come is and report back. spring is in the air and will be getting at it pretty soon. again thanks for the info. bob

It sure sounds like you've done your due diligence on checking things out & have eliminated the majority of the common things that's for sure. I hope you find an obvious cause with a simple solution.

[miabobo]

thanks for the reply rodekyll i will be pulling the rear cover off in a few weeks to see what i need(snowed in) and go from there. thanks for the offer i will keep you in mind you have to do what is best for you. again thanks but the way i would like to go is a complete diff. the only reason is little down time, i should have pulled the cover before i put the trike away then i would have lots of time to get all the parts that i would need.

[miabobo]

Well finally dug the trike out from the shed and moved to the garage jacked up rear and front so i had lots of room to do the differential checks again went through the system again and found i had close to 1 inch of free play which trike tech said was normal. When i did the checks last fall i only raised the rear of the trike so had limited space to do the checks and had some movement in the axles that i did not notice. As for the clunk shifting from 1st to second gear is one to be careful with or you will get a good bang. Checked the diff. Fluid level a little above 1.5 inches, replaced clutch fluid now have to bleed the brake system. Is the brake bleed system on the trike the same as doing a regular gold wing. Thanks for all your help on this matter.