Maintenence Tips and Tricks

[hessianmx111]

I thought itd be a good idea to make a thread where everybody can share their own personal tips and tricks for working on their quads. One thing i have found is setting the 400ex up on the grab bar makes changing the sparkplug alot easier. So if you have any tips post em up.:)

[44oEX]

grease the swingarm bolt every month or so. it will prevent it from seezing and you won`t be able to take it out

[devildriver422]

whats the point of taking it out like why cant you just leave it in i know it only gets worse but whats the point

[nosliw]

so if you ever want to install a longer swingarm or something you dont have to squabble with it as much

[beerock]

Originally posted by devildriver422
whats the point of taking it out like why cant you just leave it in i know it only gets worse but whats the point

there are needle bearings in the swingarm that wear out over time and need to be replaced. 2 things happen if you dont grease it regularly. This goes for all quads with swingarms. the bearings will wear faster and will need replacement sooner. 2 the bolt will seize.If you grease it regularly you can take the swinger off replace the bearings and it will be good as new.

[tryken]

Drill a hole in the edge of your toolbox cap with the cap screwed onto the toolbox. Then screw in a screw of some sort to keep the cap from vibrating off and thusfore causing you to loose your tools, or any extra plugs you keep in there.

[spr-scott]

I took electrical tape and wrapped the threads on the toolbox twice. Then put it back on. It will be tight and wont fall off.

[44oEX]

another little trick I just did to mine was to take the elen head botl off. At the back of the swingarm and replace them with normal bolts. then are alot harder to strip

[redrider311]

loosen the bolts on your clutch perch just enough that you cant move it when you pull in and stuff..this way.. if you roll your quad .. you wont break your perch.. cause every time ive rolled.. this is what breaks

[the Z Man]

When changing oil, use the old spout off a gear lube bottle and screw it on your oil bottle, you no longer need to use a funnel.
Great for the 400ex and the 450R !

[44oEX]

Originally posted by redrider311
loosen the bolts on your clutch perch just enough that you cant move it when you pull in and stuff..this way.. if you roll your quad .. you wont break your perch.. cause every time ive rolled.. this is what breaks

I do that to the front brake and trottle also. it also works great on the handlebars. just don't go to lose.



Originally posted by the Z Man
When changing oil, use the old spout off a gear lube bottle and screw it on your oil bottle, you no longer need to use a funnel.
Great for the 400ex and the 450R !

it sound like a great idea but what do you mean by a gear lube bottle?

[EPDP99]

gear lube bottles have lids that are like a funnel. all you have to do is switch the lid and it will be like a 2 inch funnel. it will be kind of slow though since the hole isnt very big.

[44oEX]

ah ok know I get it. man that is a great tip it would be alot easier that way.

[gpd005]

take a hack saw and cut a vertical line or an X on your brake & clutch levers (or you can drill a hole in them) That way when you hit a tree or it flips over it will break off at the point you cut it rather than breaking the whole lever off leaving you without a clutch or front break!

[the Z Man]

Originally posted by EPDP99
gear lube bottles have lids that are like a funnel. all you have to do is switch the lid and it will be like a 2 inch funnel. it will be kind of slow though since the hole isnt very big.
Well, I squeeze the bottle, it comes out faster than pouring it!!

[nosliw]

replace as many of those little crappy screws in your carburetor with stainless steel hexheads....

[nosliw]

another one is if you have an hmf pipe, replace those allen bolts at the cap with stainless steel hexheads. i just stripped on of them and had to easy-out it. i didnt put it in there hard last time, and i used the right size wrench. i guess the material just couldnt take it and rounded.

[44oEX]

this is a little more of a winter riding tip. For everyone that rides in deep snow, remove the swingarm skid plate. it will give you a little more ground clearance and will really hepl in the snow. just watch for rocks:D

[kerby400ex]

Use anti-seize to prevent lockjawed bolts :mad:

[aviator4]

If you're steering stem seems a little sticky or squeaks when you turn the handlebars and it's driving you nuts, use a little anti-seize inside the top stem mount (the rubber one). it collects less dirt than grease. Plus, most anti-seize compounds have a little graphite in them, which will make the lube job last longer.

When installing aftermarket fron A-Arms that have grease zerks in them, use a burring bit to create the grooves in the frame rather than a grinding wheel, makes a much cleaner groove.

If you're having a hard time bleeding your brakes (which is a common problem on 400ex'es) use a vaccuum bleeding system, it makes the job must faster. make sure to keep an eye on your resivoir and don't let it run out of fluid!

Having a hard time getting your swingarm bolt out? Use a punch and a mallet. Center the punch in the middle of the bolt. You can also leave the nut partially threaded on and give it a couple of good whacks to start the bolt moving. Hitting the nut will prevent thread damage. use anti-seize when you re-install it.

Stripped out oil filter bolt hole? - use a hela coil or just re-thread the hole for a larger bolt, one size up usually does the trick. the longer bolt reaches all the way down into the block of the engine, but this isn't really necessary so you can tap it a little farther up the hole if you wish.

Don't have a metric tap and don't want to invest in an entire kit for just one hole? if you're tapping an aluminum hole, purchase a steel high grade metric bolt in the size you need and cut slots into the threads vertically with a cut-off wheel, be prepared to use several nuts if you have lots of threads to cut as the bolts threads will begin to round off with use. You can do the same with steel or iron holes, but it takes a lot more patience and a higher grade bolt (tool steel usually)

Did you break that transmission side case gasket when you removed the side case to polish or paint? A quick fix for this problem is to head to your local auto parts store and grab a role of "make it yourself" gasket material. Clean the side case off and paint the gasket mating surgace with white paint. With the paint still wet, set it down on the sheet of gasket maing material then remove it without sliding it on the gasket material. Now you have a perfect template of the gasket you need. Cut it out and install it. Typically the gasket material in a roll like this is a little thiker than the stock gasket, so replace it with the OEM when you can. Make sure to clean the paint off of your Side Case before you install it! Punches for creating nice,neat holes in gaskets can be found at your local scrapbooking store and are inexpensive

You can use a large diameter hose to extend the reach of your oil funnel, use a hose that fits snugly into the dip stick opening to prevent leakage. The hose is cheap and indespensable!

And finally, one of your best friends on the trail is the zip-tie. I always keep several in my tool carrier for "in a pinch" work and have also added a set of needle nose pliers. If you find that all your stuff inside the carrier is getting filthy from trail/mud riding, put it all inside a zip-lock, this also makes it water-proof.

[PunkA$$]

-Spray some tent sealer (water proofer) on you modified airbox lid, ehs, K&N etc. or outerwears filter wrap to make it extra water proof.

-Use a thick elastic band around the tool box cap (of your 400ex) to keep it from vibrating loose, the kind that holds your broccoli together.

-Tip your quad up on it's left side (400ex) when doing an oil change to get an extra 1/8 litre out of it.

ummm that's it

[woodsman250r]

This isn't a trick but its a very useful tip. Go and get two bottles of loctite, a red and blue. Use the blue on low temp areas and use the red around the motor, and high temp. This will save ur ***** in the longrun and will keep things like skidplates from falling off in a race or trailride.

[Crazy400EX]

Save yourself money soon and for your first oil filter buy a crt reusable oil filter from rockymountain or c&d if they carry them.

Especially if you do a rebuild, this will save you a lot of money. I spent a lot of money on filters untill i finally smartened up and bought one of these.

[DirtDevilBT]

The 450R doesn't have much room for storage. I use a small bag, like something for a GameBoy, and zip-tie it to the front bumper. It hasn't had any ill affects on cooling either. That way I can carry my keys, cell phone, ID, knife, and whistle. I have also seen people mount tubes under the left rear fender or grab bar like the 400ex.

I cracked my case on my warrior. It was were the lower oil filter bolt goes in, the thinnest walled hole. There were still some useable threads deeper in the hole. I used a longer bolt that I cut the head off and red locktite it in the hole. This way I can use a lock nut to hold that part of the cover on. It's better than using that hole, threading in and out a bolt, and possibly cracking it worse.

[plkmonster2]

Put a washer in between the frame and the top steering stem mount. It should be 1/8 inch thick. I think I used a 5/16 washer and it helps you steer easier without using grease.