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speedometer stoped working

1K views 16 replies 6 participants last post by  zackattack 
#1 ·
after going 190 miles last week-end i tried my sled last night and the spedo wasn't working at all,,
A friend of mine told me that it's not always the cable that breaks but a bearing by the track that is wearing out ,,,,,,,anyone every hear of that ,,,,,cause i thaugh if it were to be a worn bearing , i'd start to hear it no?????
Oh yeah ,, i have a 1997 Thundercat
 
#2 ·
This just happened to a buddies ZRT 600 last weekend. You have to find out where the cable is broken. When a jackshaft bearing starts to go it will shear the cable. Pull the cable off under the clutch and find out if it is sheared there. If you can pull a section of cable out of there ,thats good. Flip the machine onto its clutch side and take a look at the bearings. They should be centered. You will not necessarily hear those bad bearings.
 
#3 ·
Happened to me too on my Trailcat, the bearing was totally gone, no balls at all, and I still couldn't hear or feel it.

See schematic below.
Number 11 is just a pin that connects the speedo adapter drive (#9) to the drive axle. When the bearing starts to go, it gets out of alignment and shears the pin...no mo speedo.

/snofan/../images/users/500fasEnuf/tcat_speedo.jpg

Change that bearing and pin, all OK again.

Good Luck

Here's where I got the schematic
http://www.brownsleisureworld.com
 
#5 ·
Check the cable first, disconnect at the speedo head, if it turns freely, it's broke, and your lucky, a speedo cable is easier to fix but will prob cost more.
Now...if you need to change that bearing and pin...here we go.

Loosen the track, unbolt slide truck and remove it.

Remove the adapter drive which covers the end of your drive shaft, you might need to take your secondary off to get at it better.

Drain your chaincase, and remove the cover, back off tensioner, and remove the sprockets and chain, and remove the bearing on the bottom, (drive shaft).

Now the drive shaft should slide enough into the chaincase to remove it from inside the tunnel.

Now go buy a 2" paddle track and install it since your in there already...lol.

Change the bearing on the speedo side, but be sure it is not sealed on the outside, if it is, take a punch, and tear out the tin cover, this allows grease to get on the bearing.

Change the bearing on the chaincase side too, it's only an extra 6 - 8 bucks, so change it.

Now reassemble.....good luck.
 
#8 ·
Speedo cables are usually OEM, and am guessing at at least 30 - 50 bucks.
But....your right, if you have someone doing this for you, the labour will kill you, but if you have some basic tools, and no fear, bearings will be about 5 - 8 each, and the OEM pin might be another 5....oh, and a little chaincase oil when it's done.
 
#9 ·
Plan on it taking you the better part of the day. If torches are available, they may come in handy removing the rest of the bearing. Also have someone help you, at least with the suspension. But were getting ahead of ourselves. Make sure the bearings bad before you worry about it.
 
#10 ·
I have had 3 Arctic Cats in the last 10 years and everytime the speedo cable goes it is the bearing in the main shaft. All you have to do is replace the short shaft ($2.00) and the bearing ($18.00). I have replaced the bearing on all three machines and twice on my Wildcat. Arctic Cat is famous for loosing this bearing.
 
#11 ·
Originally posted by jasper
[brthe bearing ($18.00).
You must buy your bearings from Cat.
I get mine at Bearing and Transmission, I just taken'em the old one, they are 6 - 8 each.

Funny bearing story....
My dad bought me a cheap side grinder at a flea market in Arizona, 15 CDN, worked OK for 1 - 2 years of home use, then it started to vibrate like crazy.
I took it apart to look at the bearing...there was no bearing, just a race the shaft went through....cheap pos...you get what you pay for.
I took the grinder to B&T and asked if they had a bearing that would fit it, they dropped one in like it was made for it.
 
#12 ·
ok well say it's that bearing ,,,,,,,what's the damage i can cause if i keep ridding it like this , cause i'm supposed to go up to Mont Tremblant this week-end with 4 other guys with our sleds,, and wouldn't want to BREAK anything else ,i just put a 1200$ engine in it like 4 weeks ago. Can i do the week-end and be alright or should i cancel the trip??????? i'm suppose to leave tonight ,,,or tomorow morning ,, but now i'm not sure,,,,,,,what do you think
 
#13 ·
Check what I mentioned earlier. We determined in 10 minutes on the trail That it wasn't my buddies bearing. I wouldn't drive it until then. You can only do worse damage by letting it go if it is the bearing.
 
#14 ·
i know i'll do worse damage ,, but to what?? that same bearing ,, driveshaft , chaincase etc,,, that's what i want to know , cause if i can pospone it til sunday night i'll change it then ,,,if not i'll just cancel my snomobiling trip ,,,but i wouldn't want to cancel for something that could still run ok ,,,,,i did 50 miles like that last night ,didn't seem to be a problem ,,,just want to know what could i SCREW up by driving it like that this week-end?
 
#15 ·
if it is ur bearing, (have u checked that for sure?) then i would recomned changing it ASAP, it might seem to run fine, but all of sudden u wont be moving, then u will need a new drive shaft as the bearing will prolly wear a grove in the shaft. i had that same bearing go out on mine earlier this year, and i couldnt tell cuz my speed kept on working, but i could feel a lil vibration and a ticking noise, sure enough the bearing was bad and it had already wore the shaft a lil bit, not much, but enough where we had to rough up the shaft. if it goes to long, u will prolly need a new shaft or rebuild the one u got. it will take u an afternoon to tear it apart and get it running again, and it isnt that expensive if u do it urself b4 it gets to bad.
 
#16 ·
ok good points ,, so i'll check tonight to see if that bearing is good or not ,, so for i've only got one tip from AceXLT to KNOW that it is indeed the bearing that is broke ,,
Said to put the machine on its' cluth side and see if the bearings are centered?????
Is there anything else i can do or look at to confirm that it is a bearing?????
 
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