Shifter Not Recoiling

BlasterMaster15

New Member
Jan 23, 2011
281
4
23
New jersey
im helpig my friend rebuild his blaster and today we put the motor back on the quad and i can shift through all the gears (tested by spinning wheels on jack because motor currently does not run) and the shifting lever works but when you click it down it sticks and has to be pulled up with your foot. all i know is we just got the cracked part around the shifter on the case welded and the shifting rod was bent and the guy says he bent it back. any ideas?
 
firstly, you CANNOT bend something straight, you STRAIGHTEN it. (one of my pet hates!) it may be that the mechanism inside the clutch cover is not properly engaged with the shift star or its locator pins/rods. you will need to take the clutch cover off and inspect what happens when you turn the motor and change gears, you will need to take the clutch off to get to it again.
 
a new/used/unmolested shift shaft cant be that expensive ????
 
They're like $40 brand new in the yamaha package from a dealer.... not that much considering the headache you're having now.

Babbitt's online sells the shaft for $22.75 (plus shipping of course). Yamaha part number: 37F-18101-02-00
 
and i'd stay away from that mechanic from now on, if a bunch of recreational riders like us know better than to try and straighten that shaft,
that so called "mechanic" ???? should have too
 
In all honestly, I've straightened one before because I didn't feel like wiating for the UPS guy to get there with the part I needed to put the clutch basket and clutch side cover on. But it was only JUST not straight (tweaked, not BENT) and I used my vise to press it straight and kept checking it with my mechanic's ruler.

If done correctly, the warp can be taken out of a mild steel shaft like that, but if it was REALLY bent, it probably should have been replaced.
 
Once the metal is bent itll never be as strong again too so the problem is more likely to occur again....

If your gunna replace it in a "non-emergent" situation IMO its worth it to buy the new parts and do it right.

Now if ur in the middle of nowhere and dont wanna miss out on riding, by all means do what you need to do to get the quad running right.
 
^^^ agreed

Looking back now, I probably should have replaced but I was in a hurry. I had projects piling up behind it and the shift shaft was going to hold me up for a week...

You're right about it not being as strong and more likely to bend again but I would only worry about that in the event of a direct impact and during a crash the last thing on my mind is whether that shift shaft is going to survive!
 
If the area around the shifter location was welded the mechanic should have reamed the hole where the shifter goes in. If he did not ream the case even a new shaft will be tight due to the expansion of the surrounding metal.
Check with your mechanic to see if the hole was resized. In any case get a new shifter, because once bent steel weakens and will bend easier next time.