Stuck in Gear...

[crazy4wdracer]

I rode my Blaster a few nights ago around the yard just easy following my friend for about 5 minutes everything is good...The next day I go out to the garage to wash it and it won't go into neutral. After playing with it for quite a while i gave up thinking I may have sheared a gear or something. It's stuck in 3rd gear or higher I think because I can't take off with it from a stop. What do you guys think is wrong?

 

[ruthless_one3k]

Could be a broken shift star or a bent shift fork. Check the star first by draining the fluid and pulling off the clutch cover. Its not actually the star that tends to break but rather the shift cam itself. If this is the case then you have 2 options. Either split the cases and replace the shift cam or leave the cases together and weld the star in place

 

[03blasteryfs03]

that happend to my it was the shift drum washer sheard and stuck in the gear

 

[crazy4wdracer]

Thanks! I'll check the shift star first but that might not be for a while, working 12 hour days sucks... Hopefully that is the prob so I wont have to split cases.

 

[Divineinc]

Okay newbie to this forum so bear with me for a bit...
I'm having the same issue on my '89. It simply would not shift into or out of anything. We removed the clutch, shift shaft, spring loaded stopper and tried to move the star by hand. Very slight wiggle. Everything looked in good shape up until this point. The points on the star look good, all springs, etc. I can remove the star itself easily with the torx driver.
Am I looking at splitting the case or is there something else I can check first before going that far?
Thanks ahead of time!

 

[Larry's Shee]

Wouldn't shift when you tried riding, or was it sitting still with engine off? Shift star was tight on the drum? Is the claw on shift shaft tight, not all sloppy where it pivots? Pretty hard to move shift drum by it"sself as you have no leverage. Input or output shaft has to be spinning at least slightly so gears and such can slide and engage each other.

At least no one can say you didn't search first Little green for that I:I

 

[Larry's Shee]

BTW, Welcome to the dirt pile I:I B)

 

[Divineinc]

It was rebuilt and given back to me. I put it in the frame, drove a bit and then tried to shift up to no avail. I got mad, pulled it out and stuck it in a corner for the past 5+ years until my son is old enough to ride it now. So we pulled it out of the oil bath and started tearing it apart.
The shift shaft is straight (eyeballing it) but did have some play in it (side of engine to other side of engine but not at the connection spot) which wouldn't allow the claw to make contact to the teeth every time. I thought that might be it until everything else was removed and still couldn't turn the star by hand (yes it was tight to the drum itself, no wear and tear). I'll try spinning the gears over and try harder to move the star tonight and see if anything changes.
Thanks for the reply. Hopefully I can figure this out without splitting the case. That would be a lesson for the kid AND me!

 

[ryanbohr]

Did you shift from a high gear down to neutral when you stopped? (stopping in 6th and just shifting down to first while stopped) Because it needs momentum to properly shift between gears, just like a bike shifter. If so, try rocking back and forth while sitting on it until the shift lever becomes freed.

 

[Divineinc]

No, I never got out of first gear. The motor is out of the frame now sitting on a work bench.

 

[Larry's Shee]

If you don't have a Clymers use this: http://www.blasterforum.com/general-support-17/downloadable-yamaha-blaster-manual-17325/ . Slide the shift shaft back in after you check it with a straight edge and make sure there are no burrs on it. Put the shifter back on and while spinning either shaft try shifting up or down. Was there still oil in it when you took cover off? Try turning the shafts both directions, just in case it's jambed for some reason. Make sure shifter is not hitting stator cover.

 

[Divineinc]

I think I've done that already during the tear down process. Yes there was oil in it when it came out of the frame and it continued to sit in a full oil bath for the remaining time. I do remember the shifter rubbing on the stator cover but I was able to slide the shaft a bit and have it miss. That was another question that I came up with, why does the shaft itself slide back and forth? I'll have to check the parts diagram and make sure there isn't a missing washer or whatever.
But I will try to spin and shift at the same time.
Thanks again everybody! Keep it coming!!

 

[Larry's Shee]

IIRC, the shift shaft should bottom against clutch cover. How much movement you talking? There should be a hair of play. Is there much slop where claw pivots on shaft? Are hooks of claw worn? Does shaft have play where it comes through case by clutch? Go over everything with a fine tooth comb to try to avoid splitting cases.

 

[Divineinc]

Checked it out last night, spinning everything we could find while I tried to shift it and no luck. The shaft slides in and out a good amount without the cover on it. Is there supposed to be a bolt or something holding it w/o the cover? The shift shaft does not wobble in the sleeve at all, just slides. I checked it with a good framing square all the way around and no daylight appeared telling me it's straight.
The claws looked in great shape, not rounded or stretched.
I even tried to pull the clutch lever (on the motor since it is not in the frame) to see if it changed anything but still no difference in shifting. I spun the clutch shaft (clutch is removed) then operated the clutch shaft. I noticed a bit of "gritty" resistance when I swung the top of the shaft towards the piston jug all the way. That seems odd to me. Is it? It (clutch shaft lever) seems to pivot pretty easily even considering the spring is attached. Shouldn't that be fairly taunt? Is it a possibility there is something not right there?

 

[Larry's Shee]

If the clutch is out only resistance is spring on arm. You can"t move it by hand if clutch is assembled because of the 5 springs. Look on the inside of clutch cover, you'll see where s. shaft butts up to it. I guess it's time to split the cases and dig deeper. Look close for wear or bent forks.

 

[Divineinc]

Well, that sucks.
We soaked all the nuts and screws in PB Blaster last night just in case we needed to split it tonight.
So what do I need (tools, parts, goo, etc.) to split and reinstall case and all?
I have a "complete gasket kit" I bought off eBay for $35.
YAMAHA BLASTER 88-07 COMPLETE GASKET SET | eBay
It LOOKS like everything is there. I have a good amount of tools but no specialties like the "case splitter" tool that I heard somebody talking about (I think it was in the video).
What about bearings and anything else that might be a good idea to change while its apart? Or should I just wait to see what I need and stop jumping the gun?

 

[Larry's Shee]

Last resort look in the manual see if it has anything. There is a crank puller in DIY section. Other than a flywheel puller, everything can be made or improvised.