So i Adjusted the clutch on my 2003 trx 350 the other day....
loosened the locknut turned the adjusting screw no problem , did the adjustment as specified in the owners manual but when i re, tightened the locknut the screw moved a bit on me. Figured i would try it like that and it seemed to shift better and i didn't know whether i should leave it that way or??
well today i figured i would try to re-adjust it to get it exactly 1/4 turn the way it says in the manual...so i loossen the locknut, but the screw moved back in the other direction of course and now when i try to readjust it the srew wont move!!...at all...i should have left it alone but no i just had to try and tweak it...
so i removed the locknut completely and i can push the adjusting screw in and out??...is this normal....???....
so i tried to turn it still couldnt...
so i put the locknut back on and tightened it up..started the machine, rode it and the clutch works but i think its too tight again..i pretty much cant shift between 1st and second unless im at a dead stop..
at a dead stop i can cycle it through all the gears no problem, but while riding its very hard to shift between gears unless i am at a relatively high rpm or when the machine is decelerating to a very low rpm...
if i start out in second shifting to third isnt to bad from 3rd to fourth the foot lever wont budge unless im at a really high rev...
i have ridden my uncles es quad and it shifts like a dream no problems whatsoever...im a pretty handy guy and i have fixed many snowmobiles and such before owning this quad.
i hate to take it to a dealer and pay through the nose...
any advice would be greatly appreciated!
thanks!
Dan.......

 

Probably going to have to get a service manual, pull the cover off and see what's going on in there....

 

yah i suppose.....
correct me if i am wrong her, but the actual clutch adjustment screw only adjusts the play between the lever and the shift fork right?
so if its not moving enough, its not allowing the clutch to dissengage enough to allow the trans to engage the next gear?
so i could cause damage to my gear train without proper adjustment?
is this correct?
Dan...

 

I'm having the same problem with the adjuster screw on my '04 Rancher 350. I decided to try adjusting the "free play" screw but, after loosening the lock nut, the adjuster screw won't budge even with an air ratchet with a 1/4" socket with a flathead driver insert @ 100 psi of pressure. I'm thinking its a pretty bad design. Would have made more sense having a regular hex bolt and lock nut to keep in place. I'm just wondering on my symptoms if I even need to have that adjusted or not. I hope not since I can't turn it and know it wouldn't be cheap for the dealer to fix it.
My symptom is when I switch between gears weather upshifting or downshifting with the electric pushbuttons, there is about a 2-3 second hesitation where it basically is in no gear, then jumps hard into the next gear. The second that I push the button(up or down), it sounds like it activated the shift control motor but, still takes those 2-3 seconds to change gears. when I tryed using the manual shift tool to troubleshoot the issue, I noticed that changing through all the gears worked pretty smoothly.
So, from what I have described, does this sound like I have bad clutches, I need to clean the shift control motor, find a way to adjust that siezed up free play bolt, or something else I have not mentioned?
Can someone please help me with this issue for I'm now leary to tackel anything since the first thing I tryed from looking at the forums as this trany problem is obviously a common issue?

 

Before you take the cover off try something. If I recall, that screw has a shoulder on it and that shoulder fits snugly in a hole in the cover. It may have fallen into the cover somewhat. Just enough so that it is locked against the clutch on the inside and against the cover on the outside. Anyway, try grabbing it with needle nose and moving it up, down and side to side to try to get it to pop back into the hole.

 

thanks budedm, but, when I took the lock nut off (which you shouldn't do when its seized because if you put any decent pressure on the adjusting screw, it tweeks the bolt front so you have a hard time getting the lock nut back on), that adjusting screw won't budge, That means, up, down, side to side, or anything. It would be cool if your idea worked though. Before I even take that cover off though, I think I'm going to try to clean that shift control motor (wow, that replacement is expensive, now I see why cleaning it is a better option). If that doesn't fix it, I will get the adjuster fixed. Now if thats not it either, I'm then stuck.

 

Well, if you have to take the cover off, it's not a big deal. Nothing is gonna fall out. Just drain the oil, have a new gasket and some Yamabond ready, and go to work. It could be a 15 minute fix. Maybe something obvious.

 

Do you know where I can get a new gasket online w/o having to go thru a dealer since there isn't one near by for convenience? Also, I have never heard of yumabond, what is that exactly and how thick should I apply it? Should it be applied on both sides of the gasket?

Any good tips on cleaning the shift control motor? Just want to make sure I don't accidentally break anything since a new one is about $150 to replace. I hope that is the reason why it is shifting in a delay.