Awhile back, I rebuilt/cleaned/adjusted the switch on my Warn 424. I figured I'd put a little grease on the shaft that slides for ease of use. I saw nothing in the directions about this and found it a bit odd. Well, after a few rides, the switch won't stay locked into a 4wd. I'm assuming some grit is now caught in the grease and preventing that little ball bearing from seating in the recessed part of the switch.

Has anyone here ever used any type of lubricant on the switch? I'm going to take it apart, clean it and probably run it with out any type of grease.

 

The only problem I had with mine was the **** wouldn't pull out all the way after a soaking in muddy water from a pit I repeatedly ran through, wiped off the crud, sprayed a little Teflon dry lube on the shaft, and it pulls out and locks like new, grease might be a little heavy, and like you said, might hold grit.

 

Luckily, it's a pretty simple thing to work on. I hope to get to it this week. It's amazing when you have to spend a few hours in 4 wheel drive. The Wolverine really feels more like sport machine in 2wd...it's easier to toss around and slide the rear end out.

 

Well, I went riding Monday and it would not stay locked in 2wd. I was having a heck of a time pulling the switch into 2wd and it would not lock in 2wd at all. At least they engineered it so if something goes wrong, you're locked in 4wd and not 2wd.

Once I cleaned up the machine at home, it of course pulled in and out no problem at all. I have found, however, that if I leave the machine in the garage and the switch in the 4wd position, it takes a few pulls to lock into 2wd.

I called Warn yesterday and spoke to someone there. They were baffled as to why I was having this issue. They said the switch should be able to take some crud getting into it and not get gummed up. I've had it apart and agree...it's simple and there's not much to go wrong. They're sending me a new cam...the very middle part of the switch that allows the bearings to drop down when you pull it out of 2wd. We'll see if this helps.

I wonder if having the cable a bit too tight could be a problem?

 

I picked up some dry Teflon stuff in a bottle from a local bicyle shop. I'll pull the unit apart again tonight and see if that helps with the operation at all. Fingers crossed.

 

I appologize for talking to myself here. LOL! But this may be helpful to someone down the road if they're doing a search.

Turns out, putting some more slack in the cable really really helped. I'm now getting that solid "click" noise when I engage 2wd. You can see a little brass(when in 4wd), but I'm not worried since the 424 unit is silent when in 2wd. I jacked the machine up and spun the wheels in 2wd and 4wd to verify everything was working well.

I'll still get a little sticking if I leave it sitting in the garage in 2wd, the come back later and pull it into 2wd. However, pressing the button a few times first, allows it to click right into 2wd. I'll report back after my next ride.

 

I just put the 424 on my 2000 Wolverine and have to say I love it. I found that sometimes it would not click into 2WD. I adjusted it so it would have the most slack in the cable possible. It still would not click into 2WD sometimes. What I found is that if you are going real slow just feather the thottle a little while pulling on the lever it would click into place. It goes in 4WD all the time no problems.

 

The guy at Warn told me the same thing...I'll have to give that a shot. I think I have enough slack in the cable now...I'm looking forward to getting out and testing it again. It really changes the characterisics of the machine.