i have an 06 raptor 350, and after washing, i notice a squeak coming from the axle next to the chain sproket when i roll the atv foward or backwards. i know its not the brakes, cause thats a different squeaking sound! it doesn't happen when i bounce or sit on it, so it can't be the shocks. any ideas?? thanks!!

 

Well if it isn't any of that I would say it's your bearings...Welcome to the forums

 

thanks! so, if it is the bearings, how could i go about lubing them? or do i need to replace them? i haven't had the bike for long, and i bought it brand new, so i sure hope i won't have to replace any thing major! the squeak is not noticable, and does go away after i spin the tires about as fast as first gear idle. the squeak almost sounds like a squeaky rear shock. i had one of those, and all i needed to do was loosen, the tighten the top bolt. thanks again!

 

Well you can first see if is your bearing by jacking up the quad off the ground and try moving the axle side to side and spin the rear seeing if the bearings are good and if they are causing the noise...What you can also do is take the rear caliper off and it may have dirt that is grinding against the disk and causing weird noises so take the caliper off and don't hit the brake and turn the rear again seeing if the noise is gone...If the noise is gone you know it is your brakes.

 

Hit your chain with some WD40. that should help

 

thanks for the replys! well, i did jack up the quad right when i heard this noise. i'm 100% sure its not the brakes, cause when i put my ear right near the sproket, i can hear the squeak coming from the axle (where it enters in the middle, on the left only, not on the right). although, i should remove the caliper, and test that anyway. the squeak is faint; i cannot hear it with the engine idling. it does seem to go away if i spin the tires fast enough. the rear brake squeaks, too, so i can hear squeaking from both the disc and the axle. but i am sure its not the brakes; they are a different squeak. btw, i did try spraying some wd40 in there, but since its sealed, it didn't help. i wonder if water from the high pressure washer found a way in where the bearings are. i cannot move the axle side to side at all, so does this mean the bearing is ok? also, if i take the axle apart to lube and/or clean, do i need to replace any seals or can i re-use everything to put it back together? is it difficult to remove the rear axle? thanks again!!

 

The reason I told you to move the axle to check the bearing is if the axle had play in it then the bearing woul be shot and it is simple to take the rear apart...I think you have dirt in the brake pad or dirt in your chain to be honest with you...You can take the rear apart if non of these seem to be the culprit and check and repack the bearings...You will not have to get new seals and stuff as long as they are in good condition...My friend has a raptor 350 also and he jumps it alot and it seems to squeek from the shock...If it isn't hurting anything I would just ride it and see if it goes away.

 

Hit the swingarm link and axle bearings with some greese.

 

the best way to find the problem like any mechanic work is to eliminate the problem just like a squeaky bearing on the front of your car you eliminate each problem one at a time pull the caliper the reinspect then come the chain and so on and im sure youll find the problem but sounds like a dry component so do your routine maint. and see if that takes care of it (oil chain grease zerks on shocks and linkage) if your not sure of the history of the bearings you should grease them anyways youll need the special wrenches to pull the locknuts

 

thanks for all the help guys! i will try testing everything one thing at a time and narrow it down. i'm glad to hear the rear isn't too difficult to take appart. from what it sounds like, its probably something minor that may even go away with a little more riding. probably a dry component somewhere back there! thanks again for all the help!