Hello, I ride a stock 05' banshee. I have been riding it on a local area/track with decently large jumps. I'm 110 lbs, the machine tires me out, but I think I'm tiring it out. The engine runs perfectly, but, I've been noticing repeated issues that I can't afford to overlook, literally. My rear axle bearings went out once, with it, my chain, and sprockets once. I couldn't loosen any of the bolts to do the job myself.

I took the machine to the shop, the job in total cost $1,100. It is really absurd. Every bolt had to be heated to removed. The man hours drove up the price. Anyway, the point is:

I think the machine can't handle the jumping and abuse it takes. Recently, i noticed part of my nerf bars are broken. The metal is snapped where the Tusk Bars connect to the frame on the front of the bars. A new set is $100, but I plan to try to weld it. I see the chain getting lose again, I hear the rear bearing clunking again.

Can the jumping and high speed over very rough areas be "stretching" the chain? Are the bearings dying as a cause of the jumping and other abuse?

I'm so light that I think the suspension can handle the jumps, but the landings can be VERY rough. My friend claims the stock suspension is fine and I'm light enough it can handle the 30' - 45' jumps, but i doubt this. I'm just tired of dealing with the headaches. I paid most of the repairs but I can't ask my dad to help me anymore.

I've been itching to start hinting about a 450 to my dad. I just want a machine that won't tear itself apart from the aggressive riding I do. Anyway, there are a lot of questions above about my banshee being beat to death, but, can a 450 handle the same crap in stock form with normal basic maintenance (oil changes, greasing, etc, etc) without being beat to ****? Thanks for reading all the way, I could really use some help bc I am very interested in getting into racing of some sort, and need help with the above issues as a first step.

 

Well your best bet would be too start wrenching on them yourself. A shop will be expensive no matter what you ride. And if your going to continue riding/racing aggresively you'll be fixing it all the time.
I don't know of a stock suspension that is built for 30-45' jumps. First thing to do would be buy the best suspension you can find and keep it in good working order.

 

Any quad is going to need extra maintenance when you ride them hard. If your chain was out of whack and/or the adjuster not set right, that can lead to premature bearing failure. Then again, I replace axle bearings at least once/year whether they need it or not on my 450. Stock Banshee suspension and handling sucks too. If you are planning on mostly jumping/track time, a 450 would be a huge improvement. Just don't think you will be exempt from maintenance beyond filters/oil changes. My suggestion is for you to buy a shop manual for the Banshee, and start doing your own wrenching. For $1100.00 you could have bought some quality tools, a shop manual, the parts, and a bribe to get the neghborhood mechanic to give you some advice/help for a few hours. You would have had at least $600 left over for upgrades, probably a lot more. Show some responsibility with this machine and you will have better luck convincing dad on that 450.

 

get better suspension and unbolt the chain rollers from the frame

 

also make sure the axle is straight, the chain adjuster Yamaha uses is 2 seperate bolts, very easy to get the axle a little crooked, this would accelerate bearing wear,and make the chain prone to throw off, and make the chain and sprockets wear faster. I rode with several Banshees in my younger days, and they never had a bit of problem with axle bearings and suspension, and they jumped and ran them hard.

 

Thanks a lot for all the posts and help. I ordered new aftermarket high quality axle bearings, a new aftermarket chain guide, some new handgrips, and hand guards.

My only question is about the hand grips, do i need to buy one of the hand grip adhesives to attach them?

Also, my friend claims that jumping "stretches the chain," is this true?

 

bump!

 

I think that's why removing the chain rollers was suggested. Jumping and bottoming the suspension will inherently tighten the chain against the rollers. Thus the suggestion. If you can figure out how to jump with the machine, you should be able to re-create the fulll compression of the suspension and be able to see what is causing the added wear. I bet you're stressing the chain against the rollers, too.

 

To throw my 2 cents in...

I'll repeat what has been said. You REALLY should do your own maintenance. That money spent would go along way toward a 450. Which is what you need. The suspension on those 'shee's are terrible. They are heavy and will beat you to death.

Like was stated above, any machine will need more maintenance when you ride hard but, the 450's were designed for it. You'll have less trouble out of them when you ride on tracks and do lots of jumping.

 

Any time you start riding at a track you should upgrade your suspension. These vehicles are not track ready, by this I mean the suspension is set up for an average rider in different conditions. Mud, Sand, trail riding, light track use. They also have upgraded bushing kits. MSR