Final Drive

[terbear]

I have athread on the general discussion forum about heat generated in the rear drive case.

Just changed the tire, and after a test drive just checking things out I noticed the gear case was quite warm. Is this normal?? Is it possible to put it back together wrong??

Would some of you check the temperature of their gear case after a ride and report back??

Thanks
Terbear

First, I assume you cleaned and greased the splines on the rear hub. Failing to do that will eventually cause wear.

As I already mentioned, It's gonna get hot just because it's close to the muffler. If you didn't take the gearcase apart, you didn't screw it up. If it's got gear oil in it, I doubt it'll burn up because of anything you did.

If you did do something to screw it up, you'd most likely hear some noise. When gear drives get misaligned they whine and grumble.

I ride in temps up to 110, across town in stop & go traffic where the asphalt gets to 140 and better. It's not that hot today, but tomorrow after a ride home from work I'll check the actual temp with a thermometer & tell you what it is. I'm betting It'll be like 180^oF if it gets hot out tomorrow.

Anyhow, I've been riding in these temps for almost 5 years without adverse effects.

[terbear]

I am quite sure it is not heat radiated by the muffler, I let it idle for 10 minutes or so, and the gear case was still cold. The hub assembly is cool after a ride, just the black gearcase part.

I did change the gear lube when I changed the tire, used Kawasaki gear lube from the same bottle I used before.

My friend has a Honda Shadow, I will be asking him if his gear case gets warm.

I may seem overly concerned, but I don't want to be stranded in the middle of Montana somewhere next week. :(

Terbear

[waterman]

The gear drive will get very warm if not hot. It is the nature of friction. That is why you run 75-90 weight oil in the gear box. Many times gear boxes will get so warm you can't touch them.

[mrbill69]

Feel the rear end on your rear drive car or truck after driving it a while, it will be hot. The rearend in a truck towing a trailot will get very hot. It's not only the result of the torque being transfered through it but the fact that the bearings in a differental have to be preloaded when assembled to keep everyting in spec and this builds some heat too. I run synthetic libe in mine.

OK, I did check my gear box after a hard ride across town. While the surface facing the muffler was by far the hottest (over 160⁰F) the entire casing was quite hot.

In addition to the preload mentioned, bevel gears endure sliding friction as they work. This heats everything up quite a bit.

[terbear]

Thanks Cadd for doing that, it along with others comments have put my mind at ease. Will be taking off for Wyomiong next Wednesday morning.

Terbear