1998 Yamaha Wolverine...RPMs suddenly jump at 1/2 throttle

[dwo0100]

Took my wolvy for her first trail ride past weekend. Got home and cleaned all the mud and dirt off. Went to take a spin around the neighborhood and started having issues.

When you are about 1/2 to 3/4 throttle the RPMs will sudden spike way up with little difference in power to the machine. Once you shift to the next gear it will increase power/rpm consistently then same thing happens and you get a sudden RPM spike. It also seems to recreate the problem if you are low in the gear and try to punch it...High rpm with no power increase. If you shift gears and gradually increase throttle she will increase power and RPMs consistently but if you shift and are more than 1/2 throttle it will increase power and RPMs fine until you get about 1/2 to 3/4 way through the gear then you get the same RPM spike...

Hope I am explaining this clearly. My truck did a similar thing once and it turned out to be a whole new tranny...hope this is a different issue. Thanks for your help guys and gals.

[dwo0100]

This is the 4X4 350 model. Forgot to mention. Also just had the rear diff completely rebuilt.

[dwo0100]

Any ideas?? Im stumped. Took another test ride last night after changing all the fluids. Seems like the RPMs will peg out then slow down enough to catch the gear and start giving the wolvey the power to work through the gear.

[oxidized_black]

does it feel like it is slipping with the high revs ?

i would check the drive belt maybe ...

[dwo0100]

does it feel like it is slipping with the high revs ?

i would check the drive belt maybe ...

It does feel like slippage in there for sure. I don't know if this is related or not but I have since developed noise coming from the front of the machine somewhere. It sounds like a very loud chirping noise over and over again. Noise really gets bad when I am making a turn but it will also happen when just going straight

[oxidized_black]

might be the clutch going/gone ... hard to say ... worth a look inside the cover for sure

[dwo0100]

This might be a dumb question but I am new to ATVs...How exactly do you know if the clutch is/going bad when you open up the case?

Any idea what might be causing the chirp/squeak in the front end? Almost sounds like a car when the belts need replacing/conditioner on them. It is driving me

[oxidized_black]

Take the cover off and start it. Be careful of loose clothing in that area. You will probably find the noise louder from there. Probably springs gone ... the chirp is probably because everything is out of whack or you may luck out just needing a belt ...