Mech

Well done..

Thank you. (for the thanks).

Loss is inevitable to all of us Chris.. eventually. I sometimes think that those of us that learn it early do have some benefit from it. Like you, it made me into a better man. I see you do archery.. That's a fine hobby. I refine myself with sword practice. Mechanicing is simple.. You'll figure it out if you have to pull it apart. I doubt it's anything damaged internally though. It's not a chain drive is it ? A loose chain makes shifts tricky. The gears are free to spin on their shafts, and a dog/hub that's on the same shaft but splined to the shaft slides along and engages some lugs on the gear and the dog. That locks the gear to the shaft and transmits the power. If the there's a load on those dogs they resist sliding and disengaging.. which is what's happening with your bike I think. There isn't really any reason a roll would cause a problem. If the throttle was keeping too many revs on, or the clutch wasn't disengaging, that could cause the load on the sliding parts. Both those problems can be overcome though by reving it out and then doing well timed shifts as you throttle off.. which you say you tried, and which seemed to cure it.. To diagnose it I'd go for a spin on it and rev it out and do clutchless shifts to see if it works ok like that.. If it shifts when I got the timing right then it will be clutch almost certainly.

Ok.. The manual says to change the oil every year. That will probably only be to guard against condensation getting in the oil.

And one more thought.. It is returning to a slow idle straight away when you throttle off huh ?

Hi. I'm not familiar with those things, but with a name like Arctic Cat, you'd think it would handle a bit of snow.. I can't think of anything that would do that, but I'd start by having a good inspection all underneath for anywhere the snow could have knocked a wire or perhaps a vacuum hose off.. Could snow do that ? I'm also not very familiar with snow. I know it's really cold and that I should keep away from it.. but that's about it.

It uses 90 grade gear oil.. as used in car diffs and gearboxes. I don't know what the changing schedule is but that will be in the manual.. Mostly it never gets changed.. If you go through deep water, really deep, then take the filler bung out and see if the oil is milky with water.. change it if it's got water or metal dust or flakes in it.

You don't need to clean that strainer.. If it did block up it would cause damage, but it's a coarse mesh and is really only to stop big bits of chipped gear and stuff like that.. If it gets blocked, it's probablytime for an overhaul anyway..

Yup, well that sounds like a slipping clutch, but there's no really sure way to tell which one it is till you pull it apart and check them both. When you use the shift lever, it disengages that plate clutch. If you shift it into gear and then keep the gear shift held up with your toe, then, keeping the shift lever up, rev it up till it should be moving, then if you let the shift lever down the plate clutch will engage. It should engage suddenly if you are giving it plenty of revs so the centrifugal clutch is locked up, so be careful. If it(the plate clutch) is slow to engage, and sort of slips when you are sure the revs are enough to have the centrifugal clutch locked up, then it tends to indicate the plate clutch is defective.. but the centrifugal can start slipping doing that test anyway if it's quite bad.. It's not a really absolute test but sometimes it does point to the plates. Another way of testing them is get going, make sure the centrifugal feels locked up, then while holding the throttle open push or lift the shift lever a little. The plate clutch is meant to disengage before the gears get changed. If the centrifugal's locked up, and you nudge the shifter a little to slip the plate clutch without changing gears, and there's a lot of slipping, it's probably the plates. If the centrifugal clutch is worn though, both those tests can make it slip, so the test will indicate plates, but it does not guarantee it.

Actually... just thinking again.. and some later model honda bikes don't have a case adjustment.. Your's might not. In that case I'd pull the side case off, check the shifter shaft is free and not bent, and check the clutch. The six or so plates are not too dear.. I'd change the friction plates and check the steel plates are flat on a plate glass or something real flat. The clutch plates touch the basket they are in, and wear it till there are little grooves that stop the plates moving together and apart as they should. If the wear's not too bad you can clean it up with a file. They also rub on the clutch hub in the center of the clutch and put grooves in there too, but I think that is mainly not such a problem.

I'd use the genuine manual. There will be a clutch adjustment on the case somewhere. I'd check that, then the cable. You need to back the cable off, adjust case mechanism, then adjust the cable. You wouldn't have bent a gear tooth or a shift fork by rolling it. You might have bent the shift shaft where it comes out of the case, but that would be difficult. It should be well protected by foot pegs and bodywork. To check the gear shifter mechanism fully you need to strip the entire engine and split the cases. You can check the shift shaft and probably the shifter ratchet by pulling a side case off, but I really doubt it will be in there. I suppose you are familiar with changing on a two wheeler without using the clutch ? Well that doesn't work quite as well on a quad, but if you wind it out in every gear and do snappy changes it should work.. Perhaps try that. If that seems to help the changes then it will be using a dragging clutch that causes it. Oh.. just read back and you have tried that.. Clutch's dragging for sure man.. And sons.. Yeah, my wife died when the boys were two and four.. I decided to homeschool, and teach them to ride bikes.. and have fun.. Our motto was.. "ya gotta have fun.. but don't get caught ". I taught them to first slide bikes to a stop laying them down, without getting your leg trapped. Then I taught them to do donuts, then donuts with their feet on the pegs. People used to say I taught them to ride well.. I always said I taught them to fall off safely.. haha. The only rule was, "if you want to do dangerous stuff, make sure it's only yourself you are endangering". They, we all, still do dangerous stuff..safely.

The regulator's up front, on the right side near the steering head.

I'd take the cable off the engine end and see if the lever on the cases returns to center nicely.

I guarantee the workmanship.. But all my work is on used vehicles, and done in accordance with and after negotiation with the customer's needs and priorities. If the work is some compromise, and it nearly always is on some plane, then I advise them of the possibilities and implications. Clear communication's the thing, making sure they understand what's being done and what might not be, and why. The whole crux of professionalism isn't this do it once and do it right bullshit, it's about your customer being able to have confidence in you.. Ask any lawyer or doctor or accountant..

If it's got a throttle cable you should check that's going right back when you throttle off. If the throttle's electrical you should check it moves properly, and goes right back of course, then check it's wiring. Check that it's not moving the handlebars that's causing it too. Are you sure it's really going to full throttle.. like, if you have only given it half throttle, does it really move to full throttle by itself, or just stay at some revs.

Morning Chris. I'd think the oil would have to be really old before it effected the clutch badly. We've had wet clutches for a century and they are normally really good. I'd check the adjustment of the clutch. It sounds like it's dragging a little. If the adjustment is correct, it could be that the clutch is nearing the end of it's life. A common symptom of a worn clutch is that it drags a bit even when the adjustment's right.. But a worn clutch basket will also cause clutch drag(they get notches where the plates rub, and then the plates can't slide sideways in the basket like they need to as it engages and disengages).. or bent/buckled plates but that's unusual. I grew up on two wheels. They say that when we ride quads, we have to apply our weight to the outside wheel on turns..We still lean in, but we put the weight on the peg/wheel that will drive us around the way we want to go. If you get more grip on the inside wheel it tries to push us straight ahead.. I've rolled off mine doing donuts in a big mud patch we have over the back.. My sons thought it was too easy doing donuts in two wheel drive so we started doing them in four wheel drive. Then they thought that was so easy.. so they started doing it with the front diff lock on.. We rolled a lot !

Well.. It depends whether I'm checking or wanting to grind.. I run cam covers and even in the old days carby faces over it. They say head's(on cars/trucks), should be ground to a fairly rough finish.. It would be about like grinding an aluminum bike head with 250 to 150. If you have a big surface though it makes a difference to the pressure you apply, and so to the finish you get. For big heads you flip them and rub the glass over the head. Generally I'd use 250 and apply pressure..

Haha.. My man. Way to go. So if you are happy with doing donuts and rolling I figure you've ridden before.. and I'm not familiar with those models, so it's probably nothing useful, but..... does it have a manual clutch or a centrifugal/automatic clutch. ? If it's like most quads and an auto clutch then I'd try adjusting it. If it's a manual clutch then I'd guess it's just a matter of getting used to the shifter and the right revs etc to change at. Lots of bikes are a bit hard to get into neutral once the bikes stopped rolling. It pays to slip them into neutral before you come to a stop, or sort of dump the clutch a little so it starts to lurch, then slip it into neutral as the revs and load comes off the gears. I have seen two wheelers that have been dropped and pushed the gearchange shaft into the case buggering up the shifter till it's pulled apart and repaired, but I don't see how that would happen on a quad.

If the diaphram goes, it normally doesn't rip right to pieces and get through the small holes in the slide. Best fish whatever it is in there out though. Pull the slide and you can see down from the top. If it's not that blockage causing the problem then it sounds like a dirty carb or needle's come loose in the slide. First thing is pull the slide and check the blockage and needle(easy), then use the drain screw to check there's plenty of fuel getting through(easy), then pull the carby off and clean it(pretty simple). You could try a new plug first(cheap).

Yours is a K4.

If you pull it out it's a common size, but the genuine item has a superior outer seal to prevent dirt getting in.. https://www.mickhone.com.au/partFinder/fiche/suzuki/1991/lt-f4wd/secondary-gear-propeller-shaft#next 27592-19B00 PLATE,OUTPUT YOKE OIL SEAL

Good work.. The thing about things like this is that we have to be methodical, and really thorough.. we have to know absolutely that the first thing we checked really is right before we go doing any more steps.. otherwise we end up going around in circles.. Probably is a small split underneath somewhere you can't see. If you suck on that vacuum hose going to the pump it should build up vacuum and not keep flowing air. After you've fixed the rest adjust the mixture to best lean and it should be right. Good luck with the bolts on the manifold. Sometimes giving them a tap with a hammer and punch on top to spread the hex out a little works, and it lets the spray get down the threads.. and single hex sockets are good for rounded bolts. That manifold probably has an O ring between it and the head.. best change that too.

Sound's like a temp sensor problem to me.. no cold start enrichment. I'm not sure if these computers detect out of range readings like cars do to post a code. I'd use a gauge and check the temp sensor.

That's no trouble, these things can be frustrating. Even mechanics get frustrated, and often it turns out to be the simplest thing. Sometimes we walk away and have a coffee and when we come back everything just falls into place. You sound experienced and competent, you'll get it. I've been assuming that you've checked any vacuum hoses it has... Well if both carbies did it, and you say it was going right for a bit till you refitted the throttle cable perhaps it's just the cable ? Frayed wire in there perhaps ? No free play, routed wrong so it gets pulled when the bars are turned .. If you leave the cable off, and the duct from the aircleaner, then you could use a small screwdriver to operate the slide from the back, to test it's dropping properly when there's vacuum on it.

Yeah that's right mate.. air getting in before the carby is just more air.. it gets all the air it needs anyway through the aircleaner so a bit more unfiltered air makes no difference. Starter fluid is a good way of finding leaks. Try that around the manifold. If you wind the idle speed screw right out the slide should go right down and clack on the carby body, if you then screw the screw in you should be able to hear a different sound as the slide lands on the screw. If you make sure the slide is going right down every time that would be a good start. Then wind it back out till the slide's sitting on the carby body. Then, wind the idle mixture screw right in, gently so you don't damage the screw or seat, and it should not run at idle at all. Start it up with a bit of throttle and see whether it dies right back to stopped when you throttle right off. If it does die then, then wind the idle speed in a turn or two and wind the mixture screw out a couple of turns. After that you wind the speed up till it will idle, then adjust the mixture till it runs at the highest revs it will, then adjust the speed either up or down as needed, then the mixture in or out to give the highest revs it will do at that speed setting. Keep doing those two adjustments till you get it at the highest revs it will with the least amount of slide lift. If it will idle, wind the mixture screw in and out to find the highest revs, then wind it in slowly till the revs just start to drop.. That's called best lean mixture and is where it should be when hot. If those adjustments don't work, then you must have done something wrong in the rebuild. Perhaps the slide needle is in the wrong place, or the float level's to high, or the choke mechanism isn't operating properly.. Is the choke a butterfly, or a plunger ? If it's a plunger, check it's going right in. It all started since the carby work, so it's either a bad(very rich) mixture combined with an air leak, or something wrong with the carby work. Try those checks and adjustments, especially the slide going right down, and for an air leak around the manifold, and let us know how it goes. Perseverance always wins.. giving up never does.. You'll win.