Shifting problems on my 06 450f (Index Lever)

[YZ250F_Rider]

I suppose it would since they pulled it out of the bike and reinstalled it. The shift star, spring and lever is their "new" parts.

[grayracer513]

The new one does have a "real bearing" kind of look to it, doesn't it?

Slicking up the shift star and lever may help, but IMO, that's not the problem area in this design. I think the bike would shift reasonably well if it had a detent lever with a solid half-round foot, and no roller at all. The shift effort involved is from operating the whole shift mechanism, and the part of the drum cam type system used here that is most likely to cause roughness or drag is the interface of the shift fork drive pegs in the cam grooves, and the shift rails in the crankcases. Polishing the grooves and forks would probably yield more in terms of smoother action, but obviously, it would be much harder to accomplish.

[YZ250F_Rider]

rounding off of the shift star lobes has been around for quite a few years now to stop the missed/clunky shifts. They have a page on their site that goes into what each part contributes to the problem.

[skidooboy]

the 06 is the bearing design (similar to the factory pro picture). the 07 was a wheel with no bearing similar to what a train wheel would look like. just a solid metal wheel on the end of the lever. yes it still spins but doesnt have a bearing in it. ski

[sean3239]

Figures, I just replaced the shift stop on my son's 06 125 as a result of a post on here regarding the issues on the 125. For some reason, I only briefly thought about replacing that part on my 06 450 mostly because I didn't know it was an issue on the 450's.

Well, this past weekend, I noticed a problem getting my bike into neutral all of a sudden, very hard to get into neutral. Got home and was in the process of draining the oil and noticed on my MAGNETIC DRAIN PLUG eight tiny ballbearings stuck to it..thank GOD! So I pulled the clutch off and am in the process of changing that part out. But now I am worried about the other two bearings ( I think there are 10 in these parts..correct?)

I searched around the sump with magnet by taking the left cover off, didn't find any bearings, but found the two pieces that hold the bearings down in that area. There was no other metal anywhere, in oil or in the sump, stator side area either. So where are the other two bearings? If they are in the pickup screen, will they stay there or not? Do you have to split the cases to check damage to the oil pump or can you check from clutch side? I looked at the gears on the clutch side and there is no damage to any of them in that area. But where are the other two bearings and what to do?

[grayracer513]

I just replaced an index lever on one of mine for maintenance. I'll count up the bearings tonight and let you know. I think there are 8.

There is no way for the balls themselves to enter the oil system, since they would first need to pass the return screen. But they could cause a bit of grief in the primary case or the trans.

[grayracer513]

Update: I just counted the old one, and there are 10 balls in it. I'd call it prudent to open up the primary side and dig around in there a little.

You might have some luck working through the clutch cover, especially if you remove the clutch. That would save having to drain the coolant.

There's a chance you lost them into the drain pan when you opened the primary up in the first place, and just never noticed it.

[sean3239]

Thanks GR, I thought the same thing that they may have fallen out with the oil so I did check the used oil for the bearings and did not find them there. Well, I will dig around for them some more. If no luck, the drain plug magnet saved me once, maybe it will do it again..that was money well spent.

[carwhore1957]

Replacing my Index Lever for the third time, glad I checked back to the forum to see the new 07 part number.

I've never had much luck with the magnet trying to find the balls in the case. I just put the bike down on it's opened right side (onto a drip pan) and give it a short easy shot of compressed air from the left side. This time I got eight balls and the remains of the others on the drip pan!

[matt4x4]

This particular ball bearing design seems to plague many Yamaha's from the 2 strokes to the 4 strokes.

I noticed a few saying they looked at it after noticing shift problems and the part is still good so it cannot be the problem.

Inspection for it being intact isn't enough, I would say that anyone experiencing roughness should replace it - whether it looks intact or not, remember that these parts wear and they have to wear quite a bit before they are able to fall apart, so just because it looks ok, doesn't mean it's working ok.

If you have a bearing with a worn chase, it's going to spin rough causing hangups and such. heck - if you have a bearing with a little nick in it the thing can hang up under low speed - this particular bearing is a low speed bearing - the part only ever spins less than 1/4 turn at a time as it jumps over the cam bumps on the drum.

Removal and inspection will definitely tell you what shape the part is in since you will be able to feel the play that is in the pieces - something you can't see/feel with the part installed because of the spring loading it up.

[STR8SHOOTR]

Getting that new shaft with the spring,washer and bolt was a real pain in the ass!

[wweagleflyer]

I wish I had found this forum before now. I bought an 06 450F a couple of months ago, and when I recently went to check the valve clearances, I noticed some sand in the cylinder head (yes, I have found the Breather Tube Re-route thread). That prompted a complete tear down, and in doing so I also found little ball bearing balls down by the sump, which came from the index lever bearing. I have a couple of questions:

1. I have already ordered the index lever for an 06 450F. I understand that the 07 part maybe better. Is the 07 part really a significant improvement, or has that index lever also had frequent failures?

2. Where can I get a magnetic drain plug so that I can better capture the ball bearing balls if this happens again?

3. I have inspected my transmission gears for damage. The attached picture shoes some small damage on the tip of one of the teeth on 1 gear (small gear of the 1st gear set). There is similar damage on a total of three teeth on that one gear. Since the damage is at the tip of the gear tooth, I am inclined to keep using the gear (I would have to replace the whole shaft since the gear is integral), but wanted to get some other opinions.

4. Is the wear pattern on the gear teeth shown in the picture typical?

Thanks

Scott