Changing front sprocket - should the shaft spin?

[3ntune]

Changing the front sprocket. Got the new white one. Ques, with the sprocket in the front off and bike put in 1st gear shouldn't the shaft spin? Mine does not spin when in any gear. Thinking the shaft broke

[BajaRon]

Can't delete so just removed the text. This post was not helpful, is the reason.

[3ntune]

I Know,was hoping it did spin,broken trans shaft

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

Changing the front sprocket. Got the new white one. Ques, with the sprocket in the front off and bike put in 1st gear shouldn't the shaft spin? Mine does not spin when in any gear. Thinking the shaft broke

Did you run the engine high enough RPM to engage the clutch?

[Snoking1127]

Confused here! I thought the clutch was hydraulic and would not be engaged if it is a SE6 transmission without the engine running. I thought you needed the belt on and parking brake set to work on the front pulley nut? At least that is how I did mine for the rear tire change.

[jcthorne]

It depends on if you have an SE or SM trans. The SE will not be engaged with the engine off, no matter the gear.

[Peter Aawen]

Posted by OP elsewhere - this info does make an important difference!

2017 Spyder F3 Limited; 11,281 miles

[3ntune]

after getting the belt off the bike, i pulled the front sprocket off to change,while sproket was off I started the bike and put it in 1st gear,I heard it go in gear but the shaft does not lock in,it just spins by hand, I would think that in gear the shaft for sproket should move in the direction of the gear chosen,so thinking the trans shaft is broken

[ddjim]

if it is a SE6 transmission the clutch doesn't engage until the engine reaches around 1100 RPM

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

after getting the belt off the bike, i pulled the front sprocket off to change,while sproket was off I started the bike and put it in 1st gear,I heard it go in gear but the shaft does not lock in,it just spins by hand, I would think that in gear the shaft for sproket should move in the direction of the gear chosen,so thinking the trans shaft is broken

Again, did you throttle up the engine fast enough for the clutch to engage? It does not engage at low engine speeds so the trans shaft is free to turn by hand.

[Peter Aawen]

after getting the belt off the bike, i pulled the front sprocket off to change,while sproket was off I started the bike and put it in 1st gear,I heard it go in gear but the shaft does not lock in,it just spins by hand, I would think that in gear the shaft for sproket should move in the direction of the gear chosen,so thinking the trans shaft is broken

So as ddjim inferred, what you experienced there ^^ is EXACTLY what should happen with a 'still unbroken' shaft; altho on the SE6's it's not strictly 'revs' that make the clutch engage, oil pressure is involved too, due to the SE6's oil pressure activated hydraulic clutch - unlike the SE5's, where it IS strictly 'revs', and a few more'n just 1100 rpm at that! The SE5's Centrifugal Clutches don't lock up fully until the revs get up over 3000 rpm - usually about 3300 rpm!

Still'n all 3ntune, what you're describing does sound like it was JUST the sprocket spinning on the shaft - the gears will be engaged & the gearbox contents will actually spin, but until the clutch engages as the revs and oil pressure go up, the output shaft that carries the front sprocket will be dis-engaged and free-wheel! So unless you were revving the rings out of it, that 'shaft not spinning' thing you mention above is what you should expect, and NOT an indication that the shaft is broken. But is there anything else going on that makes you think that it might be??

[3ntune]

will after reading the above post it gives me hope. I know some about bikes, but this spyder ia a whole diff bread. Thank all who posted, will put the bike back tomorrow and pray it works, will post the results . Man what a trip so far

[PMK]

Changing the front sprocket. Got the new white one. Ques, with the sprocket in the front off and bike put in 1st gear shouldn't the shaft spin? Mine does not spin when in any gear. Thinking the shaft broke

Did you try accomplishing this with the engine running, or spinning the shaft by hand and selecting gears via the shift shaft?

By hand, you can compare neutral to any other gear. Seems unlikely you broke a gearbox shaft, but anything is possible.

[3ntune]

while running

[3ntune]

well got it all put back togeather and will not go into gear,when you push into 1st gear you can hear go into gear but bike does not move, added oil, new front sproket but a no go,bummer