Front Sprocket Seized on shaft, dealer doing Recall work - any suggestions?

[Mjhitman]

Got a call from my dealer doing the sprocket recall today telling me that the front sprocket is seized, and they can't get it off! They tell me this is a first for them and they have a call in to BRP. Anyone else hear of this and if so, any suggestions? I have a 2016 RTL

[Little Blue]

...I hope when I get my Spyder sprocket replaced that will not be a problem.
Did you get a future date for the completed repair.

Still waiting for my Spyder Dealer to call me.

Stay Healthy. ....

[Knizar]

...I hope when I get my Spyder sprocket replaced that will not be a problem.
Did you get a future date for the completed repair.

Still waiting for my Spyder Dealer to call me.

Stay Healthy. ....

Why break it if it isn't broke? Unless you need to get past the sprocket for some reason, let it be!

[Peter Aawen]

Got a call from my dealer doing the sprocket recall today telling me that the front sprocket is seized, and they can't get it off! They tell me this is a first for them and they have a call in to BRP. Anyone else hear of this and if so, any suggestions? I have a 2016 RTL

Any suggestions? Yeah, if that's truly the problem, just one suggestion....... Your dealer should probably hire at least one basically competent tech to oversee all the rest of the incompetents/less skilled!!

Seriously, the tech has a dodgy sprocket that he has to remove from a transmission output shaft & he can't get it off?!? And this is the first time the tech &/or dealer has ever seen that?? Maybe it's a first in this specific set of circumstances/scenario; but hey, it's probably one of the first 'issues' with doing a job that any tech/mechanic is likely to encounter, so learning how to get stuck bits off is pretty basic mechanic stuff! And they're going to call BRP for advice instead of doing what every bleedin' tech should've learnt during their first year as an apprentice/first year at tech school, & check for any locking type substance that might warrant a little heat &/or solvent to get it to release, then if it still won't budge, look for damage/hooked wear on the splines holding it on but regardless, either pull it off with a puller or cut it off?!?

The bloody sprocket's a throw-away anyway isn't it?! They're gonna replace it with a new one fer gaw'sake!! Just pull/cut the dud one off, they must know how to do that - sure, they'll hafta be a little careful not to mess up any splines &/or the shaft in the process, so that they can safely/properly clean up the shaft splines & install the replacement sprocket once the dud one's off the shaft, but this is pretty basic mechanic stuff! Yeah, IF it proves necessary, any heat use should be judicious; but hey, there's seals & a trans case just there, so they're gonna hafta be careful with heat anyway, but this is pretty basic mechanic stuff!! (anyone else notice a bit of an echo in here? )

Are you SURE they're not trying to pull a swifty on you to get better access to your wallet?? Or maybe they just don't want to do that particular job cos it'll take a bit of extra time & won't be bringing in any profitable dollars, so they're using the 'gotta call BRP' line as an excuse to let it slide & buy them some more time while they keep their techs working on jobs that actually pay?? Whatever, the story they've given/you've passed on above doesn't really paint them/the skills/competence of their techs in a good light, I'd be pointing that out or at least asking how come they don't know how to do such a basic thing as pull a busted sprocket off a splined shaft, even if it is a little difficult/been glued on with loctite/needs pulling/cutting off??!

Or, just had another thought - maybe they ARE using the 'not yet finished first year' apprentice to do the job & said apprentice tech hasn't yet learnt how to get a dud/stuck sprocket/pulley off a splined transmission shaft so they need a bit more time until apprentice finishes that module of their training?!?

Have you talked to the dealer principal about this, maybe posed a question or two along those lines?? This Sprocket Recall work might not pay much, but it really shouldn't be all that hard &/or beyond the most basically skilled/competent tech without needing to call BRP to make sure they're breathing right or sticking their tongue out the correct side of their mouth, and doing it well/competently/in a timely manner is a great way of buying lots of good will, free advertising, and probably also generating a bunch of repeat profitable work on someone else's dime (even if not at a great $ rate, but they've gotta do it anyway, so why not maximise the benefit?! ) - but this'll happen only IF the dealer principal is smart enough to take advantage of this sorta warranty work that way!

Just Sayin'

[Bfromla]

Agree

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vague understanding being the sprocket recall was for them not gripping properly & slipping anyway. Would be concerned maybe some accidental damages & trying to buy some time. Unfortunately some dodgy dealerships & practices as well as inexperienced techs. Would like to see some pics if possible, surely can’t be “that“ bad couple pics of one that was @ the dealer, when mine was in for something else

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[fatboy]

the problem is the teeth are worn so much that it has turn a little on the shaft so that the teeth on the back side of the sprocket are not aligned and there for holding it on

[jcthorne]

Got a call from my dealer doing the sprocket recall today telling me that the front sprocket is seized, and they can't get it off! They tell me this is a first for them and they have a call in to BRP. Anyone else hear of this and if so, any suggestions? I have a 2016 RTL

Very common actually. Tell them to get off the phone and use a 3 arm harmonic balancer puller to take the sprocket off.

[Mikey]

And if the puller will not pop it, apply a little heat on it while the pressures is on the puller!!

[Bfromla]

Related D894A5A9-DBF8-4975-AFE9-E8B18343ACB3.jpg

[Gwolf]

The problem is that dealerships are hiring trained parts changers and not experienced mechanics.

[Woodenfish]

Very common actually. Tell them to get off the phone and use a 3 arm harmonic balancer puller to take the sprocket off.

With the pulley under heavy tension from a 3-jaw gear puller you can strike the screw head with a BFH and sometimes that impact is enough to jar it loose.

[cjr00]

When I picked up my F3 Saturday after having the shifter switch replaced, the "head honcho" in the service dept. told me they had inspected my sprocket and it was safe to operate. Part is on back-order, and when it comes in it should only take an hour to replace. UNLESS... it's frozen to the shaft, which they have encountered several times already, and that will take 6-7 hours.(as if to prepare me for the impending gloom and doom)

[Peteoz]

When I picked up my F3 Saturday after having the shifter switch replaced, the "head honcho" in the service dept. told me they had inspected my sprocket and it was safe to operate. Part is on back-order, and when it comes in it should only take an hour to replace. UNLESS... it's frozen to the shaft, which they have encountered several times already, and that will take 6-7 hours.(as if to prepare me for the impending gloom and doom)

That’s interesting, CJR, given the responses about simply using a 3 arm harmonic etc to get it off fairly easily, from someone who removes them, I wonder what the extra 5 hours is for? ……this is not a criticism……I’m just curious

Pete

[Lamonster]

I've had them stuck so bad that I broke pieces of the sprocket flanges off. Never had one I couldn't get off. A good puller and a little heat should do it.

[Peteoz]

I've had them stuck so bad that I broke pieces of the sprocket flanges off. Never had one I couldn't get off. A good puller and a little heat should do it.

Just out of interest, Lamont, have any of the “frozen” removals you have done with heat and a good puller taken 5 hours?

Pete

[Isopedella]

I sprayed it with penetrating spray from a can with a nozzle. Directing the tube where the teeth meet the shaft and repeated that 1/2 a dozen times over a day. Then I left it overnight. , fitted a 3 arm puller and loaded it - just a little - not lots, then gave it a few taps with a brass hammer around the clock - you could use a block of wood and a club hammer , First time it moved a nats bit, I repeated it and after about 4 sets of tapping and a slight loading wind on the puller it came right off.

[Lamonster]

Just out of interest, Lamont, have any of the “frozen” removals you have done with heat and a good puller taken 5 hours?

Pete

The worst one I had took about two hours. That's the one where the sprocket was coming apart. The hard part about using a harmonic balancer puller is getting the nuts on the back side. That takes a little trickery. Most all the ones we do require using a puller.

[Gunner3773]

Shawn Smoak just did a pulley that took him two days. He finally was able to get it off with a 10-ton hydraulic puller and an air hammer. He said that the "guys at BRP" used a Harbor Freight 10-ton hydraulic puller to get a pulley off so his dealer got him a Harbor Freight hydraulic puller. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEr0LavLidk

[Latrappe]

1. My front Sprocket gave away when I got it to the Dealer it took them four hours to get it off. Looking at the Pictures I took you will see where the spline is stripped on the outside of the sprocket and you have little burrs or what is left of the spline which where grabbing hold of the shaft which made it difficult for them to remove the front sprocket till a part of the front sprocket broke off releasing it from the shaft. looking at it now they should have put the bike into reverse to break those burrs off this is (just a thought) and this may have helped them remove the front sprocket.
2. Please get you drive belt reset, realianged after going for a ride as mine looked like it was coming off after they put the new front sprocket on.

[Peteoz]

Shawn Smoak just did a pulley that took him two days. He finally was able to get it off with a 10-ton hydraulic puller and an air hammer. He said that the "guys at BRP" used a Harbor Freight 10-ton hydraulic puller to get a pulley off so his dealer got him a Harbor Freight hydraulic puller. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEr0LavLidk

See Lamont’s reply before your post, Gunner. That’s from someone who has removed plenty of frozen pulleys. Sounds like Shawn Smoak was using the wrong type of puller, as were BRP(which is a bit of a worry )

Pete

[SLICE]

i worked on heavy industrial machinery for 31 years... i would have set up a MAG drill, drilled holes opposite each other
and just used an air chisel to split the sprocket/cog/pulley.... but thats me. time was money and money was time.

if it don't come of in 5 minutes out came the fire wrench or the drill & air chisel.

[cjr00]

Yes, it's odd. I watched Smoak's vlog and he wasn't real happy as BRP only pays the dealers 36 minutes per sprocket and he worked at it over 3 days. So, I don't think anyone is "milking" the job.

[SLICE]

Yes, it's odd. I watched Smoak's vlog and he wasn't real happy as BRP only pays the dealers 36 minutes per sprocket and he worked at it over 3 days. So, I don't think anyone is "milking" the job.

98% of people don't or can't understand this when it comes to warranty/recall work , if the manufacturer says it takes 36 minutes you get paid 36 minutes whether it takes you 5 minutes or 3 days you get 36 minutes pay, and that's why so many dealerships have a hard time finding quality techs/mechanics that can actually figure
out and diagnose problems and not fire the parts cannon at it.

problems like these sprockets/cog/pulleys suck , throw to much heat at them and you could destroy the seal at the trans/ hammer on them to much and you could tweek the shaft and cause a vibration and then a host of other issues pop up.

the dealer i'm using now and the 3 techs/mechanics there seem very knowable and i hope it stays that way.

I HATED FLAT RATE JOBS.

[USAF]

i would have set up a MAG drill, drilled holes opposite each other
and just used an air chisel to split the sprocket/cog/pulley

That was my thoughts also 100% !!

[Gwolf]

i worked on heavy industrial machinery for 31 years... i would have set up a MAG drill, drilled holes opposite each other
and just used an air chisel to split the sprocket/cog/pulley.... but thats me. time was money and money was time.

if it don't come of in 5 minutes out came the fire wrench or the drill & air chisel.

Being in Manatee County, you probably worked the phosphate mines. I am retired from the phosphate mine in Hamilton County, originally Oxy Chem. I worked the machine shop for nearly two decades, and Mechanical Maintenance in the plants for some time too. A lot of the equipment was older and parts not readily available. Waiting backlog time on some Philadelphia Mixer parts was 3 to 5 years. Some pumps and blowers had similar parts backlog times. We saved every gear and shaft possible. The belt pulleys and chain drives were no problem. There was a third party supplier had all that, but the gears and internal parts were pulled. Even if they had a -.003 shrink fit, we froze it down, put a hydraulic puller on it, and put the heat to it with rose buds until it came off. Don't remember ever having one that did not come off. Some had to be tried several times before they came off, but they will come off, without damage to the shaft or gears. If the parts were not already damaged when the component was opened, we tried not to damage anything. If large gears or impellers were already damaged, they had to be repaired, and in some cases, calling in a machine shop that specialized in custom made gears to make a new one. The lag time on that could be 6 months or more.