Tutorial: How to blow your Cush drive!

[mach]

So you want to learn how to blow your cush drive?

Just follow these simple steps!

Put the bike in gear, apply the front break, twist up the throttle and release clutch!
If the bike makes a noise like a handful of nuts in a blender instead of a nice burnout, you have successfully blown your cush drive!!!

According to Don (Dpep) these are notorious for failing (on 82 and later shafties) somewhere around 30000 and 35000 miles.
Mine has 28K…..
The good news... The part is designed to be the weakest link in the drive train and very easy to replace!

Here is what you will find upon removal of the back wheel….





Lessons learned……

[Redman]

Thanks for the tutorial.

Also are called 'hub adapter' or 'wheel splines' .
Suzuki microfische (for 850G, anyway) calls it 'driven joint assembly'.




Another method is the Steve Giblet Procedure:
With engine off, Put bike in gear, pull in clutch, have a couple buddys push bike, let out clutch, see rear wheel continue to turn and bike continue to roll same as before letting out clutch, hear tic-tic-tic instead of engine starting.
Later Steve posted a very similar picture as yours, and then a lot of disscussion occured. Above cuts of microfische are from that discussion.

Seemed that the conclusion was that, yes the ones in 82 and later where more prone to failure if not lubed (moly axle grease) routinley, at least every tire replacement (when wheel is off anyway). Others recomend greasing more frequently than every tire change now that tires last longer then they did 2 decades ago. [[backspace-backspace-backspace further comments that would start a shaft vs chain debate...backspace-backspace]]

So I would say that your's didnt fail due to one or two burnouts, the same as Steve's didnt fail from that one push start (nor the other 3 pushstarts that day har har har). It had been degrading over the previous thousands of miles (without sufficent lube) and was about to fail fairley soon anyway.

Now, can you find a replacement on ebay? salvage yard? or new?
Grease it every tire change or every couple years and it should work fine last a long time hundred thousand miles.

[mark]

Replaced mine this fall. Take note that earlier splines seemed to hold up better than the later ones which are made out of a slightly weaker metal. Also it was recommended to use high pressure grease when re-installing. Honda makes a lube especially for that purpose that is highly recommended.

Best price I found was at www.ronayers.com You'll need the Suzuki part no. to order I believe.

[mach]

Thanks for the info regarding lubrication guys!
I'm certainly going to apply it during reassembly.

It was dry as a bone in there except for some black tar like sludge which was probably grease once upon a time....

Good tip on using an earlier year part! Dpep also mentioned this to me a few months back.

I do have a replacement lined up (from an 80), but the guy has not had time to liberate it from the donor bike…
Well the good weather is still a few months off, so no need to panic yet……

Till then I have lots of electrical, exhaust and carb mods and cleaning to do!
I want to make my jugs as shiny as Dave’s!!!!

So, what can you do with a blown cush drive (hub adapter / wheel splines / joint assembly)????

[Giblet]

At least you weren't 5-6 hours from home in the middle of freakin no-where. Texas is a big state and we have lots of "no-where". I used my original to hold circuit boards while I instrumented them for thermal testing. Replaced it with one from an 80 model 1000G. My '03 Intruder had a flat a few months back and when I removed the back wheel, there, to my horror, was a hub adapter just like the one that failed on my GK. Greased the snot out of that puppy. Fool me once, shame on me . . . . . . .

Not to give you further worry, they can and do still fail even if they are lubed. Check it often, don't just grease it and forget it.

[SqDancerLynn1]

As I remember the 800 Intruder uses the same adapter as the GS bikes, they are still available new. The good ones are Black The later ones are a yellow/gold color

[Giblet]

As I remember the 800 Intruder uses the same adapter as the GS bikes, they are still available new. The good ones are Black The later ones are a yellow/gold color

I second the motion .

[shortlid]

Old goiod, newwer bad!

As I remember the 800 Intruder uses the same adapter as the GS bikes, they are still available new. The good ones are Black The later ones are a yellow/gold color

So what year INtruders had the GOOD black ones?

[Giblet]

None to my knowledge. I think they quit makin the good ones in '81 .

[redliner1973]

65,000 miles...original drive. Very little wear. If you lube and take care of it, it will last the life of the bike.

[focus frenzy]

I used my original to hold circuit boards while I instrumented them for thermal testing.

I still have that pic Steve!

here is a picture of the soft late model splines (on left) and the early model hard spline adapter. (note color)


I have 147K miles on mine (early type 1980)

[Giblet]

65,000 miles...original drive. Very little wear. If you lube and take care of it, it will last the life of the bike.

I didn't mean to infer that they will definitely fail, but it could. dpep kept his lubed and it still failed. Of course, the weak link here is the involvement of human beings. A sure fire means to part failure is failure to lube. How's that tach workin "Buddy"? (inside joke)