Final Drive

[Guest]

I have an 82 gs650. I was cruising around my old stomping ground (in first gear) and shifted from 1st to 2nd and there was nothing. The motor was still running but the bike was going nowhere. I coasted down to a parking lot (in neutral) and turned it off. I check to see is i lost any oil and it was dry. I had been riding for about a half hour with no problems. I put the bike on the center stand and started it again. I put it in first gear and slowly let the clutch out and there was a weird noise coming from the rear and the bike would not move. If you put your hand on the final drive you can feel something moving when the clutch is released and it is in gear. I ran threw all of the gears and the noise changes with each gear. Any Ideas? Thanks!

[jagdriver]

Pull back the boot at the front of the swingarm and see if the u-joint is turning. If the final drive gears had stripped it would have made a horrific noise and would have jerked a lot before it stopped. The transfer gears for the driveshaft on the output side of the transmission could fail also, but it would have been noisey also. The output shaft for the transfer gears are known for snapping off where the u-joint yoke bolts on. The nut could have snapped off and the u-joint splines fail. All of which are very bad news.

[Steve]

The '82s were known to have a weaker spline material, and few of these machines have been properly cared for, so they are likely trashed. The good news is that splines are relatively easy to change and likely did not cause any other damage.

You can pull the boot as jagdriver suggested, but you can also simply squeeze the boot to feel if the u-joint is turning. This will save the aggravation of getting the boot back on.

To change the splines, remove the rear wheel. On the drive side of the hub, remove the six bolts that hold the three keepers in place, slide the splines out. To install new splines, simply reverse these steps.

When you install your new splines, be sure to coat them with a modest coat of Moly grease. One of the best ones that is readily available is Honda Moly 60. Don't use any "moly" lube you are likely to find at Auto Zone, a grease only has to have 3 or 4% molybdenum disulfide to qualify as a "moly" lube. Honda Moly 60 has ... you ready for it? ... 60% moly in it, which is better for the splines.

Put a post in the "parts wanted" forum, I am sure somebody has an extra set. If not, go ahead and hit eBay, but try to limit your selection to black or silver splines, the gold ones are the weak ones from '82.

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[tom203]

You likely need this! Do you feel lucky? My spline looked fine last spring

http://www.ebay.com/itm/161025879773?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2648&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

[JTGS850GL]

You likely need this! Do you feel lucky? My spline looked fine last spring

http://www.ebay.com/itm/161025879773...%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

No, that is not what you need. What you're describing is a classic case of warn out wheel splines. You'll need the splines on the wheel side, not the final drive side. Those are the ones that wear. The final drives almost never wear out.

Looks like this:



Mounts like this:


Pull the wheel as Steve suggested and observe the splines that mesh with the finial drive. Don't depend on what you initially see on the surface. The wear patter is a little deeper into the wheel hub and leaves the splines visible on the outside but they're gone in the middle where they mesh with the final drive.

Common part used on GS650G, GS850G, GS1000G and GS1100G as current part number: 64680-45113. Look for one from an 80 model and you'll never have to replace it again. The earlier stronger version is black in color. Yours is gold. Later models were silver. Gold was the worst of the bunch. Sometimes it's easier to purchase an entire rear wheel if the shipping good. Maybe get the seller to remove it and only ship what you need. There's one on ebay right now from a 1980 GS1000G:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/80-SUZUKI-GS1000-G-REAR-WHEEL-/270919433289?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item3f140e7c49&vxp=mtr

Replace the splines and use a high moly lubricant when you reinstall.

[Steve]

That is a GREAT price on that final drive unit (and free shipping, to boot), but the splines you need are in the wheel:

This picture is from that eBay wheel. You can tell it's an '80 wheel, the splines are black.

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[tom203]

Boy, you guys are nitpickers! Here you go...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1981-SUZUKI-GS650-REAR-WHEEL-J16X-MT-2-75-/370481671285?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item56426dac75&vxp=mtr

[JTGS850GL]

Not to be picking nits again, but that wheel has the dreaded gold splined drive unit. The one I posted is the older and more desirable black spline. I would never trust a used gold drive unit. Any of the driveshaft model GS's will fit but the older black units are the best. Does not have to be from a GS650G/GL.

[tom203]

Well, if you are sure you ain't just looking at rust colored spline..... Other parts all say 81 but who knows...

[Steve]

Tom, I am going to have to agree with JT on this one.

Not only does it have the gold spline, it's not an '81 wheel.
They changed the spoke pattern for '82, that wheel has the new pattern.

.

[tom203]

Well ,what color is this spline on 83 wheel ?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1983-suzuki-gs-650-rear-wheel-and-tire-130-90-16-/171455337386?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item27eb88d3aa&vxp=mtr

[JTGS850GL]

I believe that, that is the next generation silver. Better then the gold but still not as durable as the original black.

[1948man]

A lot of times you can get a whole wheel with splines as cheaply as just the splines separately. If an ebay search for splines doesn't yield much search for rear wheels.

[tom203]

I believe that, that is the next generation silver. Better then the gold but still not as durable as the original black.

good info here- thanks. Last fall a local guy had 80 or 81 rear wheel/disc off gs1000 for $40. I was looking for compatible disc and never thought about the spline stuff.

[jsandidge]

Absolutely stay away from 82 splines. I caught mine before it went, but there wasn't much left. I have a black one now from another member. It came from an 80 model. Shows no wear.