Cruiser Index
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Cruiser Maintenance, Repairs, & Upgrades
Page Three
2003 Kawasaki Vulcan VN750 Propeller Shaft Lube
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In the Kawasaki Vulcan VN750 Owner's Manual, the "Periodic Maintenance Chart" calls for lubrication of the Propeller Shaft Joint at 6000 miles, and again at 18,000 miles. After visiting with my mechanic, I decided to postpone the service until cold weather arrived. At 9000 miles, grease appeared on the Final Drive side of the rear wheel. |
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Close inspection indicated that it was not "slinging" the grease/oil out, but it was being washed out while the bike was setting still. The wheel was not totally covered, and most of the wheel surface was still clean. The brake side of the wheel had no grease on it at all. I needed to find the source of the leak. |
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I removed the rear wheel and hub assembly from the Final Drive. The inner
surface of the hub didn't indicate a leak from the Final Drive. What appeared like a metal
sliver turned out to be clean grease on dirty grease. So far, I don't see the problem. NOTE: With the OEM Bridgestone tire, I had to deflate the tire to remove it from the swingarm. It wouldn't come out otherwise. |
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The inner surface of the Final Drive Assembly also looked cleaner than I would expect for a leaking grease seal. However, there was a significant amount of excess grease present on the Ring Gear coupling spline from the "swab" that is used during assembly. I believe this was the source of my greasy wheel problem. Water from rain or washing activities can enter this area, and then will drain out and down the wheel. |
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Another view of the hub and wheel bearing, showing new grease on the
surface of the bearing seal. You can also get a glimpse of how clean the brake side of the wheel is, compared to the left side. |
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Close-up of the splined portion of the rear wheel hub, or the "Rear Wheel Coupling Hub" as it's called, and the wheel bearing. There's supposed to be a thin coat of grease between the Rear Wheel Hub and Ring Gear coupling splines (the black area). |
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Here's a close-up of the Ring Gear coupling spline. I cleaned all of the excess grease off, and applied a new layer of grease on the spline teeth. |
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Here's a look inside of the Propeller Shaft Joint, showing that there really isn't much grease left in it, and what's there is pretty well dried out. This unit has 9000+ miles on it. This is the area that needs plenty of high temperature grease to lubricate the sliding motion that occurs due to the change in shaft length when the suspension moves up & down. I cleaned the old grease out and replaced the grease. |
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Here's a look at the Pinion Shaft spline before cleaning the old grease off. The splines are in good shape. The new O-rings that I have don't look any better than the ones in the unit, so I decided to not replace them until the next Propeller Shaft Joint lubrication. With my limited experience of Propeller Shaft problems, I'll be back in here in a few thousand miles anyway. You can almost count on it... CD |
More on Final Drive R&R HERE.
2003 Kawasaki Vulcan VN750 Saddlebag Supports
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BEFORE The bike already has a Corbin Seat, Jardine Tall Sissybar, and Jardine Rear Luggage Rack on it. Although I run the smaller Willie & Max Braided Saddlebags that don't really require Saddlebag Supports, I wanted more places to attach bungee cords and cargo net hooks. I carry a lot of crap on the rear of my bike. |
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AFTER The Fire & Steel # K53021-094 Saddlebag Support Kit comes with everything needed for mounting. No special tools were required, but you do have to remove the seat, sissybar, and luggage rack during installation, then put it all back on. |
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Another benefit that I was looking for was to move the signal lights toward the rear of the bike to make them more visible when carrying my large sissybar bag. The kit moves them about 5" back, and provides wire extensions, all with plug-in connections. No crimping, soldering, or cussing. Just plug them in. |
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The finished installation came out good. The supports feel solid, and
although the helmet locks that I once used to attach my saddlebags have now been moved to
the rear of the bike out of reach, I can live with it. I can actually used them as helmet
locks again. Riders following closely behind me can see my signal lights more easily now,
no matter how much crap I'm packing on the back. CD |
DISCLAIMER: ALL PHOTOS AND TEXT ARE ONLY SHOWING HOW THE PROCEDURE WAS DONE BY US, AND DOES NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT THE BEST, PROPER, SAFEST, OR ONLY WAY TO DO SO. NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR LOSS, DAMAGE OR INJURY IS ASSUMED BY US IN ANY WAY. FOLLOW THESE EXAMPLES AT YOUR OWN RISK.
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