Changing Alternator
Drive Bushings on a K75
By Ted Verrill
Parts You Will Need:
- 3 Alternator Bushing Sets, Part # 12-31-1-460-306 (~$9.00)
Parts You MAY Need and Should Probably Have:
- 1 Alternator Drive Clutch Part # 12-31-1-460-302 (~$8.00)
- 1 16 mm Spring Washer Part # 07-11-9-933-155 (~$0.70)
Tools/Things You Should Have:
- 1 Tube Dielectric Grease
- 1 Lubricator s/a Armour All
- 1 tube Red Loctite
For the Battery Tray and Mounts:
- 4 Battery Mounts, Part # 61211233028 (~$1.20 Each)
- 4 6mm Wave Washers (~$0.15 Each)
- 4 6mm Nuts (~$0.15 Each)
- 1 Krylon Spray Paint Black (~$3.50)
Procedure:
Part I: Disassembly
- Put the bike on the center stand.
- Remove the seat.
- Whenever I do a job like this I use a clear plastic
multi-compartment box to keep all of the screws and circlips both separate and in one
place. Try Wal-Mart, around $3.00.
- Remove the alternator shield (2 hex bolts)
- Remove the computer and the housing.
- Remove the coolant overflow tank.
- Carefully examine your overflow tube at the overflow tank
connection, mine was so dry-rotted it almost broke in half!
- Remove the battery.
- Check your water levels while the battery is so accessible!
- Remove the battery tray (and mounts if have decided to
replace them.)
- Disconnect the alternator electrical connection.
- Then, Remove the three 6mm allen bolts that hold the
alternator.
An Allen extension is quite handy on the top and especially the bottom bolts.
- Optional: Remove the battery tray. Remember that removing
the battery tray makes removing and replacing the bottom bolt much easier, plus yours
probably needs new nuts, bolts, mounts and a good repaint like mine did. Brush down the
battery tray with a wire brush to remove old paint and oxidation. Wash it with a really
good scrub-brush and a good cleaner (I used Simple Green), and thoroughly dry it. To paint
the tray, hang it from a stretched-out coat hanger through one of the mounting holes and
repaint it using newspaper behind/below to catch stray paint.
- Carefully pull the Alternator slowly out, toward the back of
the bike. Make sure to remove any bits and pieces of the alternator clutch or old bushings
that fall out.
Part II: Examination
Remove and examine the bushings. If they are deteriorated,
melted, or even missing you will have to very carefully examine the alternator clutch. You
may even want to eat the $8.00 to be on the safe side and replace the Clutch anyway.
Carefully examine the alternator clutch fins as well as the driven gear that engages the
clutch (a flashlight helps here.) The Alternator Clutch Fins may have very fine hairline
cracks, or may be bent, in either case you will have to replace this inexpensive part. If
yours is fine and you don't want to replace the alternator clutch, move on to Part IV.
Part III: Remove & Replace the Alternator Clutch
Remove:
To remove and replace the clutch, insert an Allen wrench through an angle-head box-end
wrench and into the shaft. Hold the Allen wrench steady whilst removing the nut with the
box-end wrench. You may have to cycle heat the nut with a butane torch if it is
particularly stubborn. This is a little difficult and requires careful application of
elbow grease. When the nut is off, remove and discard the spring washer and lift off the
clutch. Watch carefully at this point for the Woodruff key. I have been told the key is
not needed and in fact many K bikes don't even have it. YMMV.
Replace:
Position the Woodruff Key (if using it) and place the new Clutch onto the alternator.
Place a new spring washer on the alternator shaft over the Clutch and use a little Red
Loctite on the shaft threads before hand tightening the nut. Tighten to the correct Torque
setting (I have no torque wrench so I just tightened it until I felt the spring washer had
compressed, in other words "real tight".)
Part IV: Replace Alternator Clutch Bushings, Remount
Alternator.
Position the three alternator bushings in the alternator
clutch and at each juncture where two bushing "pods" meet (where the alternator
drive's fins will engage) apply a small amount of lubricant (I used Armor-All and it
worked quite well though I hear spit will do in a pinch.) On the outside of the alternator
clutch you will see three marks, each at a spot where the alternator drive's fins will
insert into the alternator clutch bushings.
Here it really helps to have a partner on the other side of
the bike to hold the alternator steady while you line up the clutch, and then hold the
clutch steady and lined up while you gently push the alternator onto the drive.
First, line up the alternator so that it does not need to
be rotated in order for the three mounting bolts to be replaced. Second, rotate the
alternator clutch such that one of the three marks is lined up with one of the three drive
fins (again, a flashlight is handy here...) Then simply slowly and gently push the
alternator into position. You will feel a little resistance at first, but the alternator
should evenly slide right onto the drive fins.
Repeat this procedure if necessary...
Tighten the mounting bolts to spec (again,
"tight") and clean, lube with dielectric grease, and reattach alternator
electrical connections. Reassemble in reverse order (remembering to replace the battery
mounts, and to clean and lube the battery connections with dielectric grease.)
PART V. Go For A Ride!
NOTE: You may want to inspect/replace the alternator
brushes. It is simple, but not covered here...If you have had any charging problems, do
it.
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