Cush drive is a mess!

chain

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I put the arse end of the busa in the air tonight and I pulled the rear wheel to take it and a new OEM replacement BT056 to the local stealer for M&B. I plopped the wheel on the tailgate of my truck and gently pulled the cush drive. To my horror, three of the six rubbers were destroyed.

At first blush, I figured that's what I get for owning a bike weighing the better part of 600 pounds wet and spitting out 100 lb-ft torque at the tire. But then I got to looking and decided perhaps it wasn't me after all.

I didn't snap photos (I wish now I would have), but one side of all three bad rubbers are twisted over at about a 90, as if the guy who put the bike together at the factory eased the fins on one side of the cush drive home, then forced the other side in place. I think he got one of the three fins on the opposite side of the sprocket carrier hung up on the rubber(s) and either used a mallet to drive the SOB home or maybe just gave it one hell of a shove before putting the rear wheel on and calling it a day.

I cannot fathom how these things would twist from being subjected to alot of hp and torque. Ground down to a shabby ruin? Yes. Twisted? Sorry, not buying that.

So I'm in a something of a debate with the service manager at the stealer. He says it's a wear item and they're doing what they're supposed to be doing. I say if it was wear from abuse, all six of the rubber pieces in the cush drive would be wearing equally (or close to equally), but three on one side are pristine; three on the other side are ruined (think of the whole cush drive in terms of two half-circles for me here).

It'll get resolved tomorrow when my buddy who is GM of the place sets the record straight, but I hate dealing with these service guys who, sometimes anyway, seem to know less about my bike than I do.

mad.gif
 
I had to replace them in my bike...Haven't checked them lately but will when I put the new Shinkos on in a week or so...
 
I'm replacing mine this this afternoon. 14,000 mile the where worn out but not twisted, that does seem strange...
 
Loose chain, improper fuel map(bike jerking) could contribute to the problem..Mine didnt look real good at 6400 miles. I better be checking it again..
 
Two of mine were twisted like you describe when I bought the bike, had 5k on it. I noticed a loud clicking when I hit the throttle, pulled the wheel off and there they were. I don't know why, just know I replaced them and it acts normal now.
 
Who the hell is crying like a baby?

This is a matter of principle, an improperly installed component which ought to be addressed under warranty by the dealership.

That you have a turbo'd bike isn't germane to the discussion either. My bike is largely stock and the cush shouldn't be destroyed after a relatively easy 3,400 miles.
 
Man, I'm on my 3rd tire, 7600 miles and mine look fine...? And, I ride the a** out of this thing. However, it's all high speed twisties, few hard launches...I wonder if the launches are what twist them up? May not be worth the emotional wear and tear to fight with the dealer, $5 a piece or so....get two sets??
 
fine my stock bike I replaced every year. I have had customers every 6 months to the last two customers were over 26K (but they were worn badly)keep in mind these cush rubbers are the same as a gsxr1100 just a bit of differeance in torque.
warranty hahahahahahahahahahahaha just like your clutch and brake pads, it is a normal wear item.
 
Getting cleaning solvents, Chain lube, Sand and Dirt inside the Cush drive area. Doesn't seem to be as big a problem with the Busa. The bike before it, cleaning solvent (WD40 and Paint thinner), Chain lube all got in there. Deteriorating the rubber Cush drives.
 
Hmmmmm.. I have no idea what a Cush Drive is can someone enlighten me please..
Thrasherfox, the cush drive resides in the hub of your rear wheel. It is what the sprocket carrier sets into. The "cush" is short for cushion - the rubber pieces cushion the blow of what would otherwise be metal to metal contact (the sprocket carrier against the wheel).

Yamaha had a real bad run with these things when the first R1s hit the streets back in whenever that was, 98 or 99 I guess. The cush drives were installed properly, but the rubber blocks didn't fit the wheel carrier very well. Too much slop.

I recall reading at least a couple of nasty incidents where riders (likely rookies) were hammering the throttle in first gear away from a light and literally shattering the rear wheel. At least one guy got seriously hurt, I remember reading his story on some message board somewhere.

Yamaha got sued, they did a recall, and managed to keep it quiet. (I think they claimed the entire wheel assemblies were a purchased part and their vendor in Japan was to blame. Which may have been, but it says "Yamaha" on the tank...ultimately the burden is on them to ensure safety.)

The rubber pieces I'm having trouble with are #17 in this diagram...

rear_wheel.jpg
 
Hmmmmm.. I have no idea what a Cush Drive is can someone enlighten me please..
Thrasherfox, the cush drive resides in the hub of your rear wheel. It is what the sprocket carrier sets into. The "cush" is short for cushion - the rubber pieces cushion the blow of what would otherwise be metal to metal contact (the sprocket carrier against the wheel).

Yamaha had a real bad run with these things when the first R1s hit the streets back in whenever that was, 98 or 99 I guess. The cush drives were installed properly, but the rubber blocks didn't fit the wheel carrier very well. Too much slop.

I recall reading at least a couple of nasty incidents where riders (likely rookies) were hammering the throttle in first gear away from a light and literally shattering the rear wheel. At least one guy got seriously hurt, I remember reading his story on some message board somewhere.

Yamaha got sued, they did a recall, and managed to keep it quiet. (I think they claimed the entire wheel assemblies were a purchased part and their vendor in Japan was to blame. Which may have been, but it says "Yamaha" on the tank...ultimately the burden is on them to ensure safety.)

The rubber pieces I'm having trouble with are #17 in this diagram...
Chain -

Thank you very much for the awesome explanation and diagram.. very much appreciated.. learned something new today
smile.gif


I usually take my Busa down and have my mechanic replace tires and items like that. My mechanic is a good mechanic. (I.E. I trust him and his shop.. good quality people that know their shid)

Is that something a mechanic will normally look at when they replace a tire? or should I always mention it and make sure they check it?
 
Is that something a mechanic will normally look at when they replace a tire? or should I always mention it and make sure they check it?
You're more than welcome, Thrasher.

You indicated you've got a trustworthy wrencher who works on your bike, so I'm sure he'd not let grenaded cush drive pads slip past him. The sprocket carrier has to come off to put the rear wheel on the equipment to break down the tire and put the new one on anyway, so I can't fathom a mechanic missing damage if it existed.

Cheers,

Chain
 
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