DIY Variator tool.

[scooterfan]

I decided to service and clean  the clutch and variator assembly on my scooter, and made myself a variator tool from bits of steel which were lying around. Dead easy to make a tool like this.

I'm actually glad that I opened everything - I discovered that the needle bearing inside the clutch housing was almost running dry and the old grease was very dirty. Some clutch dust was trapped inside the clutch components and clutch drum as well.
I just cleaned the needle bearing properly and used some CV joint grease to lubricate the needle bearing again.

Daniel.

[CROSSBOLT]

Great tool! Even radius on the corners and deburred! Marks of a craftsman! That needle bearing in the clutch is probably the weakest point in the whole system but that cv joint grease will NEVER migrate out!

[scooterfan]

Great tool! Even radius on the corners and deburred! Marks of a craftsman! That needle bearing in the clutch is probably the weakest point in the whole system but that cv joint grease will NEVER migrate out!

Thanks for the kind words !

Yes, initially I was a bit worried about the possibility of getting CV joint grease  all over the place. CV grease is obviously quite thin and could spread quite easily, but after having a good look at the old grease at the bearing I was quite convinced that the supplier used CV grease anyway. The shape of the pulley also convinced me that should any grease "leaks" to the outside of the pulley, it would just be deflected outwards and never gets in touch with the belt.

[scooterfan]

That needle bearing in the clutch is probably the weakest point in the whole system.............

Thanks for mentioning that. Thinking back about what I saw, I realize you are absolutely right.
There are no seals which should keep grease in place and in contact with the needle bearings at all times. I found quite a lot of old grease between at the center part of the housing, between the needle bearing and the sealed outer bearing - but the needle bearing itself was running almost dry.

This means most of the grease actulally migrates inwards - towards the center part between the bearings. Therefore the needle bearings eventually start running dry.

My intention is to check, clean, and re-grease  the needle bearing at least every 5000 km.

[CROSSBOLT]

My DT has a seal for that needle bearing! Its dimensions are nearly a profile of the bearing! Sure yours is not missing?

[scooterfan]

My DT has a seal for that needle bearing! Its dimensions are nearly a profile of the bearing! Sure yours is not missing?

I am quite sure there are no seals on my Agility.The needle bearing is located almost right at the far end of the inner side of the clutch assembly, and there is no space for a seal on that side.
I did not find any seal at the opposite side of the bearing either. If any seal was located on the opposite side I would not find such a lot of old grease quite far from the needle bearing.

Maybe another Agility owner, or a drawing of the clutch assembly on a Agility can confirm ?

[Stig / Major Tom]

Exploded parts diagram, or photos from cyclepedia.com of that area? As much as you enjoy working on that scoot. ...Cyclepedia might be a good investment.
Stig

[scooterfan]

Exploded parts diagram, or photos from cyclepedia.com of that area? As much as you enjoy working on that scoot. ...Cyclepedia might be a good investment.
Stig

Thanks  for the information about Cyclepedia. I hope to buy a bigger scooter somewhere in future, and will concider buying a service manual with part diagrams in future.

[scooterfan]

My DT has a seal for that needle bearing! Its dimensions are nearly a profile of the bearing! Sure yours is not missing?

Just another thought and question - on which side of the needle bearing is the seal on your DT ? On the outside, or inside of the channel ?

On my Agility the needle bearing is located almost right at the outer end of the shaft. There  is no space for any seal on that side - unless the bearing on my scooter has moved towards the outside of the shaft, the seal has been pushed outwards by the bearing, and the seal has been destroyed by rubbing against the casing. I don’t think that happened, because then I would find bits and pieces of a broken seal when I opened the cover.

At the inside I found quite a lot of old grease spreaded right through the shaft. I cleaned the shaft properly and did not find any seal or broken bits of a seal inside the shaft.

[Stig / Major Tom]

Thanks  for the information about Cyclepedia. I hope to buy a bigger scooter somewhere in future, and will concider buying a service manual with part diagrams in future.

I bought the print copy and the life time online manual from www.cyclepedia.com.
If purchasing only one - recommended the online manual for its very good color photos ( which are easily enlarged) over the dark, small print copy pix.
Wiring diagram included with both - in color in online version.
Stig

[CROSSBOLT]

I even had an Agility 50 but don't recall if it had a seal for the needle bearing. However, the DT has a sealed ball bearing on the machine left of the clutch assembly and a skinny black rubber seal on the machine right of the assembly. This arrangement keeps all the grease captured within the hollow tube of the assembly. I think the Agility would have to be at least similar.

[Aceforever]

I decided to service and clean  the clutch and variator assembly on my scooter, and made myself a variator tool from bits of steel which were lying around. Dead easy to make a tool like this.

I'm actually glad that I opened everything - I discovered that the needle bearing inside the clutch housing was almost running dry and the old grease was very dirty. Some clutch dust was trapped inside the clutch components and clutch drum as well.
I just cleaned the needle bearing properly and used some CV joint grease to lubricate the needle bearing again.

Daniel.

Well I'll be damned. If I knew there was another passionate rider I would of hanged around longer lol. Good for you mate. That variator was a beast to remove. I bought a similar tool but the breaker bar was not a enough to unbolt. So I used a steel pole over the breaker bar for leverage and then voila (eureeka!).

[scooterfan]

Well I'll be damned. If I knew there was another passionate rider I would of hanged around longer lol. Good for you mate. That variator was a beast to remove. I bought a similar tool but the breaker bar was not a enough to unbolt. So I used a steel pole over the breaker bar for leverage and then voila (eureeka!).

Sorry, I only saw your post now.

Yes, those nuts are very tight and without the tool I would probably break some of the cooling fins to try and loosen the nut.

Since the first time I used the tool I did a slight modification to the variator rollers, and I used the tool 2 or 3 more times. It works very well. The far end of the tool just press on the ground to hold the variator, and I use a socket with long handle to loosen the nut.
The tool works perfectly at the clutch pulley as well - has been used two or three times to inspect and cleen the the clutch.