Drive shaft splines.

Peter · Jun 10, 2020

I realise that this topic has been discussed before but I felt that I must share these images. I decided that I would inspect my drive shaft splines because of info that I had picked up from this forum and You Tube. The bike is a July 2017 R1200GS LC. It has covered 11800 miles mainly in dry weather but not always. I had difficulty on separating the bevel gear from the shaft and had to remove the bevel gear from the swing arm as the latter was stuck to the shaft. I am use to servicing the final drive as I previously owned a 2007 1200 GS and a 1995 R1100 RS.
I was very surprised at what I discovered. Rusty corrosion and a "sticky" slide. It appears as there is no grease anywhere. Maybe BMW are very mean with there grease. The bike is only three years old. The splines at the gear box end were not in a bad condition but were dry of grease.

autogs · Jun 10, 2020

as you say nothing new,but thanks for sharing

Mattyfish16 · Jun 10, 2020

Is this something we should be worried about as in, has anyone actually had these fail?

Santa-2512 · Jun 10, 2020

It may have been missed,

but the end of that pinion shaft looks like it's been smacked with something lol

just whack a liberal coating of moly grease on it, put it back toghether, smile and enjoy the fact you fixed something the mothership missed.

Rockred · Jun 10, 2020

Plus one. Just get the splines as clean as you can, then put some moly grease on, and then forget about it for 12,000 miles or so.

pistole · Jun 11, 2020

good job getting it done DIY.

amazingly according to some here , driveshafts on the GS need no attention.

RallyeGS · Jun 11, 2020

Mattyfish16 said:
Is this something we should be worried about as in, has anyone actually had these fail?

I suppose its how you define 'fail'. The fact that they weld themselves together without intervention from the owner is a fail in my book. When I get a moment, I will post how the splines on my FD seemingly affected how my Gear Shift Assist was functioning on my bike.

CPJS · Jun 11, 2020

If the splines sieze at the FD end the lateral movement will then happen at the gearbox end, this is held in place with a circlip to stop this happening, so something will have to give.
I am guessing here but continued movement of the shaft in and out of the retaining clip is not a good thing, surely the clip would have a short life. The shaft retaining clip keeps the UJs in line with the shaft housing pivots, if the shaft is now being thrown for and aft out of alignment with the pivot points does it create some strange effects?.
The not inconsiderable weight of the shaft is now being thrown back and forth against the FD spline carrying bearing with each wheel movement, not something it is designed to do.
At the geabox end you now have a moving part that wasn't meant to, and so it goes on.
Back in 2014 when my GS started to develop the 4th gear thrumming my dealer greased the FD splines in the hope of reducing the vibration, did they know something back then?

GSBruce · Jun 11, 2020

CPJS, did your dealer's greasing the splines eliminate the 4th gear thrumming?

CPJS · Jun 11, 2020

No. If you have it you are stuck with it.
I PXd the bike it got so irritating.

beaver · Jun 11, 2020

CPJS said:
If the splines sieze at the FD end the lateral movement will then happen at the gearbox end, this is held in place with a circlip to stop this happening, so something will have to give.
I am guessing here but continued movement of the shaft in and out of the retaining clip is not a good thing, surely the clip would have a short life. The shaft retaining clip keeps the UJs in line with the shaft housing pivots, if the shaft is now being thrown for and aft out of alignment with the pivot points does it create some strange effects?.
The not inconsiderable weight of the shaft is now being thrown back and forth against the FD spline carrying bearing with each wheel movement, not something it is designed to do.
At the geabox end you now have a moving part that wasn't meant to, and so it goes on.
Back in 2014 when my GS started to develop the 4th gear thrumming my dealer greased the FD splines in the hope of reducing the vibration, did they know something back then?

I'd say this is very true, if it rusts at this end also, or maybe even the pressure from the clip will do it, but you start to side load gearbox bearings in a way they are not designed to work... Then the issue becomes one of gearbox problems.

Onahi · Jun 11, 2020

Mattyfish16 said:
Is this something we should be worried about as in, has anyone actually had these fail?

No
......................................

RallyeGS · Jun 11, 2020

Onahi said:
No
......................................

How are you defining ‘fail’?

Onahi · Jun 11, 2020

Anything wrong with the drive shaft ? Anything,
Anything at all ? :nenau

RallyeGS · Jun 11, 2020

Yes, you can’t take them apart! Not being able to take apart a component that is meant to come apart, in my book has failed to function as designed.

Onahi · Jun 11, 2020

Oh really

RallyeGS · Jun 11, 2020

Well, assuming the good folk who have posted on here aren’t lying, then yes!

Onahi · Jun 11, 2020

Just got to shoot, for a minute, Just need to pop into the garage, as I always take my drive shafts apart on a Thursday .

RallyeGS · Jun 11, 2020

Don’t forget barrier cream.

Wierpig · Jun 12, 2020

Onahi, do you know how the paralever works?

Drive shaft splines.

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