2008 CRF450R chips in oil from transmission

[Millhousemx]

Hey guys, Im new to the forums. I bought a really clean 2008 crf450r from the original owner. Not sure the total hours but I have put 9 on it myself. I changed the oil, filter, and trans oil the other day. I change the engine oil every 4 hours, and do the filter and trans every other time. When I was dumping the waste oil into a jug I noticed 3 or 4 of these chips in the pan after words like the one in the pic. Is that anything to be worried about? I always use the clutch to shift, and Ive never really had a problem with missing shift with this bike. Sometimes in tight corners I think by accident I nudge the shifter enough to put it in neutral but I always put it back in second and go without problems. 

I have read about some people having trouble with 3rd and 5th gears on these bikes and I hope mine is not going to be one of them. This is my first honda, and I have owned 2 kawis, 2 ktm, and 2 yamahas without ever having a trans issue before so Im not willing to blame it on my shifting technique. 

Have you guys ever seen anything like that on your crf450r?

[axeman]

I would say that's not unusual. Could have been floating around a long time before finding the drain plug.

 

[Millhousemx]

I'm hoping that it's no big deal. I'm going to ride it for a few more hours and change it again to see if any more come out. I just get worried when I see chips and slivers. I know fine particles are normal these just seemed kind of big. 

[MotoTribology]

Just out of curiosity, what oil are you using in the transmission?

[Millhousemx]

I'm running rotella 15w-40 white bottle in both sides.

[highmarker]

from the trans or engine side ?  like the dentist tells me  , we'll put a watch on it

[Millhousemx]

Im 99% sure from the trans side. I drained both into the same pan but the oil filter was perfectly clean when I pulled it out and inspected it. I'd assume if the engine side had problems the filter would show atleast some material.

1 minute ago, highmarker said:

from the trans or engine side ?  like the dentist tells me  , we'll put a watch on it

[ThrustWasher]

Take the right side crankcase cover off and inspect. Easy to do, If you dont have a service manual nows a good time to get one.

 

[96motorhead]

I wouldn't worry about it if there's nothing in the oil filter, a big piece like that would get caught in the pickup screen so you wouldn't find anything that big in the oil filter most likely.  Like others have said keep an eye on it.

[Millhousemx]

44 minutes ago, ThrustWasher said:

Take the right side crankcase cover off and inspect. Easy to do, If you dont have a service manual nows a good time to get one.

 

I can take it off, I know it's easy. But I still can't inspect the trans itself so I don't know how much good it will do. I'd have to split the cases to check the trans.

[ThrustWasher]

I can take it off, I know it's easy. But I still can't inspect the trans itself so I don't know how much good it will do. I'd have to split the cases to check the trans.

I understand that but you can inspect your kickstarter assembly,clutch,primary drive gear, and other stuff.

[ThrustWasher]

Besides that metal piece you posted looks like it could be out of a needle bearing.

[ThrustWasher]

Looks like one of these needle bearings that goes behind the pressure plate.

[Millhousemx]

1 hour ago, ThrustWasher said:

Looks like one of these needle bearings that goes behind the pressure plate.

Yea could possibly be. If you see the piece in person its not round though. Looks like the very corner of a dog that got sheared off or something. I might pop the cover off and have a look around. 

[Shawn_Mc]

11 hours ago, Millhousemx said:

Yea could possibly be. If you see the piece in person its not round though. Looks like the very corner of a dog that got sheared off or something. I might pop the cover off and have a look around. 

Thats exactly what that is. It might not start happening immediately, but sooner or later the gear that came from is going to start kicking itself out of gear. Could be the drive side, it usually is, but it could be the compression side, in which case, it'll kick out on a down shift.

The only way to really know is to split the cases and look. But I'd be extremely surprised if that came off something beneath the clutch cover.

[Millhousemx]

1 hour ago, Shawn_Mc said:

Thats exactly what that is. It might not start happening immediately, but sooner or later the gear that came from is going to start kicking itself out of gear. Could be the drive side, it usually is, but it could be the compression side, in which case, it'll kick out on a down shift.

The only way to really know is to split the cases and look. But I'd be extremely surprised if that came off something beneath the clutch cover.

Yea, the corners of the dogs get worn, then it puts side pressure on the fork until it wears out, then it starts jumping out of gear.... I don't know how much wear on the dogs that it takes for that to start happening. Might have to start piecing together a spare trans. Just kind of bums me out because I have owned a lot of motorcycles and never once had a transmission issue. Other than this I love the power and handling of the honda. 

[Shawn_Mc]

8 hours ago, Millhousemx said:

Yea, the corners of the dogs get worn, then it puts side pressure on the fork until it wears out, then it starts jumping out of gear.... I don't know how much wear on the dogs that it takes for that to start happening. Might have to start piecing together a spare trans. Just kind of bums me out because I have owned a lot of motorcycles and never once had a transmission issue. Other than this I love the power and handling of the honda. 

I wouldn't recommend buying parts to fix a maybe issue. Split the cases and look, then buy the parts.