Erik650

Thanks for the compliment and also for the good advice regarding buying parts. I'm reasonbly confident in the diagnosis because the garage/shop in question has a fairly good reputation among bikers. Having said that I do think the quoted price is steep to say the least : I reckon a set of clutch plates will be somewhere in the 70 euro-range. Bearings, bearing grease, gasket, clutch oil and a few other items won't brake te bank also I suppose. I know labour hour rates are not for free, but it would seem they calculated some 20+ hours of work by a qualified,trained and experienced mechanic. I know for sure I'll probably take even longer then that, but it feels like they estimated to many hours.... I do trust the diagnosis,but I won't be sure untill I've seen it myself.I trust myself even more :-) I'll make sure to open her up first to see what's needed,and hope I ain't opening a can of worms.......

Thanks Paul, I added that partslink to my favorites, so to say.

Hello Yamaha loving people out here. Let me introduce myself first : I'm Dutch living in Friesland (up North), named Erik. English isn't my native language, so please accept my excuses upfront for any mishaps in that department. I ride a KTM SMT 990 myself and my best bud's Yamaha XVS 650 ('99-er)has broken down. He has been quoted some 1500-2000 euro's ( most of it labourhour-rate I reckon) by his dealer after hearing the following diagnosis : "The bearing of the 5th gear is worn, and the clutch plate/plates are on the brink of failure". Now I wasn't there with him at the time, but given the bikes present resale value and his financial situation he didn't let them repair the bike. To add some info : he's is as far from mechanically inclined as the Middle East is from peace and quiet, so he asked me if maybe I could try something... I know nothing about the Yamaha XVS 650, but have succesfully (for a noob that is) done a 'top end' repair/replacement-job on one of my previous bikes, a HD Sportster, winter 2008. I took it slow, documenting every step while taking pics in the progress. Took me quite some time and wouldn't have made it without the help of far more experiencedfellow enthousiasts on a forum. That's what I would wish and hope for out here, from far more experienced people, willing to share their knowledge. So far I've got my hands on a XVS 650 AK © zillion paged 8-chaperts thick service manual.Am browsing through it. I've got a small garage heated by a petroleum stove like little burner and he's bringing the bike to me sometime next week. I'm trying to help my best bud out and it'll probably be a steep learning curve I hope. If you don't mind, I already have a few questions regarding the worn(?)5th gear bearing: - Anybody outhere who has done what needs to be done when one needs to replace a 5th gear (or any other one I suppose) bearing ? - What parts (preff with part#'s) do I need to get ? - What's the typical path/procedure to follow ? Is it likely that other gear bearings are under par also (Is it needed to replace them all while I have it all worked open ?) Regarding the Clutch plate(s) : - Same q's as above except the last one... Hoping some of you can and are willing to help this Yamaha newbie out :-) Thanks upfront ! Erik.