z400 cracked case

[aquapunk]

a friend of mine has an 02 z400, and he said "his engine was hot and he threw water on it" and it cracked the side case. the side where the chain is. is this possible? and how much in repairs is he looking at?

[3leggeddog]

new cases are pricey.i think nate spent 1300.00 for them to be replaced on my 03 when he cracked one side!

[aquapunk]

i said that wrong, sorry, not the case, but the cover. and is that even possible, to crack it with water, i've ridden for hours then hit a stream, and nothin happened.

[sblt500r]

have it welded it will be alot cheaper. how hot was the engine? if it was that hot he has other issues.

[MRPoopie]

they are all over ebay for fairly cheap

[aquapunk]

ok, i lied again, sorry. it is right around the sprocket on the engine, where the chain connects. what could cause this? i misunderstood him over the phone, sorry for the mix up.

[deathman53]

I don't think so, I have ridden many times in the heat, went through a stream and not cracked the case. The crack near the sprocket sounds more like the chain jumped off. I have rinsed my bikes off when hot and no cracks in the cases also.

[Lomax]

new cases are pricey.i think nate spent 1300.00 for them to be replaced on my 03 when he cracked one side!

Next purchase for Lomax will be a Casesaver!

[aquapunk]

see, that sounds a whole lot more logical, the chain slipping off. so, could it be welded, or is he going to have to buy a case? im hoping it can be welded, because im about to buy this quad.

[devildog_0431]

Well is the crack all the way through ? I would either have it alluminum welded or just used some JB weld. I've rode all my life and ran bikes, trikes, quads, and gocarts into water, never had a cracked block or case. Heck I even drove my 00 F-250 into 7 foot of water and didn't even crack the block, although it got hydrolocked and I had to buy a new motor, lol....but anyway.....yea.....so did he throw water on it when washing it or splash into a puddle ? Sound to me like the chain slipped off and got pinned between the sprocket and motor and popped a crack in it, though not sure if that really did happen.

[aquapunk]

the "water" thing was a COMPLETE misunderstanding, he said he "noticed the crack when he was washing it" i took it the wrong way. he called me about it, and i guess i wasnt paying attention.

[aquapunk]

would he be able to take it to a shop to have it welded? if so, about how much do ya'll think this will run him?

[devildog_0431]

You can have it alluminum welded, depends on the crack....alluminoy is decently priced....to weld it and grind it down shouldn't take long, so $80 I would say.

[sblt500r]

allumiloy is crap, and jb weld isn't any better. its very hard to get the alumiloy to work. we use to sell it at a welding shop. nobody could get it to work like you see it on tv. its a waste of money.

tig welding is the best and last way to fix it. you can get it done while its still all together in the frame, but the best way is to pull the engine all apart. because the heat from welding will ruin the seals. plus the welder can weld up the inside so there is no chance of leaking.

[devildog_0431]

I used alluminoy on and old kx85 cracked cylinder head and jb weld on a 185s atc block.....had no problems. Alluminoy is tricky to use though, I had to clean the hell out of the metal for it to bind right. Not sure how much luck you've had w/ it.

[Air-cooled-R]

You can also use some stuff called Lab Metal. You can probably get it at a local welding shop. It's not the cheapest, but I've put it on a cracked warrior case before and it's held up fine.

[Charles Ford]

I know a guy in Lorain Ohio 44035 that will tig weld it for $200.00 he is very good and fast he did mine in less then 3 hours. you will have to pull the motor from the frame unless you can get to it from the side of the motor. I took mine to a few shops and they wanted me to split the motor. new cases are like $599.00 but I just wanted to get mine done and not mess with the motor.if it's a small crack you could put some J B weld on it I have used it and it worked great. maybe you should look at the crack to see how bad it is. I bought my bike from a guy that had the chain break and it bent the shift shaft and put a hole in the case. I put a new shift shaft and seal in it and was riding the next day. I got a 04 dvx400 for $1,000.00 and $200 for the weld job plus $40.00 for a new chain and shift shaft $45.00 not bad for a $1285.00 deal. my wfe really likes the artic cat. I do have a
v-max 1200cc,440ex,plus a 400ex parts bike for sale or trade for a 4x4 atv.??
let me know.440-322-6478
Chas