Chirping Noise!

Energy One

1goodsinner

Member
My gf first noticed it from the p-pad position,but there is a chirping type of noise coming from the right side possibly near the belt/tranny area!Is this a typical noise,and if not ...WHAT COULD IT POSSIBLY BE?
 

BigDogBro1

Made in the USA
Brake pads, Wheel bearings or a Belt drive squeak on the rear rotor more than likely.

Check the belt tension with two people on the bike and make sure it's not too tight. I feel the BDM spec is too tight and contributes to premature rear wheel bearing failure. We run our "07" Bulldogs at about 1" up/down overall movement.

UPDATE:

1" to 1.25" I feel is too loose now after running several seasons. My rear pulley has some signs of wear so we now run the belts tighter at about 3/4" to 1" movement.

The belt should track near the center of the pulley but could be set to one side. As long as you can see a gap between the belt and the rotor sidewall it should be ok.

The belt is worn and/or stretched. The geometry and pitch of the belt lobes no longer matches the rotor and then the belt slips into the lobes instead of aligning with the lobes causing a squeak.

Try some silicone spray on the belt to see if the squeak goes away.

Check the front and rear pulleys for stone or debris damage, wear, dirt etc..

Search the form for "belt squeak" You should find more information.
 
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GDOG_PITBULL

Well-Known Member
Most likely belt chirp...a well known issue. Take a bar of soap to the side edge of the belt (not the teeth) and see if it goes away for a while. If so you may need to align the rear wheel.
G
 

RRRUFF

Well-Known Member
Brake pads, Wheel bearings or a Belt drive squeak on the rear rotor more than likely.

Check the belt tension with two people on the bike and make sure it's not too tight. I feel the BDM spec is too tight and contributes to premature rear wheel bearing failure. We run our "07" Bulldogs at about 1" to 1 1/4" up/down overall movement.

The belt should track near the center of the pulley but could be set to one side. As long as you can see a gap between the belt and the rotor sidewall it should be ok.

The belt is worn and/or streached. The geometry and pitch of the belt lobes no longer matches the rotor and then the belt slips into the lobes instead of aligning with the lobes causing a squeak.

Try some silicone spray on the belt to see if the squeak goes away.

Check the front and rear pulleys for stone or debris damage, wear, dirt etc..

Search the form for "belt squeak" You should find more information.
What he said! After correcting the tension if squeak is still there take some WD40 and spray on the belt, if squeak goes away then belt and pulleys are worn out. If this turn out to be the case there are a few paths you can take. Replace them with new BDM sprockets and belt or send your rear sprocket to SuperMax (which is what I did) or live with the squeak.:lol: SuperMax is a more permant fix.:2thumbs:
 

1goodsinner

Member
Some good ideas! I just turned over 4k on the 2005 BDM Chopper and don't think anything would be worn out,but needing tightened,aligned...that makes sense.It's definately not the upper motor mount.I'll try a couple of these ideas and let ya'll know what happens.It tends to do it mostly when you've just upshifted and on the throttle,or pretty much any time you get on the throttle.
 

subfxr

Member
had the same chirp. found out it was the upper motor mount cap head bolt. I had to loctite it. No more chirp
 

Kiwirider

Active Member
Most likely belt chirp...a well known issue. Take a bar of soap to the side edge of the belt (not the teeth) and see if it goes away for a while. If so you may need to align the rear wheel.
G
Also a candle will do the same job (a little less messy if you want to carry it with you). We would use that as a quick/temp fix on fan belts out in the field.
 

Wills67

Well-Known Member
If you figure it out, please post what you find. I have gone through about everything I can think of and still get a chirp when I accelerate. Supermax pulley (awesome!), motor mounts, belt alignment. Haven't looked at the exhaust baffle and mine is stock. Hhmmm. Doesn't sound like clatter, but I'm going to check pushrod adjustment this weekend.
 

Chopperman

Member
Wills,
I have an 04 chopper. Had the chirp for 2 summers, and it drove me nuts. My chirp was the pulley. I adjusted so many times, and it never made it right. Try the soap thing or the wd40, and if it stops, I would go with the Supermax. Pricey, but well worth the money.. Has not chirped once since I had Supermax redo my pulley.
 

1goodsinner

Member
I actually rubbed a candle on the outer edge of the belt and have had zero noises coming from the belt.The CHIRP is gone.So,I guess I try to align the belt,but also think about a Supermax pulley change???
 

BigDogBro1

Made in the USA
This might help....

IMO...The BDM belt tension spec is extremely too tight, it's like a damn banjo string. It doesn't need to be that tight and it contributes to premature rear wheel bearing failures and damaged hubs.

We run both our 07 Bulldogs at about 1 to 1.25" belt deflection with little push force ~4lbs. We have NOT had any slippage problems or chirping in 18k miles with chromed rear rotors.

UPDATE:

1" to 1.25" I feel is too loose now after running several seasons. My rear pulley has some signs of wear so we now run the belts tighter at about 3/4" to 1" movement.
 
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I had a chirp when decelerating, I found the belt was too loose. I tightened it up and used the guidance that the belt could easily be twisted 90 degrees. No more chirp.
 

liferider

Looking forward to retirement
my 04 chopper chirped for about a month, it was the belt being to tight after a new tire was put on. loosened belt for 1''-1 1/4''no more chirp. One other thing I have learned. Tighten a belt like tuning a guitar.You never tune a guitar down, it's always up. Motorcycle drive belts are the sameway, don't just loosen a belt. over loosen a belt then tighten to desired setting. Don't ask me why,or how come, but both stay put a hell of a lot longer!
 
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