I'm an IDIOT! MAXII VERY hard to get into reverse!

[96MAX2]

OK folks, it's been a whopping 2 tweeks of riding since I replaced my left side lower center sprocket...And yesterday while unloading her off of the trailer apparently the 2 ratchet strapes that were in the cargo area on the ride home weaseled there way down into the tub..which in turn proceeded to wrap my right rear axle (while moving forward once unloaded), one of the straps hooks grabbed the positive battery lead ripping the battery terminal right off including EVERY wire out of its connector(or breaking it) or the 40amp breaker..Needless to say after 40 minutes of cutting the tightly wrapped strap off of my pull starter handle and the rear axle I had it ready for a new breaker/connectors and battery.. So i got home today and fixed everything that was broken, she fired right up and away it went, then I went to shift into reverse...and even by wiggling the sticks it was really, really, really hard..like all of my might to get it into reverse...but then it pops right into forward when you push the shifter down..it's only extremely hard when going into reverse...so my question is..in looking at the linkage to the tranny both left/right appear to be straight and working together...What could be the issue...obviousy something got eff'd up due to my stupid strap-wrap!!

[CBass]

I would look at the plungers on each side of the T-20, first make sure there isnt any dirt sitting on the top of the plunger below the diamond shifter, that dirt will clog things up and make it very very hard to shift. If those are clean I would pull the plungers and see if the nipple on the bottom is still there or grinded down which could make for hard shifting.

[96MAX2]

Thanks CBass, is it possible(because i failed to mention) that when the right side came to a gradual/firm stop on good dry grass/dirt that that nipple was damaged on the end of the plunger? Oh and does all of this require the body to be removed..because my winch and wiring is all hooked to the top half.. Which looks like its an hour or better job in its self.. I may just sell this grease pile..Ive spent more time working on it in the 3 months Iv'e owned than my my custom 1978 CB750 bobber/1979 XS400, CR125 and my swisher mower...It is by far the picky'st piece of equipment ive owned..the strap induced failer is just dumb..and a freak accident..but still this thing is bad luck...

[CBass]

Fred (Fmints), myself and I am sure alot of other members have felt your pain with restoring/rebuilding a new to us max/hustler/argo. You are just working all the bugs out. Fred is still working some out of his hustler and it has came along way from when he got it. Dont give up it will get better as we go. As far as the nipple with mine it was a collection of dirt/dust that was on top of the plunger that was stopping the plunger from shifting. Once it was cleaned off I sprayed a lil WD40 on it and it shift fine. With Fred's Hustler, in about 2 hours time it went from ok to needing a screwdriver to pry up and into position of the drive gear you want. once he got it back home Fred pulled the plunger and saw that the nipple was damaged to the point it wouldnt hold into the gear. I had a spare and it got him back up and running with a simple fix. You can remove the plungers without pulling the Upper body all the way off, just raise the back up like normal, loosen the two rear bolts (1 each side) at the top. Remove the front two bolts (1 each side) to remove the bracket that holds the plungers in place. You can remove the linkages from each plunger if needed but thats up to you. Most plungers will pull right out, might need a lil working if it is stuck with dirt. Hope this helps.

[96MAX2]

I hear ya CBass, just doesnt fit into my schedule very well..Two young kids, Wife and two dogs..and a home to maintain... I started removing the left side plunger stay and got pissed off and moved to the boday...lol There are a total of 8,346 wire ties holding the 4,328 multi colored wires into "position"...I removed the battery to make that my "disconnect point" but I just revealed that the clear loom of factory wires im assuming it runs to the Vreg/Rect. back on the briggs..(yes/no) It got dark, I used my cordless flashlight for a lantern in my yard during most of this..Needless to say I hate this damn thing and at the same time...when that body is fully disconnected I will RESTORE the effing thing...Because going through this again is a royal PIA! I need a dime bag and a Yuengling! More to come tommorrow after as I have the "privilige of working 2 consecutive 12hr nightshifts...yes!!!

[Russell King]

I have read several posts that start out something like "I really wish I had not let that strap get inside the Max". There seems to be some magnetic attraction in the Max that likes to attract bad things inside!

For your wiring problems I suggest looking at getting a new wire harness from RI. I purchased a wire loom from RI (~$100 for the upper and lower harnesses complete) and replaced the rat's nest of wires in my 1991 Max 2. The new loom has wires for the heated throttle cable and a carberator solenoid that my Max does not have so there are wires that are not needed for older Maxs in the new looms. It makes a huge difference if you have the correct connectors in the right places to make taking the top half off easier. The one complaint that I still have is that there is no disconnect in the wiring at the frame bulkhead. You still have to disconnect the wiring at the key switch and the headlight/taillight harness connector and cut some of the wire ties out to get the wire harness loose from the top. But that is a lot better than all the wire nuts and splices that were in the original loom that had been "modified" over time. When tring to install it I found that the connectors on mine are the "GM Delphi 56 series connectors". These are available at various websites and I found the terminals to fit the connectors at CarQuest. The connectors and terminals are shown on this website Delphi 56 Series Heavy Duty Connectors & Terminals - electricaldepot.com - Electical Connectors & More

If I had known that the wiring harness I bought would not be identical to the original I might have built my own but I didn't have all the different wire colors and the cost worked out to be about the same as the completed loom. I may still add a connector like the larger GM56s or a trailer connector at the bulkhead just to make it easy.

Then all that connects the top and bottow would be the gas line on mine - another thing I am not sure how it was originally run and if there was some convienent way to disconnect.

I agree these do seem to be finiky machines when you get one that has not been maintained and have to work on it more than use it. I guess that is why most people start off with "got a new to me Max and started to rebuild it to know that it is done right..."

Good Luck - I enjoy mine much more not that I have worked out the major kinks

[96MAX2]

Thanks for the advice Russell!
Moved forward in the daylight this morning, got enough of the wires un-fastend to lift the ass-end of the max up as intended and did as you suggested CBass, sure enough there must have been crud in diamond plates..moves perfectly now...and my "tits" looked good (a minor amount of galling/pinging but nothing that alarmed me at all. As for the drive, I drained the T20 and the motor while I was in there, gotta get some ATF and oil for the briggs.. I discovered the rear chains were really loose..and apparently the PO decided to weld them into position making them useless now..unless i grind the welds off and re-weld in a higher position...that is, if i knew how to remove them..Are there nuts/carriage bolts on the bottom holding them in as well as the top? i removed the top two bolts/nuts yet they still feel stuck...ok back to work...going to gey my fluids/filters now...hope someone replies while im gone...This isnt so bad after all...maybe sleep and the presence of light helped me along!

[Russell King]

The chain adjusters are a slide and ratchet mechanism that seems to fail often from reading other posts. Search chain adjusters and you will see how to make them better or get better designed ones.

There are 4 bolts, 2 on top and 2 on bottom. They are carriage bolts and the bolts come from the bottom on all 4 of mine. You will learn to not appreciate how they are mounted and bolted. You may need to disconnect the chain to get them easier to access the bottom bolts. The rear one on the belt side is kind of hidden by the belt and chain so if you can get the belt out of the way and the chain out of the way you can see them. Look at the two front ones to see how they are mounted since you can see them easier. The only difference is the rear ones pull the bottom of the chain up and the front ones push the top of the chain down.