On the last ride to Coquihalla lakes the transmission became very hard to shift. It was almost impossible to get into gear. This has been slowly getting worse so now I had to pull it. This is a pre-recall transmission (no X stamped on the box). All the other transmissions have the "X" stamped into them so they are post re-call. I suspect it's just a gummed up detent pocket, not sure at this point, but that's what I suspect it is because it ran fine all the way home. It was just very difficult to get into gear ---- foreword or reverse.
CO

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RzHldPyqHU

Bent shift fork?

Nope.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8K35cz25t3I
CO

In short:
If you have shifting problems on a FL350 that were not there before or hear "odd" sounds like gears out of mesh when you push it around, then you better pull the box. It must shift smooth.
If I would have done this last year I wouldn't have busted teeth on the AB gear and now I have to weld them up .
I learn new shyte everyday.
CO

I'm surprised you made it back without being on a hook or more likely a locked up Kaitlyn and retrieve with a trailer.

Where we ride there will be NO trailer. That's not possible.
You have to take tools, parts and a tow rope.
I carry a spare fuel pump, rod end for the rear swing arm, lots of plugs for tires, etc.
If you run out of gas or break down you are on your own. The scariest thing for me is blowing a transmission or a u-joint. You're done. You rarely see anyone in the back country. It's miles to civilization but you can walk out. I've done it twice. I don't recommend it. Now I always go with two machines.
CO

My brother made a comment this morning that has really cheered me up.
I was worried about putting in the gearbox that I had repair last winter that has welded AB gear teeth and a bearing setup that I made up for the repair.

He said: "You just ran your gearbox for over a year with busted teeth and blown bearings and it ran fine until the other day".
He's right. This gearbox has been making noises for over a year and only until I couldn't shift it anymore did I decided to pull it out. Confidence is now high.
Since it is early in the riding season I will know by the end of the year if it's good.

I did contact Derek about parts and he has them but the cost will be $465 for parts.
Not sure what I'll do about this box until the end of the year.
Maybe mickey mouse fix like this other box if it holds up or spend the money on parts.
CO

I know on the oddy the axle is part of the suspension so not a matter of disconnecting and towing, maybe you need to carry a tow dolly with you :)
have you looed on Ebay for a trans, if you can find one for a good deal that is quiet for $500 you could flush it put oil in it and go, or pull it apart for a rebuild.

I have never bought anything off ebay in my life. Don't know how.
I do buy off amazon though so it must be similar.
At the moment I'm installing the spare gearbox that also had a blown AB and rebuilt it by welding the broken gear teeth and installing a different bearing. We'll see how it works. If I get the rest of the riding season out of it then it's a success and will rebuild my blown gearbox the same way.
I've come to the conclusion that if your gearbox is not shifting smoothly then that is a huge warning sign that your AB is on it's way out so pull the trans and split the case. I'm pretty sure that is the warning sign before the poofkaboom.
CO

I bought a pilot trany from Nick AKA socalgi from ebay, got what I think was a great deal, around $600. and then you have people selling something stuff like it was made from gold, I suppose if you want it bad enough, then you pay.

After you made that earlier comment about ebay and looking for a transmission I decided to just have a look for fun.
I saw ONE, and the guy wanted $2600 for it - -
I pass.
The parts from Derek came in at $500us so if my homemade rebuild blows up then I'll buy the good stuff from him.
Confidence is high.
CO

Well I stuffed in that repaired transmission with the welded AB gear and took it for a spin down the street. It shifted so smooth I didn't think it was in gear. NO grinding. It didn't blow up so I'm real happy.
Weather bad in this part of the world right now. Lots of smoke in the air due to all the forest fires and temp real muggy and hot (near the 86'F). Raining at the moment so next ride may be in a week. Will post results then.
A buddy came over last night for a beer. He's a boiler maker. Gona get me some inconel rods for the repair on the AB gear for my blown transmission.
I used 308 stainless for the repair in this current transmission. I did bury it in the sand blaster sand after welding to prevent cracking but didn't use any of that die penetrant he gave me to check for cracks. It's to late now as it's in the machine and running.
Update soon.
CO