Changed sheave on the Rhino 450!

[Mud-and-Guts]

Shortly after getting my bike I ordered the whiterhino cut sheave with 12 gram rollers and was really impressed but keep my stock sheave just in case. After seeing everyone with such good luck with James sheaves and the greaseless weights I decided it was time for a change. With over 2000 miles on my whiterhino cut I sent James my stock sheave and told him I wanted everything I needed with his cut, a new cam plate, and the 12 gram greaseless sliders. I got out today and did a few runs before changing the sheave's and then a few after to see just how they compared in a drag race setup and the JBS sheave came out on top every-time. There wasn't a huge difference but it was noticeable.. The big gain was in performance just off idle, the rhino has a lot more wheel spin than it did with the whiterhino cut sheave and 12 gram rollers, it actually feels like the belt is slipping just off idle because the rpms jump so fast.

I found two holes in the belt cover due to the belt riding so high in the secondary with the old sheave. After finding this I expected the JBS sheave to lag behind on take off but found just the opposite the JBS sheave actually pulls better, even has more wheel spin. You can feel a big difference down low on the trails and climbing hills but on level ground in the video you can't see it, in the video on the road there isn't much difference in speed gain down low but the JBS sheave pulls better on top. I wish I had gotten some video on an uphill grade..

The JBS sheave looks to be cut smoother and a little deeper on the bottom and not cut at all on the outer edge like the old sheave was. I suppose the rough cutting on the outer edge was what caused the shift/lag at 30-32 and it also allowed the weights to sling out further/harder causing less acceleration from 32+. With more power I assume this cutting would allow a faster accel but on my bike just not enough power to pull it.

The shading sucks in my video but maybe it will give you an idea..

450 Rhino with machined sheave. - YouTube

450 Rhino with machined sheave. - YouTube

[liquid1]

cool ..you run your 450 hard..

[Butch450]

You left out a lot of info. I will assume you mean you went with 12 gram grease-less rollers and grease-less sliders. Did you happen to do anything to your old sheave prior to testing against the new one? After 2000 miles the old sheave would be smoothed out on the face so did you scuff it back up so it would at least grab comparable to the new one? Also did you use the new rollers and sliders on both sheaves for the test? The original rollers might be a little worn on the covers so once again, not the same. What is the cost of both setups? What is exactly machined on both, was it the sheave face or the roller ramps and hub? Did you use a shim at all?

There are quite a few different companies producing machined sheaves for the rhinos and grizzlies and each one of them does their machining a little different to produce almost the same results. A few of these companies do not machine the face of the sheave but inside the roller ramps and hub. I have read on a few different Rhino Forums that guys with the rhino 450s have gained on average 4 - 6mph top end with a few that are machined like this, and with them designed this way you add a shim for all your low end torque gain, instead of machining the face to allow the belt to travel lower. The video from what I could see looked like the difference was 1 mph both in top speed and at shift points. That could just be because you old sheave is...well old lol.

[Mud-and-Guts]

It has been a couple hundred miles since I cleaned everything and installed a new belt, I did not clean everything prior to the video. and yes I went from 12 greased rollers (+2 gram covers) to 12 gram greaseless so the lighter weights could be most of my gain.

The Whiterhino cut uses a shim, the JBS cut does not.
The white rhino sheave is cut on the outer radous which allows the weights to sling out further, the JBS does not.
The JBS sheave is cut a little smoother and deeper where the rollers set,

I was not trying to do a real comparison just trying to show my results going from old sheave with greased weights to new sheave with greaseless, I have been wanting to try the greaseless weights for a while and felt it would be best to go with a fresh sheave at the same time. I have a new set of 10gram roller weights I may try in the whiterhino cut sheave later to see how it does. I also plan on doing a little work on the whiterhino cut to see if I can smooth out the roller ramps so it does not have the shift/stall at 30-32. I am also thinking about trying the JBS cut with the shim to see how it does and the whiterhino cut without. I'll get a more detailed write up later on after I get sometime on the new setup.

Originally Posted by Butch450

You left out a lot of info. I will assume you mean you went with 12 gram grease-less rollers and grease-less sliders. Did you happen to do anything to your old sheave prior to testing against the new one? After 2000 miles the old sheave would be smoothed out on the face so did you scuff it back up so it would at least grab comparable to the new one? Also did you use the new rollers and sliders on both sheaves for the test? The original rollers might be a little worn on the covers so once again, not the same. What is the cost of both setups? What is exactly machined on both, was it the sheave face or the roller ramps and hub? Did you use a shim at all?

There are quite a few different companies producing machined sheaves for the rhinos and grizzlies and each one of them does their machining a little different to produce almost the same results. A few of these companies do not machine the face of the sheave but inside the roller ramps and hub. I have read on a few different Rhino Forums that guys with the rhino 450s have gained on average 4 - 6mph top end with a few that are machined like this, and with them designed this way you add a shim for all your low end torque gain, instead of machining the face to allow the belt to travel lower. The video from what I could see looked like the difference was 1 mph both in top speed and at shift points. That could just be because you old sheave is...well old lol.