hello, i'm looking for front suspension recommendations for a 2004.5 sprortsman 500 h.o. i have the warn bumper/winch mount, warn 3.0ci winch and the warn 54" plow setup. in the front springs i have 2 sets of the polaris coil spring spacers. i still have some sag and as you well know, the suspension will bottom out while trail riding (without the plow, of course, but with the winch and bumper).

any suggestions? sp700 springs, lift kit, aftermarket springs, ect?

also, the rear is really stiff. any suggestions for the rear?

thanks.

 

go to the gallery section click on M and find moosehunter. he has pics of the 700 front coil spring swap. it added like 3/4 of an inch. I have a similar problem, I have the warn 2.5ci winch and 60" glacier blade and am getting ready to add 27" mudlites on type 6 ITP wheels. I am going to add 1.5" aluminum spacers to give me more clearance. I was also wondering since I already have a 700, If I could do a 05' spring swap on either the 700 or 800 springs.

 

by the way, welcome to the forums.

 

Hi there rdg, And welcome!!!

I did the 700 spring swap on my 04.5 500HO with great results. As 'bullet said, it did give me about 3/4" of lift, but best of all it increased the spring rate to virtually eliminate bottoming on the trails. I used the "stock" 700 springs, rated at 70-120 lbs. In your situation, I would probably go a bit heavier in spring rate, and keep the rubber donuts around for plow duty.

I highly recommend this mod for all 500HO's!!

 

Never seen anything mentiond about the 400's............I'm assuming thos springs won't work on a 400 ?

 

I always thought the frames and under pinnings were the same on all Sportsman,400,500,600,700 just different drive trains. To me the springs from a 700 should also fit the 400......

 

NBsportsman could very well be correct. I seem to remember hearing that as well. BUT... My own personal experience has been with 500''s, 500HO's and the 700 twins. Both carb and EFI models.... I have yet to do any mods to the 400's.

 

I have a 04.5 500 and I swapped out my stock springs for the 700 springs with great results. It is a cheap mod and easy to do with just a few tools. I am usually all thumbs when it comes to mechanics. So, if I can do it, anyone can. Besides not having efi, I think that the sportsman 500 is a great all around machine. Good luck with verything!
Junkie

 

moosehunter
Do you know what the stock spring rate is on the 500HO 2004.5? I would like to know the difference in spring rates between the 500 and 700.