I have a 99 polaris sportsman 500. Last riding season I noticed that there was a knocking noise coming from the primary clutch area and this year it is a little louder. I took the clutch cover off and the knocking noise is coming from the primary clutch area for sure. It only makes the noise at idle speed but when you hit the throtle the knocking noise seems to almost go away but not completely. What does this mean, do I need a new primary clutch or is this normal?

 

Common problem as machines get older. The clutch buttons wear down the clutch guides built into the clutch and starts sounding like a rattle and as times goes on,begins to sound like a diesel truck! You might be able to replace ramp buttons and eliminate some of the noise but check if guides are grooved down quite a bit,if they are the only way to stop the noise is replace the clutch OR try find a good cheap one thats not worn down and grooved. OPT

 

I can live with the noise for now but is it ok to ride with it like this or is it going to be bad for my fourwheeler, is it about to fall apart or will it last for a while. Sorry for all of the questions I don't know much about the primary clutch.

 

I've had guys ride em way passed that I would, could hear em unloading machines a block away!! Clutch will eventually break one or more of the three guides,BUT you will know it for sure! Check it out first for grooving and see if you can fix first, or check salvage yards,e-bay,etc. A new clutch is expensive. Plus you have to have a spider tool to work on the clutch,plus a clutch puller. OPT

 

Exactly where do I look for grooving on the clutch. Is there a link somewhere that has pictrues of this?

 

Just take the clutch cover off. There will be three "legs" of the clutch visible and you will see 6 black plastic "buttons" and you will see how they slide up and down,just push in on the face of the clutch, where they slide,check for deep groves,when clutch was new they are flat. It could be you have a few buttons worn down to nothing which makes the slapping noise very noticeable. You can also feel the slack by rotating the clutch back and forth and feel the "play", there is usually little or no slack if clutch is in good condition. OPT

 

you will need a special tool to remove the spider fprm the primary clutch where the buttons are so most likely you should either pull the clutch off(requires specail threaded puller) or take it to a dealer/mechanic w/ the correct tools to fix beofre as mentioned it does damage form being worn out. imo

 

I got a chance to take a good look at the the primary clutch today and found that two of the buttons are completely broken. I looked at the parts blow up and it looks like the button has a stem attached to it that goes inside the pin roller. There are two buttons that seem to have sheered off from the stem and are now free floating around and Im prettty sure that this is not normal. The areas on the clutch where the buttons slide do not look to be grooved out too bad, There is a slight goove but not much. Should I get a new clutch or just have the buttons replaced?

 

if there is little to no wear then just fix what you have and you will know it will last if everything esle is fine. a new clutch will be expensive compared to fixing that one. imo

 

Buttons have changed and don't have a stem,just round with hard plastic side and soft side(fits in the spider) If you can get the clutch off with a puller( about 25 bucks) just let the dealer do,if not you will have to obtain the spider tool. Cost of tools not worth buying,may not need them again?? Depends on how long you keep the atv or if you plan on doing your own repairs! OPT