Hello, I had to order a new outer CV joint in order to rebuild my rear end, and I ordered a third party replacement part. It all looked good except for the fact that the "snap ring" (the one that's supposed to have the tabs that you point toward the shaft side, not the wheel side) was a "lock ring" (the one that the inner side of the CV has, where it connects to the transmission). Here are some pictures:

This is the shaft. You can see it's rounded at the end, pretty sure it isn't supposed to be that way. I think it's damage from when the mechanic didn't put the snap ring in and it ground off the end. Anyway, there's the the snap ring fits into.



Here's the outer CV joint, you can see the slot for the snap ring in there



This is the ring I received



Here are some pictures from the service manual, of what the snap/lock ring is supposed to be:





The service manual talks about spreading the snap ring when removing/installing the CV joint, pointing the tabs toward the shaft, etc.

So I thought I just got the wrong part (or really that the third party just uses lock rings instead of snap rings) But I looked at the parts manual and found that the snap ring is PN 7710576, which, from all I've seen, looks like the same lock ring, not the snap ring (here's a bad picture of it Polaris Pure ATV Clip Set of Two Qty 2 7710576 | eBay).

So... is the service manual wrong? And if so, what's the best way to install the CV joint with a lock ring? Put the ring in the groove on the shaft and tap it in or somehow get the ring in the CV joint and then install the joint on the shaft?

Sorry for the crazy long post, I'm just eager to get my quad back together so I didn't want to leave any details out!

EDIT: This is a 2007 Sportsman 450 4x4. It looks like 7710505 might be the right part, but the parts manual only lists it for the inboard side CV joint. I would link to the parts manual but it's dynamically generated so it doesn't have a unique link. I know many CV joints do use lock rings that you just jerk to take off... can I just use the lock ring that came with the part?

 

Some service manuals can be a little generic,don't keep up with parts changes at printing time. Yes you have the 7710505 clip at the plunging joint at the transmission side of the shaft.The out board cv shows to have the standard c clip. Items 7 and 10. Dirt Cheap Yamaha, Polaris, Suzuki & Kawasaki OEM Parts & Accessories – Cycle Parts Warehouse Easiest way to assemble this drive shaft(with the snap ring in the plunging joint) is to have a pair of small flat snap ring pliers to open the clip (while mounted in a vice),align the spines with the shaft and push it down until the clip seats on the shaft locking it in place.On the out board cv,the c clip is mounted on the drive shaft then seated to where it locks in. Never liked the newer style clips,but they seemed to hold ok.

 

So for the outboard I do use the c clip (locking ring, part 7710576) shown in the third picture? And to do that I put the c clip on the shaft and then tap the CV joint on? And is one style better than the other? Could I use the snap ring (7711505) or the c clip (7710576) on both inboard and outboard sides?

Thanks for answering so quick!

 

Nope different type application on the regular cv joint versus the plunging joint on this model as the inner cage is different for the different clips.Wheel side you just tap the cv off the shaft for boot change and the shaft circlip stays on the shaft.Install just use a dead blow hammer/block of wood to knock the cv back on the shaft.Shaft circlip locks into the cv joint cage groove.. Different removal/ install on the plunging joint. Here's a good video on the small snap ring in the plunging joint and how shaft is removed and installed.