I put some 27" mud tires on my 09 sportsman efi w ebs. Plowed the driveway yesterday and it seems like the belt may be slipping a bit. I had recently put new belt on and the clutch is in good condition. I was plowing in low gear. What is the best cheapest way to compensate for the bigger tires as far as clutching. Can i get away with a diff primary spring? It is stock right now.

 

One thing to check first is that the clutches are aligned properly. You can eat up or burn belts quickly if out of alignment because of worn one way washers,soft/worn motor mounts.Just remove the cover and see how the belt rides on the clutches.If it tends to drift inward on the drive clutch,the drive clutch may need to be rebuilt or washers added behind the rear clutch to bring the belt out. Look over these posts on clutch repair.Clutch belt creeping - ATVConnection.com ATV Enthusiast Community On clutch springs and kits call these guys that can help help on your needs.Sport Utility Clutch Kit - 27-28" Tires - WE436260 - EPI

 

I did recently pull a spacer behind drive clutch because it was spinning in neutral and shifting was a bit hard. It now has one shim and does not spin or creap. I cant really tell if its slipping or if the primary is just making a slightly strange noise that i dont really know how to explain. Could be the one way washers. It seems to have done this since i put these tires on. The tread is 1 1/2 deep.

 

I'd look over the posts as to what they've done and replace the washers on the one way and while you're there might as well replace the guide buttons. No sense in having to go back in later on. After the clutch is in good shape you may have to add a washer or two behind the secondary for alignment. You can still contact epi on springs or kits if you want to go that way especially with heavier larger tires you've installed. Then you wont have to worry about burning belts.

 

I never seen a belt slip while in low range , did you get the right belt? I can nose up the a wall in low range and dig 4 ruts in the dirt without a belt slipping. Hard to believe it would belt slip on slippery snow and ice while in low range.

 

Replace the two spacer washers part #4? Or part #19 vespel. Which one is the felt type?

 

Not 100% sure if its a slippage issue or not. Its a newer gates belt, the higher performance one. Going to order the spacer washers for the one way on primary. OPT recomended and replace those and i just ordered an epi red spring to get the rpm engagement up.

 

If you do a search most people stay with Polaris oem belts. I know there are cheaper and supposedly stronger belts out there,but a lot of people have had problems on some belts lasting or working right. Polaris belts cost more but worth the price. A lot of our customers at the shop found that out and went back to stock belts.

 

The oem belts are usually the best bet for whatever machine you have. Aftermarket belts many times sound better but the oem belts are designed to be a perfect fit. As with most aftermarket parts, they work but are usually never a perfect fit. Yamaha oem is much like Polaris in that they are usually more expensive than the aftermarket options but time and time again its proven that the oem is the best option.

 

My 500 only slipped once, I changed the belt to a "Goodyear GatorBack" and it would slip here and there . I used it for one day and bought a OEM belt and it was fine again.

I don't know who makes the belts for Polaris but I seen enough to stick with them. The OEM belt are only $70 Canadian and I change it every 2000 miles if it needs it or not . At 70 every 3 years I do not want to experiment with aftermarket belts.