My 1997 Sportsman 500 has bellied up. Started running real weak, hard to start that sort of thing. Took carb apart and cleaned it up. Same thing. Sent it to local guy who works on 4 wheelers (not Dealer) and he said the compression was real low and it needed a new top end for about $1,500. Hell, the 4 wheeler isn't worth $1,500. So I told him I would do it myself. He said I didn't have the special tool/tools to do it. What the hell is he talking about? anybody know? Can't be that difficult to rebuild the top end, but did Polaris put some kind of queer bolt or something in there to keep them in business? Thought I would ask for help before I f*&k something up!

 

you might not need the ring and valve work. it might just be the exhaust lobe on the cam worn down, if so you will need the cam and exh. rocker arm/cam follower, and no special tools.......stroker

 

With the 97 sportsman it is more than likely the cam. It is still a somewhat costly repair.

 

that's right almost 300.00 for parts mentioned above. the only plus is that polaris only offers the h.o. cam for replsacment. it helps but don't make it an h.o.......stroker

 

Thanks for the replies.

I think that if I'm going to crack the case and replace the cam then I might as well do the top too. The motor has 3,000 miles on it and I'm afraid if I start replacing parts I'll be chasing other problems later on.

Maybe I'll just part it out or sell it and walk away.