Okay Jerry, I see what you did. I went to the part # index in the back of the Polaris Magnum parts manual and looked up the two parts. They were found on page C10 in the main gearbox. One thousand pardons. I thought that you had swapped out the rear differentials, instead of the final drive gears within the transmission.

Originally when you said final drive gears, I thought of the differential, as we do in automotive applications.

 

Loyal, you may not have mountains on the Avalon, but there sure are mountains on the west coast.

 

No appologies necessary Thor, I totally understand the confusion that can be generated by the differences in terms applied by individuals. I mean after all I was referring to the do-hickie that sits next to that thing-a-majig.

 

There is no Magnum with the 500HO, read the article. Polaris would never build something more powerful than their flagship, and why should they . . . the Magnum is quite simply a lesser, "cheaper" machine, that does not ride very well. Old tech stuff for those who can't afford the "good stuff". Dream on . . .

 

Just a bit of new info on this RMK, I found out that it IS still switchable between 2 and 4wd. I believe I read somewhere up above people were concerned about this, so it should set you at ease about that.

 

With the solid rear axle it should be more stable than the Sportsman equipped the IRS on the off camber hill climbing.

I know the Honda 450s with the straight axle was much more confidence inspiring on off camber situations than our Sportsman. I'm sure there are some that will disagree but that's what makes the world go around.

 

Jack, lesser machine? I just recently had to winch my dads SP 500 through a paticularly rough very rocky area where only moments before I went through on my Magnum 500. When I tried bringing his through(expecting it to actually work through easier)it started having trouble when the front tires started slipping then got worse as the rear tires slipped and eventually became high centered on the rocks. I attibute the problem to the fact that even though it has a superior suspension, it suffers from lousy OEM tires and poor weight distribution as the motor assembly is set back several inches to the rear as opposed the the Magnums engine being set further forward. I do have to qualify this though because my Magnum 500 is very modified i.e. Mud Runner tires (26"), Wiseco piston, cam, lower gearing etc. However, having said that I even made it through with my wifes 325 Magnum, bone stock! I'm not picking on the sportsman but I am claiming that in this situation and potentially others the Magnum is a superior machine not a "lesser machine" it just costs less. I also feel that this new RMK series will prove to be a VERY popular machine, especially on the west coast where we have such steep terrain. And it costs more than a Sportsman 500 HO.......$7299.00 list. That ain't cheaper bud, and it certainly ain't lesser!

p.s. As for it being a low tech machine, seems kinda funny to me that Polaris saw fit to use the latest HI-TECH front differential in the Magnum and not in the Sportsman first!

 

Lower gearing? I haven't heard of this but was just thinking about it this week for my Scrambler. How? What? Talk to me.....

 

ox, I purchased the final drive gears from inside a Magnum 325 gearcase thru Polaris. I then installed them into my Magnum 500 gearcase. They fit fine and work even better! Don't know about the inside of the Scrambler gearcase, sorry.

 

Maybe you had such a good idea Jerry that Polaris borrowed it. There is always a great deal of talk about power losses when installing oversized tires. Perhaps this new Magnum with the lower gears will be just as fast with larger tires as a "regular" Sportsman with the 25" tires.