My wife has a 05 sportsman 400 and the front left strut is locked up. The right side goes up and down fine,but the left side only goes down an inch and then it's hard as a rock and won't compress anymore.
There is also oil on the shock.
If I buy a strut and replace it myself, I need to know if when I pull the strut..is the spring under pressure? will I need to take it to the dealer to have it compressed?

 

If you follow the same directions as we've posted here in the past about replacing the springs you'll find if you leave the tires on and jack up the front just enough to get the tires off the ground, there won't be much pressure on the springs.....Just don't go more than you have to as you might run into cv problems...You're gonna have to remove the storage box to access the top of the strut....Piece of cake my friend....

John

 

Cool, as a loyal sportsman owner I have found there aren't many repairs I won't tackle.I just like to gather as much info as I can before I start a repair I haven't tackled yet.
I wiped out the front end on my 700 a few months back. I took the whole front apart and rebuilt everything in a day ..($940 for parts) ..I'm sure I can pull this one off.
I go and look at what is posted here.

 

Good deal....Get back to us if you have anymore questions..

John

 

on the 05 u should get the top of the strut from inside the box.

 

Removing the box gives you more room to work...

John