Hi everyone , i am new to this forum but i am a moderator on a similar PWC uk forum so i know all about newbies asking strange questions , sorry in advance for my ignorance

Have recently bought a 07 sportsman 800 , when i picked it up from a private sale the gear shift seemed stiff to engage , a few days later the belt exploded which i changed , this seemed to cure the issue and i could select the gears no problem , however it started to creep and the belt started to scream , so i booked it into a Polaris dealership for them to have a look

They come back to with the belt was the wrong way round as the arrow was facing the wrong way , that was me i did not realize when i fitted it i had put it on the wrong way , but not they have informed me i will need new weights and a spring , but also a full new clutch which will cost £500 as they say it was misaligned and damaged , if it has to be replaced then so be it , but if anyone can offer advice on how this could be avoided it would be much appreciated

Thanks in advance

One other quick question does the Sportsman float as i see loads of clips of people taking them through deep water

 

Since we don't have pictures,only your description on the clutches,the only thing we can do is guess. Yes if the clutches are misaligned,creeping will cause it hard to shift gears. As far as what damage has happened you have to trust the dealer OR you can try shimming out the rear clutch yourself if it's still creeping. We've all heard to run the belt with the letters legible from outside,but I've found plenty over the years where people have run new belts the other way and haven't had any problems. Just depends on the belt as most of them can run either way as the pattern, or grip is the same either way.It's more important on a used belt to make sure you replace it the same way it came off! You don't want to install a used belt "backwards" or "against the grain" from the way it was used to running.There fore,it's BEST to run the belt with the letters legible so you will know if you ever take it off,which way it went back on! As far as floating,NO they will sink like a rock!! They don't have a sealed floor pan like the early Volkswagons's did that could float awhile. Just keep on the throttle until you're out of the mud/water hole as the tires do what little "floating" there is. I've had plenty hauled into the shop that were swamped over the handle bars..
#1 is the shim(s) that can be added or removed that can help align the clutches. Dirt Cheap Yamaha, Honda, Arctic Cat & Polaris OEM Parts & Accessories – Cycle Parts Warehouse

 

welcome to the forum. yes the belt has to go only one way(in theory) as it's suppose to be direction so you can read the word polaris. as far as floating, no they really don't "float like a boat, but the tires do help make it seem that ay if you weren't on the bike. i have had my 800's up to the seat in water, but don't push your luck and suck water in the engine to do damage. as far as the clutches go, have no idea on how many miles on your bike but, with alot of miles it might need a rebuild. unless the clutch sheeves are damaged or the spider has excessive wear then you shouldn't need a new clutch. creeping is a common issue, but mostly is caused by either a clutch out of alignment or a bad ebs bushing in the primary.(this is what the engine braking is). another issue that causes the clutch to be out of alignment is the front engine mount brakes and will make the engine go out of alignment. plenty of post if you do a search on all these issues as they sometimes are common problems.