Hello to all. This is my first thread I've posted and am a new member. I was wondering if anybody can give me any advice?
I picked up a 1999 Polaris Magnum 500cc Liquid Cooled ATV for $450 the other day. It was a rather good deal, and figured even if it doesn't run, it's worth $450 just in parts alone.

My first problem is getting it running. It has spark, It Has compression. I went through, Cleaned the carb, Cleaned the gas tank out. Blew out all the gas lines. Checked for any debris in the fuel pump. I put it back together and the engine WANTS to start. After giving it some gas and finally using the pull start some more( it has electrical issues that i will get back to), i'm able to get it running. The first issue is that there was fuel DUMPING out of the two vents coming from the carb. Fuel was also dumping out of the small little valve on the bottom of the carb bowl. only stayed running with the throttle pressed, and it still ran like ****. I was told that this issue is the Float, needle and seat?


Issue number two: electronics:

I recently purchased a brand new battery. Added the acid, charged it and hooked it up. There was no battery when i received it but i connected the Black wire from the harness to the negative, and the red positive wire from the solenoid to the positive. There is another solenoid for the winch but my first question is, is the solenoid for the winch a positive connection? When i connect the wires, the Speedometer DOES light up. The lights won't turn on. When i press the started button, the solenoid will click. When i turn the winch on, the winch solenoid will click as well. some terminals are corroded and im going to clean them tomorrow, but i'd like some tips/advice to solve the carburetor problem and the electrical problem and would like to see her run!

PLEASE HELP ME GET THIS FINE EQUIPMENT RUNNING!

 

Clean old Magnum body and racks despite the years.Sounds like it needs a carb kit or at least a new needle and seat.If gas is pouring out of the carb.Plus you say it has compression,but how much? All you should have is between 55 to 100 psi because of the cam detent that holds the exhaust valves open a bit during cranking,making it easier to start. Plus being a 99 model I'd check that the exhaust cam lobe hasn't ground down as a lot of 425 and 500 engines have done from 1995 up to the 2000 models.http://forums.atvconnection.com/pola...d-cam-pic.html Winches had the wires going directly to the battery and the winch commutator also had a red wire power wire going to the winch rotary style switch if it is a Warn.Don't know what the toggle is on the headlight pod? Use a simple test light/meter to see if the solenoid is jumping power from the battery side to the starter cable side when trying to crank. If it does,could be a bad starter. If it doesn't could be a bad solenoid. You can also jump the solenoid posts to see if the starter kicks over.See if this manual helps on checking things out. Goes up to the 98 models but shows the 425 and 500 engines and basically the same as yours.Index of /ORV Manuals/Polaris/1996-1998 - All Models Also depends on what type of winch switch and relay you have. The old rotary one or the with the dome shape relay or the newer black commutator and thumb switch.

 

500 Magnums are just a 500 Sportsman with a rear straight axle instead of a IRS right?
My would only click and not start once ,turned out to be a stuck bush in the starter.
Their are much cheaper aftermarket starters vs OEM ones if you you need a new starter.

 

My next step is going to be purchasing a Carb. Rebuild kit because cleaning it just isn't enough . I do NOT have a compression tester but i know for a fact that it has very good compression. when i pull the pull start sometimes it will pull me right to the ground... hahaha. Also, how would i check the exhaust cam lobe hasn't ground down?

As to the toggle switch for the winch, the picture you attached is the same one that i have.

 

Why buy a carb,when cleaning and a rebuild kit is usually all that's needed. Only time a carb needs replaced is if it's completely corroded or broken. The 500 Sportsman uses the same basic carb an kits are every where.1999 2000 Polaris Sportsman 500 Carb Carburetor Repair Kit 03 416 | eBay
You can usually see the exhaust lobe wear marks if it isn't already ground down like the pics show,plus you can use the lobe height specs from the manual link to check the lobe out with a digital caliper. Some cams wore down,others didn't. Just a mixed in bunch of bad heat treated cams for the most part over these few years.

 

Sorry, i didn't mean to say that i was going to buy a new carb. I put a period after carb for abbreviation. haha. Looking at the picture that will work fine to replace and will take your word for it if the sportsman 500 uses the same carb rebuild kit.

 

The pre H.O Sportsmans with the smaller 34mm carb would be the same.
After 2001 the 500H.O came with a 40mm carb.

 

So i ordered the Carb rebuild kit that you posted. I will follow up as soon as i receive it and install it. I also purchased a Started relay for 8 Bucks since it was fairly cheap. I just want to confirm one thing. On my fuel pump, there is one line that goes to my Fuel pet ****, and the other two lines go to the carburetor (One left side and one right side. is this correct? I always thought that you needed a impulse line coming from the engine or something?

 

Two fuel lines first go from the fuel tank to the fuel valve,one is the main,the other is the reserve fuel line. The center line from the fuel valve goes to the fuel pump inlet(at the top of the fuel pump) the lower nipple of the fuel pump is the outlet or supply line to the left side of the carb. The angled nipple(marked "P") on the fuel pump is the vacuum line that goes to the right side of the carb.This vacuum or impulse line as some call it creates suction on the pump diaphragm from the carb to get the fuel moving. Doesn't matter if this vacuum/impulse line is on a carb or intake manifold as the engine is what creates the suction.Here's a better picture of the fuel line routing.http://www.cyclepartswarehouse.com/f...1999&fveh=5477

 

Okay. Today was the day that i received the Carburetor Rebuild Kit. I purchased the EXACT auction that you had posted for me through eBay. Everything Went Smoothly. After going through the Carb, I did find some holes plugged up. Some wear in the components. The needle had some wear marks towards the bottom. I'm not sure if the picture helps but here's what everything looked like:

So i carefully replaced everything and when i went to go put the "needle" on,( i believe thats what it's called), I noticed this. The old one has the plastic piece stuck to the metal clip. It was stuck up there and held together with gunk and varnish. The new one moved freely. Is that white plastic piece supposed to move freely? Here's a picture:


One last thing: So i pulled the spark plug. Its a NGK BKR5E. When i examined the plug, there was a "slit" going through the top. I took a picture and it looked like this:


So, after the carb being rebuilt. I tried cranking her over. Fresh gas and all. She sounds like she WANTS to start. Will run for 5 seconds when i spray some Ether into the carb. I checked the fuel pump, fuel is flowing through the hose. Tomorrow, i'm going to grab a new spark plug and i hope it's as simple as that. Any other suggestions? I would have looked at the "cam Detent" and the "lobes" but i don't really know where to start, Where are they? I know a handful about engines but tearing it apart i get weary of. I'm 23 years old and learning more and more everyday and would appreciate if anybody could teach me why my god damn machine isn't running, haha.