Here's a question for either Polaris mechanics or anyone with an older Polaris 4x4. How do you tighten the front and intermediate chains for the front wheel drive? I had to change a rear sprocket and noticed that they were loose so I want to tighten them while everything is still apart. Any and all help will be greatly appreciated. Lata.

-Dan

 

Cowtit,heehee th's funny! Anyway this is how to go about it. The center chain should be adjusted first since this affects the front chain slack. After loosening center eccentric bolts, insert a large punch through gear & into eccentric hole. Rotate vehicle rearward to tighten chain. Chain deflection should be 1/4"-1/2" with 18 lbs of force at center chain. Tighten eccentric clamp bolts to 50 ft. lbs. The front is the same. There is one bolt you can only get from underneath the machine. When you tighten this bolt the chain deflection may change slightly so you may need to reajust. This was from my owners manauel and it's fairly easy to do, I just did it myself. If a punch doesn't work for you then you may need a hammer & punch & tap on the tabs on the eccentric drives.

 

Do I need to have the rear chain on to do this. I only ask because its off now, and I wasn't planning on puttin it back on until I get a new one, and that will be next week, but I wanted to tighten the other chains so I could put the plastic and everything back together.

 

You do not need the rear chain to tighten the center and front chains. I recently went through this whole thing a couple of months ago. I found out real quick that if the front eccentric has not been adjusted over a period of time it may become very difficult to turn. The front chains rarly need adjusting so it is more likely that the eccentrics for these two chains can become "frozen". They may move but not far enough. I could get the center adjusted fine, but the front was giving me all kinds of hell. I bent two punches and broke the tab on the eccentric trying to get it to move. Finally I took it to Polaris and they were able to get it to move but only with an air driven impact device. Point is, when you tighten the front it may not move enough to tighten the chain per the specs. You may need to use a hammer and punch to get that extra movement. Polaris recommended that I move my front eccentric more often, even if the chain does not need tightening. Also, spray lubricant all over the eccentric regularly. This will help keep it "freed up".

Good luck. Hope this helps.