The dealership just installed a new set of swing arm bushings about a month ago,and I still have a little slop at my right front swing arm bushing when I grab the axle side/side.This causes the tension on the chain to change a little too.Its not real bad,but I'd like to get this fixed before it becomes a problem.I dont really want to go back to the stock Polaris bushings if I dont have to.

I was wondering if anyone has any knowledge of better aftermarket SWING ARM bushings[not A-Arm]bushings?

I allready called HPD,they only carry after market A-Arm bushings.'

Anybody?

Bill

 

Bill,

Look up my latest post on swingarm bushings and read it.........basically what I did was take the swingarm off, along with the pivot pins, and took them to the local machine shop. They'll need the old bushings to make the flanges on the new ones the right thickness. Then, get them to put the pivot pins on the lathe and take just enough off to clean them up, and then machine you some bronze bushings (I think bronze 6061 is what he used). Ask them to put some sort of grease grooves in the bushings to make sure grease gets in there. I got all this done for $70. Of course, I had to do the labor to my machine. Not a terrible job. Maybe, if you're in good with your local dealership, he will do the tear-down and put back together part for you. Anyway, mine is perfect now, and the man who machined them said that as long as I kept them lubed, the bushings would last for years without getting sloppy. Hope this helps.

 

Walexa,
I will copy your post about this and go to the Machine shop.If there is someone who is willing to do this,I will do the tear down myself.I thank you for the sound advice and will keep you informed.

Bill

 

Bill,

Since you are going to do it yourself, I will try to help you out a little more:

You must remove the belt cover, belt, and drive and driven pulleys. I removed the 4 bolts holding the floorboards in place in order for the fenders/floorboards to swing out to give more working room. You need to do this for both sides to gain better access to the swingarm bolts. The back plate for the clutch housing must also be removed to gain access to the left side swingarm bolt (the bolt heads are 1-3/4", and you will also need a 2" socket/wrench for disassembling the right side pivot pin. I used a 3/4" drive with a cheater pipe on everything). You will also need to remove the chain, rear wheels, and the bolt for the lower shock mount. Once you get the swingarm bolts removed, you will need the 2" socket and 1-3/4" socket to remove the right-hand pivot pin. At this point, you have it all apart, and everything should be self-explanatory. The plastic bushings are not too difficult to remove......I just used pliers.

For reassembly, buy some loctite 262 for the threads (Polaris service manual), and some loctite primer T or N. I couldn't find the primer, so I used a brake cleaner that was recommended for preparing gasket surfaces. Make sure the threads and bushings are all clean and dry (lube the bushings after the loctite has set up--24 hours). I liberally applied the loctite to both the female and male threads until they were all full. This stuff begins to set fairly quickly, so don't waste a whole lot of time. Anyway, on the right-hand side, the Polaris manual calls for 120 ft-lbs torque to bolt the pivot pin in place. With plastic bushings that will give, this is ok. However, with metal bushings, the flanges on the bushings would bind and not allow free movement.........therefore, I just put the loctite on, and screwed the nut slightly less than hand-tight.......just to take up slack, but not hinder free movement. Then, bolt the swingarm back up to the bike, and Polaris calls for 150 ft-lbs of torque. Using the cheater pipe, I probably used 250 ft-lbs, and nothing broke..........just make sure you get it tight. Polaris recommends letting the loctite set up for 24 hours prior to operation.

I'm sure that some of this sounds more complicated than it is.....it is very simple, but I'm not the best at trying to describe everything precisely. Once you have it apart, if what I've written doesn't make sense, let me know, and I will help you.

One more thing........get the machine shop to make the outside of the bronze bushings a light press-fit so that they won't rotate inside of the swingarm, but won't be hard to remove either.

 

Muddy, take not only the old bushing & pivot pins, but your swingarm, as well. If you want a light press-fit, it is best to have THEM mike it out. If you go by the old plastic bushings, they might be too tight, as bronze doesn't give nearly as much as plastic will under pressure.

Best of luck.

PS it will likely need to be greased more frequently with Bronze bushings as I think the plastic were supposed to have some sort of self-lubing quality.

 

Farmr123,
I had full intentions of bringing in the swing arm to.I dont want the machine shop to base the new bushing size on the plastic stock bushing alone.I want the new style bushing to PROPERLY fit my A-arm and my pivot pins.I thank both of you guys for your support and help.Now,I just need to find some extra time to do this?

Bill

 

Farmr123,

Thanks for making it more clear about bringing in the swingarm.........I brought mine in, but didn't make it real clear.

Although it sounds complicated, I removed everything in about an hour and a half. Took it to the machine shop the next day at lunch, and then took me about 2 hours to get it back together.

 

Well, I had a real nice reply all wrote up, and my *&$**8&&(*(*&% computer froze up. So anyway, here is the condensed version.

My front tie rod ends were getting loose. (different story, check other posts)
While digging through my library of industrial supply catalogs, looking for heavy-duty ends, I stumbled across pre-made bronze shoulder bushings.
If you know what size you need, reply back, as the prices are reasonable. For example, a bushing with an I.D. of 7/8" and an O.D. of 1", with a bearing length of 1" and a 3/16" wide flange only runs 91 cents. Yes, under $1 Prices range from 44 cents for the little guys, up to about $7 for the big ones with an O.D. of 2 1/4"
If you can find out what sizes you need, I think I can get you an 800# to call, and even the part #s of the bushings.