Farmr123,
I also use the VES synthethic stuff.I purchased everything from Rick Ritter to,im expecting his stuff here tommorrow.

What proceedure did you use for break in?Rick said the first time start up should be no longer than 5 minutes.Next time I can ride at a slow throttle for about 15 minutes,than I can go about 30 minutes at a little faster throttle,than go about an hr before I need to shut it down.He said im in good shape to give er hell after the first tank of fuel.

Are you running 92 Octane?I ask because I also purchased his higher compression head and he said to make sure I run 92.Maybe your running your stock head?

As allways,I appreciate your advice and recommendations,
Bill

 

Bill,
When I was looking for power gains from my Xplorer I was told that the best thing I could do was shave the head and pipe it. Of course I didn't do it because it is still under warranty but I'm very interested to see what gains you notice.

 

my 400 engine quit runing one day i was riding in a field and all of a sudon it died so i tried to start it there was no compesion at all so i towed it back to the garage and check to make sure it was the topend and when i got the head off the piston looked good so i thought what the hell but then when i took the jug off i knew what the problem was the rin had sliped off and gouged into the walls off the cylinder it looked bad so i took it to the polaris shopp and in about a week i had it running again

 

Muddy, after much hem-hawing, I decided to leave it as close to stock as I could for reliability. I used a standard compression .020 over Wiseco piston, the original head, the original pipe, and had no porting done. The reason for this was, I had gotten the jetting just where I wanted it, and Rick assured me I wouldn't have to mess with it. Plus, I can just fill it up out of the 'tractor gas' fuel barrel (89 octane). It isn't so much that I don't know HOW to re-jet, I just don't like doing it. Spend half a day just to find out all you needed to do was move the needle clip one notch...I'm sure you know what I mean. If I were to mod anything at all, I would DEFINATELY get an EGT guage, makes jetting MUCH easier, plus you know if it gets between 1400 & 1500* you better do something different NOW to save your engine.
Be sure to wash the cylinder out, there was honing residue in mine. I am sure Rick mentioned it, but it is one thing to be sure to do. Also, watch the piston clips, them suckers are under quite a bit of tension.
For break in I:
Ran it about 2 minutes full of coolant but with the radiator cap off. The level will drop just a little when you get it running, so I would play with the throttle a little (revved it up about 1/4 of the way), add a little coolant, play with the throttle, check the coolant, etc.
Then I let it cool down, topped the radiator up, and drove around the yard for 5 minutes or so slow. Re-checked the radiator & overflow tank (did I mention I used to help a friend wrench his MX bike & he once siezed the engine due to an air bubble - trust me, you don't want that to happen)
My mailbox is about 1/2 mile from the house, so I just got the mail several days in a row, just puttering back & forth for 10 to 15 minutes each time. After 4 or 5 days of this, I drove it trailing cattle for 1 1/2 hours. Now I drive it like I normally would, but still don't go WOT for more than about 10 or 15 seconds at a time. I think the main thing is to not get too much heat on the piston until it is broke in good.

On a side note, I am surprised you are fixing the beast again. If I had all the parts wear out you did, I would likely be driving something else by now. It just amazes me how much you had to do to yours (how many miles do you have) vs. what little I had to do in 5000 miles. I don't think yours was built on Friday, it was Friday, the 13th! LOL [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

Farmr123,
I accept full responsability for my top end problem.It was MY fault that my piston had a hole thru it because of my mis-understanding of correct jetting sizes.I thought that because my friends were griping about their eyes burning from riding behind me,that my 230 main jet was to high.I now see where I made MY mistake.I cant blame this one on Polaris and I wont.I had 2400 mile on the Xplorer before this happened.Its been brewing for some time now to.I relly cant wait to get it back together.I still have over a yr left on my extended warrenty and dont want to afford another quad at this time.There are a total of 5 ATVs in my immediate family,im not in a hurry to get rid of the Xplorer,but I will admit,I hope my problems slow down some.

Bill

 

Muddy, it takes a big man to admit when you screw up. It would be all to easy to just blame your Xplorer for the problem. My hat's off to your honesty.

 

Muddy,

Keep us posted on how well you're pleased after the rebuild. I don't have a pipe, but I am in the process of rebuilding my Xplorer engine too. I opted for the Swaintech coated piston, along with getting the head shaved and flywheel lightened. I want to know your impression of power gains obtained from the increased compression. I am still currently waiting for the coated piston to get back to RCR, so I'm not sure when I'll get my stuff back. Are you going to install an EGT? I've thought about it, and would like the digital one offered by Hotseat, but I have a hard time letting loose of $300 for it. Anyway, keep us posted.

Thanks,

Waylan

 

Bill, good luck with your xplorer, one question may i ask you, do you recomend purchasing the 5 year polaris warranty, and are they good on the claims when something breaks or malfunctions? thanks
TOBY

 

Toby,
ANY warrenty is only as good as the dealerships mechanic wants it to be.When you bring the ATV in for repairs,if the mechanic constantly blames YOU for the problem,the warrenty is WORTHLESS!

On the other hand,if you have a mechanic that has YOU the CUSTOMER as his TOP priority,an extended warrenty can be a big value,especially on the 4x4 model ATVs.My extended warrenty on my Xplorer was 445 bucks for 3 yrs.There is no doubt that it has FAR exceeded what I paid for it in repairs[about 2500 bucks in repairs and labor allready].

Welaxa,
I'll keep you posted on the performance upgrade,if any?My friend Jeff beat me about 5 ATV lengths with his new Grizz,I can judge the performance gain when we re-match after im broken in.I have no plans on buying this 300$ EGT thing you refer to.I would like to have this done from someone who allready owns one though.

Bill

 

Bill, the EGT (Exhaust Gas Temperature) gauge is not really a mobile type gauge. (Meaning you usually are not able to bring your quad in somewhere just to have it checked.) The probe has to be installed into the exhaust pipe at a specific location by drilling a hole in the pipe.
You can still jet the motor by "reading" the plug which is satisfactory in most cases. Or by using other peoples suggestions,(which can be risky at best) The results however will not be nearly as accurate as the EGT gauge. With this gauge you can be sure what is happening in your motor at all times, at all RPM ranges, at all temperatures and at all altitudes. You will be able to tune your motor for optimum performance without the risks involved in guessing or reading plugs. I believe from reading many of your posts you are the kind of person that expects the most of your toys and the best way to safely get it is with an EGT gauge.
I must confess, I don't use one on my quad but then I have a 4 stroke. They are much less sensitive to fuel and weather changes than a 2 stroke. But one comment I would have, is that if you buy the gauge
think of it as 1 time investment into your 4 wheeling future. It is an accessory that can be moved from quad to quad when you update or change or can usually be easily sold separately with good resale value. And they do give peace of mind!
I am not trying to sell you a gauge but just the benefits of having one. Good luck on the reassembly!