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Belt alignment perfect

14K views 22 replies 9 participants last post by  Jontay  
#1 · (Edited)
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So I have a really stiff shifter, now I’m guessing I have a bad shifter cable or potentially a bent shift fork or a smoked clutch bearing? Anyone having this same issue? I’m guessing the stealership is going to give me grief since i have an AA stage 3 clutch and tune.
 
#3 ·
Take your belt off and grab your needle bearing and give it a spin (with the engine off of course). If it spins freely, your problems are elsewhere. If it is locked to the shaft or if it requires effort to spin it by hand, the needle bearing will require some attention. This is a common problem Polaris is having with these redesigned clutches. I had the same problem with my 2020 Premium Pro XP, thought it needed shimming (which it did) but, after the dealer shimmed it to their satisfaction, the secondary would still spin as if it were locked to the primary clutch when in Park or Neutral. The dealer told me that is "normal" but I told him I couldn't shift the transmission with the engine running. We went back and forth and he finally told me to leave and not come back until I had put at least 100 miles on my machine.
So, I dug into the clutch and found my needle bearing was very difficult to rotate by hand. After identifying the issue, I corrected it and it worked like it was designed and shifting was like butter. Then, I got my Stop Ride notice, went back to the dealer to get my new clutch, showed the Serv. Writer and Tech how my secondary was absolutely stationary in Park and Neutral, they said that's the way it's supposed to be. Of course, I had to inform them that I had to do quite a bit of work to get it that way and they had no comment. I just wanted to ensure they saw it was working perfectly when I brought it in and they committed to having it work the same way after they were done replacing my original clutch. Of course, when the Tech brought it out to me, the secondary was once again spinning as if locked to the drive clutch. I asked the Tech why that would be since it was working perfectly when I brought it it. His explanation was that it was "normal" for that to happen and just to drive it and "have fun". The only thing fun about it was listening to the these guys jumping back and forth over the same fence. So, once again, it falls to me to correct the problem so I can use this machine and I will because it really is a nice SXS, but not when it won't shift correctly.
 
#10 ·
This makes absolute sense. So my secondary twitches while the car is running but doesn’t spin. When the car is off the shifter moves through the gears like butter so I highly doubt it’s an internal trans issue or cable. I’m leaning towards the bearing.
 
#5 ·
The seals on either side of the bearing were a smaller inside diameter than the bearing itself and were clamping down on the shaft causing the entire bearing to rotate with the crank, putting constant pull on the underside of the belt. Rather than give advice on modifying factory parts online, I would rather say that the solution is elementary. Use care, don't be overly aggressive, and be sure to thoroughly clean everything and lightly lube before re-installation.
 
#8 ·
I hear you. What I did was gradually remove SOME of each seal until the seals and bearing were the same inside diameter. I knew I had it right when the entire bearing assembly would smoothly slide onto the shaft instead of having to push and work each seal onto the shaft. Also, after installation, the bearing spins freely instead of like it was before. Just be cautious and make sure everything is good and clean before reinstalling. Remember, those seals do perform a function, that being to contain the grease inside the bearing and not let it get out and contaminate the sheaves. I used a good bearing grease and LIGHTLY worked some into each needle rotating as I went to ensure everything had a light coating. Also remember that this will not correct clutches that are not aligned properly. The goal is to have your secondary be completely at rest when idling in Park or Neutral. Then the transmission can be shifted easily without yanking on the shifter until something breaks.
 
#12 ·
Not sure if clutch symptoms are similar model to model, but when the bearing seized on the primary of my 900 xp, I was unable to shift into any gear with engine not running. The belt was warm/hot. When cold, was able to shift. Had to shut engine off at stops then restart. Rebuilt the primary but ended up putting a new clutch on.
 
#23 ·
My old clutches had 4500 miles on them (2017 XPT) and I've been having shifting and clutching problems...noisy, hard to shift, no control at low speed, etc.
After completely disintegrating a belt, I removed the snap ring and washer from the secondary clutch and replaced with a 2019 washer/bolt setup, drew sharpie lines on the hub/sheaves, ran it, checked it again...and the the lines were gone from the sheaves but still on the hub and fillet weld.. That's good!
Since then, I very recently replaced with brand new "built" clutches (both Prim and Sec). Now, my Secondary spins in Park/Neutral but I was told by the clutch folks that I bought from that this is normal until the gearings "wear in" and to drive it for approx 100 miles and see what it's doing. this weekend is first ride.

Also, I don't want to hijack this thread, but from reading other threads I am leaning towards doing a shaft alignment (the Prim and Sec shafts) in the near future.

Anyone have any thoughts? Btw, I will post results after I get 100-200 miles on new clutches. And YES, I'm going to also put on a brand new OEM belt.