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The Problem with the Fill plug and Why they Strip

6K views 22 replies 13 participants last post by  oilcan1001 
#1 ·
The reason the fill plug strips is because of the way it is made. Look in it and you will see 5 tabs made by a press pushing a tool in to make the corners. The fix is to use a small sharp chisel to brake off the tabs. They keep the hex tool from going to the bottom, leaving a very small contact area that is easy to strip. If you strip it, remove the tabs and gently. tap the hex drive in to the bottom. It will go a long way in. Now you are ready to back it out. DO NOT USE STEADY HARD PRESSUE. Do use JERKS until it pops loose. There is magic in the jerks over steady pressure. Other thing, invest in a 3/8" hex socket set and forget the Allen wrench. I hate being ripped off for a replacement. $30??? For a $5 item. Come on Polaris. Be reasonable. Sure must be someplace on line to buy a standard plug like this for much less. It is not custom made for Polais.

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#2 ·
Thanks for the insight. Do you know:

1). is this magnetic?
2). what the thread size and pitch is?

I’ve yet to have even a challenge with mine, but I’m using sockets, so maybe I’m getting more upward pressure on mine. As I recall the torque on these is really low too. I’m surprised folks are finding enough force to tear the head up is required to get them out.

atb. -d
 
#3 ·
When they are tightened cold, then a few heat cycles they can take a set that can make them hard to get loose. Learned the Jerking trick many years ago. It works very well. Only this front one has given me trouble over many years and machines.

No magnet. 18 threads per inch which makes it SAE not metric which is confirmed by the wrench size. Also a SAE size 5/16. I think it may be on this page as 6409-06. Being in the hydraulic fitting class also make sense. For the very high cost of $.53. Any hydraulic shop employee on here that could confirm this???

 
#4 ·
SAE.. what plug is this/ where does it go?
 
#6 ·
I only had trouble removing mine the first time;). I asked my dealer, "who TF preps these vehicles, Polaris, or you"? They gave me a substantial discount on the vastly overpriced plug. After that, torquing it to spec, I've never had any problem at all. The factory still appears to over torque these for shirts and giggles.
 
#9 ·
The reason a flush plug is used is to keep a drain plug from being knocked out by a rock or such. Like the flush ideal as a safety measure for a hard core off road machine. Can scrap over rocks with one less worry. Yes they are protected by skid plates but they flex.....
 
#11 ·
Big difference between cast steel and cast aluminum. One you can use a tapered pipe plug the other you cannot. Need to use a flat head style. One has to use what the market place offers.
 
#14 ·
Majority of truck transfer cases are aluminum and use pipe plugs for fill and drain. Rather ridiculous to use an allen o-ring plug in place of a pipe plug.

With that said I weld a nut onto the fill plug. Makes servicing far easier.
 
#15 ·
Would you consider the truck transfer case walls much thicker than our stuff? The flat "O" ring plug is used for hydraulic systems that have lots of pressure to hold in. Also suspect that a pipe plug just might go in far enough to hit the gears. Close tolerance.
 
#16 ·
You really think that little diff with barely a splash of oil is creating more pressure than a transfer case with 3qts of pressurized oil?

Both ports on the front diff have plenty of material for pipe plugs, especially the problematic fill plug. Hilliard made things more difficult for no reason. But it is what it is at this point.
 
#17 ·
Stripped mine, went and bought an OEM Polaris plug💸 then stopped at NAPA to see if I could get a cheaper spare & the guy couldn't match the treads.
 
#18 ·
The reason the fill plug strips is because of the way it is made. Look in it and you will see 5 tabs made by a press pushing a tool in to make the corners. The fix is to use a small sharp chisel to brake off the tabs. They keep the hex tool from going to the bottom, leaving a very small contact area that is easy to strip. If you strip it, remove the tabs and gently. tap the hex drive in to the bottom. It will go a long way in. Now you are ready to back it out. DO NOT USE STEADY HARD PRESSUE. Do use JERKS until it pops loose. There is magic in the jerks over steady pressure. Other thing, invest in a 3/8" hex socket set and forget the Allen wrench. I hate being ripped off for a replacement. $30??? For a $5 item. Come on Polaris. Be reasonable. Sure must be someplace on line to buy a standard plug like this for much less. It is not custom made for Polais.

View attachment 656990
Yep, stuck a Square peg in a Round hole to make 'em...
;)
 
#19 ·
It is a metric thread and used only on hydraulic systems as near as I could fine. Found a much better plug but have not field tested it yet to be sure it will do the job. If it does will pass the information on. It was WAY cheaper then the way overpriced Polaris plug.
 
#20 ·
The type of drain plug used is a choice of the product designer. They don't care how hard it is for the diy'er to remove and are of the opinion you should only let it be serviced by a authorized dealer who has the skill and knowledge to do the job safely and effectively.
 
#22 ·
I’ve never had a single drain or fill plug issue. And I’ve owned a lot of machines, starting in 2008 with the original 800 RZR. I’ve owned at least 8 or 9 machines. I service the machines more frequently than what is outlined in the owner’s manual. Which means more plug removals than most do. I have always used Allen sockets, never the L shaped wrenches.
 
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#23 ·
I bought my xp used and the front diff fill plug was already a little stripped. I also went with a set of Sandcraft plugs for the ease of future fluid changes and the magnets are really strong.
 
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