[ButchCassidy]

Hi Y’all,

Looking to DIY rebuild my stock Walker Evans shocks on my ‘18 machine. Anyone ever use this kit before? If so, is it a generic kit, or is it one put together by WE to improve the shocks? Rumor has it that when the XP 4 1000 was a prototype, Walker Evans had the shocks dialed in but Polaris made them change it... to the dismay of everyone. I want what Walker Evans originally designed for this machine.

 

[CyborgPirate]

Polaris didn’t make them change the Shock itself. What they did is cheap out on the springs and remove the crossover from the Shock body Therefore it’s not a true dual rate shock system. The shocks themselves are awesome. Now doing a complete dual rate springs set up with better springs, crossover, and even a revalve, all of which tuned to your riding style, weight, car accessories and riding terrain is the best way to get the most out of your suspension. Bandaid fixes are just that.... bandaids.

 

[Mattman06]

It looks like an upgrade kit. Your best bet to contact WE is to call them. I've called a few times and they're awesome.

 

[ButchCassidy]

So I did replace the factory springs with Eibach stage 2 springs with the associated crossovers last week. While I had the rear shocks off, I noticed I could hear the oil sloshing inside when I turned them upside down. Initially I figured I’d just recharge with nitrogen, but then I thought I’d better open them up and replace the oil and seals... now I’m in the rabbit hole and I figure I might as well change the valving to something to match the springs. I ride a variety terrain, sometimes solo and sometimes with 4 in the car. So I’m looking for a “Jack of all trades, master of none” valving. I’ll give Walker Evans a call on Monday.
Have a great weekend y’all!

 

[ButchCassidy]

So I'm going to answer my own question, I called Walker Evans and spoke to someone who was familiar with the development of this kit. He said that it was developed and tested near Barstow, CA, and designed primarily for high speed desert and trail riding, but he also mentioned that with a crossover adjustment and clicker modification on the shock it would "rock" in the dunes. He said a few things that went over my head, things like "dual stack valving", but it was enough to convince me to buying them. I figure I can do all four shocks, with new seals, oil, and Walker Evans valving for about $110 a shock, so that is my plan. Beats the prices with shipping and downtime with the big name tuners. I do enough variety of terrain and variance of weight to really want a "jack of all trades, master of none" valving on my shocks. Don't hate me for that!
I'll get them installed over the next few weeks and report back!
Also, I did find this picture online showing the difference between stock (on the left) shims and valving with the shims and valves of the kit (on the right). Pretty big difference!

 

[Mattman06]

You can see the dual stack above his thumb in the pic. Pretty interesting. He first stack is the low speed valving for rollers and small bumps. Then it transitions to the mid speed and high speed with the second stack which is for the ruts, big bumps and jumps. Gives you a smooth ride but lessens bottoming out from the hard impacts.

 

[ButchCassidy]

You can see the dual stack above his thumb in the pic. Pretty interesting. He first stack is the low speed valving for rollers and small bumps. Then it transitions to the mid speed and high speed with the second stack which is for the ruts, big bumps and jumps. Gives you a smooth ride but lessens bottoming out from the hard impacts.

He did say that the second stack “saves your ass”.

 

[ButchCassidy]

Hey y'all, so I got the materials and I'm going to rebuild and revalve my Walker Evans this week, and I have already run into a snag... I have the manual and I've watched videos, but evidently my shocks are different than both. Does anybody know how to access the snap ring on the bottom of the reservoir? The manual and the videos show pushing down on the end after removing the schrader valve to access the snap ring, mine seems to have a cover or something... I push down and nothing, and I don't think there is enough clearance to access the snap ring... anyone know?

 

[Jballou_woo]

You mention that you removed the Schrader valve. But your picture shows otherwise. As I understand how that style of shock is, removing all of the pressure will allow you to push the end cap in a small amount and then the snap ring should be in there.

 

[ButchCassidy]

Alrighty, so once again I'm going to answer my questions... first off, there is a wire snap ring that is very thin, Jballou is correct, they caps do push in. My issue was that the IFP seal was damaged, allowing the pressurized nitrogen into the oil. This caused the IFP to push against the cap (under pressure) preventing me from pushing the cap down. Fortunately I was able to access the IPF bleed screw through the Schrader valve to release the pressure. What a pain! After doing that I was able to open the shock up.
I rebuilt all four shocks today, took me all day but I've never done shocks before and sometimes when you improvise with tools, well, it takes longer. All in all, it's not a difficult job, but I watched a couple of videos from Rocky Mountain ATV on YouTube and they really helped. The videos are "How To Replace The Shock Seal On A Polaris RZR XP1000" Parts 1 and 2. They were immensely helpful in understanding what the job entails.
I ordered "shaft bullets" from Walker Evans Racing Development, and the seals, performance shim kits, and oil directly from Walker Evans Racing. They are two different companies.
The videos walk you through the process, so I won't repeat it here... But the results so far are great! Plush at low speed, firms up a bit when larger bumps are encountered at higher speed. I still need to play around with the soft/firm clickers and ride height, but so far I'm absolutely impressed. For around $1,100, Eibach Springs and DIY shock re-build and re-valve is awesome!
I didn’t get tons of pictures because my hands were covered on oil most of the day, but here are some differences between stock and WE performance shims.

 

[Mattman06]

Did you get any comparison pics of the rebound stacks?

 

[ButchCassidy]

Did you get any comparison pics of the rebound stacks?

As a matter of fact I did!

 

[ButchCassidy]

One other difference I forgot to mention is that the stock Piston had a bypass hole machined into the piston, something the pistons in the upgrade kit didn’t have.