'05 RMK 900 166" - couple questions

you'll want to check the intake boots off the throttle bodies for cracks, if you see any cracks in the rubber boots then replace them asap. #1 cause blown motors as these boots were bad from the factory and cracked with in first year on most in 05. 06 boots were a better composit.

Also check compression on the motor to be sure its not losing any as it is about or past time in my opinion to refresh the top end. I would put the 06 pistons in it as the 05 stock pistons seemed to also have a bad batch and ended up cracking and alot of guys lost bottom ends when this happened. I would put 06 pistons in it before this season to refresh and prevent any mishaps.

as far as the clutch, get a used polaris clutch off ebay or snowest and throw it back on there. I think oem clutch is way better clutch then comet and with the right springs and helix you'll run spot on. theres alot of posts on here about clutching 900's depending on what you have for aftermarket performance as well. I have the 975 bb kit on mine so I don't know the exact springs for a stocker to tell you off hand. its out there though!

Drain chain case oil and get the chain case bracket update from the dealer for free. its an update and they will do it for free. had problem with chain case covers warping and leaking out all the chain case oil in these sleds as well. make sure you do this and get fresh klotz or other good brand oil back in it.

Buy side panel vents if you don't have them from someone like slp or 2 cool air vents like $150 a pair and put them on. this will give you the cooling you'll need to not blow belts every other ride. Also you want to get the slp torq stop arms for the motor which will be like $120 for both @ slp.com. these two things along with pulling some of the washers on the secondary bolt and putting it back on so it can move (float) some is the only way to make these 9's run reliable on the belt issue. for $270 or so you'll have the setup you'll need to not burn a belt but about once a season (1500 miles) for me. Figure belts are $160 for the good ones and $90 for the old style so it won't take long to add up vs. fixing the problem. had a friend who went through like 7 last year due to hot clutch, once he did just what I stated above it was 1 belt for the remainder 500 miles last year and its still on it in the garage.

If you buy a pipe buy the 06 slp setup and get the 06 flash done on the ecu as well. better mapping then the 05 setup.

if the radiator isn't gone junk it and get the relocation kit to re route it and block it off. it is worthless and about 25lbs of weight in the nose!

Slp slt or pp skis are a must too if you ride alot. stock skis suck and dart...

other then that hold on and ride it like its stolen, she will make you smile with that low end torq monster of a motor and if tuned and setup right it will be a great sled for you. otherwise if you ride it stock and don't do the few things above you'll hate it and be done with it mid season, i promise. wouldn't trade my 9 for anything except a turbo. nothing pulls it to this day thats non turbo of course its a bb 975 on 30 nos to

make sure you get the right clutch! the 900 clutch is slightly different than the standard P-85

My biggest concern is the crankshaft. When the clutch came apart it did send a shock to the engine.
The blown clutch did warp the crank. The question is has this warp caused a crank failure 20 miles down the road or 2000 miles down the road.

Also ... what failed? The bolt first? The belt? The clucth? Each of these conditions warrant different avenues to ensure this does not occur again.
You need to replace the clutch which removes any problems with the old one.
The bolt too loose or too tight could have caused the break in addition to improper belt alignment and or defective clutch.

Improper belt alignment could be from the mounts ... no torque stop, no float in secondary, BAD CRANK , rusted shaft causing out of alignment clutch.

Are you planning to go into the engine or just fix the clutch and go on front there?

Have the clutch balanced after the new spring and weights.
spring should be black / green and second choice is almond.

The black green will engage at lower RPM taking advantage of the unique power of the 866cc engine at lower RPM.

For weights .... somewhere around 10-68 10-70 10-72 depending on other factors .... exhaust pipe , altitude , gearing etc. Desired RPM to be around 7800 to 8200 at WOT under load.

The 166 track cannot go high speed >70MPH for long periods of time or it may delaminate. I know there is a lower speed limit tolerance for the 166 something like 60MPH but can't remember exactly off the top of my head. Do you know the gearing in the chaincase? I think 19-39 is optimal for the 166 but others prefer a 42 but does cause speed to increase.

How are the motor mounts ... is there a torque stop??

A blown clutch , bolt , belt can cause internal engine failure.

Hopefully nothing severe happened internally and I think others will chime in on how to diagnose if there is internal damage.

Run the 3211115 belt and you can buy parts from Babbittsoline.com They are a Polaris dealer and seem to have the best deal on parts that I've found. That torque stop that way is out of Polaris spec and needs to be adjusted that was an issue with a lot of belts blowing. Mine was way out and my dealer cranked it down almost touching the pull rope housing and it vibrates more but no more belt problem. I had them install SLP torque arm and I installed the SLP torque stop. If the trottle body boots need to be changed do yourself a favor and replace the throttle cable with an aftermarket one you won't have to tear it all apart again and it should be done. The guy that sells them is on here he is FatBoyzfrenchy and makes a quality cable. The factory one is junk.

BoonDoX said:

I dont know if it was a good idea but I idled the engine with the primary off, seems to idle fine. From how the bolt broke I think it either came loose and twisted it off, or maybe broke from fatigue. The primary also had a large crack in the mainshaft which could have contributed, also.

Basically I am probably going to get a new polaris piece, and swap over the weights and spring from the existing clutch. Then I can bench test it and determine if it stays together or not!! (the engine, that is).

Factory torque stop is there, b ut there is about an 1/8" gap between the rubber and the block. Not sure about the engine mounts, will go check those today.

Click to expand...

Running the engine at low RPM's (under $4,000) with no load will not hurt it.

900 engines must warm up prior to riding them hard so you don't hurt the crank.

BUT running the engine at full throttle will create an over rev condition and result in the RPM going above "safe" speed which is gonna hurt something.

So ... since you did not discuss the belt ... it is okay?
Which belt do you have?

Do a search here for INDYDAN and look for his post on cranks. Not trying to scare you ... I figuire if you understand what the engine "suffered" when the bolt and clutch fell apart you will understand if or when the engine does fail because of the crank.

If you don't have a way to balance the clutch send a personal message to 1200psi or call Brad at 435-753-2661 and ask him about getting a clutch setup and balanced.

I would not use anything from the old clutch. Call it superstition or bad karma but stay away.
Weights cost aroung $45 , a new spring cost $35 and the balance id $35.
Cheap insurance so another clutch does not unwind.

What mods have been done to the sled?

BoonDoX said:

The belt was mia when I bought it, but the po claimed to run the most expensive polaris belt.

The only mods I know of are a lightweight can, and slp air intake.

I am not sure if I want to get involved with this thing now! Look in swapmeet for the ad It seems 05 was a bad year for these. Was it the first year for the new design??

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This was the first year for this chassis and engine.

The engine was made for 2 years with major changes in the second year ... 2006.

The chassis is good and needs some simple changes to be great !!!

Since you already have the easiest way to save weight ... new can there are some mods to make the sled awesome. Probably under $1000 in mods if you buy new.

Assuming the engine is okay and there is no damage you should get get another 2,000 miles out of it.
Most people here will probably suggest you upgrade the pistions (the 05 had a skirt problem and the 06 fixed the problem) just so you can take a look at the engine internals to see if it is okay.

I am sure some are gonna suggest you to look at the bearing tolerances of the crankshaft.

Anyway ... a used engine is around $1000 to $1500 for this sled if the one you have is messed up from the bolt break.

There are endless ways to spend time and money.

But the first thing is reliability , handling / performance.

Do a search on 900 RMK upgrades and see what needs to be done.

The main issues are weight , rubber cracking (causing lean issue)
vibration causing wires to break.

Here are a couple threads you should read.

http://www.snowest.com/forum/showthread.php?t=52811

Things have changed alot sense I posted last year about the 900 cranks.

With the problems the 800 cranks have had, I have traced alot of the same problems to the 900.

Let me say before I go on that Aarons accually one of the first TorqueMaster set-ups and his price does not reflect what was all done to his case.

Questions that must be asked before we go on.

Why do some 900 motors go 4000 plus miles with no problems????

Why do some 900 motors make it 2000 miles and then fail ???

Why do some 900 motors go only hundreds of miles and then break the PTO - end.

I have had quite a few of these apart lately and have checked them out extensively.

There are two main reasons for the wide range of PTO - end & rod failures.

Number one, - the case fit to the bearings is all over the place from way to tight, To way to loose.

Now that being said, if the cases are to loose what happens is over a short period of time - The PTO end goes out of tru and once it gets past the point of no return the shaking of the drive clutch tears the PTO- end off. this is a progression form lets say .002 - then .003 - then .0045 - then .007 - then .009 - then .013 - them - .016 ( Mental Picture ) as the crank starts to get worse it becomes its own worst enemy and as it gets worse it gets worse faster ( some people can feels this happening ) and performance also drops off at a somewhat relative rate.

Number Two, - the case fit is to tight and everything seems great on the sled and it runs perfect and then out of the blue it just locks the motor for a nano second and the drive clutch weight shears the PTO - end right off ( most of the time the crank frees back up before you even check the recoil rope and give it a tug. ) a few have said the motor was tight but then in a few minutes felt normal and started fit up.


Ok, all this being said there are lots of factors that enter in to improve on these findings............Or make them happen faster.

A - sled storage I.E. Where its parked ( heated garage ) ( or sitting outside )
B - Warm-up time ( HUGE Difference ) depending on how your crankcase fit is.

If you have a very loose fit case and your sled is sitting out over night and the crank is let say ZERO degrees and you start your sled and let it idle 10 to 15 minutes and take off...................

The crankcase is alumimun and it now has warm water in the front of the case and its starting to grow a few thousands and the crank is still frozen and there is NO case interferance fit and the crank is floating in the case only to be held in place by the factory lock ring groove " on the Inner bearing next to the water/oil pumpshaft.

Now when you hit the throttle and the drive clutch slams against the belt and all that torque from the 80mm stroke 900 pulls on...............

THE PTO ROD PIN - Because the case has let loose on the two stock PTO bearings and this can only go on for so long ( the only reason ) they last as long as they do is because the 900 has a HUGE rod pin and gives great supporrt ( Unlike the 800 ) the reason the 700 Domstics last so long is because the 700 rod pin is much bigger then the 800's. and the 900 is monsterous.

That all being said.................. The birth of the TorqueMaster 900, I am offering this in 3 different versions.

#1 - Stock Crank
#2 - Stock Crank center and Billet MAG & PTO - ENDS 30mm or 33mm
#3 - All Billet 33mm PTO - END

These will all have the Triple PTO Bearing Kit.

Now, there are lots of reasons I went to three bearings.

A - It divides the load applied to two bearings 33% ( Obvious )
B - The PTO Picks up a new spot in the case and adds 33% more area of support. ( VITAL ) to the used case coming thru that have prior damage.
C - Bearing temp goes down and so does bearing swelling caused by the transfer of energy to the belt pull. ( Especialy Important on the RMK's )

Of course, my next statement is an educated guess ( Only time will tell )

I believe that the 900 Motor with its Monster Rod pins and the Lock ring groove moved from inside the crank centers to the outside inner PTO bearing, and the proper case fit that the crank will be almost indestuctable. ( some people can break an anvil ).

The key to all of this............. Is doing it before your crankcase is woren to a point where we can't fit it properly to the bearings.

The make or break factor to this is............

#1 - if your case has enough OEM fit to work with
#2 - if you have not drove it to long with a bent crank.
#3 - Blowen a belt at close to full throttle ( This is the death of the case )

As for the Prices quoted for the PTO-end only ( VOID ) due to the fact that My Billet end cannot be used with out changing the MAG -end also. There is no way to get it to balance. ( Note ) That even with the added weight of the Billet MAG & PTO - ENDS weight needed to be added to get to 60% of what you would call perfect balance of the 80mm crank ( there is not perfect balance to a crank ) I do not want to talk about balance, It is far to complex.

You can use the stock belt with the Cat drive clutch, It uses a 900 Cat Bolt & a Cat Puller. Drive clutch belt clearance MUST be checked after you have installed your clutch weights of choice. ( they MUST be cat weights or a Cat weight engineered copy ) NOT a Polaris weight

Weights effect clutch shimming, get ONE brand of weight and STAY with it do NOT jump around unless you COMPLETELY understand how much sh!t you can screw up running the wrong style weight in your drive clutch and how much it can effect belt shimming.


As for prices on all the options please don't ask, when I get time they will all be on my ebay store listing.

Do yourselves a favor, ask around about our TorqueMaster 800 Bottom-Ends, I have sold alot of them and the feedback on them has all been the same ( The smoothest best their 800's have ever ran. )


Thanks

Dan.
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23503 145 th Ave
Welch Mn 55089
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More threads

Is 06 900 RMK good?

http://www.snowest.com/forum/showthread.php?t=89058

900 Engine ?

Piston upgrade on 06 vs 05. 05 piston skirts tend to break.

Vibration from out of balance clutch / balancer causes crank failure.

Under and over tightening of clutch bolt causes crank failure.

Air intake boots known to crack result in lean condition

TPS sensor known to fail along with voltage regulator unable to use PERC.

Diaphrams for VES known to crack causing intermittent bogs at high RPMs.

Throttle cable sticking / oil cable failure

Wire harness known to crack or short out at TPS area and under gas tank.

Motor mount rubber durometer too soft causing out of alignment belts shreding the air intake box.

Air intake rubber loosens fron heat / vibration between intake plenum and air box ... lets air in from engine area with no filtration.

BoonDoX said:

I read in here that measuring crank runout can determine if it is bent, is that as simple as using a dial indicator on the crank pto?

I checked the boots and they do have some cracking, but it seems to be external. How much do those cost? Get them from polaris?

I also see a bit of coolant has collected right below where the exhaust y pipe bolts to the pot, is that bad?

Also from what I have been reading I should delete the front rad? The bumper seems broken as it moves when you grab it. What should I get to replace that?

I really appreciate your help Dan, this is my first polaris in years, so I want to make sure I get all the bugs out of it before I go rocky mountain climbing :-D

Click to expand...

Here is a good read for you.


http://www.snowest.com/forum/showthread.php?t=41263


Yep you can check the crank runout.

Replace the cracked boots from Polaris Babbits is a good price

Coolant leak gotta figure where it is from.

http://www.snowest.com/forum/showthread.php?t=74414

Front radiator delete ... yes save weight and at low speeds the front radiator get heated by the engine.


http://www.snowest.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-42051.html
throttle cable

http://www.snowest.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46926

All this stuff is in here ... search the archives.

yet another good site from SNOWEST DEDICATED to the 900 RMK and 866cc Liberty engine.

http://www.takeforum.com/900club/index.php?mforum=900club

BoonDoX said:

Great stuff man, thanks!!

Can I update to 06 throttle body boots on this 05?

Click to expand...

yes thats the recomended fix as the 06's are better.
also compfusion makes a motor mount kit on here that fixes the belt and some performance issues and then you dont need to buy the slp torque arm push arm (band aid fix) i have a 05 900 166 and love it also your torque stop
should be .010-.030

and fatboy frenchys throttle cable is a must.

900 rmk

want to say thank you dan my bottom end is working good one question you may have an answer to is: I'm over revving about 8200 rpm have changed weights twice am at 77's now

another note is clutch alighnment is off by .33in with cat primary, plenty of spline on secondary to shim out.


so far so good thanks again dan

sledneck900 said:

want to say thank you dan my bottom end is working good one question you may have an answer to is: I'm over revving about 8200 rpm have changed weights twice am at 77's now

another note is clutch alighnment is off by .33in with cat primary, plenty of spline on secondary to shim out.


so far so good thanks again dan

Click to expand...

Did you use the Polaris or Arctic Cat clutch alignment tool to check the alignment?

Either way there is no adjustment for the motor on the 900's ... the clutch is either aligned or it isn't.

I have the AC primary on mine too ... I've never actually checked the alignment on it, but I haven't had any issues with belt heat.

The crank is about the only part of my sled that works right now unfortunatley

Either way, what are the rest of your clutching specs? Did you you the Polaris primary spring in the AC clutch? What altitude you at? If you're throwing 77g weights and still over-revving I think you probably need to go to a stiffer primary spring.

Right now I have the primary clutch set up the AC factory spec for a stock 2003 Mountain Cat and I hit 7800-7850 .... I've got the clutching on this thing ALMOST spot on for 8-10,000 feet ... 10,000-12,000 I have 65g weights I've been using.

I think the primary clutch needs to be shifting out a little bit farther, but I also switched from the 1080 belt to the 1115 belt, which I think I lost something in that. I hav about 1/4" more sheave on the primary that could be used I think.

I am gonna try the Red/Pink spring in my secondary if I ever get these electrical glitches righted.

Sled is on the way to Carl's Cycle for a complete teardown of the motor and run through of the electrical system right now. i figure if they can't fix it no one can

cat alignment tool. my belt was trying to roll on me. yellow with white spring on my primary its the cat spring. generally 0-4000ft. I'll check the specs. on the 03 cat thanks for the post fellow tirdpolisher