1999 Polaris Indy 340 rear suspension shock...

[racerherbieMN]

Posted this on in the Kids section, but now responses so will try here.

All, the front Rear suspension shock on my Daughters 1999 Polaris Indy 340 is shot. Did a lot of digging and I found that the Kimplex 04-271 N7 says it should fit. However I have pulled out the shock from the sled and it's around 13'' long extended but the Kimplex is only 10''. Not so sure that would work. Thoughts?? The other thing is the Kimplex 08-157N7 which says its for the front shocks, however, the specs seem to match closely to the shock I pulled out of the sled. Would that possibly work?? Any idea appreciated as Polaris doesn't seem to have a replacement for this year's shock.

 

[retiredpop]

Babbitts online shows an OEM part 7041739 for $143.99.

 

[BeartoothBaron]

Just curious where you're getting the Kimpex part number from. I've found some considerable mis-matches from online sources, that's how I ended up with a pair of hi-fax for an XTRA-Lite skid from DennisKirk. The best way to match aftermarket parts is if it tells you "replaces OEM xxxxxxxx," but that should match the extended/compressed lengths. It's getting harder and harder to find replacement parts for these older sleds, especially anything OE quality, but there should be something out there.

 

[racerherbieMN]

I was able to get the new center shock to work. Had to use the old upper bushings and get a different spring retainer.

Now a different question. How do I tell if the rear suspension shock is good or bad? I can push it in and out and it has resistance both ways but stays in the position you push it to. Should that happen or should it push back out to the extended position? I have the springs out of it right now because one of the 2 rear suspension bolts snapped off when I are was pulling the 4 bolts to remove the skid.

 

[BeartoothBaron]

That's normal, most older OE shocks (and typical replacements) weren't gas shocks. So, if you compress them, they'll just stay there. Of course, even if it's still got some resistance it may not be doing a lot for you. Even, say, a 5-year-old shock will degrade significantly in typical use from water intrusion and oil degradation. People talk about a night and day difference going to a new sled, but some of the difference is from riding on old, worn-out shocks. Obviously there's more to it than the shocks, but you'd notice a big difference just going to new quality gas shocks all around on an older sled. Not that you can necessarily find those, unfortunately! Anyway, probably not super-critical on the kids sled (depending on how much riding it sees), just depends on how weak the shock feels and what level of performance you're looking for.