The crack went right across the edge of the bulkhead and back in toward the steering post on the right side completely separating the broken piece from the bulkhead. It feels soft up and down but no leaking fluid. I was thinking of trying to get it welded across the crack and then putting the m right support bracket on to strengthen it up. Thoughts?
My Opinion:
A correctly installed M-Rite will probably fix your sled just fine, without any welding. If you do that, your broken piece becomes a spacer, like an over-grown washer, with the M-Rite taking all the up/down and side-to-side loads from your steering column. Obviously, a high quality weld repair done first, ground flat, with the M-Rite bolted on top, would be better. Not sure if it's worth the trouble.
I'd go with whatever advice you get from the guys at ModRods. They seem pretty sharp, experienced, and they have the best solution available for this particular Arctic Cat problem.
The bottom line is you need additional aluminum in that area. Owners who tried weld repairs alone, without adding any reinforcing, reported their repair welds cracked. Welds are weaker and less flexible (more brittle) than the original aluminum, so they won't last as long. An additional aluminum plate, like the M-Rite, adds a lot of strength and spreads the load across your bulkhead. Plus the M-Rite supports the weak bolted connections at the base of your aluminum A-frame.
That's my opinion. Good Luck!
