'97 polaris chain box leaking and making noises

[champlainl]

I just bought this sled last year and after runnig about 6 miles down the trail I noticed a ka-chung noise, sounds like it's coming from the chain box,also I noticed that it leaks,hopefully just a bad seal,anyways my questions is , do I need to take it to a sled shop or is this something I can tackle myself? I am somewhat mechanically inclined but I 've never worked on a sled before. Do the chains stretch? Where can I get a service manual for this puppy? It is a polaris Indy trail 488 touring,6300 miles on it,motor redone about 600 miles ago as oil injection crapped out,so the previous owner says,any help would be appreciated as this sled is for ice fishing and I'm gonna need it farely soon.
Thanks
Bob

[BrookR]

I would say go ahead and remove the cover on the chain case. This is a simple thing to do. Just remember that there will be some lube comming out, "hopefully". Take a look at the chain and gears a see if you can tell anything is wrong. Check that the chain dosnt have a ton of slack. Or that the lube is all metal shavings. That would be the easiest way to do it, to start with. If it is more then you wish to handle from there, take it in to your local shop.

[champlainl]

Can I tip the sled on its side to remove cover

[XCR440]

Absolutely, but either way, you are probably going to have some oil to clean up.

[champlainl]

I've taken the 4 bolts off the cover,there is a bracket hold a cable ,i've removed those 2 screws,now there is a larger bolt on the cover and I'm not sure if I should remove it (this bolt is just a little left of center),then down further on the cover there is a smaller bolt,not sure if I should remove that one,please help and fyi,this sled has reverse if that matters. Thanks!

[champlainl]

with the 4 outer bolts removed from cover, the cover doesn't seem to wanna come off. After looking at my parts list it appears that those 2 inner screws i removed hold thecable mount bracket on.

[champlainl]

650



this is a picture of the 2 bolts

[polarisracingboy]

Most likely your chain is loose in the box and grinding on somthing. Your gonna want to drain out the oil first before doing anythign when taking of the cover. In the 05 xc sp they had faulty bolts in them and I blew the whole chain case on my sx sp 600. So i replaced those bolts wiht new aftermarket un recalled bolts from my dealer and the probley was fixed wiht a new chain case. So i replaced the bolts on my xc sp 500 and it has beenm the best running sled ive ever run.

[Big_A]

If you want to see the OEM parts list that has pictures of where the parts go check out this link . http://www.alssnowmobile.com/oemProductParts.aspx
Pick Polaris and SNO for sleds the year and model. It provides a direct link to the Polaris Fiche views showing anything you need to see with parts listed and it helps when your wanting to know how to take something apart or put it back together. Check out the Touring model Indy trail as it has reverse like yours. When I read your 1st note that kachuck noise you mentioned sure sounded like a bad belt that had a chunk missing. If your belt starts coming apart that makes a noise like that also.

chain case adjustment
turn the drive pulley backwards and put pressure on it, secure the parking break to hold it there this takes pressure off the chain
loosen the chain adjuster
tighten by hand till it's tight
back off 1/4 turn and tighten lock nut
that sled takes about 13 oz of chain case oil.

good luck.
Alan Fedden
http://www.asksynthetics.com/

[zrt]

if its leaking oil it means that the bearing is probably bad and its probably got your chain out of alignment, which could be what's making all the noise

[DRHSpecialty]

The bolt on the outside of the chaincase cover (kinda in the center) needs to be removed. It screws into the idler shaft for the reverse idler gears.

[PolarisXC800SP]

I have a XC800..I have not had the leakage problem, but driving down a trail last year I had a noise inside the chaincase. There was a little bracket on the inside that helped to keep the chain a little tighter and not rub on the cover..The screw came loose and the bracket was bouncing around inside against the chain and eventually it dropped down to the bottom and jammed up the drive chain..Ending up costing a bit for a new chain because of the damage and a belt that I burnt up trying to figure it out on the trail.