sd5500
Expert
With the front end off the ground, I can grab the upper arm and wiggle it a little. Also, lifting the ski up produces some play at the ball joint of upper arm and spindle. Normal?
LJ 452
TY 4 Stroke God
If you have all stock bushings then some play is normal. As for the ball joints, they "should" be tight. However the ones on these sleds seem to wear quite rapidly. So a small amount of play is to be expected. If the ball can move a considerable amount (say more than .020"/0.5mm) I would take it in to get them replaced, should be under warranty. If you don't do it for this season, you will probably need to at the end of it, so plan on bringing it in for next year.
stephenpen
Expert
Even after replacing all my bushings there is still a little play.
GT03235
Expert
The standard bushings are dirt cheap and a breeze to change just tighten them up with new bushings and it'll be fixed for a few miles
Raypex
Pro
If you ride hard and rack up miles, don't let the play in the a-arms go too long! IMO it's better to replace wear parts before you have to replace hard parts!
LJ 452
TY 4 Stroke God
stephenpen said:
My guess is that you used the stock plastic ones for replacement? If so next time try the Oilites, I got mine from Ulmer. and as Borat would say "it's tight". Even after 4,000+ miles, I checked pins and no wear, highly recommend this mode to all. Between the bushings and the NCI ball joint mod, you may have a front end that can go more than a season.
northerndoc
Expert
How many miles? My 09 XTX had about 2500 mi on it when all mine were sacked. Out of warranty though, so I got the Oil lites from Ulmer. Fairly easy install with proper tools and really tightened up the whole front end. Then some bronze rings for lower balljoints from NCI and new uppers from Yami (no aftermarkets available yet) and you'll be good to go for many trouble free miles. When things start getting worn on these chassis you'll notice some spooky handling at high speeds on well-groomed trails. Bushings are cheaper than losing control...
zeke66
Expert
My bushings were "loose" from day one. They are just crap. My plan is Oilites when they need changing.
