Well I just bought a used Polaris Sportsman 500 yesterday… I took a chance on it because it does not run; previous owner said it had sat for 2 years, then it was started 3 times in the last year but ran real rough and then they couldn’t get it started again and has now sat for 6 months. I hope that’s true and the motor isn’t locked up but only time will tell. Got it at a good price though so if that were the case I know I could make money on it parting it out. It’s my first bike and I figure there’s no better way to learn than by having to work on one.
Anyhow – right now my plan is as follows….. Take gas tank off and clean it out well along with the petcock and clean/rebuild the carb. Get a new spark plug for it and install. Also, charge the current battery or get a new one and then start working through other possible issues. It will not pull start either. When I tried to pull start water came out on the pull start rope so it told me there was water in it, but it doesn’t appear that there was water or mud in air filter box or anything so hopefully its not in the engine. I’m guessing I will also need to replace the stator. I took out the top and bottom plugs today on the recoil start and let the sludge drain out. It was kind of a muddy, watery oil – would that be normal for one that got water in it? Also, I’m guessing I won’t get any spark if the stator is bad so should I go after the stator before the new plug? When I had it hooked up to my truck and turned the key there was power to all of the lights and dash so I would assume the CDI, solenoid and regulator are ok; or is that a bad assumption? Last question, when I tried the electric start, nothing happened so I assume that’s a bad ignition coil or starter or both?
I look forward to hearing back from some folks and any advice and insight is greatly appreciated. Also, if I could get a service manual that’d be awesome! I just want to say thanks in advance!
