Polaris Snow Blade Modifications

[Bessy]

I have an '03 Sportsman 500 HO, with a 60" snow blade (stock, manual tilt, winch lift, though I'm unsure of the exact model). Now granted we've seen a significant amount of snow over the last 36 hours, and it is quite heavy and wet, but the blade has dropped off on me probably 10 to 15 times today already. While clearing out one of the neighbour's places sometime around 11:00 today, he and I took a look at the under carriage of the blade frame and couldn't see anything that looked that out of place underneath, yet the blade continued to detach, particularly when backing out after pushing a pile. it seemed that if the blade itself or the bottom of the frame got caught on a snow bank at all, it would yank it off the front of the atv and I would have to get off, line it up and reinstall, repin, etc, which got really old after about the second time it happened.

So we took a look underneath the atv and determined that it might be possible to curb the issue if we were to weld a piece of 2x1/4 flat stock to the blade, so that it had to travel that much further to become dislodged, I think it might work a little nicer. Anyone have any other genius ideas or suggestions that might curb the issue? I'll try and snap a picture or two tonight when i get it into the shop and dried out a bit.

Any advice is much appreciated!

 

[Bessy]

So after pulling the atv into the shop and dropping part of the plow frame, one thing i noticed right away was that it's not a snug fit at all,

if you look at the bolted frame member that is attached permanent to the bike, and the quick tach portion of the plow mount itself
you'll see that there is a tongue of sorts, and a stop block that hits the bar under the atv.

What i am considering is lengthening that tongue so that there is another 1- 1 1/2" roughly that slides over the bar, so that when back dragging or backing out of a pile, the frame can't hang up and pull loose.

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

 

[jsaw]

My Polaris blade (2001) does not look anything at all like yours. My plow frame extends all the way back to a plate underneath the floorboards where you put your feet.

 

[Bessy]

My Polaris blade (2001) does not look anything at all like yours. My plow frame extends all the way back to a plate underneath the floorboards where you put your feet.

Mine is an '03, they went with a new design in 2002 I believe. It bolts directly to the atv's frame out front just below the radiator screen, then uses some kind of

bolted clamping brackets that extend back to just in front of the foot rests.

In the third picture *I think, you can see the rear bolt set up as well as the bent round stock that the tongue slips into. It's a pretty good design in theory, being that the way the blade sits on the ground, forces that lip into the slot. You drive up to it and when you see the blade move with the bike, you attach your winch hook and pull it up until the front latch clips in. Then all you have to do is give the pin a small turn to lock it.

Unfortunately in my case, due to wear and tear or just a design flaw, when I back out of a push (as I like to push right across the road and into a bit of a ditch at some properties, when I lift the blade and back up, the pivot points for the lifting mechanism (or sometimes the side of the blade) sometimes get caught and drag enough to pull that lip off of the round stock, which causes it to fall. There is enough play in that quick latch that it swings, and then you lose connection. The whole thing is put together with way too much play imo.

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

 

[dw1]

I have a snow blade on my 2000 Sportsman 500, does yours have pins to lock it in place? Your pics are so big, hard to tell. Mine is winch lift, manual turn like yours, although we have not had any snow yet, I have been pushing some gravel around and not had any issues. I can take pics if you want to see how I mounted mine.

 

[Bessy]

I have a snow blade on my 2000 Sportsman 500, does yours have pins to lock it in place? Your pics are so big, hard to tell. Mine is winch lift, manual turn like yours, although we have not had any snow yet, I have been pushing some gravel around and not had any issues. I can take pics if you want to see how I mounted mine.

Only one pin on mine. Basically the tongue at the rear of the plow engages with the slot under the atv, then you pick it up with the winch until the hook at the front latches on the round stock pictured at the front of the bike seen in the shot covered in primer.

When that hook is in place a pin shoots across to lock that hook in place. Like I said, it seems like a good system, but the issue still remains. I assume your pins are likely in the same spot that i have bolts (pivot points for the lifting portion of the frame)

sorry about the pics, I'll try and resize them later but I'm using tapatalk on my phone right now.


Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

 

[dw1]

Here are some pics of mine, if it helps any?

 

[Bessy]

Ya mine is the newer style that allowed for the quick almost drive-on, drive-off, style. I'll probably have to clear some snow tonight when I get home so I'll try and get a shot or two of the whole plow and maybe the way it goes on.

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

 

[ToddW]

Mine appears similar to Dw1 that's on my 06 Sportsman.

I assume you guys don't need to plow too much / long of a driveway or it's all flat?

After going through belts and springs I had to stop using the Polaris, it just didn't make any sense... especially when it's deep that it's coming up over the front/blade, but I did it for a couple years until I got a tractor, and since then... snow hasn't been nearly as bad, ha ha!!

 

[Bessy]

Mine appears similar to Dw1 that's on my 06 Sportsman.

I assume you guys don't need to plow too much / long of a driveway or it's all flat?

After going through belts and springs I had to stop using the Polaris, it just didn't make any sense... especially when it's deep that it's coming up over the front/blade, but I did it for a couple years until I got a tractor, and since then... snow hasn't been nearly as bad, ha ha!!

Lol actually our driveway is probably 2000-2200 sqft, and rather long, but flat and paved. However I also plow out a number of neighbors and family properties that have driveways with stupidly steep hills, and curves, etc. the worst of which is across the road from my place, but I've never caused any real damage to the machine other than bending that bar stock at the rear of the plow mount ever so slightly. Ofcourse now I've probably jinxed myself in saying that.

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

 

[dw1]

Rest assured, I just put the plow on mine, we will not get any accumulation of snow lol: I have been pushing a little gravel with it, gravel drive, probably 200' long and turns into my 50' wide pole barn, just playing and haven't tore anything up yet........

 

[Bessy]

So as it turns out, we are hard on equipment around here (who knew?)... upon further inspection a few of the tack welds that hold the bottom of the frame together (for rigidity I suppose) had broken, and the steel itself had actually sheered slightly where the center latch tower was welded to the rest of the mount.

I took it over to my uncle's place today to reweld those areas and we got some persuasion tools out and knocked the tower back into where Dad thought it should be (22" from the edge of the pivot point for the latch to the tail of the mount where it goes into the slot behind the wheels). It seems to me like it should actually be closer to 2 1/4" or so because it does bind up a bit when you lift the plow, so you have to stand next to it and give it a quick shake to get it into place.

Alas the welds are all fixed up, and it still falls off if you try and go backwards with it at all... I felt up underneath again where it catches behind the wheels, and with the front latch engaged, the tail of the mount is just barely sitting on the round stock back there, which to me seems wrong. There is easily a half inch or more of space between that and the block, leading me to believe that the whole thing needs to move back a half inch (making that 22" closer to 22 1/2" - 22 3/4". The problem remains though, that there is no way through normal wear and tear (As nothing other than those welds appears to be worn through at all) that there should be that much space. I'll try and get some better pictures up in a bit that show what I am talking about, but I am at a loss at this point, because it takes very little movement to dislodge that rear attachment point. I'm still considering lengthening that tongue back there to provide a bit more room to move forward and aft, but that doesn't fix the hook issue up front.

 

[csp]

I'll be honest, the pictures aren't much help. It's too hard to tell which parts are the plow mount and which are the ATV frame. I can't tell if the picture in post #6 is from the front of the ATV or underneath it as well.

 

[C_F]

From what I can make out, the round bar that is on this bracket... LINK ...the ends of that round bar seem to be bent on yours. It appears that the round bar needs to be straight. Maybe that's why it slips off?

 

[Bessy]

From what I can make out, the round bar that is on this bracket... LINK ...the ends of that round bar seem to be bent on yours. It appears that the round bar needs to be straight. Maybe that's why it slips off?

Are you talking about the one at the front (shown in the primer shot)? It seems as though it is still straight to me. The one underneath however may have a slight bend to it, but even then it appears to have a much larger gap than can be accounted for from the amount the upper lock tower could have moved. Like we are talking a half inch or more. I really wish I could get a better shot of what I'm talking about, but I don't really have the means to get right underneath the atv in my little amount of usable floor space at the moment.

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

 

[C_F]

Are you talking about the one at the front (shown in the primer shot)? It seems as though it is still straight to me. The one underneath however may have a slight bend to it, but even then it appears to have a much larger gap than can be accounted for from the amount the upper lock tower could have moved. Like we are talking a half inch or more. I really wish I could get a better shot of what I'm talking about, but I don't really have the means to get right underneath the atv in my little amount of usable floor space at the moment.

Yes, I'm talking about the one underneath. Click the word "link" in my post above. Ultimately I am unfamiliar with your specific plow design, so maybe I'm not being much help after all.

 

[ToddW]

Lol actually our driveway is probably 2000-2200 sqft, and rather long, but flat and paved. However I also plow out a number of neighbors and family properties that have driveways with stupidly steep hills, and curves, etc. the worst of which is across the road from my place, but I've never caused any real damage to the machine other than bending that bar stock at the rear of the plow mount ever so slightly. Ofcourse now I've probably jinxed myself in saying that.

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

Hmmm, 2000 sqft? That's only 200' x 10', I'd consider that short/small and being paved is REALLY REALLY nice.

Mine's around 400' x 10', dirt/gravel, and I do another 5000-6000 sqft of parking/driving area at the top of the driveway / around front of the house, maybe closer to 10,000. And even more if I'm doing a couple hundred feet of road in front of the house since we're on a 90* curve, and I don't like to be plowed in, again right after I clear it

I enjoyed the relaxing nature of 'being one' with the plow and snow that riding the quad gives you, but it's sure nice on the tractor to push 2-3x as wide and way more distance at once, ha ha ha and not get the arm workout!! LOL

Of course the winters have been very mild for a couple years now I miss the plowing. Lately it's been just drive tractor up and down and around and call it good LOL!