Sorry to get off topic a little but here are pictures of a few ProX race sleds with the extra structural rivets in the cross brace. I looked at my sleds this evening and there is no doubt if you remove the cross brace you are asking for damage to the shock towers and eventually the entire bulkhead even with moderate trail riding.

And we only race our sleds, almost no trail riding on them. Every sled it the fleet is either a race sled or a practice sled. If we do decide to play ride them we do it with the practice sleds but they are basically in race trim.

AkRacing
'02 ProX 440
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'04 ProXr 440
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DIX

I don't want to Hyjack this thread but it is about bracing and keeping everything from moving around. I try to keep the list short, Ha Ha.

1. A worthwhile mod on all Polaris sleds with W/E shocks is to add this little o-ring to the upper and lower shock mount bolts, 2 per shock. The o-ring will act as a vibration dampener and increase the life of the Spherical Rod Ends or Bearing as Polaris calls them. They cost about $.75 each and are well worth the trouble. The o-ring also keeps dirt and water out of the shock end bearing so they dont get all corroded up as quickly. Part # is 5412290. I have added this o-ring to every W/E shock we have. This may seem unnecessary but you will be a believer once they are installed. Plus the Bearing lasts 2 times longer and they cost about $18 each.

2. On the trailing arms I weld doublers to all mounting points, where the bolts go through. ESPECIALLY the lower shock mounting point. The Radius Rod mounting points will wear out pretty fast also with hard pounding. A properly sized grade 8 washer will work as a doubler but most washers are a little larger than they should be. A doubler can be welded on and drilled out with the proper size bit and then you get a nice tight fit for the bolts. Again, maybe overkill for a trail sled but those of you who have wollered out mounting holes know this is an issue.

3. On the rear skid I add doublers to the upper rear shock mount as well as both the upper and lower front shock mounts. Same principal as the doublers on the trailing arms. Rear Skid Reinforcments

4. Where the skids mount to the tunnel we keep a very close eye on the tunnel and as they start to show signs of wear and wollering out we build a doubler out of chromolly and use structural rivets to mount it to the tunnel. This is especially true for the two rear mounting bolts.

5. I replace every suspension pivot bolt with AN bolts to eliminate the threads of the bolts from wearing out the mounting tabs. These bolts are especially important in the front torque arm lower mounts where it attaches to the aluminum rails. Rails are expensive and AN bolts will keep the rail holes from wollering out for thousands of miles. AN bolts have a longer Grip or unthreaded shank and the threads do not gouge into the mounting tabs. Check this link, I am not trying to sell you anything on this thread just giving helpful info. Suspension Bolt Kits AN bolts can be purchased at any Aircraft Supply Store like at your local small airport.

6. And lastly for this thread, I keep a very close eye on the trailing arm mounts under the foot rest. As these mounts crack I weld them up. It is usually not necessary to remove the plastic tub to make this repair, you can usually drill out a few rivets and pry back the plastic to keep it away from the heat and make the repair. Keep a close eye on this and make repairs as you see cracks.

Hope this helps.

AkRacing

Click to view attachmentHere is a pic of foot well brace.