Tie Rod ends being discontinued....

A

alaska_guy

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Oct 20, 2014

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• Dec 6, 2014

• #1

So I went to my local dealer and he said the non PTO side steering tie rod is not longer being made.... With that in mind it might be nice to find a dealer or someone who knows of an alternative for us Gen II guys...

From what I can tell most of the tie rods are 3/8"-24 tie rods and 7/16"-24 for our sleds. I am referring to the radius rod ends (upper and lower) along with the steering rod ends.

The shop was trying to tell me that the rod length plays a big factor along with how tall the bushing sat etc... I think not. In the 4x4 community, as long as everything matches then your fine. I have a cut off wheel and a bunch of other tools if I needed to cut the threads shorter.

I know they need to be left handed threads... Anyone have a good site they order theirs from? Dealer wants $120 for 3 ends! I know on my Polaris Ranger I can get replacements for next to nothing (12.99/ea).

 

L

LoudHandle

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• Dec 6, 2014

• #2

I likely have new ones in my spare parts stuff. As I used to race back in that generation. Send me a PM with what you are short and I'll look for you. If need be I can text pics of the rod ends to confirm first.

 

A

alaska_guy

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• Dec 6, 2014

• #3

All of the ones below are bent or the threads are broken off making the thread side shorter than what they should be, but that should give you an idea of what they look like. The bottom one is the one that is discontinued. Also, from what I can tell the ski side of the rods are all left hand thread, and the ones that are mounted to the chassis are right hand thread if that helps. Basically on end links you need a left hand threaded and a right hand threaded end rod for each link. So if you weren't sure, you could just order a left hand thread rod end and a right hand rod end for each link and you would be good.

I would stick to the fact that the ski side is left hand threads and the chassis side is right hand threads to keep things simple. The other fact I forgot to mention is the steering link ski side uses tie rods ends, the rest of the suspension uses heim joint ends.

 

Last edited: Dec 6, 2014

A

alaska_guy

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• Dec 6, 2014

• #4

Upper Radius Rod

Lower Radius Rod

Steering Heim at Chassis

Hopefully that helps others.

 

Last edited: Dec 6, 2014

treetopflyer

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• Dec 7, 2014

• #5

there are several aftermarket companies that sell all these rod ends. I use www.hiperf.com

 

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LoudHandle

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• Dec 7, 2014

• #6

Looks like most of the ones I have left are the EDGE style. On the EDGE they put the LH rod ends inboard and the RH rod ends out board.

Are your Radius rods threaded on both ends? If so with the rod ends I've found I can get you going. If not what length do you need? I likely have those as well.

 

S

sno*jet

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• Dec 7, 2014

• #7

the good news is e-bay still works.

 

A

alaska_guy

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• Dec 7, 2014

• #8

Yes, the rod ends i have are threaded on both ends.

 

A

alaska_guy

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• Dec 7, 2014

• #9

treetopflyer said:

there are several aftermarket companies that sell all these rod ends. I use www.hiperf.com

Click to expand...

They only sell... 7061057 equivalent. I need 7061047. That part they specifically stopped selling.

I did find the 7061047 tie rod end I needed on eBay luckily. Got all my steering parts, just need the heim ends for the radius rods now.

 

S

ski_bum_81

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• Dec 8, 2014

• #10

I just replaced 4 ski side rod ends with standard 7/16" and 1/2" rod ends. Had a buddy machine spacers for bolts on each. ordered all 4 standard non Polaris LH rod ends for the price of 1 Polaris one. I also like the fact they don't have the rubber bushing in them, as long as they get maintained on a normal basis they seem to work great.

 

sled_guy

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• Dec 9, 2014

• #11

I've used spacers as well, pretty easy to construct and work just fine.

sled_guy

 

P

pondskipper93

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• Dec 15, 2014

• #12

denniskirk used to carry them. Ordered stuff from them before and its always been great.

 

treetopflyer

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• Dec 17, 2014

• #13

Im sure every part you need can be purchased at many places. I personally have equipped 4 sleds complete from hiperf.com. they have every radious rod 3/8 7/16 1/2 in left and right thread. ive just used spacers. I also don't bother using a tie rod end on the steering. just a rod end.

 

A

alaska_guy

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• Dec 28, 2014

• #14

I wanted to post some pictures that I hope doesn't go against the forum rules...

I was tired of paying $24-40 for a single factory heim joint or tie rod end. I decided to try a generic heim joint. This method may wear out your heim joints quicker, but at the price of these joints I decided it was worth it. and the ease of install/replacement is fairly straight forward.

This is the process I used for the lower Radius Rods.

1. Buy 4 M10-1.5 Fender Washers
2. Buy XML-8 LH thread (1/2") Heim Joint from eBay.
3. Tack weld 2 fender washers together to make a spacer, then weld the other two together.
4. Let fender washers cool or put them in tank of water
5. Install Heim Joint and add newly made spacers to either side of Heim Joint.
6. Install bolt and tighten down nut.

This worked great and the heim joint can still move as you can see in the last picture below. Total cost for 2, $24, plus cost of washers.

 

Last edited: Dec 28, 2014

R

rdr99

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helena, mt

• Jan 6, 2015

• #15

www.rodendsupply.com Haven't bought radius rods or heims from the dealer for years. They can make the swaged radius rods too. They have high misalignment spacers and cone spacer.