[antoniodef]

So I bought a Viper (now called Denali I think) plow a month ago. Mounted it up and it sat in my garage. I thought the eye in the plow push bars to connect the winch hook looked odd, nothing like the G3 set up I had before. Figured it was fine since the metal looks thick.

Plowed today for first time, that eye for the winch is a frickin POS. It bent. I had a feeling it would, but thought it would take longer than the first time I used it. No I did not try to raise the winch past the push bars hitting underneath.

I will probably call Moto, I hear their customer service is good. I really don't want to try and ship it back. It is a bad design in the first place and the shipping is probably killer.

Anyone have another idea on how to fix it? I don't have a welder at my house.

 

[antoniodef]

Moto has been great to work with so far. Hopefully we can come to a solution.

Used the plow again, and not counting the winch eye connection the plow is great. Much better than my G3. Taller blade, easier to swivel and seems like thicker metal. The plow feet adjustment is easy, pull a cotter pin and pick the height you want. The G3 used two nuts torqued against each other.

It doesn't attach as easy as the G3 and the mount isn't as low profile as the G3. The Denali/Viper uses two pins you have to lay down and look under to clip in. The design is simpler though (G3 has a double bar handle type hook up) and the Denali mount attaches over a wider area spreading the force out.

I won't take the mount off in the summer. The metal is thick and I don't foresee trail riding hurting it. Maybe if you rock climb you should take the mount off, but that would apply to any mount.

 

[Motoalliance]

Sounds like you are in touch at the moment? Weird that the eye hook part bent given how sturdy we've made that part, but we can help figure that out with you.

Thanks!

Peter Kapsner
President
Motoalliance

 

[antoniodef]

They are mailing out a new push tube section free of charge. Overall customer service was top notch like I had read. They offered to compensate me for my time if I thought I could fix it myself, but I don't weld. They are now sending me the piece to replace it and they said don't worry about sending the old one back.

It is odd that it bent, because the metal for the bracket is very thick. I think the problem is not enough metal around the "O" that the hook goes through , not the thickness of the metal.

Cust service did state they appreciate feedback because they are a small enough company that they review issues at the end of each year and make changes. All my emails were copied to a tech, engineer and cust service.

Bottom line, I will buy from them again.

 

[Motoalliance]

Awesome....glad it worked out.

We sent about 70 plows out the door today. Must be snowing somewhere in the USA.

I know it is here in MN!!

 

[chillywilly]

Dont take this as an attack, but the angle of the winch cable looks to be the problem. If it was pulling more up than back I bet it would have never bent. I have the same blade as you on a 06 450 sportsman and the way I mounted my winch it lifts the blade straight up off the spool with no fairlead or rubbing.

 

[MustBeNice]

Dont take this as an attack, but the angle of the winch cable looks to be the problem. If it was pulling more up than back I bet it would have never bent. I have the same blade as you on a 06 450 sportsman and the way I mounted my winch it lifts the blade straight up off the spool with no fairlead or rubbing.

Your older model Sportsman has the winch mount up high (between head lights) in the grill which allows for a upward lift of the plow.... but on the newer models 2010 or 2011 on up, they only have provisions for mounting the winch where it is seen in the picture (down low, behind grill).

OP, hopefully the new tubes and eyelet will hold up better..... as a metal worker you learn that metal can sometimes (and it does) has hard and soft spots. Could have easily been a soft spot, or a design flaw of not enough material around the hole as stated.

If it does it again..... cut off the upper part of the hole, paint bare metal and drill a new hole and install a threaded chain link loop to connect your winch hook too!

 

[chillywilly]

Yea I realize the newer models have the lower mounted winch. Having the exact plow as antoniodef has I can see why it bent,(ring is not that hefty for that angle of pull) but after the inital bend it should be fine. I would even take a hammer and help it along, if you know what I mean. I have the feeling that unless the new one that they are sending him is reinforced it will do the same.

 

[ayres481]

I just bought a Denali plow for my 2014 400 Sportsman. I used it for about 15min today and loved it. Then I noticed the exact same issue as mentioned on this thread. I could not believe that it was bent after a few minutes of work. I've heard nothing but good things about this company so I'm hoping they have a good fix for it. Unfortunately I'm not a welder either. I sent them an email, and I'm sure based on other info I've read about this company that they will take care of it.

 

[MustBeNice]

Starting to look like the problem is with the eye lift tab perpendicular mounting design.... if it was turned and welded on parallel to the front/rear direction of the machine or the push tubes it would solve the tab bending issues seen with these newer Polaris winch location, since they pull more backward then upwards.

What does the lifting eyelet look like from the top? Can it be cut off, turned 90 degrees and welded back on?

 

[Motoalliance]

Hmmmm.....I'm a little puzzled here. We've sold this exact model for over five years now without any kind of issue like this. And this is one of our most popular models. Going to alert our engineer to this......and will be back....

Peter
Preasident
Motoalliance

 

[ayres481]

Here is a picture of my bent eyelet. I think that if it was turned 45 degrees it would work best with the low winch mount on the newer Sportsmans.

 

[MustBeNice]

I have to give kudos to the Motoalliance Team for being on top of this.

Question..... where in MN is Motoalliance located?

 

[ayres481]

I have to give kudos to the Motoalliance Team for being on top of this.

Question..... where in MN is Motoalliance located?

It is a nice feeling when you post an issue and someone from the company posts a response so quickly. I'm sure they will take care of it.

 

[Motoalliance]

I have to give kudos to the Motoalliance Team for being on top of this.

Question..... where in MN is Motoalliance located?

Hi Guys,

Thanks for posting the feedback regarding the winch attachment bracket. The problem looks to be a combination of winch mounting location on the new Sportsman and overall bracket orientation. The good news is that the current design has worked exceptionally well for several years and across many makes and models. However, I can say that based on this thread I'll be making design changes to eliminate the chance of this happening again.

As always, we welcome your feedback. Our commitment is to design products based on how they are used in the real world and not some text book. We've worked with many of you over the years and have enjoyed every bit of it. Thanks for your continued support.

Scott
MotoAlliance Engineering

 

[Lawdog]

pics of 54" Denali plow

I bought a Denali plow for my 850 this season. Here in Montana, I have used it a ton this year, including last night. No issues so far. Here's a mini-review I posted in another thread a bit ago:

I've now moved a great deal of snow with the plow. I put strips of reflective tape on it since I usually plow at night. I also put some on back of blade for a couple reasons. One, it helps me see black blade in dark garage and not kick it with my damage-seeking big toe. Second, when I raise the blade and just the strip is visible, I know I've raised it just right amount and stop!

Here are some pics.



I use a boat winch strap to save wear and tear on winch rope. $12 at Walmart.



Indicator to stop lifting:



Tape on corners for seeing in dark garage:

 

[antoniodef]

I was asked by another forum member to update how my new push tube frame is working. Before I even used it, I connected a quick link chain connector to the winch hook on the plow. I don't thread the quick link closed. It is meant to be sacrificial, hopefully it bends open before the winch hook on the plow. You can see in the picture where the quick link sort of looks to have bent slightly already. The tab looks a little bent as well, but the angle of the pic makes it worse. If it is bent at all, it is only very slightly from new condition. There are no cracks in the paint around the hook like I had instantly with the first one. I also attached a carabiner just to orient the winch hook back to a vertical position.

I hope they change the design. I know my tab will probably bend again, but this should slow the process.

 

[ayres481]

I'm really hoping they can send me a new part that I won't have to worry about the issue again on. I appreciate you posting how yours is holding up and how you have it rigged up.

 

[Lawdog]

I checked after plowing a bunch tonight. My tab is still perfectly straight. Sorry to hear others are not.

 

[antoniodef]

Hopefully they come out with a new design. If the tab were rotated 90 degrees and attached on top of the plate it is currently attached to, that should solve it.