Argo conquest pulling to the left

[Supermag]

My 1999 Argo conquest pulls slightly to the left. I have new chains, sprockets, idler shaft bearings, axle bearings. I measured my tires at 5 PSI as per Argo procedure and matched the tires left to right accordingly. I run a set of supertracks. I have also switched the tracks sides to see if that may be the root cause but no luck with that.
This past weekend I noticed it will run straight for about 15 feet then drift ever so slightly then straight for another 15 feet. All my chains are in near perfect condition. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Dave

[rodp]

Rotation of the Earth ?
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Sorry, I'll get my coat

[Old Tucker]

Rotation of the Earth ?
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Sorry, I'll get my coat

Do,s it depend on if you are facing north you go left and south you go right .
Sorry I will get my coat to. but it,s cold and wet outside.

Now on the serous side. My conquest will sometimes pull to the left them to the right a little depending on the resistance the track has. The track that has the least resistance will travel just a little faster then the other. In doing so it will drift left or right .
Now this is assuming you do not have brake drag or some other mechanical problem But I think you will find they all drift one way or the other.

[glen1971]

Not sure if it is relevant but my Avenger tires need to be 3, 4, 4, and 5 pounds from front to back, based on the tire circumferences.. Are you sure yours need to all be the same? Another thing I was reading on was to lay the tracks out flat and parallel and see if they have a natural curve to one side or the other.. If they do, align them so that they curve towards each other...

[JoeMeg]

I didn't want to speak too soon. But,I would think if all other sources for one side of the machine having less rolling resistance have been addressed,then it's just the good old open diff trans being lazy and putting the power to the side offering the least fight.

Joe.

[Supermag]

I took the machine out today without the tracks, made sure the tires were inflated properly and got the same results. I traveled north to south and east to west. No change. Lol. My next step will be to remove my chains to check each axle for resistance. Thanks for the suggestions and please keep em comming

Dave

[gokorn1]

mine has always pulled to the left as well. I have tried tire pressure etc. I thought my idler chains might not be equal tension so i tried that also.
I've learned to live with it

[sixer-atv]

Have you checked the brakes? Brake failure due to rust can also cause this problem.

[briandgray]

Have to agree with Joe. I think it is just the way diffs work. if that was not how it steered , just powered, as in a car, you would not even notice as it switched sides as you went down the road. If not for this transfer feature you would not be able to turn a normal vehicle. It would want to push you straight ahead in corners.
Brian in B.C. Canada

[ARGOJIM]

It's the nature of the trans., we all pull the right stick constantly on long straight runs. Unless you've got an Admiral.

[Rock Doctor]

Most of the time, on tires, mine pull to the right (I always sit to the right)
In tracks, sometimes the pull right or left (I believe due to how I have them loaded). Sometimes they run perfectly straight down the trail....... Even slight bumps/ruts play a huge roll in how you will track. Even the slight crown on a gravel road will make you drift quite a bit.
Mom wasn't as impressed with this little ride as I was. It's not a smooth or flat trail, but the contours are enough to keep the machine on the trail.... um, mostly on the trail.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4b47FCAyza8

RD

[foxvalley]

Sometimes you can live with little things like pulling to the left, other times it will drive you insane.
The easiest way I solve the issue,even if something else is going on, is tire presure.Try, for example, 7psi on all the tires on the left side, and,for example,3psi on the right side. This should get you pulling to the RIGHT.Now add psi to the right, and take out psi on the left in small increments untill the thing runs straight,or "better".

[JohnF]

It's not the nature of the transmission. If your argo always always always pulls to the left and you cannot see an environmental reason for it then the left side has something dragging [stuck caliper/rusted bearing] or the effective tire diameter is smaller. There is a reason and it is not that the transmission has an open differential inside.

[ARGOJIM]

JohnF you're right, when I originally read this thread the 15 foot didn't click and that's way to aggressive of a pull.
Perhaps jack it up without the tracks and check for excessive drag while in neutral. If no noticeable excessive drag is found, loosen the trans chains and check for bad idler shaft bearings. Under tension a binding or just bad bearing there would cause a difference in torque outward and a drive off to one side. And as supermag had stated, may want to pull all the chains and check for individual axle bearing drag or slop.

Good luck.

[Supermag]

I pulled all my chains and checked for any drag in each individual axel as well as the idler shafts but could not find any noticeable difference in bearing resistance. I can eliminate bearings as a culprit. I think this is the first time I am disappointed to not find a fouled bearing. I checked all my chains comparing to one another for uneven stretching or wear. All are within 1/32" over 90 pins. I made sure my brakes are not dragging. The search continues.
Thanks for that video Rock Doctor. Looked like allot of fun, it was fun to watch.
ARGOJIM, as for the 15 feet. The Argo runs straight for about 15 feet as mentioned in my earlier post then pulls to the left ever so slightly that it is barely noticeable. I was certain I was going to find a bearing or other moving part binding on the left side but as strange as it sounds to say so, no such luck. Thanks again for all the advice and pointers from everyone.

Dave