c/atv-snowmobile-chat

Overheard a dealer in Houghton tell a kid that a '98 Skandic is better than any new sled

I was picking up oil at the shop near Houghton last Friday. This high school kid comes in asking about a used '98 Skandic they had on the lot. The salesman tells him it's bulletproof and better than anything built after 2005. I wanted to butt in so bad. That old machine can't touch a modern sled for suspension or starting in the cold. Kid spent $1,800 on a 25 year old sled with carb issues waiting to happen. Anyone else tired of dealers pushing out of date stuff on new riders?

Rode my sled up to Copper Harbor last weekend and found a hidden trail

I was up in the Keweenaw Peninsula and decided to try a connector trail off the main route near Brockway Mountain. Turned out it was a ungroomed two-track that opened into a huge meadow with zero wind. Best part was the snow was still deep and powdery even in mid March. Anyone else know good side trails up that way that don't get tracked out?

Finally got my old Arctic Cat to start after 3 days of tinkering

I swapped the carb jets and bumped the pilot screw a half turn richer on my 1999 Bearcat, and it fired up on the third pull after sitting all summer. Turns out the ethanol in modern gas had gummed up the bowl worse than I thought, and a simple cleaning fixed it. Anyone else had luck with running non-ethanol fuel in their older sleds?

Just found out my 4-wheeler tires are 7 years older than I thought they were

Was pulling the bead off a rear tire last night to patch a leak and noticed the DOT code. Turns out those "like new" tires I bought from a guy on Facebook Marketplace in June are actually from 2016. No wonder they felt a bit hard in the cold mornings. Got any tricks for checking tire age without pulling the wheel off in the dark?

Took me 2 winters to figure out my sled was idling rough because of the fuel line routing

Old timer told me to ditch the synthetic oil in my snowmobile

I used to swear by full synthetic in my Ski-Doo, running it every season for years. Then a guy at the local shop in Ely, Minnesota said "that stuff's too slippery for these old bearings, you're thinning it out wrong." I figured he was full of it until I pulled my clutch apart and saw wear marks I'd never noticed before. Switched back to a conventional blend last winter and the thing runs smoother and doesn't burn as much... anyone else had a mechanic call them out on something like that?

Blew a CV joint in the middle of northern Wisconsin last winter

Was out on a frozen logging trail near Rhinelander. My 2015 Polaris started making this grinding noise. Then a loud pop. Couldn't even move it 10 feet. Took me 4 hours to get a buddy with a truck to haul it back to the garage. Had to replace the whole axle myself in single digit temps. Anyone else have a drivetrain fail when you were miles from pavement?

Took me 8 hours to find a coolant leak that was just a loose clamp under the airbox

I was pulling my hair out on a 2015 Renegade 1000. Temp gauge climbing, puking antifreeze everywhere after 10 minutes of riding. I pressure tested, replaced the cap, checked hoses, even pulled the radiator. Turned out the lower hose clamp on the thermostat housing was barely loose. You could see the crusty residue if you bent the hose a certain way. A 10mm wrench fixed it in 30 seconds. Has anyone else wasted a whole day chasing something this dumb?

Stripped a mud tire bead in the middle of a swamp and it took me 6 hours with just a ratchet strap and a lighter to get it seated again

I'm on team 'just carry a second spare' versus team 'learn the ratchet strap trick for good' after that nightmare, what's your go-to field fix for a popped bead?

Crossed 500 miles on my sled this season and that's way more than I thought I'd do

I usually get maybe 300 max with work and everything, but a buddy talked me into doing the Upper Peninsula trip in February and that added 200 miles in three days alone, has anyone else's season total surprise them like that?

Stop throwing your belt on the trail and then wondering why you're stuck

I pulled three guys out last weekend on the Red River trails who all had shredded belts because they were running mud tires in deep powder without airing down first, so seriously, drop some psi before you hit the snow or pack a spare and a socket set.

Tried swapping my snowmobile track for a wider one and it totally changed how it handles in deep powder

I threw on a 1.75 inch paddle track on my '06 Ski-Doo last weekend and now it floats way better in the soft stuff around here in Northern Michigan. Did anyone else see a big difference when they went with a wider track or was it just me?

Finally picked a Polaris 850 over a Ski-Doo 900 Ace for this season

I spent like two months going back and forth between the Polaris 850 and the Ski-Doo 900 Ace for my new sled. Ended up going with the Polaris because I do a lot of boondocking up in the UP near Houghton and needed something that could handle deep powder without bogging down. The 850 just felt snappier on the test ride and the suspension soaked up the whoops way better than the Ski-Doo did. First real trip out last weekend after 8 inches of fresh snow and I gotta say it ripped through untouched fields like a champ. Only thing I miss so far is the Ski-Doo's fuel economy since the Polaris guzzles gas like crazy. Anyone else make the switch between these two and regret it or am I good?

That time my snowmobile clutch exploded on the trail last month

I was riding out near the Black Hills last month, just cruising along at like 30 mph, and my clutch just grenaded. A piece flew off and hit my leg, left a bruise the size of a baseball. Three years ago I had a buddy tell me to check the clutch bolts every season, but I kept putting it off. Has anyone else had a clutch come apart like that or was I just asking for trouble with old hardware?

Am I the only one who thinks studded tires are overrated for trail riding?

I rode 3 winters without studs up in the U.P. near Munising and never crashed once. Everyone told me I was crazy but I figured studs were just for ice racers. Then last February I hit a patch of glare ice on a downhill turn and ate it hard... bent my handlebars and bruised my ribs for 2 weeks. That's when I realized I'd been relying too much on momentum and not enough on actual grip. Has anyone else learned a lesson about traction the hard way?

Figured out a trick to keep my carburetor from icing up on cold morning rides

Been dealing with throttle sticking every time I hit the trail below 20 degrees, so I tried routing a hose from the engine heat to the intake shield. Has anyone else rigged up a simple heat wrap or deflector to solve this?

Talked to a old timer at the gas station who changed my mind on studded tracks

I've always been a no-stud guy, thought they wreck trails too fast. But this dude named Dave up near Brainerd, MN pulled up on a beat up '98 Polaris and told me he's run studs for 20 winters without a single trail closure complaint. He showed me his track wear pattern and it was way lighter than I expected. Made me wonder if I've been overthinking this whole time. Anyone else had a similar conversation that flipped your opinion?

Took my sled up to the Tug Hill plateau last weekend, what a mess

I rode up to Tug Hill near Lowville, New York last Saturday. The trails were beat to crap by noon, all chewed up from the weekend crowd. I get that it's a popular spot, but does nobody groom anymore up there? I hit 3 stumps hidden under powder and almost bent a ski. Anyone else have better luck on the southern trails lately?

Changed my mind about studding my track after that ice storm

Was up at my buddy's cabin near Eagle River last weekend and hit a patch of black ice on the trail. Laid my sled over hard and bent my ski loop. Always thought studs were just for drag racers but after watching a guy with 144 studs glide right past me on the same ice I was spinning on, I ordered a set of Woody's 1.325" studs that night. Anyone else run studs on a trail sled or is it overkill for most riding?

The day I realized chainsaws are just angry snowmobiles with teeth

I was reading the owner's manual for my old 1998 Polaris 500 while waiting for a buddy to show up for a ride, and it hit me that the whole two-stroke engine design is basically identical to the one in my Stihl chainsaw, which I never put together before - has anyone else noticed how much crossover there is between snowmobile parts and small engine equipment?

Old timer at the gas station told me I was running my sled wrong for 15 years

He said I was idling way too long before riding, and that modern engines just need 30 seconds then go easy. Has anyone else had their mind changed by a random stranger like that?

Swapped my chainsaw chain mid-trail after a stump ruined my day

I was out on my sled last weekend cutting through some blowdowns on a back trail near Eagle River and hit a buried stump face first. The chain went dull in seconds and I was stuck with no spare. I used to think carrying a spare chain was just extra weight, but after that 2 hour walk back to the truck I caved and bought a $30 pack of two chains. Now I keep one in my pack with a mini file and it saved my buddy's ride just yesterday when he snagged a rock. Has anyone else had a trailside chain swap save them from a long hike?

Swapped my snowmobile track for a camso kit and wow what a difference

I spent three seasons fighting with a worn out stock track on my 2016 Ski-Doo. Last month I finally swapped it for a Camso ice ripper kit and I can't believe I waited that long. The old track would slip on hardpack and I constantly had to feather the throttle to keep from spinning out. With the new setup I can actually punch it from a stop without digging a hole. Climbing hills feels way more stable too since the studs bite in instead of just spinning. It cost me about $650 for the whole kit but it saved my back from wrenching on the trail every weekend. Has anyone else made the switch from a stock track to a studded or ice ripper setup? Trying to decide if I should do the same on my buddy's Polaris.

Switched from trail riding to bog riding after my Polaris overheated 3 times last summer

Watched a guy try to start a snowmobile with the kill switch on for 10 minutes straight

Was up at the Eagle River trails last Saturday and this dude kept yanking the cord on his Ski-Doo, cussing up a storm about bad gas. I walked over, flicked the tether kill switch back on, and it fired first pull. He didn't even say thanks. Anyone else see people miss the simplest stuff on the trails?