My new build.. 2012 RMK

I parted out my last build before I was able to finish it because of some financial issues that arose, but since that one is gone, I couldn't just sit around with no sled or nothing to do.. I had to keep busy.. Picked up a 2012 RMK 800. Sled speared a tree in such an odd way it flattened the pipe as if it had been ran over, the bulkhead, steering hoop and all the bracing completely exploded. The tunnel wrinkled a little right behind the chaincase, but strangely enough, not much more was damaged. Plastics, control arms, and shocks all survived with 0 damage.. well except where the tree speared the hood, but even that was fairly small..

Picked up a replacement bulkhead and other bracing and am in the process of straightening out the tunnel and reinforcing the areas that bent. This part of the tunnel seems to be weak anyway as I have read that LOTS of people have been bending the tunnel in these areas with fairly minor impacts to the sled.

Wish I had taken more pics of the sled when together, but after partial tear down, figured I would post up another build thread so started snapping them then.. As things progress and new parts arrive, I will snap some pictures of them along with the install process..

As far as what mods will be done to this sled when finished, that is up in the air.. It may stay mostly stock, but as most of you know, stock gets boring so time will tell on that also..

This will be a somewhat slow going process as time nor money is in my favor at this point in time, but it will come together.. I have an entire summer to finish this thing and if next winter is anything like this one, I wont need it for next year either..

So, here it goes. Enjoy!

Hood.. Not that bad, but not usable.. Anyone have one for sale??




All suspension parts removed


Stripped down..



Here are the wrinkles in the tunnel.. That cheezy bracing on each side is a joke..



Here it is after I have done some straightening to the bent parts.. Not perfect, but much better than it was.. Still have a ways to go.. Getting prepared for the real exterior bracing, thanks to AKSNOWRIDER here on the forums.



Bulkhead completely removed..




Hopefully more to come very soon!

Bonding the chaincase like on the 12's and 13's will help with the "wrinkles"..

Great pics... you are in up to your neck buddy... keep us posted.

mountainhorse said:

Bonding the chaincase like on the 12's and 13's will help with the "wrinkles"..

Great pics... you are in up to your neck buddy... keep us posted.

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No kidding....

Did the bonding break free pretty easy with a little heat?

Can't wait to see the end result.

Nice! Glad to see you were not without for long!

Defiantly a project, have fun!

The adhesive released fairly easy. Took some time with the heat gun, but once you have it heated and can get behind it with something to pry on it with a little, its smooth going after that.. Took a little to get the hang of it and how hot it needed to be, but wasnt bad at all..

Since this is a 12, the chaincase was already bonded to the sled. Thats the first part I heated and pulled off.. It will for sure be bonded back on when re-installed.

I do have A LOT a work to do on this, but hopefully it will all be worth it. Have more parts on the way.. I still need a hood though..

I will continue to snap pics as parts arrive and of the progress..

As stated before, the process is very slow going.. Right now I am flat broke so I can just get 1 thing at a time when I can afford.. I am hoping the summer is long enough to acquire everything I need before it hits the snow.. I was able to remove about 98% of the tunnel damage. Still a little left, but once I get the side bracing and installed it should all pull together and look great. I did pick up a hood awhile back.. Now just need to get the bracing and start putting it back together.. Will post more when I can.. Enjoy

Nice project... At the biggning it sounded like a story That i would read. HAHA

Good luck.

Got my tunnel bracing from AKSNOWRIDER on Friday.. Thanks again!! It looks awesome!! Borrowed the adhesive dispensing gun from Christopher on Friday and got everything mounted on it today.. It is much more rigid now than it ever was from the factory.. It helped straighten everything out nicely and I think it looks great.. More pics to come as it starts to come together a little more..

Before install


These are the pieces that fill the holes in the stock tunnel braces.


Here are both sides after installation.. I think it came out lookin pretty good..

Looks good now all we need is to finish the rest. haha We will get it done tho for sure. I think

Got a little more done this weekend.. Was able to install the bulkhead, the steering assembly, the belly pan pieces and the chaincase. Set the hood on there to see how it looked and so far it is all coming together very good.. Still have LOTS to do, but it is coming a long a lot faster than I thought it would!! Still needing to get a front bumper and a windshield, but those will come later when I have some money.. Enjoy!! More to come..

No, no ,no your doing it all "wrong" where's the booze while wrenching?

Any new update and pics?

rmk4ever said:

No, no ,no your doing it all "wrong" where's the booze while wrenching?

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Kind of hard to believe, but I dont drink a drop.. Might make things a little more fun and calm me down a little, but for some reason, I just could never get over the taste of any alcohol.. Kinda sucks always being sober!! LOL!!! I will sure sit with ya though and shoot the **** while you have a few..


I was able to get some more stuff mounted this weekend.. Has been really hard to get the time and definitely havent had any money since I have a kid on the way so getting ready for that this next month!! With some help from snotoy this weekend, I was pretty much able to get this thing looking like a sled again and back on the ground.. suspension is all in, but I still have lots to do with the wiring and getting more stuff mounted on it.. Progress is faster than I thought it would be, but still have quite a bit to do so will see how it turns out.. As you can tell, there are a few other sled projects in the shack/garage that are being worked on also, so the focus isnt just on this sled.. I say I hate working on these things, but pictures are worth 1000 words and you can see from the 3 sleds in there, it doesnt bother me as bad as I let on.. .. I would go nuts if I didnt have something to wrench on!! I will update and snap more pics as things start going again..

Looking good! Garage is a little messy kinda looks mine. lol

Looks good, i have a question for you, how are those sled lifts? Are they worth the money? I am interested in getting one. Usually what i do is jack it up with a floor jack and a couple 2x4's to try and spread the weight out across the belly pan, and then take rail road ties under the foot boards. How much did it cost?

Best thing since sliced bread!!

ippielb said:

Looks good, i have a question for you, how are those sled lifts? Are they worth the money? I am interested in getting one. Usually what i do is jack it up with a floor jack and a couple 2x4's to try and spread the weight out across the belly pan, and then take rail road ties under the foot boards. How much did it cost?

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They are a little spendy, but well worth it. My back and knees loved me more than ever after wrenching on sleds this last winter with the sled lift. I got mine off ebay...payed a fair amount but would do it again in a hurry if I had to.

If you have the tools, find someone that has one and build one by looking at theirs. Probably cheaper.

jwentzer said:

They are a little spendy, but well worth it. My back and knees loved me more than ever after wrenching on sleds this last winter with the sled lift. I got mine off ebay...payed a fair amount but would do it again in a hurry if I had to.

If you have the tools, find someone that has one and build one by looking at theirs. Probably cheaper.

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yeah i built one for a buddy. cost about 50 bucks but he wanted his to be air lift so i used a air bag out of a semi hes had it for about 2 years and wants another

jwentzer said:

They are a little spendy, but well worth it. My back and knees loved me more than ever after wrenching on sleds this last winter with the sled lift. I got mine off ebay...payed a fair amount but would do it again in a hurry if I had to.

If you have the tools, find someone that has one and build one by looking at theirs. Probably cheaper.

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Which is the best brand to go with? Would also like to get one, but want a good solid one.

rmscustom said:

Looking good! Garage is a little messy kinda looks mine. lol

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If you can really call it a garage.. It is a little messy for sure.. too many sled projects, too many parts and not enough room.. trying to cram everything in this small "garage" is hard.. All the shelves and other storage in there is spilling over with parts.. Thats why its so messy now, no more room..

ippielb said:

how are those sled lifts? Are they worth the money?

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Honestly, I think the sled lifts are worth it for sure.. They can get spendy to buy, but I have seen a lot of then around here for sale from $75-$100. I bought mine for $75 and feel it has been one of my best purchases.. makes working on the sled so much easier no matter what part you are working on.. I have seen a few people build some really nice ones, but if you are cheap like me, just keep your eyes open and find a good used one for cheap.. Worth EVERY penny!! Any other questions about it, please PM me..

Now