Ideas on snow clogged steering?

[AKkatz]

Has anyone come up with any brilliant solutions to the snow build-up between the bulk had and belly pan that interferes with steering?
In addition to hard steering it also adds around 10-15 lbs of unwanted weight right under the motor...lame!
So far my best ideas are trim down the oem belly pan so it doesn't have the "ears" that are on either side of the support beam, basically making it a smaller floor for snow to sit on. also I'm going to spray clear coat on the aluminum to create a less bondable surface for the snow to stick to. Then probably will spray everything down with light grease whenever the snow is deep and wet...
any other thoughts....

 

[Dam Dave]

what sled????????????

if it is a M, look at the bottom of a 2009 M, its a lot narrower there, carries less snow

 

[mountaincat 800]

I have this issue also espescially in wet snow. ('06 M7)
Dam Dave, looking at the '09 seems to be identical. What am I missing?

 

[Dam Dave]

that little area between the a arms( the Taint) the fake skid plate( plastic thing) is a lot narrower on the 09, by about 2 inchs, I had to cut my Aluimum skid plate down to fit in there.

 

[snoluver]

I am having the exact same issue with my '09, smaller taint and all. At one point my steering was compleatly locked. Could not steer left untill I chipped all the snow and ice out!!

 

[mrquick68]

you should only ride on lighter powder days or on hard pack only!

 

[Dam Dave]

you should only ride on lighter powder days or on hard pack only!

if I limited myself to light powder days in Utah I would never get to ride

 

[ACMtnCat]

Same problem. Been dreaming up something for this ever night as I go to sleep.

Take some wax paper or saran wrap and wrap the aluminum and A arms up real nice making a wax paper divider in the middle of the space. Then take a can of expanding foam fill the area up and let it setup. The divider will allow you to split the two half's and pull them out of the frame. Take a knife and shape the out side of the two foam pieces to fit and fill the space evenly/flush. Once your satisfied with the shape, Zip tie or screw the two together back in place.... problem solved!

Should take about 's to complete the job!

 

[PowerJoe]

Closed cell foam?

I have been thinking about doing something too.

In Motocross they use coarse open cell foam tucked in places to keep the mud from packing in which keeps the bikes light during a mud race. Problem with this is that water could get into the foam and freeze causing the same problem you have now, but maybe closed cell foam would work. Something like seat foam may be about right

What ACMtnCat is talking about seems about right but sounds messy to make. Also, it still doesn't keep snow from freezing to the tie rods and possibly jamming up and the situation may be worse as there is less room.

Might need a combination of foam and Slushbuster.

 

[spoon]

Put a turbo on, loosen the limiter straps and don't let the skis or front end ever hit the snow, steering won't be an issue.

 

[IDAHO HOT SHOT]

Buy a Polaris

 

[theultrarider]

Until someone finds a real fix for this problem, try another mx trick. Spray that area down with PAM cooking oil. We do this with the bikes in a mud race and next to nothing sticks to it. It all falls off. Slimy mess, but the bike stays alot lighter and the scoring folks can see your numbers! I have not tried this with the snow, but am willing to bet it will work great.

 

[Steve D]

Buy a Polaris

While I wouldn't go that far, but if you do look at the front end of a Polaris, they got that big ugly rubber boot over the steering linkage. Something like that would work I imagine.

I always thought some kind of rubber boot right over the A-arm's and attached to the bulkhead/ski-well plastic would do the trick to keep snow from packing in the front. Probably be pretty ugly though.

 

[AKkatz]

I did explain the problem to the y guys at Skinz to see if they could come up with a solution involving the materials that they use, but I doubt the demand is high enough to get them to do the R&D. www.skinzprotectivegear.com

 

[ACMtnCat]

I did explain the problem to the y guys at Skinz to see if they could come up with a solution involving the materials that they use, but I doubt the demand is high enough to get them to do the R&D. www.skinzprotectivegear.com

I love the Frogzskin filters but, prefilter material just wont hold up to the forces the snow puts on that area.

I'm working on the foam idea. I'll post some pics.

 

[Big Dawg 51]

Slush Buster

I haven't tried this product personally, but it reads like it is designed to do exactly what everyone wants, "NO more sticking snow".

I have a friend who races, and he has described a product like this, and sprays it on his rails and rear suspension to cut weight. It may be this product.

Here is the link to read more about it with pictures and testimonies. Looks a little spendy, but it sounds like a little goes a long ways.

http://www.auroraalpine.com/catalog/21110sb/index.htm

I found another link on amsnowmobiler.

http://www.amsnow.com/sno/default.aspx?c=a&id=3192

We will be trying this on our sleds for next year.

 

[TalkAK]

Pam - not just for the kitchen anymore....

The Pam thing works, leaves a bit of a residue, but it all washes off if need be. Works in the tunnel as well. Tired of carrying around 10 pounds of slush on your tail. Spray the underside of your tunnel and it will not stick. My riding partner also sprays his running boards, this is visibly better than mine without but you better have good footing or you will be slip sliding and away...