Clutch setup is a fascinating science
that intrigues most snowmobilers, although few are willing to put in
the time to fully understand how centrifugal forces work.
But every snowmobiler understands the
importance of clutching when it comes to transferring the greatest
amount of power from the engine to the track. And Team Industries has
been successful in finding ways to free up the most amount of power
through the transfer process.
This past winter we took two of our
stock snowmobiles and installed the Team Tied secondary clutch to see
if we could improve the performance of these sleds. We installed the
Team Tied secondary clutch on the Polaris 800 Pro RMK and the Ski-Doo
Freeride.
Although Polaris features a Team
clutch, the big change here was going to a Team roller clutch. With
the runs we made comparing the two clutches on the same snowmobile,
the Team Tied clutch improved the Polaris stock Team clutch by 50.67
feet in 10 seconds.
The most significant improvements came
on the Ski-Doo. Here we did a few more changes, not only with the
secondary but also the primary clutch. The Team clutch improved the
Ski-Doo by 100.6 feet in 10 seconds. (See charts)
"The Team Tied clutch is different
from the stock Team clutch because the two sheaves are coupled by a
second set of rollers," explains Jason Koskela, product development
and testing coordinator for Team aftermarket products. "The
moveable sheave does not rotate as it shifts like the Team TSS-04
model that comes stock on the Polaris."
Koskela says all the rotation is done
in the post that is pressed onto a roller bearing, creating a more
torque-sensing setup. "All the torque is driven through the helix,"
he explains. And less rotation of the moveable sheaves means faster
backshift and throttle response.
The addition of the Team Tied secondary
was the only change we made to the Polaris 800 RMK.
Adding the Team Tied to the Ski-Doo
Freeride, however, was a little more complicated.
"The Ski-Doo clutch is not an
enclosed roller setup, but its function is similar to other roller
drivens except the clutch is cast onto the jackshaft," Koskela
explains. "That design does not allow for any clutch alignment to
be done easily or allow the clutch to float on the shaft."
Koskela says the spring pressures in
the Ski-Doo setup tend to be a lot stronger than a typical Team
setup. "Typically we see at least 25- to 30-degree cooler belt
temps than a stock setup," he says.
Along with the Team Tied clutch and
jackshaft installation, Koskela also installed a slightly stiffer
primary spring and heavier adjustable pins to the stock primary
clutch.
Clutches cost $299 without spring or
helix.
For more information, visit
www.teamaftermarket.com.