Project Ron Burgundy’s first stop was at Starting Line Products in Idaho Falls, Idaho. The unit we picked up to build this project out of came from the factory with electric start. So… that had to go. No sense lugging around an extra 25 pounds when we’re dropping coin on lightweight parts all over the place.
SLP’s Jerry Mathews installed the first components of our SLP performance package. We opted to start small and build through the season to see what the differences were between SLP’s Stage kit levels. Here’s how they break out: Stage 1 ($527) has a lightweight muffler and SLP Power Shift weights and a spring for the drive clutch. It drops 11.5 pounds on the Axys RMK. Stage 1.5 ($927) adds a secondary clutch spring and cylinder head domes, which gets you about six more horsepower. Stage 2 (also $927) leaves the stock head domes on the engine but adds the SLP single pipe. Good for at total weight reduction of 14.5 pounds and 9 horsepower gained over stock. Stage 3 ($1,347) keeps the single pipe and adds the SLP Power Dome billet heads for a 12.4 horsepower gained over stock. Stage 4 ($2,498) adds cylinder and exhaust valve porting, Y-pipe mods, special Power Dome billet heads, a Bully Dog GT module with SLP mapping, an engine torque stop, vents and different clutching components.
Starting Line Products Polaris Stage Kits. www.startinglineproducts.com
We tested the SLP competition silencer as well as the standard SLP lightweight silencer. The competition is 13.5 pounds lighter than stock, which is 3.5 pounds lighter than the standard lightweight silencer. It’s louder than the standard lightweight silencer, but not annoyingly loud. SLP is one of those companies that keeps things on the quiet side, which is good in our book.
SLP 800 Axys Competition Series Silencer: $299.95. www.startinglineproducts.com
Snowmobile manufacturers have dialed in the middle ground on components, so it’s tough to find a ski that does everything better than the stock ski. But, you can find skis that do certain things better than stock. If you’re like us and want the best in off-trail, deep snow steering, we suggest you go with the SLP Mohawk skis. The keel design, bottom shape, tip and tail all work to get the most performance in deep snow.
SLP Mohawk Skis: $390.75. www.startinglineproducts.com
One look at the 2019 Polaris Pro RMK models tells you that the 2016-2018 800 Pro RMKs have too wide of a ski stance. We’ve felt that since the sled was released. So it was an easy choice to find a front suspension kit that narrows up the stance. But we didn’t want to change the geometry—Polaris engineers have that pretty well figure out. Zollinger Racing Products (ZRP) Complete Billet Front Suspension with offset spindles do amazing things to the handling on 2016-2018 Pro RMKs. The ski stance is reduced by two inches (from 39 inches to 37 inches). That makes the sled a lot easier to get on its edge and keep it there. The ZRP front end is a must-have in our opinion.
ZRP Complete Billet Front Suspension w Offset Spindles: $1,339. www.zollingerracingproducts.com