Will do! I'm a few days behind on his vids...been slacking and also can't stand the exhaust note of the 9R, lol.
Should I upgrade my sled? Newb questions the value of a modern chassis...
- Thread starter TurboSportTSi
- Start date
Dude…that’s so funny. I’ve allways thought I didn’t like the Polaris sound. Thought I was just being a lame hater lol! Funny! Hope you guys got some of this storm. I think we’ll have fresh snow for maybe a couple weeks down here. Especially for guys who can really travel through the woods. There’s rumors going around that the new cat just may be badass? I like their looks lol.
i started a few years ago too. we get 30-40 days of riding per season maybe. my first sled is an 07 summit rev 151. two winters ago i got a 2021 khaos 850 and this year i have a turbo 2019 850 pro rmk.
the new sleds are so much better. its not even the horsepower, its the clutching, the smoothness, the ergonomics, the stability sidehilling, etc. i had a summit 850 for a few months, the chassis is lazy and steering is not good for standing imo. polaris or artic cat i feel like are interchangeable riding stance, if a 2-rail skid cat.
i would always go newer. i ride 2x as much per day without getting stuck with the rev 800.
find an 850 with some warranty left if you have a polaris dealer somewhat close to you.
I found that video:
I thought it was more fun to watch than endless side-hilling through the trees. That's partly because you're always guessing where that sled is going to peter out, but it did a lot more than I'd expect with such a short track (137, I think). My old sled is very similar: a little better ergonomics and suspension, but still a wide sled designed around sit-down riding. Also, my sled started as a 136, but now is a 144. That's still not enough for deep snow, other than maybe motoring around on fairly level ground, but it makes a more of a difference than you might think.
Muskoka makes sidehilling it look easy - even with a broken ski! - but you can see where even the best rider can't make up the deficits in some areas, like going uphill on edge. I'd say the short track and wide body constantly paneling out are what's holding it back. I'll bet that wore him out pretty quickly compared to a newer sled too. You can band-aid that kind of sled with handlebar risers, narrowed front end, suspension tweaks, etc., but at best, you're only going to make up a third of the ground to a new sled. I'd put a sled like an M8 in a transitional generation, along with the Polaris iQ and Doo XP. They weren't that big a step up in raw capability, but they're worlds better to ride on edge. You could make up more ground modding them, but it makes no economic sense unless you're buying used parts and are pretty handy.
So basically, I think it boils down to "buy the best sled you can afford," but I'd add that while sledding has a higher price of entry than a lot of passtimes, it's something that'll eat up every penny the average person is willing to throw at it. And it's easy to burn through a big chunk of savings or rack up debt if you get caught up in "gotta have it" fever. What I love about that Muskoka video is it shows you can have fun on "old junk." It's all a matter of expectations. Now, I'd question your life choices if you insist on running around on a sled like that Summit or my old 600 when you could afford something like an M8, or I'd say better yet, a Pro, Doo XM, or Ascender. Dare I say, there's more to life than sledding, but what I've done is to build my budget and upgrade during the off-season. When you're still dreaming of powder in July, working an extra shift or whatever side-hustle is well worth the reward. Anyway, lots of good advice here, and I think you've got a good plan for moving forward.
I thought it was more fun to watch than endless side-hilling through the trees. That's partly because you're always guessing where that sled is going to peter out, but it did a lot more than I'd expect with such a short track (137, I think). My old sled is very similar: a little better ergonomics and suspension, but still a wide sled designed around sit-down riding. Also, my sled started as a 136, but now is a 144. That's still not enough for deep snow, other than maybe motoring around on fairly level ground, but it makes a more of a difference than you might think.
Muskoka makes sidehilling it look easy - even with a broken ski! - but you can see where even the best rider can't make up the deficits in some areas, like going uphill on edge. I'd say the short track and wide body constantly paneling out are what's holding it back. I'll bet that wore him out pretty quickly compared to a newer sled too. You can band-aid that kind of sled with handlebar risers, narrowed front end, suspension tweaks, etc., but at best, you're only going to make up a third of the ground to a new sled. I'd put a sled like an M8 in a transitional generation, along with the Polaris iQ and Doo XP. They weren't that big a step up in raw capability, but they're worlds better to ride on edge. You could make up more ground modding them, but it makes no economic sense unless you're buying used parts and are pretty handy.
So basically, I think it boils down to "buy the best sled you can afford," but I'd add that while sledding has a higher price of entry than a lot of passtimes, it's something that'll eat up every penny the average person is willing to throw at it. And it's easy to burn through a big chunk of savings or rack up debt if you get caught up in "gotta have it" fever. What I love about that Muskoka video is it shows you can have fun on "old junk." It's all a matter of expectations. Now, I'd question your life choices if you insist on running around on a sled like that Summit or my old 600 when you could afford something like an M8, or I'd say better yet, a Pro, Doo XM, or Ascender. Dare I say, there's more to life than sledding, but what I've done is to build my budget and upgrade during the off-season. When you're still dreaming of powder in July, working an extra shift or whatever side-hustle is well worth the reward. Anyway, lots of good advice here, and I think you've got a good plan for moving forward.
Just watched the vid - super fun! We had an '03 340 Edge for a while last season, so I know exactly what you're talking about! I think that thing had a 44" ski stance and despite the light motor, was still not easy to pull over. Super fun to pin the throttle and get after it though.
Ol' Matt sounds like he was pretty worn out after trying some technical riding on that old Summit, but it did seem to go most places the newer sleds went, just not as easily. Body panels and track were definitely an issue.
Ol' Matt sounds like he was pretty worn out after trying some technical riding on that old Summit, but it did seem to go most places the newer sleds went, just not as easily. Body panels and track were definitely an issue.
Yer Sweety's 08/600/Summit REV. The secondary clutch is discontinued. If you damage a helix you'll be finding one on ebay or a salvage yard. Bushings discontinued since 2015.
That TRA primary clutch some parts are discontinued, you can't buy TRA ramps anymore. There are ramps at dealers, but as far as BRP making them, nope, you'll be looking at the aftermarket and that's drying up too.
The writing is on the wall for the TRA primary clutch too. The last TRA was mounted on a BRP sled in 2020 on the sport carb 600 models.
That TRA primary clutch some parts are discontinued, you can't buy TRA ramps anymore. There are ramps at dealers, but as far as BRP making them, nope, you'll be looking at the aftermarket and that's drying up too.
The writing is on the wall for the TRA primary clutch too. The last TRA was mounted on a BRP sled in 2020 on the sport carb 600 models.
There's definitely some value to staying somewhat current. Not looking to keep the Rev forever, just until there's a need to upgrade. Parts availability qualifies.
We were able to get everything needed to replace her nun and a-arms, which is cool. Just need some drivers now (cracked) and it'll be in good shape. At least good enough to trade in or sell.
The track isn't great, but we'll probably do a 151 conversion and get a nicer track at that time. That, surprisingly, is still available.
I wouldn't have thought parts would already be getting scarce on XPs. I guess I'm spoiled with the support Polaris has. You can still get quite a few OE parts for my old sled (it's even older, an '02), and there's aftermarket stuff for pretty much anything you'd need. Parts are definitely a factor on old sleds; once you get outside the belly button sleds (everyone had one at some point) like the Indy 500, Doo Elan, Yammi Phazer, it's easy to find white elephant sleds that you basically can't get parts for. It seems, for the XP at least, putting a Team secondary on would solve that problem. Of course, if you're going down the rabbit hole of doing clutch conversions and such, you have to consider whether a particular sled is going to be one you'll keep long-term.
Those old sleds surprise you sometimes. One nice thing about fan sleds, and to a lessor degree the small liquid-cooled twins, is you can just hold it wide open without usually having to worry about moving too fast. I remember riding around a field on my brother's old Indy 500 SKS, on about a foot of snow over solid ground, and somehow it was like nothing getting it on edge. Must have been just the right conditions, but someone else has been on it every time we've actually taken it out, so I can't say how it'd do in terrain (and you'd need the right conditions to even try on that, maybe a foot of dense snow on a hard base). The nice thing about the older chassis like the EDGE, ZX, and so on, is there's all kinds of parts you can mix and match. It'll only get you so far, obviously, but it's fun to play with and cheap for those that like to wrench.
Those old sleds surprise you sometimes. One nice thing about fan sleds, and to a lessor degree the small liquid-cooled twins, is you can just hold it wide open without usually having to worry about moving too fast. I remember riding around a field on my brother's old Indy 500 SKS, on about a foot of snow over solid ground, and somehow it was like nothing getting it on edge. Must have been just the right conditions, but someone else has been on it every time we've actually taken it out, so I can't say how it'd do in terrain (and you'd need the right conditions to even try on that, maybe a foot of dense snow on a hard base). The nice thing about the older chassis like the EDGE, ZX, and so on, is there's all kinds of parts you can mix and match. It'll only get you so far, obviously, but it's fun to play with and cheap for those that like to wrench.
FWIW, the Rev I have is a Summit Adrenaline. I think it was the only original Rev chassis sled made that year. All others were XPs.
Thanks for this post. I recently grabbed a 13 AC 800 SP HiCountry. Didn't want a payment and it popped up for sale in Bozeman with low miles.
I find myself wondering a lot of the same things you are about getting up on edge, sidehilling, etc. It's a 153, I guess I should've held out for 16x.
It's primary use is accessing bc skiing terrain, which it does fine.
I absolutely am terrible at riding in deep snow.
I'm excited to go out and check that front skid shock preload today, might make some gains there.
Fwiw a guy I sometimes ride with (newer rmk) was able to ride mine fine. So it's just the steep learning curve.
What will probably happen is i will keep the arctic cat and buy another used polaris 2018/19 to add to the fleet.
Then the other half could ride instead of sharing going to bc spots.
I hope AC comes out with an 850 in 25 because I've held polaris in a negative light just from predator atv days. Hard to shake misconceptions.
I find myself wondering a lot of the same things you are about getting up on edge, sidehilling, etc. It's a 153, I guess I should've held out for 16x.
It's primary use is accessing bc skiing terrain, which it does fine.
I absolutely am terrible at riding in deep snow.
I'm excited to go out and check that front skid shock preload today, might make some gains there.
Fwiw a guy I sometimes ride with (newer rmk) was able to ride mine fine. So it's just the steep learning curve.
What will probably happen is i will keep the arctic cat and buy another used polaris 2018/19 to add to the fleet.
Then the other half could ride instead of sharing going to bc spots.
I hope AC comes out with an 850 in 25 because I've held polaris in a negative light just from predator atv days. Hard to shake misconceptions.
With the right technique and track, I think the 15x class sleds aren't a whole lot different than the 16x sleds. I wouldn't worry too much about that.
I am also terrible at riding deep snow and trenched multiple times yesterday. Either I just suck (which is definitely true) or the front track spring preload is too much. I am going to turn it down incrementally until I find a balance. I'd say mess with yours and see what tradeoffs you can make. Same goes for front springs.
Without reading this whole thread, but it seems like you got some decent advise. The sled chassis have evolved majorly in the last 10 years. If you are riding anything older than 10 years, you are making it significantly harder on yourself. That being said I would suggest you not get anything older than a Axys chassis if you can afford it. These sleds are so mich easier to ride and take way less rider input for you to ride longer in the day. Even with the Doo the difference between a XM chassis and the G5 is huge. Watching guys hop on new stuff just for 15 minutes makes them look like a better rider. And as for buying someone's old turbo, I don't think you could make a worse mistake. All aftermarket turbos should be scrapped. I would suggest don't get a turbo at all. They make you a worse rider. But if you are dead set on getting a turbo, the factory turbos are the only way to go unless you want to wrench in sleds instead of ride them. Lastly sign up for one of Caleb Kesterke beginners clinics next year. You can learn a lot!
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