I purchased Between the Lines Designs Surefoot Ice Free Coating and coated certain parts of my 2012 Pro with it.
First, this is what I did. I wrapped my tunnel in white vinyl. I powdercoated the rails, the spindles, the bumper brackets and the outer tube of the running boards and I coated the running boards, the rear track suspension brackets and the vertical walls of the inside of the tunnel with the Surefoot product.
Here's what I learned.
We went riding yesterday in about 8 inches of fresh snow on a five foot base. Unfortunately the Surefoot product is NOT a magic cure-all that keeps ice from sticking to your sled. I would have to say that the vinyl wrap on the vertical surfaces on the outside of the tunnel kept off more snow than the surefoot coating did on the vertical surfaces of the inside of the tunnel. It seems to be on about par with powdercoating as far as keeping ice and snow off. Snow still accumulated on the back of the running boards but not as bad as my son's sled and it was easier to kick it off. The advantage it has over powdercoating it the fact that you spray the product on so you don't have disassemble your entire sled to coat the tunnel. The advantage it has over paint is that it is a water-based product, has almost no overspray, no fumes and cleans up with water. It is very thick so getting it to spray posed a bit of a challenge but I just kept cranking my adjustment out until I finally got a decent pattern. Prep was super simple - just wire brush the exposed aluminum, mask everything off and go. We'll see how it does for durability but it seems pretty tough. The new powdercoat already has a couple of nicks and I didn't notice any in the Surefoot product.
Am I disappointed in the product? Yes - I think my expectations were too high. I was expecting no ice on the vertical surfaces in the tunnel and there was still plenty.
Will I use it again? Yes - I think it is a suitable replacement for powdercoating parts that are too much work to disassemble.
But I will still powdercoat parts that are easy to take off and I will definitely vinyl wrap the tunnel.
First, this is what I did. I wrapped my tunnel in white vinyl. I powdercoated the rails, the spindles, the bumper brackets and the outer tube of the running boards and I coated the running boards, the rear track suspension brackets and the vertical walls of the inside of the tunnel with the Surefoot product.
Here's what I learned.
We went riding yesterday in about 8 inches of fresh snow on a five foot base. Unfortunately the Surefoot product is NOT a magic cure-all that keeps ice from sticking to your sled. I would have to say that the vinyl wrap on the vertical surfaces on the outside of the tunnel kept off more snow than the surefoot coating did on the vertical surfaces of the inside of the tunnel. It seems to be on about par with powdercoating as far as keeping ice and snow off. Snow still accumulated on the back of the running boards but not as bad as my son's sled and it was easier to kick it off. The advantage it has over powdercoating it the fact that you spray the product on so you don't have disassemble your entire sled to coat the tunnel. The advantage it has over paint is that it is a water-based product, has almost no overspray, no fumes and cleans up with water. It is very thick so getting it to spray posed a bit of a challenge but I just kept cranking my adjustment out until I finally got a decent pattern. Prep was super simple - just wire brush the exposed aluminum, mask everything off and go. We'll see how it does for durability but it seems pretty tough. The new powdercoat already has a couple of nicks and I didn't notice any in the Surefoot product.
Am I disappointed in the product? Yes - I think my expectations were too high. I was expecting no ice on the vertical surfaces in the tunnel and there was still plenty.
Will I use it again? Yes - I think it is a suitable replacement for powdercoating parts that are too much work to disassemble.
But I will still powdercoat parts that are easy to take off and I will definitely vinyl wrap the tunnel.
Last edited:
