which four-stroke?

[Joa]

Decided to sell my little Indy 400 and get a four-stroker. I used to be a Honda/P*laris guy but then I bought a Yamaha Big Wheel for elk hunting and was so impressed with the maintenance manual that I decided to look into switching to the dark side with my sledding too

Bio... I don't do a lot of crazy big mountain style riding (will mostly use to access backcountry skiing) and prefer something with plush suspension and that is relatively lightweight. I'm really tall so it needs to fit me height-wise. Needs reverse. Trying to find something a few years old for under $4k. Any advice?

Thanks Yamaha guys.

Joa
Sandpoint, ID

 

[Bauer]

RX-1 or Apex.. Nytro is still pretty new and not cheap, Phazer needs more kapoowie.

Lightweight? Nope..

 

[Joa]

How do the RX-1 and Apex do in deep snow? They have big tracks and lots of power but they also seem pretty heavy. How are they for boondocking style riding? I'll sledding through the trees to get to the tops of slopes so I'll definitely be off-trail and hopefully in deep snow

Thanks.

 

[Bigrock33]

Decided to sell my little Indy 400 and get a four-stroker. I used to be a Honda/P*laris guy but then I bought a Yamaha Big Wheel for elk hunting and was so impressed with the maintenance manual that I decided to look into switching to the dark side with my sledding too

Bio... I don't do a lot of crazy big mountain style riding (will mostly use to access backcountry skiing) and prefer something with plush suspension and that is relatively lightweight. I'm really tall so it needs to fit me height-wise. Needs reverse. Trying to find something a few years old for under $4k. Any advice?

Thanks Yamaha guys.

Joa
Sandpoint, ID

4 stroke and lightweight(in stock form) is an oxymoron. Under $4K, probably an RX1. I have two Apex's, one boosted and one stock w/about a 70-80 lb diet. I found the stocker for a really cheap price with just a couple hundred miles on it and am into it a total of about 7G's, was able to get some excellent prices on some hardly used lightweight parts, has reverse.

 

[Bauer]

Can't speak for the RX-1 but my Apex does awesome. They are a hand full in the trees though..

99% of my riding is boondocking. And they take some gettin used to..

 

[Butta]

Decided to sell my little Indy 400 and get a four-stroker. I used to be a Honda/P*laris guy but then I bought a Yamaha Big Wheel for elk hunting and was so impressed with the maintenance manual that I decided to look into switching to the dark side with my sledding too

Bio... I don't do a lot of crazy big mountain style riding (will mostly use to access backcountry skiing) and prefer something with plush suspension and that is relatively lightweight. I'm really tall so it needs to fit me height-wise. Needs reverse. Trying to find something a few years old for under $4k. Any advice?

Thanks Yamaha guys.

Joa
Sandpoint, ID

What about a Vector? It's not as powerful as the Nytro, let alone the Apex, but it should be lighter than the Apex and you can get them stock with a 162" track. I've seen them for under $4k pretty regularly.....

 

[adrenaline junkey]

For the amount your looking to spend a phazer or vector is going to be about it . There is almost no such thing as a light weight Yamaha unless ya throw a bunch of bucks at it. I would suggest if you want to go 4 stoke and do it right save just a little more and pickup an apex I seen new 2007 ones in the crate go 6500 a couple months back. the apex is heavy but doesn't show its weight. Its a great sled. try setting up a ride with someone to see if its something your interested in.

 

[Joa]

If I go with the heavier RX-1 how valuable do you think it is to have reverse? If I find a sled without reverse what do the reverse kits run and where do you get them?

Also, how valuable is a longer track with longer lugs (say a 151x2.5 track as compared to the stock 121x1)?

Thanks.

 

[adrenaline junkey]

Reverse is a nice thing but i don't consider it mandatory. The difference between the two tracks and lugs would be considerable like as being able to get off the groomed trail in 12 inches of fresh snow or being committed to just trail riding

 

[Joa]

Yaa, I think I'm sold on the longer track for N ID riding.

I think reverse might be pretty handy though. Any info on the reverse kits?

Thanks for all the advice guys.

 

[Thistledoo]

Find one with reverse...you will use it lots. If you can find a good deal on a MTN Apex throw some simmons gen2s on it and ride. They get around fine in the deep stuff....but you have to ride the sled...not let the sled ride you. Hold it open and ride it.

 

[freelheeler]

i bought an RX1 mtn (no turbo) last season and use it 75% of the time for backcountry skiing and access, the other 25% is pure riding, i'd do it again in a heart beat. however in order for the rx1 mtn to work as an off trail sled it needs a bit of work i've attached the link to all that is known and good for the rx1 mtn, see below. i also posted a few pics of mine with skis (SUMO's), i've got it setup so i can ride 2up and carry multiple sets of skis and gear. the MM700 with the split board is my old sled, and my rx1 walks all over it and is so much more pleasant to be around (electric start, reverse, no blue smoke, fuel mileage, etc). i also ride with a stock apex setup for skiing and would not advise you to spend the money unless 'boost' and mods are in your future. one of the biggest issues with any 4 stroke setup is the exhaust location limits the amount of gear you can carry. if you route the exhaust into the tunnel it's so much nicer! the rx1 is a great budget mountain sled once you apply the 'KACHESS' treatment, and spend the money and buy the camo extreme 162x16x2.5 it's worth it in vitamin I and your back will thank you. i'm able to ride with the newest sleds and still have fun, i may not be highmarking everyone but that's not my game, i save the slopes for skiing!

it'd be hard to go back to a 2 stroke!!

http://www.ty4stroke.com/viewforum.php?f=13

 

[Joa]

Freeheeler... that's good stuff and it looks like you use your sled like I plan to use mine.

One of the reasons I don't mind buying a sled that's a few years old is that most of the bugs should be known and all the good mods already worked out.

Still trying to figure out what it takes for a reverse kit since one of the sleds I'm looking at doesn't have reverse but has some other things I like.

Off topic... I do a lot of telemarking too and at the end of last year got a bro deal on a pair of LibTech Freeride NAS boards. I've been pinning for almost 20 years and these are the absolute BEST skis I've ever been on for any off-piste conditions, period. Check them out.

 

[freelheeler]

...i don't want to get called out by the 'sled' guys for an off topic **** throwing contest about the best BC tele ski! but the SUMO's are sweet bc pow skis! and for more everyday conditions i ski the k2 antipiste, both with g3 bindings and t1's. the fun factor is way up there!!

you can find my rx1 build ...on the link to the TY site, search 'freeheeler' and 'kachess'. it's a bit of work to get the rx1 dialed but not awful, plus 4 stroke motors go forever. so if you're mechanically inclined and like to wrench a little you can make yourself a pretty nice setup within your budget! the real reason to buy an older 4 stroke is most guys think they're hogs in the snow and dumped them years ago for a big loss or boosted them. and honestly in stock form the rx1, vector and apex are pretty much trail plus machines, not true mountain sleds.

my thinking has always been i need a 2up mountain sled, and no one makes such a thing. 2 up trail sleds = lots of digging and mtn sleds require and good bit of tweaking to hold up to the extra loads and abuse. the rx1 or vector make good platforms to build from, buy cheap and build it into something you can use. if you need more ponies in the end boost it! mine unboosted does great things ride 2up, pull a trailer, pulls multiple skiers up hills for laps, or all of the above at the same time. plus i can go out and ride and boondock. you'll definitely start enjoying the sledding experience and the need for more power is alway a temptation, i nearly installed boost this season and still may?? it'll be a huge step up from the 400 indy

 

[Joa]

Did a pre-buy and rode a stock RX-1 this morning. Wow, definitely different than my little Indy 400. I can see why the sled needs reverse, it’s quite heavy. Love the 4-stroke though, reminds me of my 100hp 4-stroke Rotax aircraft engine.

I’m looking at the sled I rode this morning (which has about 3500 miles) vs a low mileage sled (about 1100 hours) which has a couple of upgrades like a 2” handlebar lift and a heat exchanger. The difference in price is about $750. Which one would you go for?

IOW is the hx a “must have” (or does it just add weight) and will I end up with a different custom bar lift (and possibly rider forward kit) anyway since I’m really tall (6’7”)?

 

[Joa]

Any RX-1 owners offer advice between the two sleds?

 

[Thistledoo]

Do either of the RX1's have reverse or a longer track?? Any other mods?

 

[Joa]

Both have 151x2 tracks. Neither has reverse, I would have to add a kit. The cheaper one is bone stock, the other has a 2" bar rise and a heat exchanger.

 

[freelheeler]

here's the deal when it comes to making the rx1 work (IMO) you need to pick one up as cheap as possible with the idea of dumping a bit more money and work into it. it would seem the only folks riding the rx1 have extensively mod'd them for example 'KACHESS' on tyyamaha. he breaks down the cost and has a near step by step write up on the mod install and tweaking, good ****! look over the sled real close make sure things are striaight and where they should be, oil leaks etc. a mouse had chewed the fuel lines on mine and i fought the tuning for months before i found the leak and all became okay again in the world. i'd look at the total cost of the project and see where you pencil out

again in my opinion the biggest issues to address
-track and length
-rider forward and high rise seat
-suspension
-clutching and gearing (this is huge!)
-exhaust
-boost (?)

here's a list of some of the work i've done.
03 RX-1mtn LE, NA, m7 153, 162x16x2.5 camo extreme, rider forward, lw exh-kachess, (silver ac spring, sec/white yam), (05 weights --), shockwave, 18/40 w/reverse, SLP skis, lw battery and relocation, hartman tunnel ext

off topic called in 'dea' yesterday and skied 17" of pow in the bridgers!

 

[Thistledoo]

IMO the rx1 with the 151 isnt gonna cut it in any softer snow conditions....the apex with the 162 16 was a huge differance in the snow. Reverse kits are 5hundy at least...I think so it would be nice to find a sled with that on it....Brendon