Zollinger 1" Offset Spindles? Narrower A-arm kits?

[jeffthebuilder007]

Well I must be in the minority group; everyone RAVES how easy the new Axys is to sidehill, but my '16 Pro Rmk 800 163" does not pull over as easy as my '15 Pro did. It does great after initial roll is started. It also tends to push down hill a bit when crossing sideways over gentle slopes (?). Just rode my buddies new '17 Skidoo 850 Etec 165" and way easier for me to roll it on its side, so thinking of narrowing my front end.

The Zollinger 1" Offset Spindle looks like a great idea (so 37" minimum ski stance?). And Zbros is currently out of stock on their 36" ski stance kits so there must be a bunch of you guys trying these out. Let me know your opinions. Thanks!

 

[ullose272]

I like my kmod 37". I dont like the idea of the offset spindle. Too much hanging off into the snow to catch on something

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[EBartling]

I ordered alternative Impact 36" kit and it shipped within the hour and was at my house in less than two days- quality pieces for sure. Sold factory arms for $400 in less than 24 hours.

 

[bailer]

Well I must be in the minority group; everyone RAVES how easy the new Axys is to sidehill, but my '16 Pro Rmk 800 163" does not pull over as easy as my '15 Pro did. It does great after initial roll is started. It also tends to push down hill a bit when crossing sideways over gentle slopes (?). Just rode my buddies new '17 Skidoo 850 Etec 165" and way easier for me to roll it on its side, so thinking of narrowing my front end.

The Zollinger 1" Offset Spindle looks like a great idea (so 37" minimum ski stance?). And Zbros is currently out of stock on their 36" ski stance kits so there must be a bunch of you guys trying these out. Let me know your opinions. Thanks!

I agree completely with you on the handling vs. the old Pro chassis.
They felt like they would just about fall over, and the Axys requires far more effort to put it on edge in setup, off camber, downhill.

Correct me if I'm wrong but I think it is because the Axys is more rider forward, so the wide ski stance is emphasized. It is the same thing skidoo found out with the XP chassis and why they eventually went narrow and t-motion.

I added the Zbroz 36" kit and the IceAge promotion link and now my Axys is like riding a bike!!! Love it.

 

[jeffthebuilder007]

That is great news to me Bailer. I have 3 rides on my '16 and have actually been a little disappointed. Feels uncontrollable on technical climbs, and as stated earlier it is harder for me to initiate side hills. I rode AC M1000's until last year; switched over to a '15 Pro Rmk 800 155" and was blown away with how light it felt and how well it handled. In just 1 ride I felt like I had been riding it for years; a very forgiving sled and instantly comfortable in every terrain I came across. My '16 is substantially different; feels like it is riding me instead of me riding it LOL. Ordering a narrow kit this week
Jeff

 

[Overthehood]

While I don't get at all how you can feel the stock Axys is harder to initiate the roll the the former Pro chassis????? I have the offset spindles on my Axys and I like them. Rollover initiation is better with very little compromise in holding a steep sidehill, have never hooked anything with them.
I agree that the Pro chassis tends to pull downhill on a 2 way downhill slope more than the cats I've ridden, no sled is perfect in all situations.....yet. I want to ride the doo but watching the vids and feedback from some who've ridden it it looks like the weight transfer could be tough to control and it looks a little squirrelly.

 

[wfieldin]

I run the ZRP offset spindles with Zbros regular stance arms and feel it is a very nice stance. I ran the ALT IMP 36 last year and felt it was too narrow.

 

[ullose272]

Have you tried playing with the suspension settings at all? I had to take some preload out if the fts to get the front end to be more planted. It was too easy and squirely for me out of the box way easier to carve and put on its side than my pro ride with 36" front and pro-motion. Really the only reason i went with the kmod 37 kit was to get the spindles narrower and get steel arms. I ran stock axys arms wit skis all the way narrow and now i run th 37 kit skis centered. So should be only 1" narrower

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[jeffthebuilder007]

Thanks guys for all the info. Yeah, I am now trying different suspension tuning. The original owner of my sled had the fts cranked up way past factory minimum spring length (7.5") and he also had the rts super loose (11.5")? I did not like the way it handled. Next ride I put all spring lengths to factory specs: rts 10.5", fts 8.25", ifs 10.5" and those settings made the steering harder and more squirrely on the hill climbs. I do not care about trail handling, just want the sled set up for hill climbs and technical/tree riding with an emphasis on getting it to side hill easier.

Also, my sled is the snow check model with Walker Evans clicker shocks, but according to the manual the spring length settings are the same as regular shocks (?). Last item, I weigh around 195 with all gear and backpack.
Jeff

 

[ullose272]

A shock revalve does wonders for handling as well

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[adamg]

Thanks guys for all the info. Yeah, I am now trying different suspension tuning. The original owner of my sled had the fts cranked up way past factory minimum spring length (7.5") and he also had the rts super loose (11.5")? I did not like the way it handled. Next ride I put all spring lengths to factory specs: rts 10.5", fts 8.25", ifs 10.5" and those settings made the steering harder and more squirrely on the hill climbs. I do not care about trail handling, just want the sled set up for hill climbs and technical/tree riding with an emphasis on getting it to side hill easier.

Also, my sled is the snow check model with Walker Evans clicker shocks, but according to the manual the spring length settings are the same as regular shocks (?). Last item, I weigh around 195 with all gear and backpack.
Jeff

I rode my 16 Axys stock last year. I always wished it would lean over easier. By the end of the year I was comfortable with the effort required, but still wished it was easier. I went with Alt Impact factory width arms because I bent a factory one late in the season.

I put 36" Zbroz on over the summer and have ridden is 8 days now this winter. Also Exit shocks all around, and removed the sway bar. I definitely prefer it now, and have no regrets about the lean effort.

However I regret going Zbroz arms. The way they require re-use of a bunch of factory parts is a huge PITA, drastically reduces the resale value of your take-off parts, and opens up all kinds of mechanical problems in the process of removing and re-inserting all of the tightly fit pieces. Also the fact that the spindles require a ton of tweaking to get full steering travel is a huge PITA. The Alt Impact is highly superior I feel.

 

[Scott]

I rode my 16 Axys stock last year. I always wished it would lean over easier. By the end of the year I was comfortable with the effort required, but still wished it was easier. I went with Alt Impact factory width arms because I bent a factory one late in the season.

I put 36" Zbroz on over the summer and have ridden is 8 days now this winter. Also Exit shocks all around, and removed the sway bar. I definitely prefer it now, and have no regrets about the lean effort.

However I regret going Zbroz arms. The way they require re-use of a bunch of factory parts is a huge PITA, drastically reduces the resale value of your take-off parts, and opens up all kinds of mechanical problems in the process of removing and re-inserting all of the tightly fit pieces. Also the fact that the spindles require a ton of tweaking to get full steering travel is a huge PITA. The Alt Impact is highly superior I feel.

Whose arms DO come with ALL of those factory parts? I could be wrong, but I haven't seen any that do.

 

[jeffthebuilder007]

Thanks again for all the input. I have decided to copy "bailer" and going to try the combination of the Zollinger offset spindes and the Ice Age Pro-Motion Link

 

[aksledjunkie]

Your ski still sticks out past the farthest point on the ZRP offset spindle plus you keep the stock geometry of the A-arm to spindle relationship, on paper it seems, to me, to be the best of both worlds, narrower ski stance with the stock leverage.
And coming from a Pro 163" and Pro 155" I think the stock AXYS is much better in the sidehilling department.

 

[JJ_0909]

I'd ***really*** encourage you to work on suspension first. This coming from a guy who went narrow and hated it. A re valve with slightly less compression/rebound damping may help you a lot.

The Axys will always be harder to pull over on its side by the nature of how its designed. It will however, stay there a lot better than the XM/G4 chassis.

Narrowing things by 1" on each side isn't that big of a deal, plus you can always go back to stock "narrow" width if you want by changing ski position so give er a whirl if you want.

I had to relearn to ride with the Axys - and often found myself over riding the sled in the "middle" (40") position.

Some of what you are noting here contradicts the narrow front end ideal...

 

[aksledjunkie]

I agree with JJ regarding suspension tuning. That can transform a sled drastically to the point you feel like it's modded out with how much better it will perform.

 

[ullose272]

Whose arms DO come with ALL of those factory parts? I could be wrong, but I haven't seen any that do.

kmod, alt impact. not factory parts but you don't have to transfer ball joints

 

[ullose272]

Your ski still sticks out past the farthest point on the ZRP offset spindle plus you keep the stock geometry of the A-arm to spindle relationship, on paper it seems, to me, to be the best of both worlds, narrower ski stance with the stock leverage.
And coming from a Pro 163" and Pro 155" I think the stock AXYS is much better in the sidehilling department.

if you are sidehilling that's basically another inch of spindle hanging out there into the side of the mountain

 

[JJ_0909]

I agree with JJ regarding suspension tuning. That can transform a sled drastically to the point you feel like it's modded out with how much better it will perform.

I guess a lot of it has to do with how you ride too. If you often ride wrong foot forward, use the motor to engage changes in direction etc and are over 180lbs I just can't see how the narrow front end would work...

Did you try backing off preload 2 turns up front? Maybe adding some to the FTS? That'll help the sled feel a lot lighter and easier to roll.

 

[Killer Time Racing]

if you are sidehilling that's basically another inch of spindle hanging out there into the side of the mountain

How is that ??? If you are actually Sidehilling!

Your skis should be turned out from the hill and throttle applied enough to dig the track in and almost stuck ... At least that is the way I've always done it ....

Seen some guys yanking on the bars and hanging off the side with the skis parallel to the slope, is this the correct way and I've just found a easier way to do it ?????