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 Snowmobiles here! OP! I'm a sheltered child! I've never ridden a snowmobile before/I live in a lovely area where there is no snow  That's why I'm here to help you!Tell me about the brands In America, there are four "big" brands, you're pretty much only gonna see these ones around, you might see a homebuilt or a nutty European one but that is exceedingly rare.First off, let's start off with Polaris   Polaris! The logo is a star. Get it? A Minnesota company. They're the pioneers of a lot of snowmobile technology, they recently turned 60! One thing Polaris is known for is their steering and suspension. Although they had suspension issues in the mid '00 they're doing decent now. I used to ride Polaris but my allegiance switches towards Ski Doo now. I'm a large fan of their late 90's XCR 800, very fast, high top end speed. If you're looking to buy a Polaris snowmobile and are new to things and are riding by yourself, I recommend the Polaris 600 Switchback, two-seater, easy ride, but it can tackle a lot. Low price too! Next is Ski-Doo   Ski Doo, for you Canadian types. Biggest market share in North America. They're 70's and 80's sleds are kinda lovely. Unreliable, etc. They got better in the 90's and are considered the front runner today. You can find them almost anywhere. My ride of choice is a 1200 MxZ TNT. Fast, feels light, and rides like a dream. I recommend a lower CC model for beginners but overall big fan of Ski Doo in general. If you want a two-up, you can simply attach a seat to it, but there's also other models that are worthwhile like the Grand Touring Here's Yamaha   Yamaha really does do everything right? Based in Japan. Probably the smallest market share next to Arctic Cat in North America. Always been lingering in the market, they had some really awesome 70's sleds. Pioneered the 4-Stroke for American Snowmobiles. Lots of them are nice trail-rider or easy riding sleds, easy to pick up and use. Not to say they don't have sporty models, but when I think Yamaha I think trail. The Yamaha Viper is generally considered pretty good, I don't see too many in my neck of the woods though. Finally, last but not least, Arctic Cat!   Not known for they're quiet sleds, it's another Minnesota company! You'll see a lot of kids and douche bags, too drive these. Not to say anything is wrong with these, they tend to just draw in the monster energy crowd. They like to push it to the limit with speeds. They've always been a strong member of the snowmobile community but have been recently considered unreliable due to recent turbo-engine issues leading to a lot of trail-side blow outs which you really, really don't want. Especially if you're by yourself. I'm really not a fan, but the internet tells me that the Arctic Cat XF 8000 Limited is a great off-trail sled. Do with that as you will!  Okay cool, where should I ride?This part is really up to you. Northern Wisconsin, Central Illinois, Upper Manitoba, Minnesota, Northern New York and British Columbia tend to be hot spots. For Europe, Sweden tends to have the best trails. Anything else I should know? It can be expensive, but it's a lot of fun! I hope this OP helps a little bit What sleds do you own OP? A Ski Doo MXZ and a 1979 Yamaha SRX, I love them both so dearly  Describe Arctic Cat Riders  How safe are these things? 
Top Hats Monthly fucked around with this message at 21:52 on Jan 20, 2015 |
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Jan 18, 2015 20:37
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Snowmobilers once started a fire on a rally stage at Sno*Drift and when confronted, wouldn't leave. They had to cancel the stage, and we had been waiting in sub-zero temperatures for two hours to see Ken Block and Travis Pastrana eat poo poo. I'm not sure what type of snowmobiles they were but it sounds like it had to be Artic Cats.
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Jan 18, 2015 20:41
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 I would move back to Alaska for one of these. or a fleet of them.
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Jan 18, 2015 20:55
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cursedshitbox posted:
It's beautiful
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Jan 18, 2015 22:42
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I used to ride here and there back when I was in high school. The only thing I know about snow mobiles is they break some times and then you swear a ton. Its so much god drat fun when they work right 
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Jan 18, 2015 23:02
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BrokenKnucklez posted:I used to ride here and there back when I was in high school. The only thing I know about snow mobiles is they break some times and then you swear a ton. Really more people should. It's a lotta fun.
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Jan 19, 2015 03:37
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OP needs to at least mention the Larven in passing. Not particularly relevant to modern sleds but it's too ridiculous/awesome not to mention.
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Jan 19, 2015 04:46
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Tommychu posted:OP needs to at least mention the Larven in passing. Not particularly relevant to modern sleds but it's too ridiculous/awesome not to mention. Jesus Christ ahahahahahahah I've never even heard of this
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Jan 19, 2015 06:42
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Apparently my great grandpa built a sled with a washing machine motor back in ought five or something idk I rode a friends sled uphill near McBride, BC on a trip and it was amazing. We had a group that would ride up, snowboard down, ride back up, etc Best powder day I ever had.
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Jan 19, 2015 09:36
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Better OP! Now with more gifs.
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Jan 20, 2015 21:51
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DrakeriderCa posted:
This is what I want a snowmobile for: back country skiing. What's a good utility/work model that can climb hills with a load?
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Jan 20, 2015 22:49
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Speleothing posted:This is what I want a snowmobile for: back country skiing. What's a good utility/work model that can climb hills with a load? Sorry for replying to my own thread so much I've heard good things about the 2015 Polaris Indy Voyageur 550, I'm not sure what to do about an actual skirack, you could build one pretty cheap and easy or buy a kit, but the 550 is probably enough power for what you need, long track, etc.
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Jan 20, 2015 23:46
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Man I love snowmobiles. But unfortunately I live in Norway where's it's really restricted where you can ride, making it nearly impossible. It's been ten years since I've ridden one now. The last sled I rode was my cousins Mountain Cat 600, which was way faster than anything I had ridden before, and it was a blast! Last year he suddenly got a Polaris after being a Arctic Cat man for over a decade, should go visit him soon...
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Jan 21, 2015 00:25
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I rolled my 97 Yamaha VMAX last week and smashed the windshield. So I borrowed my buddy's much newer and much faster AC Firecat, and now I get snowmobiling. If anybody in the Western New York area is interested in a 77 SnoJet 440 restoration project, let me know. I already did the part of the restoration where you take it all apart and lose interest in it, so it's like you're half-done! Be advised: the SnoJet is currently buried.
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Feb 13, 2015 05:27
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Valfar posted:Man I love snowmobiles. But unfortunately I live in Norway where's it's really restricted where you can ride, making it nearly impossible. It's been ten years since I've ridden one now. The last sled I rode was my cousins Mountain Cat 600, which was way faster than anything I had ridden before, and it was a blast! Last year he suddenly got a Polaris after being a Arctic Cat man for over a decade, should go visit him soon... I live in New York, and despite being total dildos about every other type of off-road vehicle, it embraces the HELL out of snowmobiling. I live on an island, and there's something like 20 miles of clearly marked and well-groomed trail on it. And not just in the woods. It goes along the river, through a state park, past a Tim Hortons and a few bars, through a few residential areas. It's nice.
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Feb 13, 2015 05:35
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Computer Opponent posted:If anybody in the Western New York area is interested in a 77 SnoJet 440 restoration project, let me know. I already did the part of the restoration where you take it all apart and lose interest in it, so it's like you're half-done! This is giving me flashbacks, shades of craigslist trade offers past.
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Feb 13, 2015 11:36
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it's called a snowmachine motherfucker shralp the gnar bro
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Feb 13, 2015 12:01
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I have ridden one of these exactly once. It was in revelstoke, and I was told at the end of the groomed trail to practice my pow turns in a snowfield that was "pretty flat." I went off a 15 foot cliff in that snowfield, and I thought it was just a gentle rollover so I let off the throttle and the sled lawn dart-ed nose first into the snow. I nutted myself on the handlebars and have a scar on the inside of my leg from it. That's my snowmobiling story. It was a lot of fun but after doing it in fresh snow on top of a mountain I just don't get why people would trail ride around here (MN). It's so boring in comparison.
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Feb 13, 2015 13:40
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My grandpa had a stable of old snowmobiles when I was a kid, I always rode the Sno Jet 440. At 20 years old it was the newest machine in the barn and was running more often than not. As a teenage boy I thought it was fast as hell. Looking it up now I see it made a whopping 11 horsepower and had a top speed of 57 mph, plenty fast for a kid. It looked a lot like this one except way more beat up from me riding it through thick woods at rather dangerous speeds. I haven't been on a snowmobile since then I'm sure a modern one would be mind blowing in comparison.
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Feb 15, 2015 06:58
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Modus Man posted:My grandpa had a stable of old snowmobiles when I was a kid, I always rode the Sno Jet 440. At 20 years old it was the newest machine in the barn and was running more often than not. As a teenage boy I thought it was fast as hell. Looking it up now I see it made a whopping 11 horsepower and had a top speed of 57 mph, plenty fast for a kid. It looked a lot like this one except way more beat up from me riding it through thick woods at rather dangerous speeds. I haven't been on a snowmobile since then I'm sure a modern one would be mind blowing in comparison. It's been a decade since I rode my SnoJet, but I remember it being a decent enough ride. If I can't find somebody to take it out of my driveway, I'll probably end up pulling the motor and selling the rest for scrap. Aluminum spikes every now and then. I just hate the idea of scrapping something old and fixable. Maybe I can make a drift trike with the motor.
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Feb 16, 2015 00:57
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wheez the roux posted:it's called a snowmachine motherfucker MACHINE? HOOEY
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Feb 20, 2015 02:41
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My Easter was AWESOME! As I've mentioned earlier the restrictions on snowmobiling in Norway is pretty ridiculous. But when you're in a place with no people and no police within miles? You
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Apr 15, 2015 18:35
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Valfar posted:My Easter was AWESOME! As I've mentioned earlier the restrictions on snowmobiling in Norway is pretty ridiculous. But when you're in a place with no people and no police within miles? You I'm glad, hopefully this thread helped a little bit too 
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Apr 29, 2015 16:54
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