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TUNNEL BRACING KIT FROM FTX... EASY INSTALL... BEST TO DO IT BEFORE YOU KINK A TUNNEL

mountainhorse

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For Preventative measures...On a tunnel that is NOT bent/kinked yet. I recommend the FasTrax "PRO-Tector" tunnel kit.

NOTE: if you have a 2011 PRO RMK... I highly recommend that you remove the chaincase and bond it to the bulkhead like the factory did in 2012 - 2015 sleds.

ALSO... If you already have a bent tunnel OR you have your sled torn down... the Vanamburg tunnel reinforcement kits are something that you should consider.

These kits, IMO, I would consider as "mandatory" on any kinked tunnel repair I do... in addition to the repair plates as this FTX kit ties everything together in a way that the repair plates alone do not.

http://ftxmotorsports.com/index.php?cID=120&ccm_paging_p_b904=4

I have this on my sled and have installed it on others for the same reason...Preventative measures

Although I had my sled torn down before the install... FTX includes everything you need with good instructions to install it easily without tearing down your sled.

From a previous post below.
If your sled is already damaged... I Highly recommend the Vanamburg tunnel brace set... Cut from CrMo steel... very nice fit... but requires some disassembly of the sled. VE makes nice stuff.

I'm running the FastTrax Tunnel PROtector kit on my current sled and will be installing it on my next one as well.

Install it on a new sled.. before you buckle your tunnel

IMO... It should be one of the first upgrades on your PRO RMK for anyone that crashes or hits stumps/rocks with their pro chassis RMK's...high quality laser cut stainless steel parts.. even has the long drill bit you'll need..

You don't have to disassemble the sled to install it.

Before anyone busts my chops ... YES, I paid for it.

When I first had it in my hands, I was pretty sceptical about it. I had a chassis torn down to nothing to do some other work and I installed the kit so I was able to actually feel the before and after... Before that whole area was flimsy... the FTX kit locked everything together and sandwiched the tunnel in that weak area... worth the money IMO.

2ujetagy.jpg
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mountainhorse

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The first task in the mission was to strip the sled down to "Zero"

Removing ALL components from the core-chassis.

Bodywork, Front and rear suspension, console, fuel tank, handlebars and controls, complete electrical system, Steering gear, engine, bumpers, snowflaps, track, front and rear suspensions, chaincase, drive-train etc etc etc.

To get it down to the bare chassis.

At that point... the first items to go on are the Fastrax "PRO-Tector" tunnel bracing kit.

The PRO-Chassis RMK tunnels are know to buckle in the area of the tunnel sides directly behind the chaincase and the PTO Driveshaft...in the footwells. I wanted to take measures to minimize that from happening as much as possible.

FastTrax Tunnel PROtector (CLICK HERE)

NOTE: The FTX PROtector kit doe NOT require you to tear down your sled... or even remove things.

CLICK HERE FOR FTX PROtector kit instructions... this will answer a lot of questions you may have.

When I first had it in my hands, I was pretty sceptical about it. I had a chassis torn down to nothing. I installed the kit so I was able to actually feel the before and after... Before that whole area was flimsy... the FTX kit locked everything together and sandwiched the tunnel in that weak area... worth the money IMO.

It should be one of the first upgrades on your PRO RMK for anyone that crashes or hits stumps/rocks with their pro chassis RMK's.. FTX includes everything you need with good instructions to install it easily without tearing down your sled....high quality laser cut stainless steel parts.. even has the long drill bit you'll need..

I also removed the stock mag side (chaincase side) factory outer "doubler" with all the holes in it and made a custom one from .080 6061-T6 sheet, no holes, that covers a larger area... and replaced the stock one with this piece for a little "extra measure" using LORD 406GB adhesive... a buckled tunnel mid season is no fun...I've repaired enough of these to not want to do it again.


FTX Kit and packaging

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PTO outer PROtector plate
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PTO inner PROtector plate.
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Mag side outer PROtector plate and custom doubler plate.
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Mag Side Inner PROtector plate
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damx

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Did the ftx kit this past weekend, as MH said instructions are good,all parts lined up proper. Would recommend it to everyone ........
 

FatDogX

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Already installed !!!

Nice product that's easy to install and provides a little insurance, highly recommend as well.j
 
S

SU27

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I have installed it too. Easy to install, and hopefully it will work. Little bit pricey insurance, eeh?
 

kylant

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I have one sitting on my bench. I think the instructions could be better.

I have 2 rivets that are bigger than the others, where are these used? There is no reference in the instructions
 

Scott

Scott Stiegler
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Eric, this is a great thread.
Thank you.

Oh...and by the way, Lynn...




During the first minute there...do you refer to that as a tea-drinking pinky or a sled mod instruction pinky?
 
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rmscustom

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If your an aggressive rider put someones kit on... My bud last year took a few "break in" (lol) rides last year and tweaked his a bit before I was able to put the aksnowrider kit on.
 
T
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Great product! Easy install! Could save you thousands of dollars in damage to your tunnel and valuable time on the snow!

Put these braces on my '11 pro and will be putting them on the '14 pro.
 

rmkboxer

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I have one sitting on my bench. I think the instructions could be better.

I have 2 rivets that are bigger than the others, where are these used? There is no reference in the instructions

the 2 larger rivets are if you want to drill the rivet out on the back of the fender you can but we don't. more for a courtesy just in case you want a little bit more room for pulling the fender down
 

mountainhorse

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The assault has some different brackets inside the tunnel that don't fit with this kit.

You should contact Curt at fastrax and see if they will be offering one for the Assault in the future.







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kylant

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finished installing my kit yesterday.
the very most rivet hole on the mag side, next to the belt drive, is a PITA the drill out. I took my time and drilled as straight as possible, still the hole ended up being slightly bigger than 3/16”

when i popped the rivet from inside the tunnel as suggested, the rivet did not get a good bite on the plate and was nearly pulled through. so i had to drill that rivet out, get a longer one from my stash, and use a rivet washer on that side. using the washer made that rivet nice and tight. i used a steel rivet, not sure if it is as strong as the rivets provided in the kit:face-icon-small-sad
 
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sledneck_03

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i tried buying but hes out of stock right now.... hopefully he gets some in before its too cold, new house garage wont be heated this winter.
 

800xtreme

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How does this kit compare to Kurt's at Kurt's Polaris? Better, worse, same? Easier or harder to install?
 

kylant

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i looked at Kurt’s, but went with the FTX because each side has 2 plates and sandwiches the tunnel. Seems stronger???
 

mountainhorse

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I just got off the horn with Curt FTX is only about a week out. Worth waiting for, IMO, to be easy/fast with the install.

Call and put in an order so you get on the list.

As I've said in the first post... Vanamburg makes a kit as well.

Chris Burandt is installing this FasTrax kit in all of his 2015 fleet for durability/prevention and ran them all last year successfully.



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