Power Claw is Killing Belts

[tuneman]

My new Power Claw 3" x 162" track is certainly a beast and can keep up with the 7# of boost I throw at it. Unfortunately, I went through 3 belts in the last 5 days.

I reached out to the expert, Tony @TRS , and he had the answer. It appears there's just not enough clearance in the front of the tunnel for the PC. The lugs are too tall and wide to be able to clear the snow efficiently. Thus, slight belt slippage and eventually the belts start coming apart and throwing cords. All 3 belts were very glazed and started coming apart but never blew up.

Has anyone else experienced this issue? Tony said I need to cut the lugs down a bit, but I'm just reaching out to see if there's any alternative solution...

 

[gmustangt]

I cut a 1/4” off mine . I found that 1/4” just folds over anyways..
It’s definitely tight in there .
I feel like the powerclaw having less teeth / lug throws bigger chunks of snow into the tunnel

 

[DKP]

Clutch for more belt squeze. better traction = higher load on belt/sheave interface, needing more squeeze. More spring and more weight

 

[HECKS]

I am on my 2nd PC 3" track, but I have center drilled holes in track belt to help vent/clear the air/snow pressure in the bulkhead. But it sure is noticeable when it gets choked up in the heavier snow and draws the RPM's down. I may trim the lugs down as mentioned above.
Gmustangt....you notice any more trenching with lug trimmed ? The paddle tips are tapered to allow some slippage.

 

[BeartoothBaron]

I'm assuming your clutch is aligned, mounts are in good shape, and so on. Are you running Polaris belts? I've been pretty happy with Gates, and it seems like they stand up better, although they're less tolerant of misalignment. Anyway, if it were me, I'd try trimming the lugs (no more then 1/4" at a time) and evaluate. I've got no first-hand experience with the PC, but I'm confident TRS knows what he's talking about. The only other option would be a dropped, or dropped and rolled driveshaft to get more clearance at the bulkhead.

 

[tuneman]

I'm assuming your clutch is aligned, mounts are in good shape, and so on. Are you running Polaris belts? I've been pretty happy with Gates, and it seems like they stand up better, although they're less tolerant of misalignment. Anyway, if it were me, I'd try trimming the lugs (no more then 1/4" at a time) and evaluate. I've got no first-hand experience with the PC, but I'm confident TRS knows what he's talking about. The only other option would be a dropped, or dropped and rolled driveshaft to get more clearance at the bulkhead.

Yes, clutch correctly shimmed and aligned with the TRS alignment bar. New motor mounts too. It's definitely a slipping issue, because the belts were very glazed. Two were Gates belts, one was a Polaris belt. I have 3 new Gates belts coming. Tony sent me his lug trimming tool today. I'll trim to maybe 2.8" and see how she does. I'm selling or parting the sled out at the end of the season, so doing a drop and roll isn't an option.

 

[BeartoothBaron]

I figured you'd eliminated any wear items and alignment issues; it definitely sounds like the track is binding from snow buildup and overloading the clutch. I only mention the D&R because that's the "best" way to deal with the problem, but probably not worth it. I'm curious to see how trimming the track works for you; hopefully that eliminates the issue. It definitely sucks cutting down a perfectly good track, but it should be nothing but gains if you hit the right length. The crummy part is it really depends on your snow where you get the best results, and you can't go back if you cut too much...

 

[seef158]

What about porting the track, and maybe only trimming the center lugs to make a path or chute per say for the snow to evacuate? No expert here, just thinking out loud

 

[gmustangt]

@HECKS cant say I noticed anymore trenching . Lug still has flex.

Any durability issues drilling holes ? How many miles you have on that?

 

[summ8rmk]

@HECKS cant say I noticed anymore trenching . Lug still has flex.

Any durability issues drilling holes ? How many miles you have on that?

13-18yrs ago, porting the track was all the rage. Ski-doo did it in 2006.
Some people went extreme and drilled 5+ hole across the track between each row of paddles

Sent from my SM-G998U using Tapatalk

 

[IDspud]

And then porting stopped for most.

 

[BeartoothBaron]

I've seen some older sleds for sale with ridiculous ported tracks. I ported the 144 series IV on my old sled, but was pretty conservative with it. I just went with one hole per row, just off center behind a paddle; the track seemed to hold less snow afterward, but hard to be sure. I think something conservative like that or what @HECKS did gives you the most benefit possible. That said, I think the issue in question is snow buildup between the track and the bulkhead, and I'm not sure how much good porting would do for that. I think Doo tracks still have slits in the center? They're pretty small though; if a Swiss cheese track like those ported-to-death tracks worked, somebody would be selling a sled with one by now...

 

[IDspud]

The snow goes both ways through the holes so not always functional as intended.
Love to get small brush and limbs and small rock edges in holes and tear was our biggest issues.

 

[madmax]

I know a lot of guys who run the PC 3” on axys sleds. I had one on my 17’ 800 turbo for a season and never lost a belt. It is a pretty tight fit to get that track in there. 3 belts in 5 days is a lot. You still have stock axys QD? Lower ratio may help. You have
TRS clutching in it?

 

[tuneman]

I know a lot of guys who run the PC 3” on axys sleds. I had one on my 17’ 800 turbo for a season and never lost a belt. It is a pretty tight fit to get that track in there. 3 belts in 5 days is a lot. You still have stock axys QD? Lower ratio may help. You have
TRS clutching in it?

Yes, stock QD and TRS clutching. I had a lengthy chat with Indy Specialty yesterday and we came to a conclusion that the primary is slipping, due to not enough pinch at the top end. I think the TRS weights are based off of the 'ol Lightning weights. So, I have their Turbo 3 weights coming, which have lots of tip weight, and will give that a go before considering any track trimming. Will test 'er out next week Thursday and we'll see what happens.

 

[HECKS]

@HECKS cant say I noticed anymore trenching . Lug still has flex.

Any durability issues drilling holes ? How many miles you have on that?

Well, it made it just over 3,000 mountain miles, until a lug delaminated from the belt and torn into a window. Tried haywiring it to limp it out and ended up tearing it up. Just installed a new PC this fall, but have yet to center drill it out. I have a mongrel of a tunnel cooler, as I shortened up the tunnel and used an older 155 doo cooler on my 163 being cheap and broke lol. The though was to center drill to help get some more snow dust up into the center of my tunnel from the scratchers. What did you use to trim your lugs down with ? In the past I have used a dirtbike knobby knife (basically a soldering iron with a blade on it).....but these lugs seem to be a denser compound compared the Pro/Axys tracks

 

[tuneman]

Use an oscillating tool to cut the lugs.

BTW, the Indy clutching didn't work for me. Performance was improved, with magnets set at 3-0-2. Still blew a belt at 1.5 days, so went to 3-0-3. Brought down engagement rpm to a little better spot, but still blowing belts. Headed west tomorrow and going to double check alignment with my TRS alignment bar. Then just ride it. I've got 6 more days on this sled before I either sell it or part it out. So, not gonna take the time to cut the track down. She's got just under 5,000 miles on the ticker Part of my issue is that I ride constantly. I need to take more breaks to let things cool off...

Funny/long story, but I've got 7 belts in my quiver to cover 6 days. I think I'll make it, lol.