How to make the 2011 PRO RMK 800 better

Just like I told the boys in the Polaris Trailer Friday. Best box stock sled anyone has ever put on the snow for people like us.

Improvements:
strategic powder coating
track
running boards
handle bars
rear bumper
EGT

I will install Better Boards (trust me as someone who absolutely knows.. there is still a huge improvement in our running boards to these stockers when the snow get's deep and heavy plus they are still wowable in current form..we wanted light?)...standard 5.1 track trim and screw job this sled would have been twice as impressive if the track would hook up...narrow the stock bars and remove the plastic hooks...throw the mtn bar in the garbage and install a crash pad....ADD AN EGT so I can tell what is going on in there...maybe a fuel controller if we see a need on final map for our environment!!!! Rear bumper is so slick you can't hardly grip it to lift....have to work on that.

Dealer meeting coming right up so we get to see the color and spec sheet options. Anyway super cool vastly improved sled for 2011.

Let's hope for flat black plastic and seat please!

yea when i saw that CF bumper i went OH COOL.. as i love cf. But then my brain kicked . Gonna be a beech with snow covered gloves. I still want to find a way to put that sno flap on my xp tho!!! What mad scientist came up with that ???

I thought Polaris might of installed EGT probes from the factory considering the lean EPA mapping for the last 3 YEARS !! Would be nice to have EGT and water temp at the same time on the new guage they are bragging about

it has water temp

While at Timbersled a couple weeks back I saw several packages with Chris Burandt's name on them waiting to be shipped out. Wonder if they were for his 800rmk?

Judging only from pictures, drop and roll the driveshaft for less approach angle and better track windage/clearance.

Powerclaw.

Power Commander V first thing!
HID headlights
Vents.
maybe some bogey wheels.
and some storage bags...

If it's the same track as the 09/10 D8 then I would likely go for the camo extreme track. I like F-bombs EGT idea. That way you can work with your fuel control and hopefully not burn down.

I wouldn't go with aftermarket skis. I think the Grippers are great. I can't wait to see the new wraps for the Pro R from Braap Wraps, ArticFX and others.

wow

yee

PooSlinger said:

Judging only from pictures, drop and roll the driveshaft for less approach angle and better track windage/clearance.

Powerclaw.

Click to expand...

Having ridden a 2010 M8 this year (and sold it) I can tell you that the Pclaw is NOT god's gift to tracks. That thing trenched like a beech and got walked all over by an XP any time the snow was soft. With a base it could hold it's own, but I sure wouldn't waste money on changing to one, unless my sled came with a 1" lug.

Clayton said:

Having ridden a 2010 M8 this year (and sold it) I can tell you that the Pclaw is NOT god's gift to tracks. That thing trenched like a beech and got walked all over by an XP any time the snow was soft. With a base it could hold it's own, but I sure wouldn't waste money on changing to one, unless my sled came with a 1" lug.

Click to expand...

thats what I had noticed last year as well...the camo -x worked much better in the conditions we rode in last year...love the camo -x...

is it possible to get the 155 431# sled down around 400#.

Click to expand...

This one is going to cost more money to drop some serious weight like 30 lbs.

A 35 lb skid will net you about a 12 lb savings with light bogies

Adding a Challenger extreme will add 10 lbs.

Lighter front end will net you about a 5-7 lb drop in weight.

There is not much foam under the hood.

The stock can is already a very light piece

The stock seat is light already and no weight to be saved there.

Some custome steering post work and linkages might net you a few lbs savings.

An aftermarket pipe would net you about a 5 lb savings.

Headlight delete... maybe 4 -5 lbs (the stocker is small and light)

Other LW mods that are common like driveshafts, jackshafts, brakes, tunnels etc... are already light on this stock machine... I really dont see an aftermarket tunnel/cooler assembly netting much more than a few lbs Max drop in weight....

I assume vents would be a critical add-on for this sled. It looks like the new bodywork as less venting. Someone told me the engineers said it was better but I have my doubts when in wet deep snow. Plus, the xp with similar style tight bodywork seems to require a fair amount of vents to run cool. Just a observation.

I agree that the track and D&R would also be a good mod to this sled.

Personally, I am waiting to see what the final release of the sled models will be and pricing. It may be better to buy the base model and add aftermarket front and rear suspension to it.

We actually had a sled with Better Boards along for our test ride but it was just transportation since we had so many riders with limited vehicles. Hedlund rode it and wouldn't let anyone else touch it (Carl's sled)! he he he I was itching for the Factory Blue guys to ride our performance partners test sled to feel the value of a better track, better shocks, better running boards ect ect. But that was not at all the point of the demo or even what they are doing there.

They (design engineers) know there are aspects of improvement to be had and almost everyone has been proven already in the aftermarket field but it all has to be a balance of economics and performance to a WIDE range of user groups on the same vehicle. Physically doing such things are way more difficult then conceptionally arm chairing it.


Trust me gang...its all aspects of how our stuff works that makes Better Boards the best and there is absolutely no way that without an insert the factory can compete heads up. Exactly the same as the XP and the newer M series lineups that offer a similar evacation style footbed. THEY STILL DON"T COMPARE TO OUR PRODUCTS FOR EVACUATION OR TRACTION. They are VASTLY IMPROVED but not as good as they could or should be! As a consumer you should be irked...as a manufacturer who makes his eating money on this stuff I still get to have a job because they just can't get it as good! That is why nearly to the man, knowledgable guys that actively ride our products then compare to these newer designs still see and feel the value of Better Boards and have gone to the trouble and expense to add them.

How it works:

You need larger evacuation holes and that requires a heavier stronger foundation. You need a taller and more aggressive cleat in unison with the size of the evacation holes or the snow holds in place. How much or how difficult it is to get off our through depends completely on the water content and temperature of the snow in question. Having a 360* raise simply traps and actually increases build up with bonding. With the design weight limitations of the entire vehicle they have a limited option for the heft of the base metal. The strength value of what they have to work with limits the cleat height to under 3 mm and must be rolled to 90* or they would just bend. The angle of the cleat bend and the pattern of the cut are critical for actual traction even when there is some snow trapped between the rider and the boards. This is all stuff we learned by manufacturing and testing thousands and thousands of products for millions and millions of FIELD USE RIDDEN MILES. Polaris should have done you all a favor with this sled and contracted us to build those parts for them with our expertise and experience instead of trying an end around. By prepping the cutout base in the footbed and automated riveting or using their new nasa glue process this could have all be done super easily and you guys would get a superior performing brand name product on your expensive hot rods for the same money.

From a rider standpoint:
I am accustomed to how Better Boards feel and work and actually made a manuever and slipped off the side of the DEMO 2011 and up ended it. Other testers (name guys like Burandt, Adams, Struthers, ect ect) who've all have now ridden both made the same statement. Our conclusion was for the common guy who doesn't know there is a difference the new boards are an awesome and huge improvement. For us that do we'll just have to get Better Boards if we want the best for 2011..simple.

Now on to the EGT thing. I've sold over a thousand EGT instruments and spent the last 8 years trying to get people to understand how they work and how you applicate that information into useful data. IT IS NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE FOR PEOPLE TO PERFORM THIS SIMPLE TASK AND GRASP THE CONCEPT! Even the world's foremost sled engine performance guys have limited knowledge and experience with this process. Without correctly applicating the reports EGT's IE a thermocoupled report of a given gas temperature for a given duration and position have little if no value (neither does A/F since it operates on a similar process).

They have the semi reliable K type sensor in place and we are already paying for it. It would be nice even if almost nobody will actually use the information if they would offer a digital measuring or reporting device (readout) of the information coming from that sensor so that we can get a read without adding aftermarket sensors as well.

Now Scott...even though this would never ever happen. It would have been awesome to take one of those demos and load it up with what I have on my sled and compared it to the stock sleds. Now we have to wait until they hit dealerships and then the main ad on guys can go to town. Won't be a significant as years gone by because this is such an awesome sled to start with...but there will be "things" to be done.

The new limited ride demo program actually sets back the aftermarket world pretty significantly since dealers used to get demo sleds and keep them at seasons end for tinkering and preseason design prior to the smashing. Our stuff fits like a glove so I'm ready to rock but the performance engine and shock guys aren't as lucky. People that used to get a brand new sled and throw on some performance add on's might not get as good of improvements as years gone by because there won't be any level of field testing available. While this program is neat and more interactive with controls I think Polaris would also do themselves a favor to select gold standard dealers to continue to receive an end of season demonstrator model for additional rider tests and use. To me that would benefit all of us and encourage dealerships to increase their level of commitment to the sled biz with Polaris products.

But just like the boards, tracks, egt's and a lot of other stuff I mess around with I'm not getting the call from Osceola! he he he (but at least we've still got this forum for noisy people like me to get our soapbox time!) Braaaaaaaaaap

options

Options at the dealer!!!!!!!!!

3rd. year engine warranty!!!!!!!!!

shock package............ upgrades? or at least valved for you weight and aggressiveness
spring package............ titanium or dual rate
handlebar setup........... height and width, maybe rake also
colors......................... at least they're not SUBLIME GREEN! ha ha
These are at least things that can be changed at the dealer.

I hate leaving things stock so I'm sure mine will get the Westmont performance package and maybe a few more, might even go back the the original simmons skiis. This sled will more than likely be in the family till it's dead, so it has to remain reliable.

programmer, clutching, vents, fuel rack, seat bag, skid plate, some sort of custom graphics, so I can tell it apart from the other 17 I will be riding with!!!

It's gonna be fun,,,,,,,,,,,,,, again!!!!!!!!!!!!

WESTMONT...no you would actually be adding dry weight to the vehicle with Better Boards. The part we hack out or leave out if it was factory weighs about 2lbs net less then an installed set of Better Boards on that model.

The stated absolute design goal on this sled was to put it at a specified dry weight in a stock version as a marketing tool. Ski Doo XP and to an extent the M's as well set the bar and the sales results from that simple factor are significant. People have learned the value of "light weight" in mtn sleds and that is a measurable "benefit" that sells product to the masses.

Additional weight savings is getting down the super expensive stuff on this model as opposed to years gone by. The use of Ti springs or lighter air shocks will be one the bulk of things are done for us. It's really pretty cool in that aspect and you can absolutely feel it from a riding perspective. Structurally and how you repair damaged parts are also pretty interesting. Of couse nobody has really applicated a real world experience as opposed to theory on rebuilding the bulkhead sections or repairing a damaged tunnel so that will come when they are ridden by consumers. But the stuff looks and sounds more easily fixable and pretty cool along those lines as well. Lot's of hidden and neat stuff going on with this sled and the changes are way more then skin deep.