Skidoo 850 belt issues - alignment out of spec

winter brew · Mar 16, 2017

Chadly said:
I'm waiting for you to tell me how you are going to fix mine! I have a hair dryer under the hood on both my 850's now and unfortunately I don't mean a turbo :face-icon-small-ton

Chad, if you get a chance, take Jerry's sled for a ride. He is pretty happy with it now and has never had any belt issues. There are a couple others out there now with the same setup so we will see how it works out on those sleds. Swapped both springs and helix, stock flyweight with added weight.
I have never been a stickler for alignment, I used to make sure my sled was well out of alignment when working on clutch setups to ensure a "worst case scenario" as most guys never check alignment.
Since Doo stayed with the progressive angle sheaves on the primary, alignment of the clutches will always be a compromise, it can never be in correct alignment through the full shift. I wouldn't even worry about it unless it's WAY out of spec.

d1100t · Mar 16, 2017

powdermuncher said:
The clutch sheaves have a curve to them they are not flat, at least mine are not. If you have a good dealer they should be able to get it squared:face-icon-small-blu away. If not change dealers. Your buddy needs to be on here and talk to us, most of the people that really could help him will not get into a my buddy other friends cousin type internet pissing match.
Sorry but them are the facts.

I agree.
He won't pay the fee and sign up though.
I do more reading than posting because of what your saying.
It sound like he's willing to take the hit and sell it.
Thanks

rulonjj · Mar 16, 2017

winter brew said:
Chad, if you get a chance, take Jerry's sled for a ride. He is pretty happy with it now and has never had any belt issues. There are a couple others out there now with the same setup so we will see how it works out on those sleds. Swapped both springs and helix, stock flyweight with added weight.
I have never been a stickler for alignment, I used to make sure my sled was well out of alignment when working on clutch setups to ensure a "worst case scenario" as most guys never check alignment.
Since Doo stayed with the progressive angle sheaves on the primary, alignment of the clutches will always be a compromise, it can never be in correct alignment through the full shift. I wouldn't even worry about it unless it's WAY out of spec.

Did you go to a 039 secondary spring? I'm curious because I have a rb2 helix and a 150/350 primary and stock weights with a lot more pin weight. I just can't decide if the 062 secondary would be better or not.

winter brew · Mar 16, 2017

rulonjj said:
Did you go to a 039 secondary spring? I'm curious because I have a rb2 helix and a 150/350 primary and stock weights with a lot more pin weight. I just can't decide if the 062 secondary would be better or not.

Try the black or the green...green will be a little snappier and might be better at higher altitude. I think the purple is a little too much with the new primary but I honestly have not had a chance to try it yet.
It seems to like that helix.

powdermuncher · Mar 17, 2017

d1100t said:
I agree.
He won't pay the fee and sign up though.
I do more reading than posting because of what your saying.
It sound like he's willing to take the hit and sell it.
Thanks

Basic membership is free....

d1100t · Mar 18, 2017

powdermuncher said:
Basic membership is free....

I'm aware of that.
I bought a life time membership.
With a basic membership you can't read posts after a thread gets to 100 posts.
There's also a couple other reasons why he won't sign up but that's a whole different topic.
Anyways.
He traded the sled to a guy for an XP so his head ache is gone.

rab · Mar 18, 2017

( winterbrew )
Since Doo stayed with the progressive angle sheaves on the primary, alignment of the clutches will always be a compromise, it can never be in correct alignment through the full shift. I wouldn't even worry about it unless it's WAY out of spec.[/QUOTE]

Is it possible to float the secondary ?

Do you think this would maintain the alignment throughout the shift range ?

NHRoadking · Mar 18, 2017

rab said:
( winterbrew )
Since Doo stayed with the progressive angle sheaves on the primary, alignment of the clutches will always be a compromise, it can never be in correct alignment through the full shift. I wouldn't even worry about it unless it's WAY out of spec.

Is it possible to float the secondary ?

Do you think this would maintain the alignment throughout the shift range ?[/QUOTE]

Doodoctor makes a floating secondary for the 850s.

worx53 · Mar 20, 2017

It is possible and yes it will help

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk

bcpowder · Apr 19, 2018

Hi team,

Just to follow up on this post i originally put up with my 2017 850.

Following this post, I did get my alignment corrected, and it delivered no improvement to my belt life. I think it actually got worse. I ended up trading my 2017 in for a 2018 850 which obviously had the My2018 belt life upgrades. This delivered some improvement to belt life, but it was still totally disappointing.

I would say the My2018 updates took me from 100km per belt to 200 km per belt.

On the 2018 sled my alignment was spot on. I can confidently say that this is not the global issue with this sled, although it may be a compounding issue on some sleds. I spent considerable time playing with different clutch calibrations to see if we could refine shift consistency to stabilize peak rpm, minimize over rev, and improve back shift. I would say this process got me closer to 300 km per belt.

My opinion after running hard at belt issues on 2 years of these selds, is that the fundamental issue is excessive engine movement / vibration due to the long stroke 850. BRP is trying hard to counter act this with their "wobble clutch", and continually stiffening motor mounts in each years Belt life updates.

unfortunately, upon watching the unveiling of the MY2019 belt life upgrades, I've had to move on to a mountain cat as BRP has only confirmed to me that there is no way to correct the vibration in the 850 power plant...only band aids to put over top of it.

As can be seen in the 2019 updates, BRP is again stiffening motor mounts, however it clearly doesn't solve the base issue of excessive motor vibration. This which is confirmed by the fact that their second update is a fan clutch and radical air movement technology to run past the clutches to deal with what they know is excessive heat being generated by the engine vibration. The 3rd update of the belt guard is nothing more than a distraction, which is confirmed by them in their roll out and not even an issue.

At the end of the day, if you ride the 2019 850 hard in the mountains, i would predict 200-400 km per belt. The regular rider may be able to get around 1000km. The disappointing part here is that on the xm, these riders now getting 1000km, used to get 3000 - 4000 km per belt. BRP will isolate the hard riders and rider blame, and eventually you will be on your own with an under performing machine, paying for belts, and dealing with the compounding wear and tear of a constantly overheated and shock loaded crank.

Currently have 750 km on my mountain cat, and have not had a single belt issue.

Good luck boys.

snobyrd · Apr 20, 2018

bcpowder said:
Hi team,

Just to follow up on this post i originally put up with my 2017 850.

Following this post, I did get my alignment corrected, and it delivered no improvement to my belt life. I think it actually got worse. I ended up trading my 2017 in for a 2018 850 which obviously had the My2018 belt life upgrades. This delivered some improvement to belt life, but it was still totally disappointing.

I would say the My2018 updates took me from 100km per belt to 200 km per belt.

On the 2018 sled my alignment was spot on. I can confidently say that this is not the global issue with this sled, although it may be a compounding issue on some sleds. I spent considerable time playing with different clutch calibrations to see if we could refine shift consistency to stabilize peak rpm, minimize over rev, and improve back shift. I would say this process got me closer to 300 km per belt.

My opinion after running hard at belt issues on 2 years of these selds, is that the fundamental issue is excessive engine movement / vibration due to the long stroke 850. BRP is trying hard to counter act this with their "wobble clutch", and continually stiffening motor mounts in each years Belt life updates.

unfortunately, upon watching the unveiling of the MY2019 belt life upgrades, I've had to move on to a mountain cat as BRP has only confirmed to me that there is no way to correct the vibration in the 850 power plant...only band aids to put over top of it.

As can be seen in the 2019 updates, BRP is again stiffening motor mounts, however it clearly doesn't solve the base issue of excessive motor vibration. This which is confirmed by the fact that their second update is a fan clutch and radical air movement technology to run past the clutches to deal with what they know is excessive heat being generated by the engine vibration. The 3rd update of the belt guard is nothing more than a distraction, which is confirmed by them in their roll out and not even an issue.

At the end of the day, if you ride the 2019 850 hard in the mountains, i would predict 200-400 km per belt. The regular rider may be able to get around 1000km. The disappointing part here is that on the xm, these riders now getting 1000km, used to get 3000 - 4000 km per belt. BRP will isolate the hard riders and rider blame, and eventually you will be on your own with an under performing machine, paying for belts, and dealing with the compounding wear and tear of a constantly overheated and shock loaded crank.

Currently have 750 km on my mountain cat, and have not had a single belt issue.

Good luck boys.

I currently have over 5000 MTN km on my 16 axys, struggled with rpm loss for 2 seasons due to worn motor mts but even with crappy motor mounts, I've never blown a belt, I have 3 belts in circulation since 16, basically starting a season with a new belt and primary spring. The only thing iv just worn out, are the power valve brass bushings , from brapping alot in the trees and warranty replaced that. I would not own a sled that has a high cost of ownership, thus the reason I departed from cat ,after many yrs of owning them.

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Skidoo 850 belt issues - alignment out of spec

winter brew

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d1100t

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rulonjj

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winter brew

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powdermuncher

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d1100t

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rab

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NHRoadking

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worx53

hotrodsledshop.com

bcpowder

Free Member

snobyrd

Well-known member

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