Blast Weight

[Escmanaze]

Ok, I have seen Cat sending a blast around to a bunch of dealers for a day or two here and there.

SOMEBODY has to have tossed one of these things on a darn scale right?

Do we know ANYTHING more now about the weight of this thing than we did 3 months ago?

"Near 400" just ain't cutting it for me. I really want some real info.

 

[sno*jet]

i thought some of you were not impressed and pretty much think its a flop?
12 gallons of gas and an e-start will make any sled look bad on a scale.

 

[CO 2.0]

Saw one in person yesterday. Overall I wasn't too impressed. This one had an alpha rail, but was harder to tip over than a full size alpha due to the a arms being wider. The turn down steering feels off on this sled said my dealer who rode it. Even in the vid he showed me he had to jerk around the steering to make it go where he wanted in pow. And for some reason was only pulling 6800rpm, so was a dog. Still a full size bulkhead, but with a worse tunnel and lower to the ground overall. For what it has on it, $8K seems a little steep. Kinda wanted one for my cabin riding around to just mess around on, but would rather pick up a used Riot X.

Don't get me wrong, it's still a great kids sled. But for a wife, you'd still want them on a full size sled like a 600.

 

[Escmanaze]

"harder to tip over"
"steering feels off"
"had to jerk around the steering to make it go where he wanted"
"was a dog"
"still a full size bulkhead"
"worse tunnel"




"still a great kids sled" ??????????????????????

What? Just what exactly in the world is your definition of a "great kids sled".

 

[Escmanaze]

i thought some of you were not impressed and pretty much think its a flop?

They definitely could have done better. But I wouldn't say it's a total flop - at least not yet.

12 gallons of gas and an e-start will make any sled look bad on a scale.

Hence my comments above. If it looks bad on a scale, then it probably rides bad in real life, so it's really disappointing that CAT made it with a 12 gallon tank and e-start standard.

NEVERTHELESS with all the advanced university math classes I have taken in my life , I have no problem backing out some of those gallons of gas knowing that I will never fill it all the way and backing out a bunch of that battery weight knowing that I will slap a lightweight battery on it. For that matter, the word on the street is that the aftermarket cans for the 800 should be the exact same for this sled, so I'll go ahead and back out that weight as well in order to find what it's actually going to look like when I have put a couple mods on and am ready to ride.

But in order to do any of this, I have to start with some kind of number somewhere. Without starting with something that is based on reality, I'm just playing pretend.

 

[CO 2.0]

It's better for a mid size kid than a 200. That better??? Full size is still too tippy and powerful for a kid IMO. A more planted sled is safer.

 

[sno*jet]

too advanced, here on the internet they only consider every fluid filled to the tippy-top as RTR weight. retarded but true.
the slanted steering is kind of disapointing for the mountain version. i bet you can build it into a fun little sled tho. 36" front should bolt up.
looking at all buradnt did to an evo for his kid i think this has more potential with less hackery. although looks like you could easily hack a foot of the tunnel off, dont forget that in your math lol

 

[BeartoothBaron]

I don't see anyone burning through 10+ gallons of gas on this sled unless it's somehow a real hog on gas. If it burns where you'd think it should relative to its size, an 8 gallon tank would be plenty, and I bet most riders they're targeting with it would never run out even with 6 gallons. Obviously you can do a partial fill and it only adds a couple pounds having a 12 gal. tank with 8 gal. in it vs a full 8 gal. tank, but the average rider is going to fill it to the brim every time and run around with 20+lb of gas they'll never use.

I'm curious how hard to pull start the motor is. If the reason they made electric start standard was because it really is harder to start than a smaller twin, then I have to wonder if big single is really that great an idea (drop the weight to less than a twin, but add it all back with electric start). The only place my 600 takes any effort to start is when it's dead cold, or if you have to roll it over. Both are less of a concern with EFI, and once it's warmed up, anyone remotely big enough to ride it could pull it over. Just seems they could easily eliminate 40lb of RTR weight (and yes, I'm counting ~20lb of gas, thinking of someone who's going to fill the tank), and that's a significant difference, especially for a small rider.

 

[Escmanaze]

It's better for a mid size kid than a 200. That better??? Full size is still too tippy and powerful for a kid IMO. A more planted sled is safer.

Ha ha!! Sure. Kids don't have to grow up a whole heck of a lot before they are ready for a LOT more power than what the 200 offers. And I'm fine not giving a kid a ton of power - he is a kid after all.

However, saying any sled is too tippy for a kid is something I will disagree with vehemently until my last breath. My 10 year old (and he's not the only one) is 100% on-board with learning how to get the sled on edge and as a parent, I am, and should be all about him improving that skill. Let's not put a limit on the kind of riding these kids are capable of just because we didn't have those kind of skills at their age or for any other reason.

Some samples below.

 

[MTN_VIPER]

I rode one a couple of weeks ago, I was surprised how well it did for only 400cc and 65hp. It is harder tip over, but that's not necessarily a bad thing for a beginner's/entry level sled. Like most sleds you could set it up to be more tippy as the rider gains experience/confidence.

The hand warmers work great, it's easy to start and ride. I could see where a small rider or kid would have a lot of fun on it. If my wife or daughter rode, I would consider buying one.

 

[turboless terry]

I have been on trips with kids that were struggling because the sled is too tippy. There was a lot of whining and crying going on. There is no one thing for everybody. Every kid is different. I am for a more stable ride until they figure it out.

 

[Escmanaze]

I have been on trips with kids that were struggling because the sled is too tippy. There was a lot of whining and crying going on.

Shoot, I've had the exact same experience but with adults. Nevertheless, I'm really glad that Polaris makes my nice tippy axys for me. I'm very glad they didn't reduce their design down to the lowest common denominator.

I am for a more stable ride until they figure it out.

That's partially why I also posted the videos of the kids on the snoscoots a year and two ago. I've been singing the praises of those snoscoots for some time now. They are AWESOME at teaching kids how to ride. If more of us start getting snoscoots while the kids are a little younger, they will have very well "figured it out" by the time they are ever even close to trying out a sled as big as the blast. As for kids that are already like 12 years old and too big for the snoscoot and are just now having their first snowmobile experience, then yes, a little stability probably goes a long way for that first year or two. However, I believe that should be the exception, not the rule, so I wish the manufacturers would treat it as such. Especially CAT, who designed and sells the ZR200.

 

[Escmanaze]

So based on the fact that this thread has been derailed into a conversation about whether or not a kid sled should be tippy, I'm guessing that means that we still don't have any solid weight numbers?

For the record, it's still a fun and interesting conversation to have - no complaints here - just wasn't the original question.

 

[turboless terry]

My bet is its heavy for it's size.not going to be sub 400 like it could be.

 

[hansenmac]

probably electric start so mom and dad dont have to start the sled every time which would get old.

 

[nolanbedard]

I have been on trips with kids that were struggling because the sled is too tippy. There was a lot of whining and crying going on. There is no one thing for everybody. Every kid is different. I am for a more stable ride until they figure it out.

Ya. Remember when we all learned how to ride on Summit 670s and the Polaris wedge chassis? It felt like you were riding a sheet of plywood. That’s what teaches you how to ride. Then you get into better chassis’s and you can ride well. For kids learning, or wives, a stable platform will be better. Then they’ll learn how to push the limits of a wide chassis , amd be co ride t she. They move into a full size ascender

 

[turboless terry]

probably electric start so mom and dad dont have to start the sled every time which would get old.

I have the first year pull start 200 and it does suck without electric start. My daughter usually can't get it started

 

[Escmanaze]

I have the first year pull start 200 and it does suck without electric start. My daughter usually can't get it started

Ha ha! Apparently I disagree with everybody on everything. I love my pull start 2018 snoscoot. Save another 10-20 pounds on it? Yes please! I was bummed to see them go electric start only. I have no problem starting a kids sled for them. What else is a dad even for right?

 

[Yamadoo04]

Ya. Remember when we all learned how to ride on Summit 670s and the Polaris wedge chassis? It felt like you were riding a sheet of plywood. That’s what teaches you how to ride. Then you get into better chassis’s and you can ride well. For kids learning, or wives, a stable platform will be better. Then they’ll learn how to push the limits of a wide chassis , amd be co ride t she. They move into a full size ascender

Just because we were stifled growing up doesn't mean we need to do that same thing for our kids.

You are right for a kid "learning" a stable sled is good. My kids all started on the 120 which is a very stable sled for a 3-5 year old kid. My little girl does great on the stable 120 sled. As they get older and have learned how to ride then the less stable sled does wonders for them. My boy went from the 120 to the 200 Scoot and can side hill the crap out of that thing. Even my 7 year old is getting that down now. He started at 5 on the SnoScoot and is now learning how to sidehill good too.
Now on the Freestyle 300 my 10 year old kicks freaking butt. Yes he can pull it over and side hill like a champ but it wears him out so freaking fast because he is still so small compared to the sled. If he had the same power in a slightly smaller lighter sled how much better off would he be? TONS!!!!

Just because you are a kid does not mean you are a complete novice to the sport. My boy is 11 years old and has been riding for 9 years. Yes he drove his first sled by himself at 2 years old. He is no novice but the manufactures think that because he is a kid he is a novice. I just wish they would start thinking of the kids as somewhat experienced and give them a sled that can help keep them moving forward and not backward as they get older.

I think that was the point of all this. What is the weight of the Blast? Still over 400 lbs? My freaking full size sled 800 with a Turbo is 420 lbs and they still won't post the weight of the sled. That's Pathetic!!!


So if your kid is brand new to the sport less tippy is good for the first few rides. Get them out more than 3 times a year and they will want to be able to tip the sled over like their dad.

 

[Yamadoo04]

One more thing. Think about power to weight ration. Standard 800 cc sled 400-450 lbs. Each hp needs to carry 2-3 lbs What is it for this 300 cc fan cooled sled. 30 HP. 370 lbs. THAT'S 12 lbs PER HP.
Imagine if you rode a sled that had that same ration. 12lbs * 160 HP = 1,920 lbs. How many of you would be able to ride that? Well that is the same ratio he is riding.

Now lets look at just weight of person to sled leaving gas out of the equation.
80 lb kid to 370 lb sled 4.625
200 lb adult to 420 lb sled 2.1

So you are making a kid ride something that is 4.6 times heavier than they are and you get to ride something only 2 times heavier. Seems fair right. And that is the lightest sled on the market for kids.
Now put them on your adult sled. That is over 5 times heavier than they are.
I am not saying the sled needs to be 160 lbs. That is not realistic. But even at 100 lbs that's still 4 times heavier
Maybe lets shoot for 3 or 3.5 times heavier. How much better would that be?

It would be awesome!!!