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Yes it requires a little trim of the plastic, but no big deal.
I would just quit riding all together before I would resort to that!Sell it and buy an Arctic Cat!
Hmmmm... that doesn't look like plastic to me
I commend the aftermarket for offering various mods to help people personalize their sleds so that we don't have to change riding style, but have the machine adapt to us. With that said.......keep your money in your pocket and learn to ride the damn thing!
We've become a bunch of whiners over the years. My sled won't handle like buddies sled will, he goes higher than i do, he's not as tired at the end of the day and I am........it goes on and on.
Notice the guys that make those highmarks we all try to beat.......they can jump on any sled and out mark anyone else on equivalent machinery? And to boot, they never compain about being able to get their sled to do what they want.......most of these boys are riding stock or close to stock sleds........No I'm not talking about the,"My dick is bigger than yours crowd" Look around at the quiet guys with the stock sleds making the marks your trying to follow.......it's not the sled, never has been.
Now not to toot my own horn because I get humbled countless times a year but I was highmarking a '05 Summit 800 151 with a friggin '98 Summit X. the 670 was bone stock with a 2" riser....the Summit had a can.......the guy couldn't stop complaining about his sled and the fact it was running like ****. So I hop on and proceed to out highmark myself(on the 670) by 100ft. WTF he says.....it boiled down to rider ability, as it normally does. I just shook my head and my group took off.
BTW-I was so frikkin sore after the day on that 670, definately makes you appreciate what we ride now. Standing on the seat, back bumper, hanging right over the handlebars.......brought back all those memories of trying to make something go that really doesn't want to. With that being said, my riding buddies didn't see my riding style change all that much other than the fact I was a monkey humping a football trying to wrestle the machine around all day.
Maybe because I weigh 225 without gear it's easier for me to handle sleds, but from my '10 Summit X to my brother's '10 M8 or my buddies '05 Vector....neither guy can put a mark on the hill or cut through the trees with the ease that I can. With that usually comes the highmark as well.
I don't know, not to pinpoint anyone or to tell anyone to get their crap together and learn to ride but.....I rode all 4 brands this winter and after a couple powder turns or a scouting run up the hill....and I was on the gas like I had been riding(whichever sled I was on) all year long. Again, I don't know, anything with less than 200hp I can pretty much ride without issues, unlike so many people on here that can't ride their bone stock sled to save their life.
Sorry for the rant, I'm watching the Indy 500 and can't understand why they get 15 "Push to Pass" hits whenever they like. 200rpm jump for 18 seconds.....15 different times....race the friggin car and the best man wins.....not who has the most "go button" hits left at the end of the race.
With that being said........good luck on getting the sled to do what you want it to.
I had a conversation with a Engineer from BRP this season and he asked why do we(mountain riders) change the sleds they design so much. When we sifted through all the mods and what they accomplish, we had stripped the arguement down to the fact that most mods are to accomodate our personal riding styles instead of adapting to the sleds and realizing the potential of the sled as is. Again, we could go further with that one but for the majority of people who fight their sleds all day long....there's no need for more steering, more power, less weight, more travel.....it's all a waste if you're still trying to figure your sled out to the point where you need to spend money to get it to do what you want. It should be the other way around. Get the sled to do what you want.......after the sled begs for mercy and you cannot will it to go any higher....then start modding.
When I started this thread, I wasn't so much after some aftermarket part to cure things that I may be doing wrong; I was looking more for suggestions on anything that peeps commonly do wrong that can be corrected.
From my own situation i have to drive 500 miles to see snow, so i for one love tips and ideas on how to SET UP my sled to make the most of a 3 day trip before the sled even hits the snow,
If a 125lb girl can get it on its side, so can you!
This is about as tight as my turns get on my 2009 163 in about 4" of fresh... Yes, it's true it is harder to find that precious balance point on the XP... But once you get it into the deep stuff, OH MY!!!!! That's what I live for, so that's where I want my sled to perform.... The XP wants to stay flat on hard snow, but who cares about what it does on hard-pack??? If you want a picture of a sidehill, try tilting your camera
Hey the guy is only asking a question. Maybe you have had the seat time and have it down to a science, good for you. From my own situation i have to drive 500 miles to see snow, so i for one love tips and ideas on how to SET UP my sled to make the most of a 3 day trip before the sled even hits the snow, i don't think the guy is asking how to ride in general just how to sidehill, having owned poo and doo at the same time i don't care what anyone says the doo takes a lot more SET UP time and having to find the finer points of the sled to make it perform than the poo.
Keep the ideas rolling, they are very helpful to many of us
Exactly, not all of us get to ride every weekend.
Some ought to keep that in mind.
Do you park your sled when the snow gets hard or what?????
I certainly care what it handles like in firm snow. Your pics are like powder compared to the snow conditions I'm talking about. I could whip circles until the cows come home in the snow conditions shown in your pics. Different story in the hard pack.
Hey Yammy !!! you need to come out here this winter. you can spend a day on my RT, I guarantee, once you climb off it, you'll be able to throw that XP around like it was a 250 Elan !!!!
Hi Yammy.
I just spent the last two winters with my 2009 Summit X with 146 track. Compared to the M8 Sno Pro, it is in fact different and at times more work to side hill. Here is what I have done to make it work for me and I can now do whatever I want with this sled.
First keep in mind that in deep snow, you can do what ever you want with this sled, so I am dealing with the changes I made to deal with handling when you only have a few inches like 4 or 5 inches of fresh snow over a solid base.
Part One - Sled Configuration
1 - I set my front Shocks at setting of 2. Setting of 1 and I bottom the shocks out too easily. Anything more than 2 and I find it makes it a little tougher to get over into the side hill position.
2 - I set the limiter strap at the last hole. This helps with the weight transfer, keeping in mind that you need to give power for this to happen. The 2010 Summit X has more holes but, I'm not sure that you can just add a longer strap with the 2009 suspension.
3. - I set the front shock pre-load on the Track to about 1.5 inches down from the top. The tighter you set it, once again, the more weight transfer to the track, but I find that if it is much tighter it is just too stiff for the type of riding and playing that I do.
4. - I weigh 190 lbs, and carry a backpack so I set the rear spring at a setting of 4.
5. - I reversed my front skis and also put them on the narrowest position. The 2009 Summit X skis have an outside keel, and of course you have probably experienced the sensation of getting into a side hill, and feeling the front skis kick back at you. Reversing them puts the keel on the inside and in effect kind of narrowing the skis even more. That way, when your uphill ski is slicing through the snow, the outside of the ski no longer has a keel kicking back with every little obstruction under the snow.
6. - I have set my handle bars slopped back at almost the same angle as the steering post that it is attached to. I find that contrary to an M8 Sno Pro where I can stand fairly close to the front, I have to step farther back on the running boards for the 2009 Summit X, so I need to angle the Steering back far enough so that I can do that without having to lean forward.
7. - I have quick disconnects to my sway bar and disconnect the bar most of the time.
Part Two - Technique
Once again, I am going to focus on side hilling in that shallow snow because in the deep stuff it's sooooo easy.
1. - If I'm heading up hill and setting the sled into a side hill position, it is very easy because you are applying Power which is the critical thing needed to get that track into the correct position. I just step with both feet on the uphill side, do the counter steer while applying power and step back slightly on the running boards. The Power, counter steer, and stepping back, helps with the weight transfer onto the track and gets you into position easily. Sometimes, I will just put one foot on the running boards and hang the other leg out the side. Now the 2009 Summit X has a habit of losing it's side hill if you ease off on the power too much, so my son showed me a pretty neat technique that helps me keep my track in position if I am slowing down or changing direction. With both feet on the running boards and me facing downhill with the uphill to my back I just slightly bend my knees. If I feel that the track is starting to fall to the downhill side, I just extend my legs fully. This action kind of resets the angle of the track again, and then I bend my knees again, should I have to do it again. Sometimes I will do that and step back on the running boards even further and it makes the whole sled track slide down a bit with the sled now facing uphill a bit, kind of like letting the track fall. This allows me to apply more power without having to increase my speed.
2. Doing a Downhill turn in shallow snow, is the toughest technique to master on this sled. If you apply too much power, gravity and power want to keep you in a straight line. Here I will step even farther back on the running boards and slow the sled to a crawl. I use a combination of the counter steer, stepping back, some power and extending my bent knees and voila, I have the sled in position. I find that you need to be smooth with your technique, as you can not use brute force to get this sled to do what you want.
3. Carving on the flats, with this sled is all about steering and power. I straddle the seat, step back on the running boards and then apply power and counter steer to get the sled over on it's side.
Once you master this part of the Summit X Ski-Doo, everything else about this sled is great. The stability is, in my opinion a good thing when climbing and hitting other tracks or obstructions. It makes the sled predictable which I like. The suspension is awesome and in the deep stuff, it just rules. On my last day out, on a lake heading home after a day of ice fishing, I hit 100 mph with this sled. That's mph and not kph.
I'm gonna post a couple of links to a few YouTube Clips showing the way I do it for the three different areas I covered here, all in fairly shallow snow. I'm not a professional. This is just fun and a hobby for me so If I can do it at my age, anyone can.
Btw, I'm Sorry to say, I just sold my 2009 Summit X 146. I did a spring order for the 2011 Summit X Etec 800 154 Track.
YouTube Clips to Follow after I upload them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptEZxaderJ8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQHDXF26FP4
But other than that, just tell me when, Sledlvr.... We are always up for a road trip!