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A friend I work with, Bob, recently got me involved with the sport of snowmobiling. We have a nice riding area at Tollgate, OR, which encompasses wooded hilly terrain, 250+ miles of trails, and a large open meadows and a lake that is frozen over during the winter. I bought the 1994 Polaris XLT snowmobile that he had for sale. | ![]() |
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The XLT model is based on the "Wedge" Indy chassis that was produced by Polaris for a number of years. The engine is a triple cylinder 2 stroke piston port design and makes around 88HP stock. The Wedge chassis also came with twin cylinder engines and ones with EFI. | ![]() |
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The "Xtra Light Triple" engine uses an oil injection system so no fuel premix is required, and uses Mikuni VM34 34mm carburetors. A Mikuni vacuum-operated fuel pump supplies fuel. Normally the engine comes with a single exhaust pipe and muffler. The SLP pipes on this sled kick the power up to 110HP or so. This picture is with the airbox removed. | ![]() |
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The transmission system is a CVT or Constantly Variable Transmission. The front pulley houses a variable clutch system that utilizes a spring and set of weighted arms that change the effective pulley size based on speed and torque requirements. | ![]() |
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One of the first modifications I made was a set of three inch riser blocks that moved the handlebar up roughly three inches. This helped greatly when standing up and "boondocking" but more height was needed, plus the risers I machined moved the handlebar back a little as well. | ![]() |
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The stock runningboards on the XLT (and other Indy sleds) have almost zero traction. Hi-Performance carries the Surefoot II runningboard inserts that are very nice, made out of aluminum, and makes a HUGE difference in traction when there is snow on the runningboards and you're either hanging off the side boondocking or climbing a hill with the throttle full on. | ![]() |
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Another view of the Surefoot II inserts. I also added Surefoot II Extenders that poprivet onto the runningboard rails and add 11.5 inches of traction behind the Surefoot II runningboard inserts. If you're running an older Indy sled, I HIGHLY recommend this mod. You won't regret it! | ![]() |
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Most snowmobiles, regardless of brand, have carbide wear strips on the bottom of the front skiis and they will dig trenches in a concrete floor instantly. I made up a set of dollies for moving my snowmobile around the shop and protecting the floor. These are the ones for the front skiis. | ![]() |
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The cleats on the rear track tend to fold under when a sled is left sitting in one place for a long period of time. I cut down a 2X4 to be a 2X2.5 (roughly) and positioned them to clear the cleats. This way, the weight is transferred through the track straight to the track rails. | ![]() |
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A picture of me cutting it up a little. The sled looks decent from a ways away, but really needs a new paint job. When I bought this sled, Bob had installed an Xtra-10 rear track/suspension out of a 1997 Polaris RMK, along with Holz suspension parts and Fox Shox. | ![]() |
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Here's Dan playing on his '04 Polaris 700 Edge sled. | ![]() |
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Dave on his Ski-doo cutting a turn as he crests a rise. | ![]() |
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Dave (in the lead) and Dan in the powder. | ![]() |
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Dan, his wife, and Dave parked. | ![]() |
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Today I added a Powermadd handlebar adapter and 4 inch riser block. Total lift is about 5.5 inches, and is adjustable fore and aft. Should make a huge difference when boondocking in the powder. | ![]() |
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A picture of the tilt adapter before the riser was installed. | ![]() |
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Snowmobile resources:
Messageboards: Hardcore Sledder, Snowest, Snowmobile Fanatics, Snowmobile World Tech Info: Maintenance info and pdf's Photo's: Image gallery |