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2011 SWT V800 1.75" track first test

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3.4K views 14 replies 9 participants last post by  pleasesnow  
#1 ·
I just changed the 8 tooth drivers out to 7 tooth wahl drivers and slapped the new 1.75" track in there. Its not as easy to get out like the service manual leads you to believe. I had to take bottle jack in there with block of wood to open it up enough to get the bearing retainer in there. Plus taking the shaft out with the track in that close to the heat exchanger is tough, and a real pain with the bigger lugs, but got it in there and took it for a ride. Holy heck. This is a must for any SWT. Taking off punching it, the skis now come up in the air almost cat walking it. That was in fresh snow too. This next trip I will be pulling some wood so I can test it out. The clearance with the 7 tooth drivers and the 1.75" track is about the same as 8 tooth drivers and 1.25" track from the exchanger so it can be done. SO after selling my track and buying drivers, total cost for the swap was 250 bucks.
 
#3 · (Edited by Moderator)
darn, I must have sold my track way too cheap! My total cost was $350, and I did not have to buy drivers.

Agreed, though. I don't feel qualified to comment on hardpacked trails/towing big loads, but anything BUT that, I _love_ my 1.75" track. Not saying it won't work on hardpack/towing, I just don't know enough about those two things to say if it is better or worse. I can't imagine it'd be BAD, but I suspect the stock track would hook up better on FIRM snow, kinda has to.

Mine wheelies now, too. haha.

Iain
 
#8 ·
What's the clearance with stock drivers? Without studs you don't need much clearance and it's still okay.
With the 8 tooth drivers and the stock 1.25" track, there is between 3/8-7/16 of clearance. The new track will not fit on a yeti II chassis unless you swap out the drivers. With the new 7 tooth drivers, it looks like the same amount of clearance with the new track as it was with 8 tooth drivers and the old track. Hope that helps.
 
#9 ·
Rode mine again today. This track is stupid. Pics below are of the "clutching hill," a short, steep hill my mechanic friend uses for clutching. Straight up shot was from a dead stop in 1st on my 13 SWT, right at the base of the hill - no momentum, just put it to the bar.

Other picture is photographic evidence that SWTs do in fact sidehill;).

My 13 Summit 800 XM/163" easily outclimbed it, duh, it is not all of a sudden a 500# mountain sled with 160hp, but it is FAR more capable than it needs to be for what I'm doing with it.

Conditions were ~18" of new snow with a fair bit of wind - we go to this hill because it fills in EARLY, I know where the sharks are. Avalanches were a concern, but the hill seemed OK. It is about 36 degrees at its steepest, snow uncompacted, but fairly dense - the kind of stuff that you can trundle around ON, but as soon as the track starts spinning, there's nothing really there.

That hill is about as steep as I want to ride tandem up. With momentum, I could have pretty easily gotten over the top of it.

The 1.75" track REALLY changes the characteristics of the sled. I do think it actually loses a bit of its ability to back up in soft snow, though. Not a dealbreaker, but my initial reaction is that it loses some reversing capabilities.

It gains SO much going forward, though, I'll take the loss - and it could just be perceived, where I noticed it was in a funky filled in depression, we were backing uphill a little (it has never backed uphill well at all), so...yeah. Jury is still out on that.

I like.

Iain

straightup.jpg


sidehill.jpg
 
#13 ·
I find the new xu SWT doesn't back up as good as the old type for some reason. We went 200 km yesterday with 2 new super wides and 1 older style. New one spins out while reversing but yeti type just goes on.....not sure it its a stiffer track or something to do with the articulating rear but there is a huge difference in the 2. Both with stock track.
 
#14 ·
Think it might be the fact that the skis see more load? I've always found that my Yeti SWT reverses better if you stand back on the boards and take some ski pressure off. I guess Pleasesnow will give us the lowdown on how this track helps with reversing.

It's really interesting reading. Last season a guy on here (don't remember his handle) put the 1.8" track on his Yeti WT, and put it on a diet, and he was thrilled at the performance in the mountains. Now the SWTs seem to be having the same result. The V800 isn't a huge power engine, so maybe you don't need 150 hp to make use of the deeper paddles.
 
#15 ·
Well I took the sled out yesterday to cut a xmas tree down. Put 30 miles (what the odometer says) on it and it works awesome. Earl brought his 08 with stock track and we switched back and forth and there is a big difference. The sled just hooks up better, pulls better in the deep snow, and never overheated or had an issue with the hifax. Its a completely new machine with the bigger paddles. When you gas it (even in high range) the front just picks right up out of the snow. Not like my M8 but it jumps out instead of spinning track like the 1.25" track. Someday I will take pictures when I go out.