jdels

On 5/24/2022 at 8:05 AM, Doug said:

Any idea what motel that is?

Had nothing but an awesome experience with this place.  

http://www.dennisesexpressservice.com/shock-rebuilding-service

On 3/14/2022 at 7:41 PM, Adam said:

You ever end up selling the seat?

Still available.

After I sign in PayPal is asking to add a card.  I have had an active account forever and just used it on ebay.  Anyone else having this trouble?  Canadian thing?

10 hours ago, Palu49 said:

My 19 600 limited has not seen above 96 on it the speedo one time and is normally around 94 so I find that hard to believe.

 

On basically glare ice my 18 800 would bounce 111-112 on the speedo and was always 107gps in those conditions. Any type of loose or packed with loose top that thing was constant 98mph gps. My 22 800 I hit 103gps on packed snow I didn’t even look at the speedometer because of the shorter lake and I knew the gps was going but I’m guessing it said 105-107.

That is my 18 as well.  Not a huge issue but it does make me wonder if they can be calibrated.  

10 hours ago, HSR said:

 just a friendly reminder we're in a no bash zone. Not trying to be a dick as I too am guilty of posting off topic so if I slap your pee-pee you can slap mine  In a non gay manor. No mooshamboo 

Thanks for the reminder.  Trying to have even a quasi technical discussion around here is like folding soup most the time.

Mine is out by 10% at about any speed.  Irritating........

For those who have checked speedo vrs. GPS how different are the two?

2004 F7 -- 105 speedo 103 gps

2018 Zr8000-- 114 speedo 104 gps

Gotta say I was a bit surprised yesterday on the ZR.

5 minutes ago, ZR6000RR said:

Not saying this is the reason, but do you have flares? Only thing I have done different on mine.  Have a set to put on my 22 when I pick it up next fall.

Might try flares next year if I keep it.  Coolant burped with extreme care and replaced cap. 

2 minutes ago, p51mstg said:

I have a 2002 Polaris with the old “TXL” style heat exchangers under the running boards.  That thing never overheats, no matter how long we let it idle, it’s unbelievable.  I wish I could say the same for my Riot.

The Polaris Edge chassis was pretty bad at overheating, too (but, significantly lighter, and they probably got all their weight savings from the cooling system).

 

My F7 is the same.  Blinking light a few times over 11000 miles and still going.

10 minutes ago, ZR6000RR said:

Do you have actual temp showing?

If you mean on the gauge, yes.  160 and up with no problem.  Scratchers brought it down to 95-110 in all conditions.  There simply is not enough snow to the heat exchanger without the scratchers.

3 minutes ago, ZR6000RR said:

Of course a 600. Will never own anything but a cat 600. 129 as well. My 2020 came with flairs and it ran very cool on anything but pure ice. That of course was a 137.

My 18 800RR goes right to lava any trail, any condition without scratchers.  137 studded.  Been a Cat guy my whole riding life but this one irks me.  Scratchers should not be required.

3 hours ago, ZR6000RR said:

This past weekend I had to replace a scratcher tip I put them in on the skid for the first time this year to see how the sled would react. I did add the tunnel flairs to the sled in the fall. I never saw over 115 F all day long, even running some icy roads for several miles to get to the next trail. Very little snow stuck in the skid. This was on my 2018 that I have ran scratchers down 95% of the time before this and were installed when new. Flairs? I don't know. Temps were in the single digits to - single digits. 

600 I assume, 129?

Man time flies.  All three of mine came up on a z120 then Z370 or Z570.  Now the youngest is 16.  My (middle) 20 year old daughter has become an exceptional rider.  Both on 2006 SC 500's now.  Last few years we've put on a good 1000 miles a season together.  I try to take them every chance they have.  Pic of the start of an 400 mile overnight trip from two seasons ago.  -15 at the start of that day!  Wife was pissed we went ahead with it.

21 minutes ago, Not greg b said:

My 20 Polaris runs a consistent 10-15 degrees cooler than my cat does. I never had cooling issues with the cat until I went to the ctech 800 and 137 inch track. My past ones were all 129

A 129 option would be nice.  Makes little sense they got rid of it.  In over 10000 miles on the F7 I seen the temp light only a handful of times.  It's a piss poor design, these things should be engineered for worst case from a cooling perspective.  If you can't run a trail on a 20 degree day with 6-8 inches of groomed snow on it there is a significant design issue.  I'm glad the scratchers band aided the problem, I really am, but FFS you can't tell me this wasn't an issue in development.

So, scratchers installed.  Not entirely thrilled about it but they do work well.  Did 212 miles yesterday with no overheating, even with a couple long road runs with little snow on them.  My god they are annoying though.  Shit hitting you in the back and head, running boards covered in snow/ice buildup and wetter bibs than ever before.  Been a Cat guy my whole riding life, 30 plus years.  Dealt with a lot of junk engineering, poor fit and finish and build quality.  This one takes the cake.  Still a little pissy about it, I can't see keeping this machine past this year.  Problem is WTF other chassis can you get from CAT! Rant over, ride on!

4 minutes ago, krom said:

engine mounts to bulkhead and cooler

+

engine mounts, and coolant hose connections are in different locations on the 4 strokes than they are on the 2 strokes

=

different bulkhead heat exchangers

 

Was hoping you'd chime in at some point @krom.  Any words of wisdom on the cooling deficiencies? 

6 minutes ago, mnstang said:

Looks nice and those 500's are nice, I'd rather have that one than the powervalve version

They really are.  One year only (2006) with fuel injection for a nice light throttle pull.  Kids progressed Z120 to Z370 to Z570 to SC500.  In non powervalve form I think they will go forever, and 80HP is plenty.  The black one will roll 10,000  this season.

Bit of a reunion last spring.

Recently finished a 2006 Sabercat rebuild/Refresh for my son.  Rebuilt skid, powdercoat on a-arms, springs and spindles.  New chaincase chain and speedo side driveshaft bearing.  torsion spring slides and mounts replaced.  Studded down the middle with fresh 6'' carbides and hyfax.  Added running board plates, windshield bag and he asked for some slydog rear wheels.  All four shocks needed rebuilding.  Bought it last spring for $1800.  4400 mile machine.  All in about $2700.  Last pic is of my middle child on the same machine in black that had a similar refresh a couple years ago.

Mine definitely ran about 10 degrees cooler at last of 4 than leading. My riding buddy said the same thing about the snow coming out the back and not hitting the flap.  Springs in position 2.  I may try the softest setting but, well, gotta go 265 pounds geared up.  Flap is about 4 inches off the ground with me on it.  Scratchers should be here Monday.  I know the 4-strokes have a higher operating temp but how the hell are the T-Cats staying cool? 

1 hour ago, mnstang said:

The problem is really simple on these.  The coolers are not cooling the coolant. 

This could be due to design/placement of coolers and/or lack of snow getting into the tunnel.  But when you're overheating on a trail and can cool off to 105 in seconds of jumping off of the trail, that has nothing to do with water pumps and certainly not a fucking hole in the thermostat.

That isn't to say parts can't fail and cause other issues but I think we're talking about inherent cooling problem of the procross chassis.

I will conclude by saying corner boy is a moron who has been on actr Facebook group too long, apparently.

After just two rides of about 280 miles total I have to agree.  There were spots where I could duck into a ten foot stretch of powder hammer the throttle and literally five seconds later would see a drop of 20 degrees.  Of course as soon as that cold spot of coolant passed the sensor temps would spike right back up.  This suggests there is no where near enough snow getting to the rear exchanger.  When there is it seems to work.  Not sure of any meaningful way to get more snow up there other than scratchers unfortunately.  

7 hours ago, Bontz said:

Did any of you guys have a Firecat?  And if so, do you remember how easily that sled would get hot?  Or maybe it was just the 2003 models, I dunno.  But I remember the first time running with our crew up north, and we were buzzing down a forest road and all of a sudden I see my light flashing at me (I think back then, it was the CEL).  My other buddy on his Firecat was seeing the same thing, yet everyone else on ZR's and Polaris models weren't seeing any issues.  That was really the first experience of having to dive off into snow to keep the sled temps down ... and now days it seems to be the norm for just about all models, unfortunately.

I wish I could ride without being worried about the engine temps, but that's really the only information I focus on.  And I'm pretty fussy about it ... I hate seeing it climb and get into the upper 130's let alone getting any higher.  Some people claim it's harmless, but I know with Polaris fuel management it's dumping fuel like crazy & performance is going downhill fast when temps start to get higher.

Scratchers being mandatory is pretty much the reality of where we're at now.

I never has much trouble with the F7 unless it was ice or plowed roads.  She'd flash once in a while (175 I believe) but I can only remember a solid light (200) a couple times.  I will be riding that machine this weekend unless the scratchers come in by Friday.  Given the sheer population of this chassis and the common problem I am a bit surprised there isn't a better aftermarket solution available other than scratchers.  A bigger or auxiliary heat exchanger would probably be a good seller.  Thanks to all who replied, I appreciate the insight.  

6 hours ago, mnstang said:

Yeah don't be running around 150.  I get anxiety if I start running over 120!  My sled the thermostat seems to open around 100-110 and I like it to stay in that range.

It is stupid but it seems like scratchers are mandatory on these sleds.  They should design some things better.  They just don't get the snow up there or the coolers don't catch the snow, something.  It sucks, never had to look at temp gauges or need scratchers until procross.  There were motors with big power before this chassis and they cooled fine.

I would agree, 150-155 to 130 with a 50 foot spin in some powder.  Bad design.

2 minutes ago, soeaster said:

I've had two Procross 800s and they both were prone to overheating.  My '14 Suzuki and '20 Ctec are both finicky with temps so I put scratchers on them.  Scratchers really do help and have given me peace of mind.  Although I still find myself fixated on the damn temp gauge.  A friend of mine who owns a sled dealer/shop has said for years that manufacturers have built bigger engines but haven't enlarged the heat exchangers to keep up.  I don't know if he's right or not, but that's been my experience.  

I know it sucks, but get some scratchers and then you don't have to worry about it.

Thanks for the reply.  Todays ride was not enjoyable.  After 16 years and 10000 plus miles on the F7 it was a bit disappointing.  Can you give me some idea what temps you see with the scratchers, and what brand do you use?  

First two rides on a new to me 2018 ZR8000.  137'' studded down the middle, 2200 miles.  About 15 degree weather both today and yesterday.  Maybe three inches of hardpack on most of the trails.  Struggled yesterday keeping temps below 150.  When I got home I raised the front end about two feet up, warmed up well and added about two cups coolant, thinking air pocket.  Went out again today and same thing.  Unless I dipped into powder frequently, and I mean nearly constant, temps would rise to 160+.  A blast into some powder and temps would drop 25+ which suggests the heat exchangers are functioning well, just no snow getting to them.  Are scratchers a must on these machines?  Any other insight would be helpful.  For reference sake my two kids on Sabercat 500's had no issues, nor did anyone else in my group.  

Thanks.