Blackstar

Couple more.

This is my favourite of the auction. A complete strip to bare bones and back together. Nothing left untouched. Coyote swap, whipple, 10R80, 205 case. All custom mounts, super clean. The photos of the underside are amazing. Looks like they body worked the frame it’s so clean. Out my budget by a long shot. But great to see what a top shop can do.

The Doo rivet are black. From what I’ve found online, they are either 6.4mm (1/4”) or 3/16 and the Center pin is steel. Amazon has them with quick delivery. Not that it matters because there is no decent snow within 6 hours of here. The area that will need the Cleco’s is where the front suspension bolts through the tunnel. The rivets in that area go through the footrest, the tunnel and the footrest support. I think I will be best to find some Clecos to hold that section together. Worst case, I’ll buy some 1/4” nuts and bolts.

Anyone been watching Barrett-Jackson? The resto mods have really taken over it seems. A Gen 2 Corvette with an LS3 looks like the hot ticket. I mostly watch for the trucks. Chevy's get better money than Fords from what I see. Early Blazer/Jimmy with an LS will bring $125k plus.

I just assumed the new parts would be black. I hope. I'll wait to see how well they fit before I do anything. I'm not painting the entire tunnel. Edit. I checked the Skidoo parts site and the Mach Z and XRS share the same part number for the right side. The Renegade 600 EFI has the raw tunnel and a different part number. Today I'll pull the tie rod shaft and clean up the rivet holes. The Cleco's from Amazon take a week to get. I'll try the local bodyshop supply store.

She's been very nice to me this week. What would you like for dinner? Can I get you a drink? Let me get that for you. lol

Some, the drill bit goes right through, others it just spins and won’t cut. I believe some of these rivets are aluminum with a steel centre pin. It’s off now anyways. And there is why he said it will be noticeable, Just as with the roller, the footrest is mounted to the tunnel before powder coating. This allows them to use the steel centred rivets as it then gets powder coated over the steel to prevent rust and corrosion. Im considering masking and painting the tunnel as it may be better to hide the joint rather than touch up paint. It would have to stick to aluminum though.

4 hours to get the roller off, starting into the footrest now. Been through over a dozen drill bits . Lucky if I get through 1 rivet before bit is dull. Moved to a grinder. It takes too much force to drive them out so it looks like I will have to grind the heads off then drill and pry until it breaks free. Obviously they powder coat these parts after tunnel assembly. I was assuming they would be pre-finished then assembled.

I did.

That’s funny. Unfortunately it’s not true.

Good idea. I was thinking along the same lines.

Thanks guys. I’ll give it a shot. Borrowed a good rivet gun from my buddy. Went to the dealer. The parts kid and I got it figured out. Ordered the roller for a ‘22 Renegade XRS. Roller, steering shaft, lower belly panel and footrest came to $492 with taxes, plus the rivets. He has those in stock. I now see why it would be an insurance write off. The front section of the footrest is part of the tunnel. I will have to straighten that that section. Obviously the dealer would include a new tunnel and time in the quote. Parts should be here in a couple of days. He said it showed in the warehouse. I got a couple things need fixed around here first then I’ll start taking it apart.

No insurance. Both sleds are mine and I don’t carry collision coverage. Mechanic told me this would be a write off if taken to Doo dealer as insurance claim.

I remember seeing that too. Ok, that’s kinda what I thought too. I’ve been pricing out the parts. Seems doable to me. No Roller available for a Mach Z according to the websites I found but I believe that is because the Smartshock wiring is in there. Just have to buy one for a Renegade with out Smartshock.

Wife made a mistake, grabbed throttle instead of brake and drove her sled into the side of my Mach Z. I talked to the mechanic that works on my sleds. He said all I can do is patch it up and ride it. Hammer out the footrest pieces, replace the roller (outside edge) and live with it. Repair will always be visible. You can’t replace the footrests because you have to drill out the tunnel rivets. He says that will make the repair more obvious and it will still never be right. He says he has done this a few times. He doesn’t think I should tackle it. I understand that the wiring for the smart shocks run through the roller. Wiring has to be pulled out and put back. Agree? Disagree? Anyone done this? Im not in a rush. I can replace the steer rod first. Make sure the front end measures up square before I do anything more.

700 kms for the season. Rode my old Cat 300 kms today with the wife, my buddy on his yellow Doo, and I lent my Mach Z to an old friend. He’s 79 and sold his sled 3 years ago. Last 3 hours were in the rain. Trails we rode today are all closed now. Our trails are likely done here for the season unless the weather makes a big turn around.

Did my first ride on Thursday with my buddy. After 15 years of borrowing my backup sleds, he finally broke down and bought himself a ‘23 Rene Adr 900R. We rode 125 miles in some great, some poor, mostly ok conditions. He joined the wife and I yesterday for her first ride. Another 125 miles. Stopped for a Hot Dog with B&W club. Had to be 70-80 sleds there. All in southwestern Ontario.

Hey Jim, hope you're doing well.