Things I am Learning About Snowmobiles – Part I

Please realize I am still a novice so these may not all be correct but they are as I understand them. For the experienced out there, these may seem trivial, but for inexperienced, they are all new. As a recent new owner I am learning about snowmobiles.

I only learned of scratchers while searching to buy snowmobiles online. Many adds talked about scratchers. From I learned searching these online, Ice scratchers are installed to the rails of your rear suspension with one on each side.  These scratchers have a sharp tip that digs into solid snow pack and ice to create a “snow dust”.  They loosen the snow and ice chunks as you ride. Then, that loose snow is thrown up into the rear suspension. This throwing snow and ice spray onto the tunnel heat exchangers and suspension components helps cool both the track and the engine.

I learned how useful these are on the first few rides out on the lake. Recent warm temperatures had caused the snow to settle and was hard packed.  I had the scratchers up and the engine ran very warm, very much above normal ranges. I let it cool down, dropped the scratchers and it was a much better temperature range.

Scratchers are easy put lower and raise again when you are done. Looking them up online, you can get a pair for under $50.

Carbides or wear bars provide for far better steering control. Looking at the bottom of a snowmobile ski there is a metal rod on the bottom of each ski, the wear bars (a.k.a. skegs or runners). On the leading edge are the wear surfaces with sharp edges mounted on the bottom of these rods which are the carbides. When riding on ice or hard packed snow, these pieces cut into the surface and keep the skis from uncontrolled sideways sliding, improving your steering control.

I’m glad the previous owner made a big deal about being a stickler for engine warm up time. He claimed he always let it warm up to 110 before he hit the gas. Searching the manual specifically for this it is a strong point in in that document as well. Spending the extra time to warm up the machine can prevent engine damage. Time well spent it would seem.

OMG power! My previous riding experiences were on a 1982 Polaris, the smallest one, and an Arctic Cat 440. There was a significant difference in the power and speed of the much more powerful Artic Cat. Now, on a machine built 30 years newer, a Polaris 800, the power is is beyond what I had anticipated. When I went for a test drive of the used sled I bought, I asked the previous owner to take it for a run and show off some of what it can do. He was a big man, 100 pounds bigger than me, and he had that machine doing wheelies at ease. When I hopped on for my own test ride, and also going for my first rides, I had no need to gun the throttle, it had plenty of power and the OMG power still in reserve.

Why pay for registration? If you own an endless range of your own private land, or along with neighbours, you have all the range you need/want, then you really don’t need to register you snowmobiles. But if you are like the rest of us, and you are planning to ride outside of private land then you register register, as per the Saskatchewan Snowmobile Association: from SaskSnow: Under The Snowmobile Act, you must register the snowmobile before you can ride it on public roads (where allowed), ditches, other highway rights of way, provincial parks, Crown land, designated snowmobile trails or on rivers or lakes. Registration isn’t required to drive snowmobiles on privately owned land if you have permission from the land owner or tenant. Out of Province snowmobiles must carry valid registration and insurance as per the laws inside their home province or state.