SnomadS Member Message Board

A recent article in the Spring 2013 edition of SnowGoer magazine, lists 5 Common mistkaes made by Shade tree Tuners, stated by Jason Houle, the owner of Straightline Performance. The most notable one that stuck out was regarding "The track being to loose".

I qoute "The adage of a loose track equating to a fast snowmobile is incorrect. Today's machines require more tension as the ballooning effect at high speeds will cause the machine to stop gaining speed sooner"

What are your thoughts?

The other 4 mistakes mentioned are Belt Deflection to loose, Didn't check the basics, Forgetting about traction, More Flyweight Mass Reduces Engine Speed.

-MRF

In my experience , it seems best to run on the loose side of factory spec's. Track length/lug height ,#studs, clearance issues all factor in. The "ballooning" is usually only an issue at high speeds - 70-80, much more then a responsible rider would ever do..... ......btw, whats 5 common mistkaes ? must be a Polaris thing.......

Not a Polaris thing... Feel free check out their website at http://www.straightlineperformance.com/

I suppose the key word here is "tuners" i.e. those looking to tweek and squeeze every last drop of performance out of their sled. I believe that this is the type of person who needs to be concerned about the effect of ballooning on max speed.

For the rest of us, I don't imagine tight or loose would make much of a perceptible difference on top speed. I imagine track tension would be more of a concern for fuel economy, heat exchanger damage (if running studs), or ratcheting.

Just my 2¢ ...