ajmeyers4
New member
- Joined
- Jan 29, 2022
- Messages
- 2
Background
My buddy sold me his '97 700 SX for a very good price. I'm new to snowmobiling and I rode it a bit last winter and loved it. The power is plenty for me and the engine runs strong and reliably. It has about ~8k miles and I'm unsure if the top(or bottom) end has ever been done. To my knowledge, the sled is totally stock.
Suspension
The front shock of the rear skid was broken with the other half quite literally missing. All that was left was an aluminum tube dangling. The rear skid definitely is not original because it is marked "'99 SX" on the side with a sharpie. I have the skid out now. Structurally it seems good, but there is a lot it will need:
-front shock: I got one off eBay but it probably should be rebuilt.
-center shock: The spring seems to have been rubbing on the shock body, there is a substantial flat spot on the aluminum tube. It should probably be replaced or at least rebuilt, I'm not sure how to adjust it to where the spring is not rubbing. The spring is not straight on the shock.
-bearings + bushings: Where should I buy bearings for idlers and bushings for shocks?
-Inner Idler Wheels (axel in front of rear axel)
-hyfax
I've been thinking it might be best to try to find some viper/sxr shocks and limiter straps to do the "long travel" conversion. If I did this would I be able to leave the stock SX suspension upfront or would I have to "long travel" that too?
Track
The track is dry-rotted and worn down to nubs. What tracks would you recommend I replace it with? Studs or no studs?
Clutching
It has been known to shred belts(8DN OEM). I think the alignment might be a bit off. It also squeals at idle and the belt is sitting a bit low in the secondary. I've heard there are some washers on the secondary to adjust this?
General Mods
The power of the sled is plenty for me but are there any basic mods you'd recommend to improve the sled?
Definitely will be getting some plastic skis, any, in particular, I should look for?
I know this is a long post, just looking for all of the advice I can get on this sled, thank you!!!
My buddy sold me his '97 700 SX for a very good price. I'm new to snowmobiling and I rode it a bit last winter and loved it. The power is plenty for me and the engine runs strong and reliably. It has about ~8k miles and I'm unsure if the top(or bottom) end has ever been done. To my knowledge, the sled is totally stock.
Suspension
The front shock of the rear skid was broken with the other half quite literally missing. All that was left was an aluminum tube dangling. The rear skid definitely is not original because it is marked "'99 SX" on the side with a sharpie. I have the skid out now. Structurally it seems good, but there is a lot it will need:
-front shock: I got one off eBay but it probably should be rebuilt.
-center shock: The spring seems to have been rubbing on the shock body, there is a substantial flat spot on the aluminum tube. It should probably be replaced or at least rebuilt, I'm not sure how to adjust it to where the spring is not rubbing. The spring is not straight on the shock.
-bearings + bushings: Where should I buy bearings for idlers and bushings for shocks?
-Inner Idler Wheels (axel in front of rear axel)
-hyfax
I've been thinking it might be best to try to find some viper/sxr shocks and limiter straps to do the "long travel" conversion. If I did this would I be able to leave the stock SX suspension upfront or would I have to "long travel" that too?
Track
The track is dry-rotted and worn down to nubs. What tracks would you recommend I replace it with? Studs or no studs?
Clutching
It has been known to shred belts(8DN OEM). I think the alignment might be a bit off. It also squeals at idle and the belt is sitting a bit low in the secondary. I've heard there are some washers on the secondary to adjust this?
General Mods
The power of the sled is plenty for me but are there any basic mods you'd recommend to improve the sled?
Definitely will be getting some plastic skis, any, in particular, I should look for?
I know this is a long post, just looking for all of the advice I can get on this sled, thank you!!!
welcome!
if you are not planning on studding it, you can try to find a 121" x 15" with 2.52 pitch track with up to a 1.25" lug to put into it. will have to trim around the tunnel/heat exchanger protectors to help with rubbing issues or pull them entirely.
if studding, stay with a 1" lug track unless you plan on replacing the drivers to smaller ones to maintain safe cooler clearance. recccomended for trail riding with hard packed/icy conditions.
i reccomend the 1.25 lug as the added traction in powder is awsome and helps with trail manners on snow packed groomed trails.
quite a few mods in the tec section on totallyamaha.com for this sled. i reccomend the reed cage notch and boring the silencer as the game wardens are cracking down on aftermarket pipes and cans.
as to skis, any tuner take offs from a sr viper or sidewinder will bolt right up as guys do not like stock skis on those sleds. i put the set i have on my brothers 97 sx700 and they do pretty good on there.
pull the washers off of the back of the secondary bolts and see how it is. i do reccomend blowing the years of accumulated belt dust out of the clutches to let them work better. alignment might be ok once this is done. i do reccomend staying with the oe 8dn belt as it lasts the best for me. the one you have might be glazed and that hurts performance.
sounds like you are on the right track with the shocks and bearings for the idler wheels. try barn of parts for the bearings and slide plastics as he is a kimpex dealer. might also have some shocks and parts from a rx1 that also fit that sled and will make it long travel. sxr had long travel rear with the shorter travel fronts, so other than servicing the fronts, they should be fine.
feel free to post as if you have any more questions/issues.
if you are not planning on studding it, you can try to find a 121" x 15" with 2.52 pitch track with up to a 1.25" lug to put into it. will have to trim around the tunnel/heat exchanger protectors to help with rubbing issues or pull them entirely.
if studding, stay with a 1" lug track unless you plan on replacing the drivers to smaller ones to maintain safe cooler clearance. recccomended for trail riding with hard packed/icy conditions.
i reccomend the 1.25 lug as the added traction in powder is awsome and helps with trail manners on snow packed groomed trails.
quite a few mods in the tec section on totallyamaha.com for this sled. i reccomend the reed cage notch and boring the silencer as the game wardens are cracking down on aftermarket pipes and cans.
as to skis, any tuner take offs from a sr viper or sidewinder will bolt right up as guys do not like stock skis on those sleds. i put the set i have on my brothers 97 sx700 and they do pretty good on there.
pull the washers off of the back of the secondary bolts and see how it is. i do reccomend blowing the years of accumulated belt dust out of the clutches to let them work better. alignment might be ok once this is done. i do reccomend staying with the oe 8dn belt as it lasts the best for me. the one you have might be glazed and that hurts performance.
sounds like you are on the right track with the shocks and bearings for the idler wheels. try barn of parts for the bearings and slide plastics as he is a kimpex dealer. might also have some shocks and parts from a rx1 that also fit that sled and will make it long travel. sxr had long travel rear with the shorter travel fronts, so other than servicing the fronts, they should be fine.
feel free to post as if you have any more questions/issues.
ajmeyers4
New member
- Joined
- Jan 29, 2022
- Messages
- 2
Great response, that helps a ton!
I think I'm going to go unstudded and do 1.25" lugs. I will keep a lookout for tuner skis and parts for the rear skid. I'll have the front shocks rebuilt. Planning to do the reed and silencer mod as well. I'm hoping adjusting the clutch will fix the belt issues.
Thanks for your advice!
Drwe
Member
- Joined
- Nov 28, 2021
- Messages
- 75
Did you bore your silencer? How much louder did it make it?
Put a straight edge on the face of the sheaves of the primary clutch to make sure they are still perfectly straight.