chilledbonez
New member
hey guys im new to sledding and have a decently long trip planned here soon with some buddys,question i have is about my bone stock 02 vipers carbides,what am i looking for to tell if they are too worn down or if there still good to use.not sure the last time they were changed i bought the sled just a few months back.and is there a difference between carbides,carbide runners,and carbide wear rods or all those the same just being called different names by different companys.just dont wanna be fighting the sled to turn on the hard packed surfaces
staggs65
Moderator
just different names for the same things, but different brands do have different performance.
the carbide portion of your runners are usually in 2 inch long sections. the very front and rear sections are usually flat wear pads and not counted in the carbide length. the center section starts off in a traingle profile and wears flat over time. the flatter they are worn the worse they'll turn. this section is where you get the length, ie 6 inch 8 inch etc...
the carbide portion of your runners are usually in 2 inch long sections. the very front and rear sections are usually flat wear pads and not counted in the carbide length. the center section starts off in a traingle profile and wears flat over time. the flatter they are worn the worse they'll turn. this section is where you get the length, ie 6 inch 8 inch etc...
Raise your needles before you leave on this trip or you will be back here looking for answers why your bone stock sleds burned down, premium gas only also.
chilledbonez
New member
thanks staggs mine need to be changed then. i have a pro yamaha shop less than an 1/8 mile from my house and will be getting a set of stock ones.68 bucks out the door according to there website.staggs65 said:
FYi chilledbonez, you may want to check with your dealer to see if the $68 stock wearbars include carbide wear pads front and rear, and also for the length of center carbide if possible. After doing so, you may want to consider aftermarket wearbars, may be available thru the same dealer or may even be available thru other sled dealers (in a pinch I've found aftermarket wearbars for Yamaha at my local Ski-Pol-Cat dealer).
All of the new/stock Yamaha wearbars I have seen, albeit on only 2 Vmaxs and 1 SRX, have roughly 3.5" +/- of center carbide, and no front/rear wear pads. The aftermarket usually has 4" of center carbide on their baseline wearbars (or 6"/8" as staggs65 noted, typically used with studded track), and they include the carbide wear pads as well. Also, the cost for aftermarket 4" versions are often in the $45-$50 range per pair, compared to the higher $68 stock cost. If you want to spend even more, the aftermarket offers all kinds of other options such as different shapes to the wearbar, dual or triple carbide wearbars, etc, the choices are almost endless.
Also, you would do well to heed sxr1000's advice about raising the needles on the carbs to prevent the engine from burning down with today's crappy gas. It is also a good idea to clean the carbs if you haven't already. You can read on here for hours if not days about Viper burn downs, the reasons why it can happen, and what you can do to prevent it from happening to you.
Good luck, you have one of the finest and most popular sleds Yamaha has ever made, and with regular maintenance the sled will last for many years and miles to come.
All of the new/stock Yamaha wearbars I have seen, albeit on only 2 Vmaxs and 1 SRX, have roughly 3.5" +/- of center carbide, and no front/rear wear pads. The aftermarket usually has 4" of center carbide on their baseline wearbars (or 6"/8" as staggs65 noted, typically used with studded track), and they include the carbide wear pads as well. Also, the cost for aftermarket 4" versions are often in the $45-$50 range per pair, compared to the higher $68 stock cost. If you want to spend even more, the aftermarket offers all kinds of other options such as different shapes to the wearbar, dual or triple carbide wearbars, etc, the choices are almost endless.
Also, you would do well to heed sxr1000's advice about raising the needles on the carbs to prevent the engine from burning down with today's crappy gas. It is also a good idea to clean the carbs if you haven't already. You can read on here for hours if not days about Viper burn downs, the reasons why it can happen, and what you can do to prevent it from happening to you.
Good luck, you have one of the finest and most popular sleds Yamaha has ever made, and with regular maintenance the sled will last for many years and miles to come.
chilledbonez
New member
ended up getting some woodys 8insrx700c said:
She'll turn. If she ain't studded, the back end may keep on a turnin' after the front is done...!