Track Studding

[Garyauk]

Bought a used sled, and I removed the studs from the track as they were way too long for the lug height, and there were several tear outs. The ones I pulled out were 5/16 diameter. A friend recently gave me 48 7mm studs that are the correct height, and I ordered 48 more so I will have 96 total. I am thinking of drilling new holes as the old holes are oversized for 7mm studs ( I tried the 7mm in the existing holes and they were really sloppy) and a lot of them are in rough shape. Should I just reuse the old holes anyway or redrill new holes? I guess I am unsure if new holes will weaken the track too much? Has anyone ever done this? I am planning on a new track for next season and just want to get thru this winter with the track I have now. Any advice would be appreciated...

 

[mes882]

If it was me I would just leave the studs out. I am not a stud fan. But I do very little river, lake, or ice riding where I live. Mostly groomed trails.

 

[Garyauk]

I ride trails as well but with some lake and icy trail conditions. I definitely want studs as my track lug height was originally 3/4 but now is more like 5/8 (It's on a 1999 SX 700 and I believe it's the original track). I rode my friend's sled last year with no studs and I definitely prefer to have the studs. Like I said, I am just trying to get thru this season with this track....new track for me next year.

 

[srx700c]

If only going to run one season, I'd be tempted to reuse the same holes, at least the ones that are in good enough condition. The tearouts and really questionable holes I'd consider drilling the correct size hole nearby in a sound area of the track. Before I got too far into it though, I would fully install one or two studs in typical old holes, and tug very firmly on them back and forth (try to "bend" the shank of the stud, like if the stud tip dug into the frozen ground and the track tried to pull it along parallel with the ground) to see if there is any looseness or track movement in relation to the stud head or backer plate. I would expect that tugging on the stud would distort/bend the track somewhat but the track should return to shape. You could temporarily reinstall the old 5/16" stud in another hole to compare between the two.

I would not do what I described above if I was going to always "ride it like I stole it", or if I was some sort of snow cross extreme racer type. I also wouldn't do it if I was running a lot of high speed full throttle riding.


Another option that I would consider and evaluate, especially if I wanted to use the 7mm studs in the new track next year and save this season of wear on them, is to cut down the old studs to a better height and reinstall them in the old track. If the old studs are carbide tipped (and if there is any carbide left if they are old and beat up), it may be tough to cut thru the carbide but it is possible. Also, the carbide is only in the tip so if the studs are really long it may get cut off anyway. In either event, the stud tip could be sharpened on a grinder, and although there are special grinding wheels for carbide sharpening, a standard grinder could be used to sharpen the tip up to the carbide insert, as many carbide studs seem to lose their sharp point and are rounded off before too long anyway. Also, if there is no carbide remaining in the tip, stud sharpeners are available that are made just for sharpening steel studs, as opposed to using a grinder.

Might sound like a lot of work but it's been done before, and the work done now would save 1 season on the new studs plus save on removing the studs before next season if they are going to be reused.

No matter what you do, it's a good idea to make sure the tunnel protectors and heat exchanger protectors are installed and in good shape.

 

[Garyauk]

Thanks, that gives me something to think about. I bought the sled used and the studs that were on it were actually in good shape, just way too long for the amount of lug height that was left. There also was only 58 of them total in the track. I'm sure some of them were pull outs due to them being too long for the track. I'm planning on getting a new 1" track next year and I may be able to re-use those studs for that one. Most of my riding is trail riding, but we do occasionally hit the lakes and open them up full throttle. I did try one of the 7mm studs in the existing holes and it seemed really sloppy (though I did not fully install it with backer plate and nut). I'd like to just redrill all the holes, but am wondering if that will weaken the track too much.

 

[PZ 1]

Once the stud is tightened in the hole it won't be sloppy any more.
I think a stud in a hole is better than an open hole.

 

[alswagg]

We run our studs 1/4 over the height of the lug. I would run the studs you have and add additional studs to balance out the pattern. I like to run 144 studs in a 121 track. This is a V pattern repeating every 4 lugs with an outside stud in every other lug. I would try to reuse the holes, checking tension regulary of the track and the studs. Studs are for safety, much easier to stop and control on groomed and ungroomed trails. Ice is a dangerous situation especially in corners of the trails. Ride with common sence. Al

 

[tripplec]

The OEM track in my Venture which has studs added is very poor in deep snow. 3ft and more its easy to get stuck if you're not really moving. The lugs are way too short to move the sled along even with the long track. Stud would help if you encounter ice in some difficult areas some have come out, pulled through or whatever over the years. If you really over spin the track especially on rocks etc I believe that's where you're ripping the studs out and in doing so risk damaging the heat exchanger which is a really big deal. For snow pack riding and/or deep snow if you can navigate through it. Studs do nothing for you. I use to do a fair bit of lake crossings but the trails are mostly packed snow or power on the packed paths and also do little for you.

If you venture off those well pack sections you'd better be prepared for the worst. Murphy could be lurking just below the snow. I go caught once and only once in 2ft of snow covered slush and was stuck for hours getting out of it.