Are SnowTrackers really "Dangerous"?

[bigreis]

I am in the market for some new carbides and in my research have found some reviews (mostly on the HCS Forums) referencing "unpredictable" and "dangerous" behavior of SnowTrackers on "top heavy" sleds like the Apex. I haven't found any comments like this on TY, so I am just wondering if any of you have experienced anything dangerous with the SnowTrackers.

Right now I am torn between the Triple Points and the SnowTrackers... but if the SnowTrackers are going to cause my sled to unexpectedly become unstable, I will probably end up getting the Triple Points. I do mostly aggressive trail riding in MN, so the snow conditions range from complete crap (rocks, gravel, ice, cement and tar) to perfect.

 

[kidastra]

I've had them on my last 2 sleds, rx1 and my attak. I truly believe not having them is dangerous. I feel those accidents were mostly driver error. With trackers, when you turn your steering, you turn instantly with the trackers, no push just grip, it really is like riding on rails. My assumption is with those accidents, driver was expecting push, turned to far and flipped off because the sled turned instead of pushing.

oh plus the 0 darting thing lol

 

[sledheadgeorge]

I have used them for 3 seasons now and they make the skies work. I have the aggressive set on. Just be careful crossing tracks or backing up over stuff. No darting and they make the sled handle great on the stock skies.

 

[kviper]

I've had them on my last 2 sleds, rx1 and my attak. I truly believe not having them is dangerous. I feel those accidents were mostly driver error. With trackers, when you turn your steering, you turn instantly with the trackers, no push just grip, it really is like riding on rails. My assumption is with those accidents, driver was expecting push, turned to far and flipped off because the sled turned instead of pushing.

oh plus the 0 darting thing lol

Correct! There are around a dozen people that rode my sled with Tracker's that now have them and they absolutely love them. Buying ski's to track straight is a wase of money and shimming ski's is a bandaid. I have tried or ridden just about every option there is and the Tracker's are the only thing that follows nothing with no trade off's.

 

[bigreis]

Just be careful crossing tracks or backing up over stuff. No darting and they make the sled handle great on the stock skies.

What exactly do you need to be careful of when crossing tracks or backup up over stuff?

 

[kidastra]

Just be careful crossing tracks or backing up over stuff. No darting and they make the sled handle great on the stock skies.

What exactly do you need to be careful of when crossing tracks or backup up over stuff?

cross at a 45 at slow speeds, most tracks are flush with the road, no issue with those, the ones sticking out can catch the trackers

 

[TBay Sledhead]

I'd say cross as close to 90 as possible.

 

[kidastra]

this is from the website
Attention when crossing railroad tracks, make sure that you stop before the tracks, then cross your skis over the tracks perpendicularly, facing the tracks, and at speeds of LESS THAN 10 KM/PH

 

[brada]

cross at a 45 at slow speeds, most tracks are flush with the road, no issue with those, the ones sticking out can catch the trackers

this is from the website
Attention when crossing railroad tracks, make sure that you stop before the tracks, then cross your skis over the tracks perpendicularly, facing the tracks, and at speeds of LESS THAN 10 KM/PH

Perpendicularly means at a 90* angle, not at a 45.

 

[yamaha convert]

I am in the market for some new carbides and in my research have found some reviews (mostly on the HCS Forums) referencing "unpredictable" and "dangerous" behavior of SnowTrackers on "top heavy" sleds like the Apex. I haven't found any comments like this on TY, so I am just wondering if any of you have experienced anything dangerous with the SnowTrackers.

Right now I am torn between the Triple Points and the SnowTrackers... but if the SnowTrackers are going to cause my sled to unexpectedly become unstable, I will probably end up getting the Triple Points. I do mostly aggressive trail riding in MN, so the snow conditions range from complete crap (rocks, gravel, ice, cement and tar) to perfect.

I have aggressive snow trackers on both my 2007 Apex and 2007 Attack.
Being new to the sport I always found the steering on snowmobiles to be somewhat unpredictable and not exactly confidence building coming into and exiting corners.
The first sleds I bought were a 2001 Artic Cat ZR800 and a 2002 ZL600. They steered and rode reasonably well for a novice.
I remember buying my first 2007 Apex and taking it for a ride. What a disappointment it was to steer. The ACats I had were far better.
I swapped the Apex runners out for some duallies. Made the world of difference at that point in time, but they didn't last very long. After reading all the reviews I bought aggressive snow trackers for both my Apex and Attack. The first set lasted some 3000 miles on the Apex. I didn't pay enough attention to the runner and it wore down the runner as well as the stamped steel plate on the Apex. I measured the steel plate and it was close to the height of a semi aggressive snow tracker so this time around on the Apex I ordered replacement runner only and I have the semi aggressive snow trackers on the Apex.
These runners give you 100% confidence going into and exiting any corner. The only time they don't is when the trail conditions aren't quite right, or if you have too much ice.
Between the 2 sleds I have some 7-8K miles on snow trackers. I have had multiple people ride them and just had my brother come over and ride my Attack. I had a spare set of duallies on the Attack that came with it when I bought it, and I was using them late last season as my snow trackers had worn out. Whilst I was comfortable riding with them myself, having a novice on my sled this year I made sure I bought another set of trackers. They are the only runners I trust now, especially with someone new on the sled. That's how good they are.
I can tell you there was no discernible difference that I could notice between the semi aggressive and aggressive trackers on my Apex. They both steer excellent.
When my aggressive trackers wore the center runner, they wore the rear of the runner considerably more than the front. I put some shims in to help and the runners on the Attack now have almost 4000 miles. Rather than use plastic shims, I made some stainless shims that I riveted to the bottom of spindle and this way the ski rubber works as per normal. By this I mean the shim doesn't embed itself into the rubber like some do, as the shim I made covers the whole area that the rubber would normally contact on the spindle. Here is the link to a post I made explaining how I added my shims http://www.ty4stroke.com/viewtopic.php? ... t=#1058886
Hope this helps

 

[steiner]

The only dangerous thing about Snowtrackers is you may find yourself driving faster in the trails because they make the steering very smooth.
I installed a set on a buddy's sled last season. He called me a week later and called me bad names. When I asked what the issue was he said that now when he criuses the ditch trails he finds himself going 80--90mph where as before he was going at around 65mph.
This was due to the smooth and low steering effort the Snowtrackers had on this front heavy Attak.

 

[newfie09xtx]

I have box liner cut 8 inches wide in my trailer for ski guides. Is this going to work with snowtrackers or are they going to hook in?

 

[yamahas]

yea it will work.

 

[Murse]

I bought my sled with semi aggressive trackers and they did not have enough bite for me but no darting and no steering effort. I went with aggressive the is a 2 inch longer carbide I was afraid of too much bit. I was so happy the sled now handles amazing in all snow conditions hard packed and loose I tried it all and LOVE the trackers. I can stay on the Rmotions #*$&@ all day now. Very happy customer, just be careful when loading on trailer or reversing sometimes they do catch in those circumstances but I have never had any issues elsewhere.

 

[bigreis]

Thanks for all of the responses guys! I just placed an order for the SnowTrackers and I hope to have my love affair with the Apex reignited this weekend!

My brother just upgraded from an '02 Viper to a '14 MXZ x 800 last week and this will be the first weekend out with him on his new sled... I just hope he doesn't embarrass me too much