Can't say enough about maintenance on clutching

[Thunder Products]

Just purchased another Sidewinder for the stable. Owner is getting out of snowmobiling as his business is numerous hours of logging in the wintertime.

Sled only has 1,200 miles on it and 60 hours. Got the sled for a great price and it is 100% stock.

Always stored in a trailer and when looking at the sled, the sled is insanely clean! But under the side panels and hood tell a different story. Putting a sled away wet in an enclosed trailer causes so many issues. The clutches, intercooler, the engine and oil tank/chaincase are pure white scale from oxidation. Took a lot of scrubbing and brushing to get it looking new again.

As the title mentions....the clutching is by far the worst and has never been maintained. Here are a few pics (Notice the flat spotted secondary rollers, the bushings walked out of the primary rollers and the wear marks on the weights where the rollers were not turning. The weights show that this sled was driven at slow speeds as the weights are grooved and flat-spotted between the 1st and 2nd rivet. And this sled was trail driven in March of 2021!!!!)

Upon other inspections, the rear suspension has a bolt that broke off of the rear scissor arm and the aluminum rod that goes between the rails just in front of the rear scissor arm is gone. This could have been real bad in the next few miles.

This post is to provide information on what is actually happening to sleds where their owners put sleds away for the spring/summer/fall and think that everything is good to go come winter season.

 

[Crossfire12]

Shitty clutch with just 1200 miles, how would it get like this ?

 

[Thunder Products]

Shitty clutch with just 1200 miles, how would it get like this ?

Just the temps getting cold at night and then warming up during the day. Condensation on the clutches.

 

[72Gran]

Silicone spray prevents the white scale.

 

[jonlafon1]

Seen this on clutches many times.. If you don't store them in a heated garage the clutches ALWAYS look this way. Matter fact I keep my sleds always in heated garage, BUT when I go up to cabin sleds go in and out of trailer and sit outside until I get back home. In just a weeks time I get slight amount of the scaling on the clutches(mostly on the outer sides).
Those rollers have flat spots so bad I can even imagine how it shifted at all!

 

[Thunder Products]

Seen this on clutches many times.. If you don't store them in a heated garage the clutches ALWAYS look this way. Matter fact I keep my sleds always in heated garage, BUT when I go up to cabin sleds go in and out of trailer and sit outside until I get back home. In just a weeks time I get slight amount of the scaling on the clutches(mostly on the outer sides).
Those rollers have flat spots so bad I can even imagine how it shifted at all!

Exactly bud!

 

[72Gran]

Silicone spray. My sleds are stored in non heated garage and I have never experienced white corrosion in 30 years. This goes for every toy I own including ATV and muscle car. I spray everything under the hood not just aluminum. Do not use WD40 it evaporates and will still cause white corrosion.

 

[ssgzag15]

Secondaries didnt have rollers for 50 years, would it be that noticeable?

 

[jonlafon1]

I will take a THREE ROLLER secondary all day every day!

 

[SumpBuster]

I found over the years,keeping the sleds in my warm garage instead of the unheated garage caused more rust,as the snow melts. Staying frozen, no problem. Now I bring them in and completely thaw them several times during the winter, for service, etc.

 

[Motorhead]

Yes agree 100% about putting away wet or laden with snow and into a trailer. Temp warms up during the day and droplets form on inside trailer roof and everywhere else, even under the hood! Condensation gets very thick with melting snow and ice and then freezing, and melting again with more condensation until both the trailer and sled are dry! Have known and seen that many times over with all enclosed unheated trailers. I am fortunate that once home I do have a heated garage to dry my sled and give it a once over before the next race/ride, and I also scrape the floor of my trailer, taking all the ice and snow out that I can, to keep the condensation at a minimal before the next trip.

It’s a very good topic for sure.
Now if I lived on a fast ITS trail and was able to just leave it in my heated garage for thawing, that would be tops!

 

[SumpBuster]

Plus my sleds are never 'put away"...we made a grass drag strip years ago and if I get the urge and the grass is wet, out they come!

 

[sab2022]

So.. the fix is?
Heat your trailer?
I can't fight the weather.

 

[SAB1]

My winder gets stored in trailer, apex as well. My clutches do not look like that. Pretty much look like the day I bought it.

 

[SumpBuster]

I guess whenever they are nice and dry, grease and spray lube everything...blaster, liquid wrench, wd..whatever. I always spray all the ball joints, tie rod ends, skag bolts, I even needle grease the trihub, in the sled. Inspect the clutch, driven, blow out dust..I have one if those tornado detail air pressure guns with simple green to wash out all the nooks and crannies like under the sw tank and running boards...crap like that.