Initial 2016 VK Pro ii review

[chateaupitsie]

Well pulled the trigger on the VK Pro. Had the tunnel exhaust mod done, added the 11" ski skins, Woody cabide runners, marginal snow kit (set bogie wheels). Had it out today 50 Km's -25 celcius - 34 with wind chill! Added an extra wind screen on windshield.

Pros: lots of power, comfortable and warm sled to ride... Minus the hand and thumb warmers ...more on that below. Ice build up in tunnel very marginal. Handles well on stutter bumps. Lots of storage. Under seat stays warm. Haven't pulled anything with it yet, want to get at least 150kms on it first. Gauges good, readable while driving. Good placement area for gps.

Cons: it is a very heavy sled as folks say!! In short turns- twisty trail it still is tippy compared to the Expy and Renegades. Ski skins extra wide does help. Found the hand and thumb warmers even on highest setting to be cold today. Have to review that! Mirrors,, they don't want to adjust up. Design seems to be poor. Will report back after 100km's .

Initial impression is great sled, will need to get "used" to handling characteristics and style.

 

[BACK COUNTRY YAMAHA]

Your mirrors need to be swapped from left to right common mistake that the dealers make, regarding the tippiness, with the ski skins on the whole carbide including the host bar is on the snow, if you're running ski skins, only thing that I found to work on my 06 pro was the quali pieces cobra heads or the semi aggressive snow trackers . With those installed that sled would rail around corners at high speeds effortlessly. The sled only has a ski stance of 38.4 center to center which is narrow compared to anything else in this class. good to hear you're enjoying the sled! cheers!

 

[chateaupitsie]

Your mirrors need to be swapped from left to right common mistake that the dealers make, regarding the tippiness, with the ski skins on the whole carbide including the host bar is on the snow, if you're running ski skins, only thing that I found to work on my 06 pro was the quali pieces cobra heads or the semi aggressive snow trackers . With those installed that sled would rail around corners at high speeds effortlessly. The sled only has a ski stance of 38.4 center to center which is narrow compared to anything else in this class. good to hear you're enjoying the sled! cheers!

Your mirrors need to be swapped from left to right common mistake that the dealers make, regarding the tippiness, with the ski skins on the whole carbide including the host bar is on the snow, if you're running ski skins, only thing that I found to work on my 06 pro was the quali pieces cobra heads or the semi aggressive snow trackers . With those installed that sled would rail around corners at high speeds effortlessly. The sled only has a ski stance of 38.4 center to center which is narrow compared to anything else in this class. good to hear you're enjoying the sled! cheers!

Thanks. Good suggestions.

 

[chateaupitsie]

Your mirrors need to be swapped from left to right common mistake that the dealers make, regarding the tippiness, with the ski skins on the whole carbide including the host bar is on the snow, if you're running ski skins, only thing that I found to work on my 06 pro was the quali pieces cobra heads or the semi aggressive snow trackers . With those installed that sled would rail around corners at high speeds effortlessly. The sled only has a ski stance of 38.4 center to center which is narrow compared to anything else in this class. good to hear you're enjoying the sled! cheers!

The mirrors, hmm.. Easy fix....will do it.

 

[Katannilik1]

My Pro is a 2010, I have EFI envy but the old carbed version works well enough for up here.
I'm in Kimmirut where are you located?

 

[chateaupitsie]

Kataanilik1 good day! Just got back from a couple of hours rabbit and ptarmigan hunting , one bunny and a ptarmigan. Jeez cold out ther with wind chill -37!! Have a 127km's on it now. Getting used to the sled . Figured out hand and thumb warmers. The 11" inch ski skins helps the tippyness. Put the aggressive woody carbides on ..., and that helps as well. Next step is to tune down shocks from level 1 to 3 and that should help with weight on skis and balance. Will switch the mirrors from left to right as suggested. I'm in Iqaluit. Been in Nunavut since 1983. This is maybe my 12th sled in that time. First 4 stroke. Block heater and battery blanket is a must have. Started her at -28 no problem. The 11inch ski skins are a little goofy to look at......but work. Not much snow around here all blown away. Valleys aren't bad but hillsides are shitty. Side hilling to follow the Lewis Bay trail earlier this week was an adventure!!

 

[Katannilik1]

Good day to you Sir, Glad to hear you are enjoying the new machine, I felt at home on mine as soon as I got it. Yamaha hand warmers are a bugger, take quite some time to warm up but when warm they are super warm, more then once I have frozen the tips of my fingers trying to head out down the trail with the bars still cold. When it's real cold out I put muffs on and then wear those light black leather Bob Dale gloves from The North Mart, real comfy setup and good dexterity. I have debated numerous times about upgrading to the 11" wide skis but I just haven't made it far enough to buy them, let us know if the edges start to turn up from running the tundra AKA rocks my factory skis are showing a good amount, I think this is the main reason I have been so hesitant on buying the wider ones. I love the Stud boy deuce bars on my machine, goes where I point it every time, ice, snow, tundra, whatever. My wife, a buddy and I are heading into the Park tomorrow to do some ptarmigan and bunny hunting, bird hunting been good here so far. The last time out I shot 6 but saw probably 60-70 maybe more, the sound of them flying away was unreal there was that many. Good to hear you got a bird, I know some times they can get a little scarce near Iqaluit. Tomorrow I have to run my Ski Poo(work machine), my buddy is using my Pro and wife is going to run my freshly put together Viper. I hear you about the snow similar situation this way, had a bunch then the wind came up and blew it all down the bay. I have never ran down the Soper lake and Soper river on so much bare ice as I have as this year. My 2010 carbed Pro fired up really well this morning and it wasn't plugged in, surprised me a little. Sidehilling is a treat on these that's for sure mountain strap gets a work out. Keep us updated.

 

[YukonMP]

A questions for Chateaupitsie. Do you have an actual battery blanket that wraps around the battery or one of those flat orange heat pads sometimes called Alaskan Heaters. If the latter, what wattage do you have or dimensions? Thanks.

 

[chateaupitsie]

A questions for Chateaupitsie. Do you have an actual battery blanket that wraps around the battery or one of those flat orange heat pads sometimes called Alaskan Heaters. If the latter, what wattage do you have or dimensions? Thanks.

Yukon good day!!

 

[chateaupitsie]

Yukon good day!! It has Been down to -33 here without windchill . I keep both my sleds in an Uninsulated shed. I have the battery blanket + block heater and the battery tender on it. All of them are hooked up via an outdoor timer . Comes on for 8 hours in cycles of 2 hours. So far so good. I also have the NAPA 400 watt power booster. Keep it under the seat and then take it into cabin. Used it after leaving the sled overnight at -28 at cabin .., 2nd turn and she fired up. The block heater is 5 amp. Battery Blanket is the wrap kind. Got it from my Yamaha dealer here. Both together are probably 11amps, so not much drain . I have them both + the battery tender on same extension cord, does not trip out breaker. Is that helpful?? I can check brand and make at store if you want. Good investment for any 4 stroke at usual regular -20 celcius and below!!

 

[YukonMP]

Thank you. Mine is pretty good to -25C with the inline coolant heater, a booster pack and a hair dryer for 20 mins. Fortunately I can pull it inside an insulated but generally unheated building so I kind of pamper it.

We've had -36C here but no wind. The lake was making an inch of ice per day so things are pretty safe now.

 

[chateaupitsie]

YK have you adjusted fron suspension, i.e. I saw on an earlier post that some VK folks had turned their front suspension down to the 3rd or 4th notch on theshock/spring to get extra weight on the front skis for the stability. Mine came from dealer on the first setting so I was thinking to move to the 3rd notch and see if it made a difference, however the trade off would be a rougher ride.... Any thoughts??

 

[chateaupitsie]

The VK Pro has done 300+ Km's so far in cold, marginal snow conditions. A work out to drive with the 11" skins. Tuned the front suspension down to third notch. More stable. Put two 1/4 inch holes near windshield on dash each side, left and right. Puts some heat on windshield keeps frosting down. Warm sled !

 

[chateaupitsie]

Went to the cabin and overnighted., -38 without a windchill. Windshield still frosts up and is basically useless driving with visibility. Anyone else having this issue? Tried drilling two holes quarter inch diameter to get heat from engine onto the windshield below the dash, but seems to be worse or no better than before! Any suggestions?

 

[chateaupitsie]

Went to the cabin and overnighted., -38 without a windchill. Windshield still frosts up and is basically useless driving with visibility. Anyone else having this issue? Tried drilling two holes quarter inch diameter to get heat from engine onto the windshield below the dash, but seems to be worse or no better than before! Any suggestions?

VK Pro ii 4 stroke sat at the cabin Saturday afternoon fron 3 p.m. To 10a.m. Sunday morning. Without wind chill factor......it was -38.6 !! Generator would not start so couldn't plug it in. Crossed fingers and used the NAPA purchased power pak,to turn it over ........ it started!!! Breathed big sigh of relief. In this cold the suspension hard,, compared to my doo 550f. Rev Xp platform. But gas mileage and brute strength, huge pluses, warm sled to drive. 380 Km's mostly sea ice travel and marginal snow in -30 degree weather without windchill. Windshield heat from engine underhood and side cents near top if hood culprits fir frosting over windshield. Taped up one side vent near- closest to windshield and little difference made.