Poor handling 06 Apex GT.

[NLP_Sled _Guy]

Last spring I bought a used 06 Apex GT. It was in pretty good shape. Needed both driver bearings. But I went thru pretty much everything. From donuts to valves, to all shocks rebuilt, all bearing and rebuilt rear skid. The entire suspension is all set back to stock except for the rear spring preload for my weight, about 230 lbs. Length of the rear spring is at just over 10 inches and shows about an inch and a half of travel as directed on this site. I have added a brand new set of C&A RZ skis with shaper bars. About 5mm toe out. New stock type track.

I have taken it out a couple of rides to try a few setup changes. Mainly the front spring preload and the coupling rod settings. Both back to stock currently.

The sled is a nightmare to drive. Darting and sliding under both acceleration and deceleration. Simply letting off the throttle causes the back to start coming around. It’s super loose in the rear. It’s all so messy that I can’t tell if the darting is caused by the rear jumping around or the front end. I imagine studs would help but that shouldn’t be needed to have a decent handling sled. If you pin the throttle it spins till you left off. Control rod is centered. Adding transfer to about 3/4 if helps acceleration but nothing for handling. Limiter strap is stock and has slack sitting on the ground.

What am I missing? Is this normal for this sled? I also have a 136 03 RX1 with all the same work but Simmons skis. It’s actually a pretty good handling sled. Yes, it’s noticeably better handling than an RX1.

 

[pdiddy]

Snowtracker runners should take care of the darting. If the snow is loose like it is here in ME spinning and sliding is gonna be an issue for everyone.

 

[steiner]

First thing you need to do is get a Big Boy spring for the rear shock. Stock spring is only good for 160.
Just to confirm , front springs are set to "0" pre load with the front end suspended, Limiter strap is in the second last hole and the transfer rod gap is about 1.5" ?