The Legend UPBushman

[maim]

as long as you are good with it is all that counts. i just finished the maintenece on my phazer on saturday and started on my apex as well as another project sled.

 

[Lebulkhead]

The parts should be here tomorrow. Then I Best Buy that oil filter. Dang it! It just dawned on me, i don't know what kind of oil the original owner used. Regular or synthetic. I use synthetic on my bike (Amzoil) because that's what was in it. I use Mobile 1 in my truck. The truck is from N or S Carolina. It had no block heater or inline. if you use synthetic oil you don't need one. 10 - 20 below it turns over no problem. It has started in temps. Colder than that. N. Mn.
When I replace the filter and drain the tank & block there must be another thread on that. Is there a cross reference on that Yamaha oil filter, like Fram, ac delco? I'm hoping that stock filter is under $20. : )

 

[maim]

i would order a full synthetic yamalube kit as it comes with everything you need for an oil change on the sled. the kits are priced pretty well and i like them. had trouble with off brand oil before, as have others, screwing up starting clutches and one way gears in engine. with the full synthetic it will also start at lower temps better.

 

[blueironranger]

The filter on the Phazer only needs to be changed every 12,000 miles after the first change, about 12-13$ at the Yamaha dealer for one. I’ve been running the Mobil 1 European spec oil in both my sleds.

 

[Lebulkhead]

I think I read some where, probably Snow Tech, that Yamaha used to buy the oil from one of the big three and just had their label on the bottles. Apparently they didn't like what they were seeing , in their testing, oil breaking down etc. so they decided to produce their own oil up to their "standards". Mission accomplished. I used Klotz in my sleds. In the two stroke world it had a smell, you knew what it was.
I found out what oil that was use in the Phazer from the second owner. He was told when he bought it that it was the synthetic-blend. When I bought it I asked if there was any issues or repairs he just said he thought it could use an oil change. Not knowing if the oil was changed at 500 mi. Since I am installing the sloppy steering kit, that oil filter is right there. I might as well. 12 - 13 bucks won't break the bank, fair enough. I think I
am going with the full synthetic YamaLube kit you mentioned Maim. Do they make Phazer kit seeing as it's only a twin. Or will I end up with an extra quart or two?
When I drain the tank along with swapping the filter is that it, done? Or is there still oil in the crank case, and if there is will the full syn blend with the blend?
I mentioned I use Mobile 1 in my truck. The reason I do is because About 4 times a year they have a $12 rebate when you buy 6 quarts. Pretty good deal.
Thanks guys

 

[Gone Blue]

You can get great deals on Yamaha's oil or the oil change kits at the Snow Shows or Heydays if you want to run the Yamaha oil. Yamaha sled oil comes in either a Syn blend (0W-30) or full Syn (0W-40). There are a few guys on here running Mobil 1 European blend because of the additive. I have been just shopping around and try to buy a case of Yamaha oil which I can usually find that works out to like $6 a quart.

I was using the K&N oil filter on my Phazer as the hex on the can makes it a lot easier to replace by just removing the air box. Since it still is some work just removing the air box on a Phazer to get to the oil filter, I was replacing the oil filter every two seasons. Yamaha recommends the filter be replaced every 12,000 miles which is a bunch so even with replacing the filter every 2 seasons I was no where close to that mileage.

As for the oil change, yes, you also need to drain engine oil from the bottom of the crankcase. However, you only pour new oil into the oil tank.

 

[Lebulkhead]

You can get great deals on Yamaha's oil or the oil change kits at the Snow Shows or Heydays if you want to run the Yamaha oil. Yamaha sled oil comes in either a Syn blend (0W-30) or full Syn (0W-40). There are a few guys on here running Mobil 1 European blend because of the additive. I have been just shopping around and try to buy a case of Yamaha oil

You can get great deals on Yamaha's oil or the oil change kits at the Snow Shows or Heydays if you want to run the Yamaha oil. Yamaha sled oil comes in either a Syn blend (0W-30) or full Syn (0W-40). There are a few guys on here running Mobil 1 European blend because of the additive. I have been just shopping around and try to buy a case of Yamaha oil which I can usually find that works out to like $6 a quart.

I was using the K&N oil filter on my Phazer as the hex on the can makes it a lot easier to replace by just removing the air box. Since it still is some work just removing the air box on a Phazer to get to the oil filter, I was replacing the oil filter every two seasons. Yamaha recommends the filter be replaced every 12,000 miles which is a bunch so even with replacing the filter every 2 seasons I was no where close to that mileage.

As for the oil change, yes, you also need to drain engine oil from the bottom of the crankcase. However, you only pour new oil into the oil tank.

 

[Lebulkhead]

Just add oil to the oil tank. Ok. How about that oil plug on the valve cover. I am still a bit puzzled with that one.
Still no sign of the parts from Schmidts Bros. Bummer... It's not like I don't have any other projects to finish. Summer's are short in n.e. Mn. Or should I say ,along the North Shore of Lake Superior.

 

[maim]

glad you are almost done. i am only 2 sleds in on the 10 or so that i have to do this year for pre season/overhaul/mods.

 

[thor452]

Just add oil to the oil tank. Ok. How about that oil plug on the valve cover. I am still a bit puzzled with that one.
Still no sign of the parts from Schmidts Bros. Bummer... It's not like I don't have any other projects to finish. Summer's are short in n.e. Mn. Or should I say ,along the North Shore of Lake Superior.

you can add a half quart of oil through that hole to fill the bottom of the motor if you want to but is not required. that would also be where you could put a little oil if your motor lost its prime and from a roll over and was throwing a code and would not rev up. most people don't do anything with that port on the top of the motor.

 

[Lebulkhead]

The parts showed up today. It is supposed to rain Fri. That will be a good day to get back in the garage.
I noticed the shock springs up front are set to max. Setting. The left spindle/ski is actually bow-legged. Not cool. Both spring are set the same. Unlike trailing arm suspension, I see you cannot adjust the camber on a-arm sleds. Maybe when I adjust the the springs to full soft, the skis will settle in to my weight. The torsion springs are full stiff too. Not sure what the center shock spring is set at. The limiter straps have slack in them. I don't know what to make of that. Still, that left ski and spindle position bugs me.

 

[Lebulkhead]

The instructions that came with Schmidts sloppy steering kit says to grease between the shims, washers and parts too, I suppose. Any suggestions, favorites for this type application?

 

[maim]

holy crap! with rear settings like that it will pogo on the rear and try and swap the back for the front. been there done that. unless you weigh over 300 lb, try it on medium on the torsions and you want the front skid shock spring to be loose enough so that the spring is stiff to turn by hand to start with. the front shocks on mine are set so that the lower arms are almost parallel to the ground. handles pretty good once i figured out that the rear shock clicker was set on max on mine when rebuilt.

 

[Lebulkhead]

Yeah, for a deep snow sled you couldn't possibly set it up worse. Can you say trench. Because that is what your going to get. All day long. With slack in the limiter strap the approach angle is as bad as you can get. Setting on the center shock is tricky in deep snow. On hard pack too. It's hard to picture the suspension working in 3 feet of "fresh" snow. But soft is what works best. A 14" track doesn't help matters any. I know this because my 1st time out west that's how I set up my sled. My thought was, the taller the sled was. The more clearance between the sled and the snow. Duh! Sometimes you have to learn the hard way.

 

[blueironranger]

MTX skid comes with 1700nm torsion springs, a lot softer than the 2100nm on the short track models even on the hard setting. I've run mine at the hard setting since day one to get the proper 3-4" of "sit-in" when I'm on the sled, I'm 200# with riding gear. MTX skid also has a 100# per inch center spring, pretty soft. What make the Phazer trench bad is the horrible attack angle on the track, moving the skid back 3.5" and installing a narrowed up 151" does wonders in powder.